Mama Shelter Nice — Attraction in Nice

Our recent 8 night stay at Mamma Shelter Nice was overall wonderful. Our room was on the top floor. Room 516. We loved the views across the rooftops towards the mountains. So authentic and enchanting. The hotel’s decor is incredible and we found it a very comfortable hotel overall. Our bed was super comfy. The rooftop pool is small but perfectly formed and very pretty. We always managed to get a sunbed which are very comfy too. We would return to this hotel. We found the location ideal for the train station at Riquier and the port and the saunter to the Old Town area was interesting and at about 15 minutes not an issue at all. The rooftop bar and eaterie was lovely too and we found drinks to be reasonably priced but a bit too easy to keep on ordering throughout the day! Rooms are very clean and towels are changed daily if you wish them to be. Our air-con was fine. Bathroom and shower is fabulous. Not much to watch on the TV if you are English and not into watching adult movies!! No idea why folks like the cartoon masks in the room. I find them really scary so hid them away!! 🥴😬😂 |Reception staff were fab and very helpful with bookings and recommendations. We loved the rooftop views from the pool. So authentically French and we even loved seeing city folks washing hanging out from the dinky balconies. Nice is a working city and it was fab seeing it ‘at work’ as we relaxed by the pretty pool. Things that we feel needed more thought by the management are things that would just save some head scratching upon arrival - mainly storage in the bedrooms. 4 coat hangers for a couple staying 8 nights? Reception sent up an extra 10 hangers immediately upon request. No drawers! Very tricky to unpack smalls. Suit cases slipped under the bed thankfully. The room set up seems geared towards short city breaks rather than longer stays. There are no facilities in the rooms to make a hot drink either. There is a small fridge for water etc and a safe and a good hairdryer. There is nowhere for guests to just sit comfortably for a drink away from the pool or rooftop restaurant and bedroom. When we wanted an evening drink from the big chic downstairs bar situated in the main restaurant we were told we couldn’t unless we were eating in there too. It was early evening and the whole area was empty. As hotel guests we found this surprising. After a day of 38+ degrees we just wanted to be indoors and have a sociable drink and still enjoy the evening vibe of the hotel. But this was not possible. There is an atrium space with some seating but it is ‘away’ from the sociable areas and has no atmosphere at all and is by the general use toilets! On the Sunday evening we did eat in the main restaurant. It was our most expensive meal of our stay over 15 days on the Coté d’Azur and the least memorable or special. It felt very utilitarian and canteen like despite the chic decor. It was disappointing and we didn’t repeat it. The hotel’s Drag Queens’ evening commenced in the restaurant area while we were eating. We had looked forward to this. We had children (10+ yrs) in our party too and we thought it would be fun and entertaining as it is a family hotel. However we were completely overwhelmed & swamped by the audience that arrived to watch in large numbers and so we couldn’t stay to watch as we couldn’t see anything from our table and couldn’t move tbh and felt a tad out of place. It was a shame as we had anticipated a great evening. As guests of the hotel we felt somewhat sidelined. We had one breakfast at the hotel and it was okay. It didn’t seem to be on the same scale as the PR IG posts we had seen by the hotel before we arrived. It was reasonable and as you might expect. We very much enjoyed our time at Mamma Shelter overall. It was nowhere near as risqué as their lively social media promos would suggest either - thank goodness! We were getting worried tbh! It has a chic, maximalist, elegant, youthful vibe and we loved it. Did Mamma love us - we think so - but perfection is...

We spent 7 nights at Mama Shelter Nice, and let’s start with the positives: the hotel is stunning! The rooms are vibrant, the showers are fantastic, and the air conditioning is a welcome relief. The bold design choices are eye-catching and definitely Instagram-worthy. Hats off to the design team—they did a marvelous job!

However, as with many new hotels, there are some growing pains that impact the guest experience, which will hopefully improve over time. The rooftop restaurant, open to both guests and the public, often felt understaffed. This led to long waits to place an order, making you feel sorry for the clearly overworked staff. Patience is a must here, though the whimsical decor provides a nice distraction.

