Review: Club Med Ermitage in Vittel, France

It is June 2021.

And we decided book a midweek getaway in France.

At the Club Med Ermitage golf resort in Vittel located the Vosges mountains.

We like Club Med holidays.

We pack our bags, throw everything in the booth of our car.

And off we go, direction France.

After a 5 hour drive from Antwerp, and a short lunch stop in Nancy we arrive at the hotel.

Club Med Ermitage

The entire building looks quite impressive and interesting.

It was designed by French architect Fernand Cesar from Nancy, and requested by the wealthy Bouloumié family.

General Alexander Patch used L’Ermitage as his headquarters in October 1944 at the end of WWII.

Although the hotel has been renovated and redecorated a few times, you can still find prominent Art Deco elements, especially inside.

Video

We made a video of our stay at Club Med Ermitage.

You can watch it here:

Parking

There is a large private parking in front of the hotel.

Parking fee costs €10 per day.

We stayed for 6 days and were offered a 1 week parking fee for €38.

If you don’t want to pay for a parking spot, there is space enough to park your car along the avenue leading up to the hotel.

Reception

We park our car, get our luggage out and walk up to the hotel entrance.

The reception is on your left when you walk in.

The friendly young lady behind the counter greets us. She checks us in, gives us some information about the hotel and the surroundings. We also receive white ribbons with the Club Med logo to tie around our wrist.

We get our room keys and are told that our luggage will be taken up to our room so we can go grab a drink at the bar and explore the hotel if we like.

Great idea!

Room

We get room 105 on the first floor.

It is a Deluxe Room with a separate sitting room.

To do so, 2 rooms have been turned into one: room 105 and the adjacent room 106. The small hallway gives acces to 3 doors: the sitting room on the left, a private toilet, and the bedroom on the right.

Both rooms are spacious and decorated with purple accents.

Both rooms are located on the side of the hotel looking out onto a lawn and a bit further the avenue leading up to the hotel.

Bedroom

The bedroom is quite spacious.

The bed is large as well and quite comfortable. On each side is a bedside table. Also on each side is a white fitted wardrobe.

Also in the room: a desk, comfortable chairs, a flatscreen TV and 2 glasses together with a large bottle of Vittel still water (restocked daily).

The bedroom looks nicely decorated.

However it is very old. The wardrobes, doors, door handles. It all is decades old by the looks of it.

Worn down, tired, even with a fresh layer of bright purple paint, modern headboard and funky curtains and carpet.

The Club Med Ermitage is an old building and that is impossible to hide.

The cleaning ladies are doing a great job though, our room was aways spotlessly clean.

What we did not realise is that this bedroom is located right above the bar and stage area.

Until we went to bed the first night.

We normally participate in the after dinner entertainment, however due to the pandemic we were not too keen on staying in the bar area where people were dancing and singing. The music would usually last until 11:45pm. Again, we are usually the last ones leaving the bar at night. Evening entertainment is just part of the Club Med atmosphere.

However if you never stay up late, ask for a room a couple of floor higher and on the other side of the hotel.

Bathroom

The ensuite bathroom has a funny shape.

You can clearly see that it used to be 2 bathrooms.

One bathroom with sink only for room 106. And another bathroom with bath and sink for room 105.

The tiles are old fashioned but give the bathroom its own character.

That said, it is again impossible to hide how old it really is.

The sinks are probably vintage by now.

We suppose that 2 old bedside tables are now used to store your bathroom stuff.

The soap, bath products and towels are great though.

And again, this bathroom is old but very clean again.

Sitting Room

Our spacious sitting room is a remodelled old bedroom.

The only things that remind you of that are the number 105 on the door, the fitted wardrobes on both sides of the desk where the bed used to sit and the door towards the bathroom.

The chairs and couch are comfortable.

Next to the couch is a coffee corner with kettle, 2 cups, instant coffee and tea bags.

We used this room mainly to work in the morning before going down to eat breakfast.

Lounge

A hallway leads you from the Club Med Ermitage reception area straight to the lounge area.

Before you reach it, the Art Deco staircase on your left is a real eye catcher.

The lounge area consists of comfortable couches and chairs where you can enjoy a cup of coffee during the day. A huge TV screen was placed against the wall to watch the 2021 UEFA European Championship at night.

Le Birdie Bar

On the left side of the lounge area is the Birdie bar.

It is opened from 9am until midnight.

This is where the evening entertainment happens.

There are 2 rooms: the bar and sitting area, and next to it another sitting area with a stage where you can enjoy live music and karaoke.

You can enjoy fresh coffee all day long from the coffee machine in the corner, no need to ask at the bar.

Right in between the lounge and bar area are a couple of tables that are set up practically all day with small bites to eat. Breakfast pastries for early birds, and late risers when the breakfast shift is over, sweet snacks (cakes, pies and fruits) in the afternoon and small savory pre dinner appetizers an hour before the restaurant reopens.

Balcony

At the back of the Club Med Ermitage hotel is a stunning balcony.

