I stayed here with two friends for two nights. We were on the 4th floor but the noise from the street was unbearable. Room was supposed to have air conditioning but this did not work and the heat was dreadful. Had to keep the wondow closed with the noise from the street. Bathroom had a bath with painted tiles which were peeling. There was a shower over the bath but no shower curtain. The buffet breakfast was poor. We had to have breakfast in a restaurant as the choice at the hotel was so bad. The breakfast staff are most unfriendly and demanded our room number on the first morning (as if anybody in their right mind would want to eat breakfast here).
The girl on the reception was very helpful, same could not be said for her male colleagues.
Location of the hotel is excellent. This is the only redeeming factor.

Well all I can say is thank god I'd read the other reviews before going so at least i knew what to expect! Of course I'd already booked it by then and it was too late to change. Also I get the distinct impression the owners/employees of this hotel have a dislike to the British as most of these reviews comment about the same room!
If allocated room 202 asked to be moved immediately, in fact don't bother going to look at it because it will just make you more mad. When we asked to be moved we were told that they were booked up that night but could move us the next - funny that, as they seem tto have told someone else the same thing. Booked up on a Sunday night....makes me wonder if they spin this line in the hope you'll not bother after staying one night.
The tiny twin room smelt bad, even worse in the tiny shower room which smelt like drains. The hairdryer didn't work, the window looked out on another hotel window and yes you could step across into that room if you wanted as they where sooooo close to each other. The pillows smelt like something had died on them and the pillow slips had make up stains - nice! The shower head bracket was broken and even the bin in the bathroom was broken. The broken extractor fan that wouldn't turn off kept me awake al night - need i go on??!!
As many have said, the only good thing going for this hotel was the location although it could be noisy as its one a main road.

Just back today from Hotel Univers, very glad to be home. It was so bad we would have changed hotel immediately on seeing the room, if we hadn't paid a travel agent for 4 nights in advance.

Firstly, we were given a twin although we booked a double, and spent the whole stay sleeping feet apart for fear of falling through the crack between the two beds.

The bathroom was dirty, with a piebald toilet seat, a fetid smell coming from the sink outlet, and no shower curtain, so that the whole place got drenched when we took a shower.

There were no drawers at all, and considerable patches of mould in the wardrobe, so we kept everything in our cases. No iron, no tea or coffee facilities, and the hairdryer was broken.

Staff were surly and unhelpful, and some were downright strange, like the chambermaid who walked into the room at 9.30 am EVERY day, without warning or knocking, invariably catching one or both of us in a state of undress, which she thought was hilarious. We did not.

There is nothing to recommend this hotel to travellers at all, if it was a B&B it would be poor quality, but to sell this as a 3* hotel is a total rip-off.

My wife and I have just returned from the Univers following a five day break (21 - 25 Sep 07) to celebrate our 15th Wedding Anniversary.
About a week before we went I made the 'mistake' of reading some of the reviews of the hotel (even though I had before!), and worried from that point on that we had made an awful mistake. Comments like;
"Wouldn't wish it on my worst enemy";
"Smelly room";
"Dirty sheets";
"Rude staff".................I'm sure you've read them yourself!
When we arrived, yes there was a slight smell in reception, but otherwise we were absolutely delighted. The room (no 212) was clean and appeared to have been recently refurbished. It was adequate size with a double and single bed. All of the staff we met were very pleasant and more than helpful.
Breakfast was a slight dissapointment even by continental standards. There was cereal, rolls, ham, cheese, mini croissant and pain de chocolat's each day. Coffee, although from a machine, was quite nice.
We thought about some of the other reviews we had read and came to the following conclusions;
1. Maybe we were just lucky with the room we were given.
2. Maybe the smell is worse in the height of summer.
3. The stair rails could do with a bit of attention, and may not be the best if you are slightly infirm, although there is a lift.
4. The hallway lighting that some have complained about are fairly typically continental, requiring the button to be pushed to turn them on for a preset time. Maybe all hotel's could learn from this and reduce their 'carbon footprint'.
5. Definitely no showere curtains! Although, by the 3rd night I had got the hang of it and managed to shower without completely flooding the bathroom! At the end of the day nobody wants to cause a flood, but if the hotel doesn't provide a curtain and gives you a wall hook for the shower nozzle...............!!
6.The roadworks seem to be ongoing whilst a new tramway is constructed. This is hardly the hotels fault, and is something that could happen in any hotel.
7. The most scathing reviews seem to be from American visitors. I can quite appreciate why. In my opinion American hotels do seem to be of a higher standard, consequently Americans quite rightly demand higher standards. With this in mind I can understand why they may have been a tad dissapointed with the Univers.
8. I think it's definitely worth using a little French with the staff. Even just a "Bonjour" with a hideously Bristolian accent seemed to please them!
To summarise, we felt the hotel was more than comfortable for the amount we paid, the staff friendly and helpful, sheets and towels spotlessly clean, and the location absolutely perfect for the old town and beach.
I hope you have as good a time as we did!!
One last thing, when you are dining out try and avoid "Le Savanna" up the little street almost opposite the hotel. The food was good, but the service was just about the worst we've had anywhere. Several people walked out refusing to pay for their drinks, and many tables were waiting a very long time for their food to arrive.