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The Dar Cherait Tozeur in Depth Hotel Review
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Myself and Hajer with some guests stayed at the hotel Dar Cherait Tozeur for two nights so that my friends could experience the fantastic south of Tunisia.
Getting there
Finding the hotel is simplicity itself as it is located in the middle of the “zone touristique” on the main route. If you have a problem finding the hotel simply ask as it is one of the most famous hotels in Tozeur. Once you arrive you can usually park in the front of the hotel though space is limited which we found a couple of times when we returned to the hotel during the evening after nipping out.
View Larger Map
The Hotel
When you arrive at the hotel is it feels like the name suggests that you have been invited to a large private house as the front is both elegant unassuming and welcoming. This extends to the entrance and the sumptuous lobby area you are immediately struck with the attention to detail and the craftsmanship of the hotel however be aware that this is not the typical Tunisian style and is more of a Arabic palace generically which I am sure experts would say was more Moroccan/Syrian given the opulence an dark woods used. This however is nit picking as my guests where well impressed and felt like they where staying with the Bay of Tunis.
Checking in
The reception is located to the right once inside the hotel and checking in was straightforward aside from the small fact that we thought the hotel was 78 euro per room per night for a four star (as on some websites) only to find that the hotel was 5 star and actually more like this per person ooof. Having driven from Bizerte I took the beating and paid out though please hold this in mind when you book.
Check in was smooth after this and and I departed now skint to the rooms.
The Rooms
You walk from reception though some lovely halls with art and little coves, which Sara loved and this opens up into lovely courtyards where coloured tiles reach up the three floors of rooms. This everyone agreed was lovely though we did note that disabled access to the lower floor was seemingly non existent (we had a pram) so please hold this in mind when booking this hotel.
Given the fantastic communal areas we felt a little underwhelmed when we reached the bedrooms themselves. We had a triple room for the boys and a double for me Hajer and Sara.
The Triple: Three queen size doubles in a large room with patio the beds looked a bit old as did the furniture inside the room along with the television. Given the hotels antiquated style it gets away with this if you where staying in a modern hotel you would not be satisfied with this at the cost we paid.
The toilets where in an old style with nice tiles which fitted in with the ethos of the hotel but did not offer anything opulent or unique for the price range.
The Double: This room featured a tile clad plinth on which the bed stood which was hard but comfortable this initially had a better impression than the free standing beads in the triple room a metal cot was provided however it was missing an end to it which made it to dangerous to use for our active baby*
The bathroom again featured nice tiles and was large with a powerful shower nice but not as spectacular as the hotel outside the room.
Both rooms featured air conditioning but not excellent units and I found it difficult to get the room really cold.
* An important thing we noticed about the rooms is that given the style there are a lot of hard edges to surfaces near the bed and in the bathrooms the double beds in particular featured a base which was tiled which a step that I slipped on and supped my toes at least 5 times during my stay this may be a concern to those with small children, elderly or clumsy like myself.
Outside
Outside the rooms you have a little covered patio which to be honest we didn’t use for anything rather than drying clothes as it doesn’t have a great view. However again once you walk around to the main hotel the gardens are lovely featuring bits of art and artisan items (albeit some Moroccan in style). This hotel is lovely to look at you forgive the long walk from the room to the pool as the bridge heading to the pool and the pool itself is so lovely. The pool is an elegant affair and when I am a billionaire I will have one just like it as the tiles are so lovely there are not kids pools or spas with the pool it is simple and has a building next to it which houses a café and sauna facility.
Service and Dining
The fantastic décor extends itself to the dining areas of the hotel, which carry on the theme the service was efficient rather than attentive but gave no reason for complaint and the food also was good rather than excellent with a nice selection of Tunisian dishes. I would rate this good as it was not wonderful given the 5 star rating of the hotel and the price having stayed in some fantastic hotels in the past.
Breakfast
Breakfast again was nice without being fantastic coffee was not good (becoming a theme for me in hotels) same as with evening meals nice without being opulent.
Animation
This hotel was lovely to walk around and admire he paintings and artefacts however aside from the pool and music during meals there was little to do so I would guess children would be bored as little entertainment was obviously available. There is a spa in the hotel but this was at extra cost which seemed reasonable given the prices at other 5 star hotels for similar services.
Indoor pool
No indoor pool was found at this hotel I guess it is never cold here ;-)
Summary
This is a beautiful hotel I was told that the owner of this hotel is the governor of Tozeur and that he is a man of artistic taste, from his hotel this is obvious. I left the hotel feeling that I wanted to build a little version of it for myself in a more Tunisian style. For those of you wanting to feel like your back a few hundred years and enjoy your coffee like the Bey this hotel is for you. I give the theme and hotel itself 5 out of 5.
However this hotel is not perfect and thus I cannot give it 5 stars as the rooms are not of the same standard as the public areas of the hotel and if a hotel wants to charge 5 star prices and be 5 stars it needs to be judged as such, also the service was nice and friendly but not attentive we found ourselves looking for someone to serve us a coffee a number of times. The rooms need an overhaul with safer fixtures and fittings better televisions and just the same amount of love as the entrance and halls then with a little better service this hotel would be fantastic.
