Alloggio Newcastle Beach

We chose this place a few months ago for my husband's birthday because of the price, the decent reviews at the time and the nice, if misleading, photos. The beach views were pleasant, but the ocean view queen room itself wasn’t what we expected. There was a cockroach problem they hadn’t mentioned, paper-thin walls, and questionable stains on the carpet and furniture. They’d pushed two single beds together and called it a queen. The room had some good features, but talking loudly from another room carried on from evening until late, followed by other questionable noises until around 2-3am. Parking at the hotel was very expensive, and the streets outside were metered, so the parking options were terrible. We wouldn’t stay here again.

The photos were misleading, and the room absolutely reeked. My daughter dropped her dummy under the bed, so I moved it and found old condom wrappers, tampon wrappers and cigarette butts. There were crumbs all over the countertops, hair in the shower and mould on the shower curtains. The windows had no fly screens, and the walls were paper-thin. I stayed with my partner and daughter during a stop on a long trip. People in the next room screamed and swore all night, keeping us awake until the early hours. The place honestly felt like a dirty old brothel. Absolutely disgusting.

We left after one of the two nights we’d booked and found a well-known motel chain for the next night, for the same price or slightly less. The whole building felt grungy, and the room had a strong bleach smell when we walked in. The hallways were very small and narrow, and the place was shabby and badly in need of a makeover. Don’t do it!

It was cheap and had a few useful things, including a microwave in the room, laundry access, ocean views, and a spot very close to the beach and transport. Still, I wouldn’t recommend it. The place was generally grotty and didn’t seem well looked after, which left me feeling uncared for too. The bathroom sink and the toilet bowl behind the seat clearly hadn’t been properly cleaned in a long time. There was black mould on the shower curtain and in the recess, a big rip in the balcony curtain, little tears in the lounge, and scratches or stains on most other furniture surfaces.