When the weather allows it, the tables are set up to enjoy your breakfast, lunch and dinner outside in the sun.

Which is fabulous, overlooking the green golf courts.

The restaurant is right next door, so you don’t need to walk miles before you get to your table.

A great place to sit and sip a glass of wine or a cup of coffee in the afternoon as well.

Restaurant

Like we already mentioned…

For us Club Med stands for excellent food. But did the Club Med Ermitage really live up to our expectations?

Yes!

Considering the pandemic and the necessary measures that were taken in the restaurant, our bellies still had a great time. We were pampered and didn’t want for anything more or else.

Even the red, white and rosé table wines were very decent. You’d think that it goes without saying, good wines in France or in a French resort. However we have been to several Club Meds where the wine was of a very poor quality.

Breakfast, lunch and dinner were moments to look forward to.

Highlights were the seafood night with fresh oysters chucked on the spot, all you can eat.

Splendid.

The only times we were let down in the restaurant was when a portion of mussels was way overcooked and inedible. The egg station in the morning was often in disarray with staff not being alert. Sending orders to the wrong tables. Or just forgetting about our orders all together.

Other than that, the French style food was amazing and of great quality.

The restaurant consists of several separate station each with their own specialty.

For breakfast that would be fresh crunchy breads and pastries, fruits, cheese and cold cuts, salads, cereal, eggs, waffles, pancakes, coffee and tea.

Lunch and dinner works in a similar way: stations with desserts, cheese and cold cuts, breads, salad bar, a variety of starters, soups. Mains were always courses cooked on the spot with fish, meat and a vegetarian option. Pasta and pizza were also available. Red, white and rosé wine, draft beer, water and soft drinks as much as you like.

Watch our video above to get a better idea of the restaurant area!

When the weather is great, you can sit outside to enjoy your food whether it is breakfast, lunch or dinner.

We stayed for 6 days, which means that we tried a bunch of food here. It would be total overkill to post each and every meal here.

That’s why we made a small selection just to give you an idea.

Garden

At the back of the Club Med Ermitage hotel is plenty of space to enjoy the sun.

Sun loungers under the trees, chairs and tables are set up.

This area is also used once a week to organise a pre dinner party with drinks, live cooking and live music.

Golf resort

We do not play golf.

However Club Med Ermitage has been a popular golf spot for years.

The greens are kept spotlessly clean, staff work seemingly non stop to maintain the lawns with lots of care.

There are 3 golf courses: Mont Saint Jean (18 holes), Le Peulin (18 holes) and L’ile verte (9 holes).

The Golf Caddie Master office is right next to the Club Med Ermitage hotel.

It is the place to go to book a game of golf, rent carts, caddies and clubs or book golf lessons.

There are changing rooms and lockers at the -1 level of the hotel, close to the golf office.

Shop

Also at level -1 underneath the balcony is the Club Med Ermitage boutique, called the pro shop.

On sale mainly clothes (from comfortable to smart casual), classic golf attire and accessories such as hats, caps, bags and jewellery.

Swimming pool

Club Med Ermitage doesn’t have its own swimming pool.

Clients are welcome to use the indoor and outdoor swimming pools that are located in the same park at a 15 minute walk from Club Med Ermitage next to the gym.

When you check into the hotel, you get 2 pool towel tickets along with your room keys.

You can exchange those tickets at the swimming pool entrance desk for towels.

No need to reserve a space or lounger.

There is a small bar next to the pool where you can get free drinks if you are a Club Med customer, that’s where the white wrist band comes in handy.

Entertainment

The entertainment starts at 19u in the bar with live music while you enjoy a couple of pre dinner drinks and appetizers while you wait for the restaurant to open for dinner at 19:15pm.

The dress code at Club Med Ermitage is casual smart. If you like, each night has its own theme you can dress up for.

Themes can be colors (such as black and white, or red), gala and 30’s. Not everyone follows the themes, you can wear whatever you like.

After dinner there is live music, karaoke and dancing in the back of the bar until midnight.

Wifi

There is free wifi at Club Med Ermitage.

However it is quite weak at times, mainly in our room and in the restaurant.

You can purchase a business wifi package at the reception that provides much faster internet access. We did since we work online and the wifi worked very well.

Would we go back to the Club Med Ermitage?

As much as we liked our stay here, we feel like it would be much better if the place was renovated again.

The manager told us that renovations are planned in the upcoming months, however only for the lounge and balcony area. The rooms could to with a proper revamp, new bathrooms, doors and wardrobes. Another fresh layer of paint and new furniture isn’t enough.

We’ll keep an eye on the Club Med Ermitage and any news about future renovations.

Would we recommend the Club Med Ermitage?

If you are an avid golf player, and love good food then this is a great place.

Pros

• great food
• beautiful location
• very friendly staff

Cons

• old rooms
• weak free wifi

Address

Club Med Ermitage
Gilbert Trigano Avenue
88800 Vittel
France

You can book here: Club Med Ermitage

We paid for our stay at Club Med Ermitage and didn’t get or ask anything in return for this review.