Harold W
Google
We stayed at the Hotel Castel de la Pique for two nights in September 2016. The hotel is run by an older couple who couldn't be more friendly and helpful. The hotel feels more like a bed and breakfast, probably because it was a mansion in one of its previous lives. The gentleman speaks very good English, but his wife speaks only French. But she is more than happy to converse, regardless of which language you speak. We had a room on the upper floor that was on the back side of the hotel. It was a basic room with a bathroom in one corner. The room had one larger bed and two twin beds. Our bed was pretty hard for our tastes. The view of the mountains from the room was wonderful. A small river runs past the back of the hotel, so we constantly heard the soothing sounds of the river. The hotel has no elevator, but the large staircase is easy to navigate.||||I had a bout of "traveler's lament" (think the D word) one night while there. After my wife asked the gentleman about the local pharmacies, his wife immediately offered her own proven cure: pastis, slugged back like a shot of whiskey. I drank it, went back to bed for a couple hours, woke up and had no further problems! I am now a believer in the folk remedies of France.||||Parking is free and is directly in front of the hotel. It is set back off the road and down a little driveway, so you will have to look for the hotel's sign up by the road. It is located a very short walk from the town's main street.||||Bagneres-de-Luchon is a wonderful mountain town with numerous restaurants, bakeries, bars, cheese shops, charcuterie shops and more. The surrounding area is stunningly beautiful with many opportunities for hiking, cycling and driving. We decided that we could have easily stayed there for a week. We drove all around the area and even briefly crossed over into Spain. For those who love driving the winding mountain roads of France, this is prime territory. The area has endless curvy roads with numerous switchbacks. If you like waterfalls, the area has quite a few to see.