Overall Rating 4 out of 5: Hotel 5 Rooms and Service 3.5 if you have the money I recommend this hotel you will forget the rooms but the building will stay in the memory and photos for a long time.
http://www.darcherait.com.tn
Please feel free to discuss this and other Hotels in our forum
If you feel this review is unfair or incorrect please either comment or email me at support@tunisia.com
Getting there
Finding the hotel is simplicity itself as it is located in the middle of the “zone touristique” on the main route. If you have a problem finding the hotel simply ask as it is one of the most famous hotels in Tozeur. Once you arrive you can usually park in the front of the hotel though space is limited which we found a couple of times when we returned to the hotel during the evening after nipping out.
View Larger Map
The Hotel
When you arrive at the hotel is it feels like the name suggests that you have been invited to a large private house as the front is both elegant unassuming and welcoming. This extends to the entrance and the sumptuous lobby area you are immediately struck with the attention to detail and the craftsmanship of the hotel however be aware that this is not the typical Tunisian style and is more of a Arabic palace generically which I am sure experts would say was more Moroccan/Syrian given the opulence an dark woods used. This however is nit picking as my guests where well impressed and felt like they where staying with the Bay of Tunis.
Checking in
The reception is located to the right once inside the hotel and checking in was straightforward aside from the small fact that we thought the hotel was 78 euro per room per night for a four star (as on some websites) only to find that the hotel was 5 star and actually more like this per person ooof. Having driven from Bizerte I took the beating and paid out though please hold this in mind when you book.
Check in was smooth after this and and I departed now skint to the rooms.
The Rooms
You walk from reception though some lovely halls with art and little coves, which Sara loved and this opens up into lovely courtyards where coloured tiles reach up the three floors of rooms. This everyone agreed was lovely though we did note that disabled access to the lower floor was seemingly non existent (we had a pram) so please hold this in mind when booking this hotel.
Given the fantastic communal areas we felt a little underwhelmed when we reached the bedrooms themselves. We had a triple room for the boys and a double for me Hajer and Sara.
The Triple: Three queen size doubles in a large room with patio the beds looked a bit old as did the furniture inside the room along with the television. Given the hotels antiquated style it gets away with this if you where staying in a modern hotel you would not be satisfied with this at the cost we paid.
The toilets where in an old style with nice tiles which fitted in with the ethos of the hotel but did not offer anything opulent or unique for the price range.
The Double: This room featured a tile clad plinth on which the bed stood which was hard but comfortable this initially had a better impression than the free standing beads in the triple room a metal cot was provided however it was missing an end to it which made it to dangerous to use for our active baby*
The bathroom again featured nice tiles and was large with a powerful shower nice but not as spectacular as the hotel outside the room.
Both rooms featured air conditioning but not excellent units and I found it difficult to get the room really cold.
* An important thing we noticed about the rooms is that given the style there are a lot of hard edges to surfaces near the bed and in the bathrooms the double beds in particular featured a base which was tiled which a step that I slipped on and supped my toes at least 5 times during my stay this may be a concern to those with small children, elderly or clumsy like myself.
Outside
Outside the rooms you have a little covered patio which to be honest we didn’t use for anything rather than drying clothes as it doesn’t have a great view. However again once you walk around to the main hotel the gardens are lovely featuring bits of art and artisan items (albeit some Moroccan in style). This hotel is lovely to look at you forgive the long walk from the room to the pool as the bridge heading to the pool and the pool itself is so lovely. The pool is an elegant affair and when I am a billionaire I will have one just like it as the tiles are so lovely there are not kids pools or spas with the pool it is simple and has a building next to it which houses a café and sauna facility.
Service and Dining
The fantastic décor extends itself to the dining areas of the hotel, which carry on the theme the service was efficient rather than attentive but gave no reason for complaint and the food also was good rather than excellent with a nice selection of Tunisian dishes. I would rate this good as it was not wonderful given the 5 star rating of the hotel and the price having stayed in some fantastic hotels in the past.
Breakfast
Breakfast again was nice without being fantastic coffee was not good (becoming a theme for me in hotels) same as with evening meals nice without being opulent.
Animation
This hotel was lovely to walk around and admire he paintings and artefacts however aside from the pool and music during meals there was little to do so I would guess children would be bored as little entertainment was obviously available. There is a spa in the hotel but this was at extra cost which seemed reasonable given the prices at other 5 star hotels for similar services.
Indoor pool
No indoor pool was found at this hotel I guess it is never cold here ;-)
Summary
This is a beautiful hotel I was told that the owner of this hotel is the governor of Tozeur and that he is a man of artistic taste, from his hotel this is obvious. I left the hotel feeling that I wanted to build a little version of it for myself in a more Tunisian style. For those of you wanting to feel like your back a few hundred years and enjoy your coffee like the Bey this hotel is for you. I give the theme and hotel itself 5 out of 5.
However this hotel is not perfect and thus I cannot give it 5 stars as the rooms are not of the same standard as the public areas of the hotel and if a hotel wants to charge 5 star prices and be 5 stars it needs to be judged as such, also the service was nice and friendly but not attentive we found ourselves looking for someone to serve us a coffee a number of times. The rooms need an overhaul with safer fixtures and fittings better televisions and just the same amount of love as the entrance and halls then with a little better service this hotel would be fantastic.
Overall Rating 4 out of 5: Hotel 5 Rooms and Service 3.5 if you have the money I recommend this hotel you will forget the rooms but the building will stay in the memory and photos for a long time.
http://www.darcherait.com.tn
Please feel free to discuss this and other Hotels in our forum
If you feel this review is unfair or incorrect please either comment or email me at support@tunisia.com
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