Hotel Maneck

The available bathroom was so filthy it was unusable, and we weren't given an attached one. The whole property was poorly kept and extremely unhygienic. Staff and management were rude and acted very unprofessionally. It felt like management was focused on extracting extra money from guests instead of providing basic service. My experience was horrible, and I'd strongly advise people planning an Ooty trip to avoid this hotel. There are cleaner, more welcoming places to stay.

There was no ventilation in the rooms, and mosquitoes still got in after we put up the mosquito net. The building is old and has no lift, yet all the AC Deluxe room photos show rooms on the second, third, and fourth floors, which can cause problems for guests who booked them. There was no electric kettle or tea and coffee in the room, and no room service for tea or food. We were three adults and paid 16500 for three adults with dinner and breakfast, or 4500 per room. Dinner wasn't good quality, and they charged us much more than what they provided. After arriving, we found that another guest was getting the same Deluxe room for Rs 2200 for three adults. Since I had booked 45 days earlier, it felt like cheating. They took the full amount before we entered the room, aside from the booking payment, but didn't give us a receipt.

The room felt so cramped that only one person could stand at a time. We had booked a Deluxe Double Bed room, but when one of us stood up, the other had to sit on the bed. The room smelled bad the whole time, and staying in it was uncomfortable. Walls were stained, and the place looked old, dirty, and neglected. The bathroom was disgusting too, with a leaking ceiling and signs it hadn't been cleaned properly in ages. Hot water only ran from 7 to 10 in the morning, which is ridiculous in cold Ooty. When we came back from sightseeing at 6 PM, we asked the owner to turn on the geyser so we could wash up. He refused rudely and repeated that hot water was only available in the morning. We said it was around 10°C and cold water wasn't possible. He replied, “That’s not our concern.” Don't be fooled by the photos, fancy reception, or outside appearance. The actual rooms are nothing like the online pictures, so I'm uploading real ones to help others avoid the same mistake. At this price, there are much cleaner, more comfortable hotels in Ooty with basic amenities and respectful staff. This place is overpriced, unhygienic, misleading, and badly managed. Avoid it.

Booking this hotel was a huge mistake. The photos showed the opposite of what we found: it was extremely unhygienic. We booked a Super Deluxe room, but after arriving and seeing the Standard room, we switched to Super Deluxe. There was bird poop everywhere outside the window, and the bathroom and blankets looked and smelled old. Take off the pillow cover and the pillow itself looked like it could make you sick. I don't know if the positive reviews on Agoda and other sites are paid. They seem greedy and focused on money. They have two branches, and because of conditions like this, sometimes there's no booking at all. People may only come when they've run out of options, and I doubt anyone would come back after seeing it once. We moved to Nahar the next day because of safety concerns and the extreme dirtiness. The staff said they'd lost one key and only had one available. It seemed like rooms weren't cleaned at all. There were only one or two staff members, and there was no reception number to call. When we dialed, it connected to the owner, who said, “Sorry, I'm at home, I'll send someone upstairs.” There's no lift, and the stairs are so cramped they feel like climbing a rocky mountain. This hotel doesn't feel safe. Someone knocks just to check that guests haven't run away and are still in their rooms. We didn't dare try the food because of safety concerns. This hotel may be contributing, a little or a lot, to Ooty's declining tourism.