Au Village de Menard

My wife and I stayed at the Village de Menard for four nights in February on the second leg of our Guadeloupe, Marie Galante and Martinique holiday. We arrived mid-morning having caught the early express ferry from Point-a-Pitre. We received a warm welcome from the site manager - arriving so early we were unable to check in but we could store our luggage and go out to explore the island. We enjoyed lunch in the onsite restaurant - ‘L’Oceanite’ before returning to reception and having a brief tour of the facilities and our accommodation.||We had a traditional island one bedroom bungalow, brightly painted in orange and white. The internal space comprised a large living area with a kitchenette at the end. Furnishings were basic and not particularly comfortable - a bed settee with a day bed and a low table in the living area, and four tall stools at the breakfast bar. The kitchen had a three ring halogen stove with a full sized oven. There was a reasonably sized fridge / freezer, a microwave, coffee maker and a kettle. There were sufficient pots and pans, crockery and cutlery to prepare a meal. In the bedroom there was a double bed provided with a blanket, rather than a duvet, and pillows. It was a reasonably comfortable bed with a supportive mattress. The bed was surrounded by mosquito netting supported on a frame. There were shutters on most of the windows which did a good job in excluding the light. Outside there was a sun lounger as well as a table with four chairs for relaxing al fresco. ||The shower room had a hand held and a rainfall shower head. The water was only tepid at best, relying on solar heating with the water stored in a tank on the roof meaning the pressure was low.||There was a safe in the wardrobe, operated by key, for which there was a 20 euro deposit. To cool the property there was a fan in the living area and an air conditioning unit in the bedroom.||We found the property to be rather idiosyncratic- there were minor inconveniences where there had been a lack of thorough maintenance, such as with a loose toilet seat. Disturbingly, there was no smoke detector in the property which worried us, although one was ultimately sourced for us the next day after it was brought to the attention of the site manager. There is very little usable wifi - none in the bungalows and only the weakest response (and sometimes none here either) by the reception office. We had intermittent power cuts on one day which meant we could not have hot drinks at breakfast. ||It should be noted that the nearest shops are in Saint Louis, some 15 minutes drive away. There is a small supermarket which closes for a lengthy period in the middle of the day. We found it poorly stocked which made self-catering problematic.||The grounds are attractive and we made use of the swimming pool on a couple of occasions. The site management was always as helpful as possible within the limits of what could be done to assist us. I was particularly grateful to her when she let me phone my bank in the UK when I discovered my credit card had been used fraudulently. This enabled me to have peace of mind to know that the matter was resolved.

Aside from the interior decor of the cabins which is a little sad, i really enjoyed village de menard. Lovely gardens, colourful cabins, breakfast by the pool and most of all, lots of peace!, make this a great place to relax. Since you need a car to get to restaurants - most of which were closed during our stay... - it's convenient to have a small kitchen and ustensils to cook your own meals. The beautiful plage du vieux fort as just minutes away (by car). Very friendly staff, reception upgraded us to a larger cabin for free. Would definitely stay here again.

We were booked into another hotel whose refurbishment overran, hence we were transferred here. It is located in a rural area and the outlook is very pleasant. Unfortunately the restaurant and the swimming pool were closed when we arrived and without transport it is an isolated location. The young man in charge managed to find some salad and a few beers and a bottle of rum to sell to us so we were able to settle down and enjoy the evening on the porch. He also managed to arrange delivery of a hire car the next day which was a life saver. We were then able to explore the island on our last day. It is a delightful island, and we wished we had booked for more than the two days. The accommodation is basic but offers a good bed, shower and a kitchen area. We spent our evenings on the porch and enjoyed the tranquility. You must have transport here and provisions if you do not want to go out to eat. There was not much open on the island when we were there.

Have been to Marie Galante 3 times staying in several places, usually near Grand Bourg. Tried le village de Ménard last time and found that it was a very charming place. The restaurant is very good, you should definitely eat there at least once. People outside will book to spend an evening there. Nice swimming-pool. The bungalows could do with a bit of revamping but they are very clean and convenient. I will definitely go back there.

In love with simple yet efficient places, We all felt instantly at home when we arrived in our fully equipped bungalows: air con, terrace with a kitchenette, inside bathroom... The place offers bungalows for 2 to 6 people.||The entire family works from reception to the restaurant to provide an excellent service! ||The restaurant reached more than our expectations. Their ENORMOUS breakfast largely compenses the fact the restaurant does not offer lunches. Plus it reopens for the evening service.||+++|You have to try the Planteur cocktail.|Being from Guadeloupe, the restaurant offers the 2nd best Planteur I have ever had (1st place being held by my cousin 😁)

There are some really great things about the Village of Menard. The negatives tend to be in the details, but there are so many of them that they really add up quickly.||||The location is somewhat remote, but of course, that is why I chose Marie Galante. The beaches are not too far, but you definitely need a car. ||||The bungalows themselves are arranged around the pool. We rented one of the bigger ones... a 2 bedroom which is situated at the extreme end of the property. While they advertise that the bungalows are all set in a tropical garden, this is not true of the 2 bdr we rented! It was set in what can only be described as dry, "anywheresville" scrub brush. ||||The patio is generous in size and has a big plastic table. Great for family meals. Terrible for lounging around after the kids are in bed. Honestly, I can't understand how the owner could have overlooked buying one piece of comfortable furniture to sit out and enjoy the outdoors. It is also poorly sheltered from the rain, so one must come in when the weather turns bad.||||The kitchen was basic and had just enough equipment to get by but not to really enjoy. For example, there is no spatula and only one pot. There is absolutely no area to store food, either. The garbage bin had ill-fitting bags, which seems like a small detail, but as I said, these small things really add up. The garbage in the bathroom couldn't be opened at all.||||The bedrooms were of good size and set far enough away from the other bungalows to be private and quiet. However, one was missing a curtain and the other the curtain was broken and couldn't be lifted. The closets were OK but the doors were heavy and couldn't be easily opened or closed... we just reached around them.||||The pool area was nice and the kids loved it. However, if you have young kids keep in mind that it is not secure. Also the walkway to our bungalow consisted of broken patio stones which need immediate repair.||||Another safety note, check for the big can of insecticide left at toddler level as soon as you enter the bungalow. Yikes. And teach young ones how to identify (and not to touch) centipedes when travelling these islands... enough said.||||The bathrooms were clean and basic, no bath. I didn't like that it was a hand-held shower with nowhere to hook it up and have a proper shower.||||To sum it up, I'd say that it was a tidy, big property with lots of privacy but an aggravating lack of attention by the owner.

Pretty cottages hidden in the north of Marie Galante. The place is nice but a bit windy, in front of the Alizé. Cottages are nice looking but not really functional. Overall the location has pretty viewpoints but will require a half hour road trip to go to towns like Grand-bourg or Capesterre.

Going to Marie Galante is like going back to the sixties. Life is relaxed and though the internet exists it is nor all around you. The simple island life is great to relax and except a few mosquitos it is one of the best small islands I know - and it has three rum distilleries..||It should not be difficult to keep up some standards - but which one? We all take our vacations used to our own standards and forget sometimes to lower them to destination level. In case of the Village de Menard that is what one should do: just reset your expectations to the sixties and you will be ok. As a student I was used to crap housing so when the kitchen window fell out I was not surprised; neither that the bathroom window cannot be closed so all insects have free entry, the ventilator does not work, the airco makes noise and when its in the mood some cold air and the surroundings are a building site.. But it's all part of the package - sipping a tea punch in the evening and looking at the birds makes it all good. One tip: avoid the restaurant.. anyone who is trying to serve a foie gras on a tropical island must be out of his mind.