Lighthouse Family Retreat

I paid 7,500 BDT for two nights, but barely made it through one. I asked for a refund and didn’t get one because I’d booked online. The bed linen and even the pillow cover hadn’t been changed. They seemed to think I wouldn’t notice, but I supervise housekeeping at a five-star hotel. When I pointed it out, the staff looked genuinely shocked. Don’t stay here if you expect proper service for what you pay.

The approach to Light House Family Retreat was already unpleasant, with a broken, muddy road, and the stay only got worse. At check-in the receptionist was rude and careless, with no sense that guests mattered. The service felt unprofessional throughout, and nobody showed concern or even apologized when we were left waiting. The first room was dirty and had several problems: the AC didn’t work, the fan switch was broken, the phone was dead, and the bathtub was broken too. After we complained, they moved us and handed over a key that wouldn’t open the door. We spent nearly 20 minutes trying it, then waited outside for 40 minutes for the service boy. It was one of my worst hotel stays. With bad service, poor attitudes and dirty rooms, I’d never come back or recommend it.

The staff were well behaved and fixed some of the problems, although one of our TVs never worked during the stay. A few things, including the TV and AC remotes, were faulty. The rooms are spacious, and this felt like a safe, decent place to stay in Cox's Bazar. Sugandha Sea Beach is nearby, but Lighthouse Road, the route to the hotel, is cracked and full of holes.

The rooms and toilets were clean, and the staff were polite and well behaved. Still, the basics were a struggle. We got just one towel for two people at check-in, and when we asked for another yesterday, it didn’t arrive. The AC remote was broken, so we had to use the main switch. The room intercom didn’t work, which left us unable to contact reception. One of the three-pin sockets was broken too. After several requests and two hours, no one came to fix it; we found a service man on our floor and asked him ourselves. I’m still at the hotel as I write this, with checkout tomorrow. I first tried to order coffee, but it wasn’t available even though there’s a restaurant. I ordered tea instead over an hour ago. They’d said it would take five to ten minutes, but it still hasn’t come. The staff are nice, but don’t seem very keen to provide even basic service.