The hotel St Claude underwent a complete refurbishment in 2006 under the supervision of the hotel's owners, Michele and Carole Delmotte (seen standing in front of their hotel with receptionist Marina).  Over the past year the Hotel St Claude has attracted several negative feedback comments on TripAdvisor (amongst many positive comments...).   I mention this as we do not recommend just any old hotel like a web-based booking agency. As a small company with a reputation to be mindful of, we give our honest opinion, warts and all if necessary, when describing the relatively few hotels we have found that meet our expectations.  It is in that spirit that we can personally say that we have always found the St Claude to be a well run hotel with clean modern rooms all of which were refurbished in 2006/7.  My wife and I also choose to stay at this hotel ourselves when visiting the battlefields.
 

The St Claude, which now comes under the Best Western 'umbrella', dates back to the Great War.  The rooms come in a mixture of sizes and all have been completely refurbished with new carpets, fixtures, furniture and fittings. The photos we've taken reflect the varying room sizes.  Because of the age of the building many of the rooms are accessed by way of a series of narrow corridors running this way and that (but a lift to all floors) which can at first seem confusing.
 

There are several restaurants in and around Peronne, including the hotel's own restaurant, though some of our clients have commented that service at the hotel restaurant can on occasions be slow and some have preferred to eat elsewhere, a view shared by us.
 

Peronne plays host to France's principal museum to the Great War, the Historial Museum (below) where exhibits are on show with translations in English. Click here for a look at the museum's website

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Why not include a personal conducted tour?

We can easily arrange for an independent English-speaking guide to collect you at your hotel and take you (or join you in your vehicle) on a one or two-day tour of either the Somme or Ypres battlefields This will be a truly personal service and as such you will not be joining a group comprising other persons. This option costs a lot more when compared with joining a fixed-itinerary ‘public’ tour, but is by far and away the best way to see the battlefield, especially bearing in mind this may be your one occasion to make the visit you are have in mind.  A personal tour is also better suited for the quiet exploration and reflection of past events, without the possible distraction of others making up your group - and the need for the tour leader to stick to a fixed time schedule!    
 

 
Map showing location of hotel

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Front

Rear
(photo taken from entrance to WW1 Historial Museum)

The bedrooms

Because the hotel is an old building the bedrooms come in different shapes and sizes.  All have recently (November 2005) been completely refurbished.

Peronne

Occupied by the Germans in August 1914, the town was almost entirely destroyed in the course of the war. As a centre of major military and logistical activity, especially during the Battle of the Somme, Péronne was bombarded by the French artillery for five months but remained in German hands until March 1917 and was reoccupied in March 1918. The bullet holes still visible in what remains of Church of St. Jean testifies to the violence of the fighting.

At the time of their retreat in 1917, the Germans had mockingly left a huge wooden panel on the ruins of the town hall with the inscription "Nicht ärgern, nur wundern" [No anger, just amazement]. This panel is now on view in Room 2 at the Historial.

On 31 August 1918, the Australians finally managed to encircle the fortified hill of Mont Saint Quentin, and the town was liberated for good (well until 1940...).