California Hotel

The staff were nice when they could help, and I appreciated being moved after complaining the next morning. The replacement room was a little larger and had a bedside stand, probably the double I'd booked in the first place. Even so, the bathroom was so cramped that showering with the handheld meant standing next to or on the toilet, soaking everything. The sink and mirror were tucked into a tiny corner blocked by the toilet, so getting ready was like solving a puzzle, and leaving meant backing out because there was no room to turn around. A small window brought in some air, with an AC unit attached, but the murky glass and bars meant there was no real city view. There was a mini fridge, enough for a few bottles of water, and both rooms had a small hairdryer. The first room they'd given me, despite booking a double while travelling alone for luggage space, was a single and felt like a prison cell. A bed was wedged between two walls, and the makeshift bathroom was so tight that sitting on the toilet required leaving the door open, with no room for my knees. There was no window, a nightmare for someone claustrophobic like me. The handheld shower soaked the entire tiny 2sqm bathroom, and with no window the room smelled moldy and musty. The mattress was so hard the floor might have been better, though my one backpack already filled the available space. It was run down, shabby, and falling apart. Finding the place was difficult even with local navigation. It's in a residential building, behind a steel door off Nathan road, at golden crown court. Take the elevator on the right to the 4th floor. The rooms are extremely basic and confined, and I regretted not paying a little extra for comfort and convenience. I paid about €80 a night, which I guess is budget by Hong Kong standards, but I've stayed in much better places for much less elsewhere. I debated saving a few euros instead of choosing somewhere cozy, but coming back to that tiny room every evening put a damper on an otherwise enjoyable first trip to Hong Kong. If you're also visiting for the first time, I'd spend the extra €20-€30 per night for a clean, comfortable place with enough space to move, even solo. If all you need is a bed and don't care about home comforts, this might do; otherwise, research carefully. And if my partner had come along, he'd have been watching me use the toilet because there was nowhere else to look.