I recently stayed at the Rotana Hotel al-Manakha in Medina and had a mixed experience. I booked two rooms: one with three beds and another with a king bed and a sofa bed.
Positives:
• The room with three beds was excellent. It was clean, spacious, and well-equipped. The bathroom was particularly nice and spotless. Overall, this room met all my expectations.
• The room with the king bed also had a clean and pleasant bathroom. The hotel’s location is unbeatable—just a two-minute walk to Masjid al-Nabawi, and it’s close to Ghuba Street, which is great for shopping. The area is very walkable and feels safe.
Areas for Improvement:
• The sofa bed in the room with the king bed was problematic. Nobody on the staff seemed to know how to set it up properly, and there was no bedding provided for it until we requested it.
• The fridge in the room with the king bed wasn’t cooling adequately, which was inconvenient.
• The shower in that same room didn’t drain properly, leading to some water buildup.
• There was no Wi-Fi available during our stay. The staff acknowledged that this was a known issue because the hotel is new, but it was frustrating that we weren’t informed about this beforehand.
• I also had a major issue with the check-in process. I initially booked through the hotel’s website, but their payment system didn’t allow me to enter my card’s PIN code, which is required for security. This issue couldn’t be resolved, and I had to cancel and rebook through Expedia, which