La Vivanta Hotel

The room lock didn't work properly, and the hotel couldn't fix it after I reported the problem. The restrooms were dirty and unhygienic, and none of the electrical sockets worked. There were mosquitoes and a bad smell throughout the rooms and bathrooms, and there was no sense of safety. The air conditioner was terrible, ran at 27 degrees, and had no temperature control, which is a problem in a hot place like Madurai. Maintenance was very poor, and the hotel wasn't worth the money. There are better places for less. We had a terrible stay at Hotel Mega Grand, previously called La Vivanta. They'd just changed the name, so finding the location was difficult. Don't trust the online photos or Google listing as a guide to its current standard.

The chef was the one good thing about La Vivanta, and the food was good. The outdoor ambience was average, but the service men were poor and the organizing was a mess. There was no parking, so guests were told to park on the road and got fined by police. The final bill also had a discrepancy in the per-plate charge. Watch how many plates are used or you may be charged extra for food. The rooms were very small, with no locks on the restrooms. We organized a party here, and most of the experience was a problem.

The location was good, opposite Saravana stores, and the complimentary breakfast was very good. Inside, though, the ambience felt like a hospital. There were no water bottles, tea bags, coffee, or sugar, and we had to keep asking for water refills. The toilet facilities weren't proper, with no bucket. For a queen room booked for two, they gave us one soap and one brush, and even those weren't up to standard. Room service didn't come, the lift was poor, and although they advertised a swimming pool, there wasn't one.

The shower was weak, the hot water wasn't good enough, and the AC didn't cool properly. We changed rooms three times in three days and still got no compensation. One day the door lock broke; another day the air conditioner caught fire and gave off a bad plastic smell that alarmed us.