Warm, friendly convenient place to rest, institutional feel. Centre Éducation et de Loisirs Pep 34 Review

We booking this last minute, as my son had a ski competition here with his club - just the day before in high season and there was nothing else in the town.

There are no picture anywhere on the internet that I could find of the inside of the rooms. The price was 150Euro for all of us - including the evening meal, but my wife is a french-food fan, so we weren't going to sample that - we went out to the Coq D'Or in the old town centre.

We just needed a bed for the night so really can't complain. Lots of people, families and young and old. Everyone seemed to be getting on, lots of games being played and chatting in the lounge.

It does have the feel of a 50s sanatorium; there are no toilets in the rooms and you have to make a run for it in the corridor for the loos and there is separate showers section with an additional toilet. We couldn't find any towels - maybe we missed something - but since we were only there for 1 night and heading off out and home next day so wasn't a problem.

Don't know why it's called PEP34 - but the number adds to the socialist feel of the place!

Nice and warm inside the communal areas and rooms, but a bit dirty in the corridors and stairwells.

Very pleasant Irish expat Breanainn took care of us - normal breakfast starts at 8 until 9 but the boy had to be on the slope at 8, so she kindly provided something a tad earlier. She might be trying to do a little too much, as she was running around madly in the evening when we arrived, and seemed to be doing the lion's share of the work in the kitchen in the morning.

Breakfast is usual French fare: croissants, bread and orange juice, and you get to drink the coffee from your bowl. Restaurant area is well lit school canteen sort of place. Breanainn writes your name on a sticky note so you know where to sit.

You have to make your own bed, but the duvet was clean and bed not uncomfortable; the kids like the bunk bed setup of course.

It's at the southern far end of town, convenient for the Pla Mir end, which is where our competition was so a bonus there.

Ski storage is excellent if you want to bring your kit in at the end of the day. Straight off the car park, just a couple of stairs and you're into the ski storage area.

There is a navette stop right outside the car park - Les Angles has free buses to get you to the pistes saving traffic, but note these don't run at night. It was about 30mins walk on the main circular road to the other end of town (the old town), and there aren't any taxis in Les Angles (well there is, but the driver doubles as the Ambulance driver - and our night was his night off), so we planned to have a bottle of wine and get a ride back, but no luck. There is a more direct road directly across the valley and it was lit and straightforward to walk back - about 15mins with a reasonable incline up a couple of hairpins back to the PEP34.

We went end of the Spanish/French half term holidays - so peak time.

Each room has a balcony, there were smokers out the front as usual, and I guess the small balcony can serve the same purpose for those in need of puff once you've got your pyjamas on. The view in the morning is spectacular as rooms on the car park side are all East facing the sun coming up of the mountains. You can see into the valley and the Canadian-looking pine forests.