8/10 Good
Francescopaolo, Bethesda
6 November 2024
Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Disliked: Amenities
This is a small, slightly rough, hidden gem. The hotel is well maintained and still looks recently renovated except for minor blemishes. The rooms are clean and consistent with the pictures but some updates are necessary.
For example, my room did not have a refrigerator which, to be fair, is not mentioned in the room description but is shown in the pictures. Hangers and the kettle were also missing, despite the presence of a small wardrobe and complimentary instant coffee.
The receptionist is a super nice old lady who does everything she can to help but does not speak English, and using a translator app only went so far. However, the manager answered my inquiries through the Orbits app promptly and provided the missing amenities. Allegedly the refrigerators were been repaired and temporarily unavailable in all the rooms, or at least any available room since another guest told me he had one.
The "24-hour front desk" listing is a bit of an overstatement. The receptionist lives on site and is indeed reachable 24/7 by phone or by ringing the bell, but I wouldn't feel comfortable knocking at her door late at night unless it was a real emergency. I think "on-site house keeping" would be a better description.
All in all this is a good guesthouse and I will be happy to return, but I hope they add a night time concierge, improve the amenities a little and maybe have an English speaker available by messaging app at check-in.
Francescopaolo
Stayed 4 nights in Oct 2024