The Grand Hotel

Worst hotel ever. Dirty, smelly room without aircondition and dysfunctional light. Worn-down toilets shared with other guests. Unpleasant owner and staff. Part of bar which means noise till late and greasy floors from beer on ground floor. Located centrally but also in the middle of bars with loud music and drunk people

Crap place, booking a room was a big mistake!!! It was dirty, smelly and plain gross. Nothing was clean, toilet was really bad! I think its cleaned once a month!! If that!! Shower gross, carpet falling apart.. Worst is the smell!!! I just wanted to disinfect myself when I left. DO NOT STAY HERE

Large room had only a single central light, making it very dim at night. Unpleasant musty smell. Wash basin was in room, not in bathroom. Elevator door has to be manually opened and closed. This is an old building, no hotel lobby - front desk is at the bar.

Decided to go elsewhere without staying the night, and the manager refused to refund the second night. Manager was brusk, confrontational, not interested in our experience, pretty much just cared about "running a business" (read: taking customer's money).

We picked this place for its walking proximity to the botanical gardens, and waterfront near some good birding. It's a bit dormatory style with the showers and toilets down the hall. On the first floor is the pub and there is an elevator to go upstairs. Across the street is a mini-mart.

They make it very diffcult to cancel. We have emailed twice and tried calling 3 numbers. 1 unavailable (found on our booking email), 1 disconnected and 1 to a nice bar lady who transferred us back to phone number 1 which was still unavailable (on a Tuesday)

No reply back from anyone yet (4 days and counting) and we are scared we will find a charge on the day despite our best efforts to make them aware.

"No cancellation fees" only count when you're actually able to cancel.

Lovely staff signed us in only to get into our room and step back into time to 1912. The room was soo old and lack luster we jumped online to book elsewhere. The fact the bathrooms are shared community bathrooms in the hallway also was a deal breaker. Lesson learnt for me when booking a room.

This hotel is far from grand. At this price point, I don't expect to be pampered with 5-star luxuries - I just want decent, clean and well-maintained accommodation as a minimum, and this place seriously falls short of that.

After being amazed by the majestic and historical façade of the building, I was totally dismayed upon seeing that the interior is poorly-maintained, not just old. The carpets on the corridor are crumbling and full of dust. The room that my wife and I stayed in was dusty, stuffy and had paint peeling everywhere. An electrical socket was just hanging out of the wall with live parts exposed. The bathroom's hairdryer wasn't even working. The lift has a manually-operated door that can only be opened by a weightlifter.

We were staying for only one night, so I really feel sorry for those staying longer. The only advantage of this hotel is its location.

We had a great meal, drinks were very nicely priced. The upstairs bar and dining room was very well patronised, so there was quite a bit of noise but a great atmosphere.
Meal quality and prices were very good.

Staff kind and friendly, although I only saw them in the bar area.
Conditions of the building are poor, darkened spaces, ripped carpets, lots of mould in the bathroom (toward ceiling and on shower curtain).
It's so dark in the room that you can't have a shave or apply makeup. You can do this in the shared bathroom though ( see image attached of the basin in the room).
Linen was nice and clean, I didn't notice any bad smells that were mentioned in other reviews.
Nice and quiet room with comfy beds.
I don't have any issue with the above, as it's a cheaper accommodation option, for which I am grateful.
Shower cubical is small. Anyone XL and over will struggle.
Centrally located to the city, everything I wanted to do and see were a short walk away.
There was a pedestal fan in the room, but no aircon. I stayed in March, which was comfortable but I wouldn't want to stay in warmer weather. There is a small TV on the wall, approx 22 inch (the size of a pc monitor)

Stupidly stayed here a couple of weeks ago. Disgusting place. The carpets are ripped apart. Bags of rubbish lying around down hallways. Chipped paint on walls and furniture. It honestly feels like a prank. For those that are still questioning their stay, I'll just let you know a few things to make sure you don't actually book it. No air conditioning, manual lift feels very unsafe. Foul smells throughout levels four and five. Dust galore. Smells like smoke inside room. Other people's belongings under bed. Curtains don't block out any light. When they say flat screen tv, they mean computer monitor, hanging in awkward spot on wall. Walls are dirty. Shared bathroom and shower for each floor means you will use with other guests and don't have your own in your room. But that's if you can fit in the tiny shower. Rude staff. The only good thing is the location. The saddest thing was seeing and hearing literally every guest complaining about the state of the place to each other while walking around the building. Do some research and you can find way better places that are around the same price online. I was in a rush and booked this, don't make my mistake.