Country Inn & Suites by Radisson, Goa Panjim

The place was in very poor condition, with terrible hygiene and little sign of cleanliness. The rooms seemed to have cheap spray put over them to hide a fungus smell, and car parking was congested too. At that price, this is one of the worst places to stay, and I wouldn’t recommend it at all. I gave service four stars because they know they get bad reviews, cancellations, and rejected bookings.

Breakfast had good choices and tasted good, and the staff were polite and helpful, though service was quite slow. But I even saw roaches in the buffet area. The bathtub room was a problem too: the water wouldn’t drain, and since I didn’t know how long it would take, I had to shower with the tub half full. Don’t assume the brand name means the rooms will meet its standards. There was a damp, foul smell as soon as I entered the building, with black mold in several spots, including by the bedroom bedside lamp. The property feels old and badly in need of renovation.

There are some good points: it’s a huge property in a clean city centre location, with tidy, comfortable beds and enough staff. But basic problems made the stay frustrating. Cockroaches were on the breakfast buffet food, and there seemed to be no pest control. The decor had stains and cracks throughout, as if it had been refurbished without being properly cleaned. The a la carte food was extremely oily, like food from a roadside eatery. Room service waiters weren’t trained to close the door when leaving. Check-in took a long time because the counter person was confused about our booking for three people in two rooms. The valet put a sticker on the car key that was hard to remove and left glue behind; string labels would be better. At checkout, they said the food bill would arrive by email, but it never did. Managers should address these basic problems.

The only snag was that our rooms were on different floors. