Lanchíd 19

The housekeeping was the worst part of our seven-night stay. The bathroom was barely cleaned, and coffee cups were returned to the cupboard with obvious brown marks from earlier use. We've stayed in plenty of design and boutique hotels and never had such a bad experience. We were also charged about 40 euros more than the agreed price. A room with a nice view on its own doesn't make for good service or a good hotel.

Breakfast was worth every penny. I requested gluten-free food ahead of time, and it was freshly made and came straight from the oven. The location was great for public transport, and the river view we asked for was stunning. We paid extra for the highest floor, but even with that, it cost quite a bit less than Novotel and the other nearby hotels. We loved the place.

We paid for a castle-view room at the back, and it had a small balcony and was possibly quieter. The bed was comfortable and the room was clean. The location is great too, with good restaurants and bars nearby, major Budapest sights close by, and easy tram connections. The city tax was a hassle: they wouldn't take a card or euros, only forints. We had little cash left and ended up with a pile of coins we couldn't use. The photos make the hotel look much more spacious and luxurious than it is. I'd guess there's probably just one room like that. It's a basic place, and I expected our room to be larger and in better shape. A lot of the furniture looked scuffed and old, though maybe the bright colours make that stand out more. It's fine if you're mainly looking for somewhere to sleep.

The staff member at reception was very friendly and helpful, and dinner was really good. We liked the hotel and the rooms, and the Danube view was amazing. The beds, pillows, and sheets were all very comfortable and clean, and we found parking in front of the hotel. We had two rooms on the sixth floor. The kids' room was fine, but ours didn't seem properly cleaned: there was a lot of hair on the floor in both the room and bathroom, and one teacup had coffee marks. The minibar water bottle was half empty, maybe because the cleaning person forgot to replace it.