The rooftop pool is another challenge. Open only to guests, it’s simply too small for its purpose, with limited seating for up to 34 guests, while the hotel has 102 rooms. It's usually full by 10 or 11 AM. Do the math: if you're hoping to sunbathe, you'll need to be early or very lucky to find a spot. The pool is crowded, making it difficult to swim, and you’ll likely find yourself surrounded by parents trying to manage their kids amidst the watchful eyes of other guests. Respect to those parents as they balanced between their kids' cries and the glares of other guests. Later in our stay, a sign appeared stating that items left to reserve spots at the pool would be removed, which added stress if you needed to step away briefly for a snack or bathroom break.

There were other minor issues too, which could easily be improved. There’s no coffee or tea in the room, and several times we had to call reception because our room wasn’t cleaned, despite using the door hanger. The bathroom amenities were too limited for a 4-star experience, with no liquid soap, bathrobes, or slippers.

Finally, as a loyalty member, you’re supposed to get a 10% discount on food and drinks, but we encountered inconsistent responses from staff. Some said the discount would be applied at checkout, while others deducted it immediately. This inconsistency left us questioning the accuracy of our final bill. After addressing this at checkout, they did correct it, but it makes us wonder if they would have done so had we not brought it up. It seems like the staff, despite their best intentions, is still figuring things out themselves.

“Mama loves you” is written on the hotel mirrors, but right now, it feels more like a distant relationship that could use a little more consistency in hospitality. For now, it’s definitely a Mama best visited for a weekend—stay too long, and the relationship...

Mama doesn’t love you — she loves your money.

We just checked out of Mama Shelter Nice, and honestly… Mama doesn’t love you. Mama doesn’t even like you.

Mama loves it wet? Oh, absolutely. Our shower didn’t drain, so every time we bathed, we created a luxury indoor pool — first in the bathroom, then flooding into the room. When we asked for help, Mama handed us two towels and said, “Good luck.” Spoiler: two towels can’t hold back a flood.

Mama loves it soft? Nope. Mama loves it musty, damp, and borderline swampy — we spent three nights in a wet room — on our honeymoon.

Need toothpaste? Sure — if you’re ready to pay 12 euros for it. Room amenities? • No boiler. • No complimentary water. • No coffee maker. • No proper soap or shampoo — just one tiny solid bar you’re supposed to use for hands, face, hair, and body. Magical.

Mama loves it close to the beach? Nope. The beach is far. The neighborhood isn’t walkable, nice, or cute. And if you enjoy midnight construction noise, you’re in luck. No warnings when you book, no solutions when you complain — just shrugs.

Traveling with kids? Be prepared to explain the sex toys and dildos on proud display in the lobby. Meanwhile, cartoons play on TV like it’s family-friendly. Mama loves it confusing.

Pool hours? Advertised as open until 9 PM — actually closed at 6 PM.

The rooftop pool? Not glamorous. Not a real roof. It opens right onto people’s windows where people dry their laundry. Very romantic.

Breakfast? • Pastries = actually good. • Cakes = skip them. • Bacon and eggs = raw-ish.

Bonus chaos: Front desk interns accidentally charged us for someone else’s breakfast. When we asked for help, the energy was “good luck out there.”

To be fair: • The kitchen staff were friendly and hardworking. • The rooms themselves were nice — clean, comfy beds, good linens. If the shower hadn’t flooded, we would have been happy with the room overall.

But sadly, we weren’t offered a room switch even after days of water damage — so we spent our honeymoon sloshing through puddles.

Final thoughts: Mama may “love it hot, wet, soft, and wild,” but she sure doesn’t love her guests. She loves your wallet, your patience, and your ability to smile through moldy carpets.

Biggest disappointment of our honeymoon. We expected “Mama Shelter” — we got...