The Lodge by Haus

My son reckoned the pool was the best bit. We had a great room too, with an extremely comfy bed and a huge TV. The ladies at reception were lovely during our recent stay under the new management. The location was perfect for spending the day walking around and exploring hahndorf. They even had menus in the room for the restaurant across the street, which was really handy. Great stay, and we're looking forward to coming back.

The only real upsides were the handy location and the pretty garden around the rooms. Hahndorf's nightlife was much sadder than I'd imagined, too. The cabin-style rooms have potential, with beautiful wooden doors and exposed ceiling beams, and a bit of work could make them lovely. But they need to put some money into the place to justify the over $200 a night I paid. We were in room 1. The fridge had been left off and smelled of mould or possibly meat that had gone bad, and that smell lingered in the room throughout our stay. It sat at a slant, so things tried to fall out when we opened it. The bathroom was very dated, with awful blue shower curtains. The double bed was tiny, and the air conditioner was extremely noisy. I don't stay somewhere to watch TV, but this one was tiny and had only free-to-air channels. That didn't bother me until I passed the next room and saw their huge TV playing Netflix. I tried the pool on a stinking hot summer day, and the water was freezing.

We walked into the room, turned straight around and had to find somewhere else to stay. The sheets and pillows were stained yellow, the towels brown, there was blood on the bathroom curtains, and dead bugs were in the bed. Neither the room nor bathroom was clean, and the place clearly wasn't well maintained. Reception was closed, so we couldn't even raise it with anyone. We expected little from a motel, but having nothing clean was awful. I'd give zero stars if I could. The website and Google photos were very deceiving. Even a great location in the middle of town isn't worth staying here.

They cancelled our non-refundable booking just one day before we were due to stay, and since then have disappeared. No refund, no explanation, and every phone number they gave us is disconnected. We've had nothing but silence. When we contacted The Manna Group, the staff were no help at all. They couldn't reach the lodge either and offered no assistance. This feels shady and unprofessional, and the service has been terrible. It's borderline fraudulent. We support the Adelaide Hills and live locally, and we'll be telling all our friends to stay away. Book here if you want stress, lost money and no accountability.