Hotel O by OYO Profulla Devi Guest House

I was here on a business trip with a few office colleagues, and the staff went out of their way to help us. They were attentive, cooperative, and took care of what we needed. I really enjoyed the stay and would recommend the hotel.

The rooms were decent overall, though there was a small seepage problem in the washroom. What made the stay less welcoming was the receptionist’s manner, which left a poor first impression. Check-in could be smoother. We had to wait until 12:00 PM after arriving early, and the actual process took another 20 minutes. If a room is already available, early check-in would be helpful, and starting the paperwork before the official time could cut down the wait. People booking offline seemed able to skip the queue, get in early, and avoid filling forms. I also found the practice of taking pictures of guests together uncomfortable and think it should be reconsidered.

I was moved to room 209 after the stabilizer in room 212 sparked and seemed to short circuit near the end of my stay. Before that, I’d extended locally in room 212 after my OYO booking ended. The staff cleaned it because I booked and paid at the hotel rather than through the OYO app. Earlier, after I posted on Twitter, they had moved me from room 108 to 206 within about an hour, where I stayed for the rest of the OYO booking. Room 206 had a washed bedsheet and comforter cover, but it was moldy, and the comforter had blood spots. The bathroom stank, the basin was blocked with hair and dirt, and despite the no smoking rule, I often smelled cigarettes and found butts under the bed and in corners. The AC spat out ice or leaked water, probably because it hadn’t been maintained. Room 212 also had power problems with the AC. I’d expected a bad room from an OYO booking based on past experience. At arrival, management gave me room 108 after I signed the register and handed over my driving license as ID. It was horribly dirty and unhygienic. During my stay, Prafulla Devi Guest House was an OYO company-serviced hotel, so OYO had staff there for cleaning and upkeep, unlike other places I’ve stayed and mentioned below. This was the dirtiest hotel I’ve ever stayed in. Its only advantage was the nearby local bazaar for fruit and food. In my view, Prafulla Devi Guest House needs a deep clean and a major renovation before it deserves to be called a guest house or hotel. After my OYO period ended, I moved to another hotel. The online photos show rooms from when the guest house was in livable condition, ages ago. I don’t understand how OYO’s property selection team chose it. The lack of proper housekeeping and maintenance that should have come from OYO led to this state. Something also felt fishy to me because burqa-clad women often visited. The management did ask for their identification, and they submitted Aadhar ID.

For under 500 rupees, having AC and a geyser is fine, and the bed was clean enough to sleep in even though the room itself looked really dirty. The area around the guest house is quiet, though at night you can hear a certain kind of sound, you know what I mean. There was a TV; it turned on, but the service wasn’t recharged. They swapped the set-top box for another one and it worked, so my girlfriend was happy to listen to music on TV after so many days. Then, after about 30 minutes of playback, a recharge expired message appeared. 😕