Watch Your Language Blog

Hôtel de ville: a tourist trap?

A British tourist spent the night stuck in the Hôtel de Ville in Dannemarie, after mistaking it for an actual hotel. Our very own LL_French Twitter feed sets the record straight: In French, hôtel de ville means city hall, NOT hotel. Poor woman!

The hapless female visitor arrived in the Alsace town of Dannemarie on Friday and tried to find a bed for the night.

Spotting the impressive-looking "hotel de ville", the tourist popped in to use the toilet before trying to check in.

But as she was in the convenience, officials finished a meeting, left the town hall and locked its door.

The solitary traveller, said to be in her 30s, ended up with the inconvenience of spending the night on chairs in the building's lobby.


August 25, 2009