Hotel Review: Jules Cesar Hotel Arles

The Jules Cesar Hotel Arles is one of only few luxury hotels in the charming French city. In this extensive review, we’ll show you what to expect of staying here.

If you are looking for stylish boutique hotels with a luxury touch, you usually can’t go wrong with the MGallery Collection by Sofitel. For example, I had really great stays at properties like the Cour du Corbeau Straßbourg or the 5 Terres Hotel Barr.

• Classification: Five Stars
• Room Category: Superior Room
• Month of Stay: April

Thus, it was a given to also try the only MGallery Hotel in Arles, the Jules Cesar Hotel Arles. Yet, I wasn’t totally flashed by the hotel, which is actually an old cloister that was renovated in 2014, designed by famous designer Christian Lacroix. One aspect that definitely is good is the hotel’s central location in the city. From the Jules Cesar Hotel it’s just a five to ten-minute walk to most attractions in the charming old town of Arles. However, be aware that the hotel is not actually located in old town.

Rooms at the Jules Cesar Hotel

Usually, I’m a fan of combining historic elements with a modern approach, but somehow I didn’t have a good impression of the Superior Room I got at the Jules Cesar Hotel Arles.

After a small entrance area, you can find the sparsely furnished room to the right. It’s rather tiny and only comes with a small bed and two nightstands of sorts.

The bed as such is fairly comfortable, but could have used an additional pillow and maybe some elements of color or at least a headboard.

On the side wall, there’s also a large wooden wardrobe next to a totally random chair.

Opposite of bed there’s a rather typical set-up with a desk and the flat-screen television above.

The desk per se, while on the small side, is decent for working. There’s also a coffee machine here.

Sadly, there’s once again a lack of a proper chair as there’s just a stool right below the working desk. Plus, in the corner there’s yet another random chair with no proper purpose (or comfort).

The view from the small window really wasn’t anything great either, which is particularly sad in such a charming city. At least, it was relatively quiet in the room.

While I didn’t like the room, the bathroom made a much better impression on me as it was nicely designed.

After entering, there’s immediately the toilet, while the main bathroom follows.

There’s a single sink with limited storage, but it comes with a stylish design.

Right by the window (daylight!) there’s an amazing walk-in shower with good water pressure.

Nevertheless, I would have expected a lot more of staying at the Hotel Jules Cesar Arles. The room just felt blend and the furniture is rather missmatched, in my opinion.

Breakfast at the Hotel Jules Cesar Arles

Sadly, the rather average impressions continue at breakfast, which is served at the hotel’s restaurant, where a medium-sized buffet is set-up.

There’s a nice looking fruit station, but the cut fruits taste more like they are coming from a can than being freshly cut.

The small selection of cold cuts, cheeses and salmon is quite good though.

The bakery corner is fine as well with a good quality (as you would expect in France).

There is also a tiny selection of rather bland hot dishes (scrambled eggs and bacon).

All in all, an okay breakfast. Particularly with other properties in France like the Hotel Molitor Paris or the Hotel de la Cite Carcassonne offer fantastic breakfast and really high quality.

Recreation at the Jules Cesar Hotel Arles

The recreation facilities could be one of the highlights of staying at the Jules Cesar Hotel Arles as there is a really nice spa.

However, there is an extra charge to use the sauna, jacuzzi and recreation area, which is a shame.

What you can enjoy free of charge is either the tiny (but modern) gym and the charming inner courtyard.

For stays in summer, there’s also a swimming pool, which looked rather sad during my spring stay.

This area hasn’t left me totally disappointed, but I still expected more.

Overall impressions of the Jules Cesar Hotel Arles

I’m a big fan of the MGallery Collection by Sofitel, but the Jules Cesar Hotel Arles definitely was the least appealing of the hotels I’ve stayed at so far. The property comes with a rather unique design, but I feel like it doesn’t hit people’s taste (look at the TripAdvisor ratings). Furthermore, neither breakfast nor recreation were fantastic either. I wouldn’t say that the hotel is not worth staying at, but you should definitely be aware of what to expect before booking.

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