Pella

I've never encountered so many mosquitos in one place. It may not technically be the hotel's fault, but it was a lot. The room is old and tired and badly needs redecorating, and the bathroom needs work too.

For the price I paid, I thought it was a good hotel. The room was basic and the bathroom small, but that was fine for me as a solo traveller. The bed was comfy, though the pillow was too high. The elevator was very small and slow. Breakfast was a buffet for an extra charge, and I liked it. The lobby staff were nice to me.

A clean room, friendly staff, and a breakfast that's a bit better than average, all close to the centre. It's the best cheap option I know of. The neighbourhood is noisy, which is the one downside.

The worst hotel experience of our lives, even though we're frequent travellers. The woman receptionist at Pella hotel in Thessaloniki, Greece was unbelievably rude. After she mentioned breakfast three times when we checked in, she never once told us there was a charge, so we ate the next morning. At checkout, an older receptionist in her 50s with black dyed hair charged my credit card, then yelled at us when we were shocked by the unexpected cost. She told us never to come back, that they wouldn't take us next time, and that they didn't want us there. We were appalled by that kind of “hospitality.” When we said she shouldn't speak so rudely to guests and that her job called for a different kind of welcome, she showed no shame. It felt as though this was her usual way of treating guests. The rooms and furniture looked like they dated from the 17th century, and everything in both rooms seemed badly outdated for a hotel in Greece's second-biggest city after Athens. She also put blocks in front of the hotel, stopping guests from pulling up to park while checking out and making it easier to carry heavy luggage to their cars. We had to park a block away and haul our bags there. Even after we asked her to move the blocks, she refused rudely. Had we known we'd be yelled at, told we weren't wanted, and left to carry our luggage so far, we'd definitely have chosen another hotel, even if it meant a longer walk. We travel from North America, and if this happened there, I think the receptionist would be fired on the spot. Tourists, think hard before staying at Pella hotel. Don't let it ruin your vacation. We strongly suggest avoiding it.