I've stayed at a number of French and German hotels in recent years. You would think that the French would have mastered the art of hospitality by now. Sorry to rant, but here are some scattered observations:

1. French hotels are way overpriced. The independent German hotels in relatively small cities are impeccably clean and offer value that the US can't touch. Modern design, courteous staff, etc. Food is surprisingly good (good, German, and food in the same sentence? Whudda thunk?), and the beer is.....well, German.

2. French hotel rooms are closet size. 13" TV? And what happened to the good late night TV?

3. Do they have a law against shower curtains in France? (I think there is a law against serving more than one ice cube in a glass).

4. Or a law against newer-than-20-years mattresses?

5. Formula 24: a French customer said this is a great hotel chain if you want to be awaken by screams of "encore, encore" in the middle of the night.

Am I off base? Or do I need to start staying exclusively at Sofitels?