September 2023. Oriol and I are flying to Toulouse for a road trip in Occitania and (French) Catalonia. We include the Principality of Andorra, which I can finally tick off the bucket list, and Llívia, Spain‘s exclave in France. Besides Toulouse we visit Mont-Louis, Villefranche-de-Conflent, Perpignan and Carcassonne.

Adjacent to Boulevard Wilson and on the edge of the Perpignan historic centre is located the Dali Hôtel, named after Salvador Dalí, who called Perpignan Railway Station the centre of the world. 

Reception

Reception was a bit chaotic. It was crowded, and the front desk attendant was alone. During our stay the Visa pour l’image photo journalism festival was on and that’s a big thing in Perpignan, so it seemed. The hotel was full of Canon people. 

But the attendant was friendly. 

We called in advance for a parking spot, but parking was full. So we parked at a Q Park nearby. 

The room

The room is standard. Two separate beds, a desk and chair, coffee and tea facilities, air conditioning, several power outlets and USB sockets. The room is nothing really special, but nothing to complain about. 

Except WiFi, which often didn’t connect. They had issues with connection. Why do hotel WiFi systems where you need to enter room number and last name always s*ck? 

The bathroom

Shower and toilet, one sink. Fine. But the soap dispenser were not nicer than a soap dispenser in a public bathroom or gym or office. Come on, this is a four-star hotel. 

There was one soap dispenser in the shower. One. Dali doesn’t differentiate hand soap, shower gel and shampoo. It feels like a 3-in-1 soap you can buy at discounter supermarkets marketed for men. 

Does Dali Hôtel only have heterosexual males as customers?

Bistro

Dali Hôtel has a bistro, where we had supper on the first night. The menu is more traditional for a hotel bistro and the staff was friendly. The waiter took our order first before a big group so we didn’t have to wait. How thoughtful! 

The gym

While small, badly ventilated and extremely hot and without free weights, the gym was at least open 24/7. That’s a rare occurrence. But boy it was boiling hot down there. It felt like the Singapore Grand Prix (I’m writing this review after watching the F1 race).

There were many water bottles though. So that’s nice.

Breakfast

Breakfast is served on the rooftop terrace. Well, on top of the ground floor to be exact. That’s nice in summer. There are low tables and high tables.

The offering is pretty standard. Bread, cold cuts, cereals, coffee, milk and tea, juices, warm options, pastries, yoghurts, fruit. A few cheeses only.

And again, as in Toulouse, no baguette! What is it with French hotels? I want standard white baguette. Is that too much to ask for?

The breakfast offering is okay but did not really vary on day 2. Breakfast was not included in our rate and cost 20 euros per person, per breakfast. Not cheap but not expensive. 

So?

Dali Hôtel is not a bad hotel but has a few issues as described above. Dali Hôtel felt like a Mercure and we’re over Mercure.

I would not especially recommend it to anyone. It’s too standard and generic to stand out. For me, when someone asks for a recommendation, the hotel or restaurant or whatever must be worth a special mention. 

2023 Occitania – Andorra – Catalonia Road Trip

1. TOULOUSE-BLAGNAC AIRPORT | Arrival, ID check, car rental and unusually strict security at departure.
2. REVIEW | Novotel Toulouse Purpan Aéroport.
3. Circuit Andorra.
4. HOTEL REVIEW | Eurostars Andorra.
5. REVIEW | Caldea hot spring spa and treatments in Andorra la Vella.
6. Andorra la Vella & Escaldes–Engordany.
7. QUEER ANDORRA | Entre Nous, the only gay bar in the village.
8. ANDORRA PARLIAMENT HOUSE | Casa de la Vall.
9. Andorra.
10. Llívia, Spain’s exclave in France.
11. LE TRAIN JAUNE TERRITORY | Mont-Louis and Villefranche-de-Conflent.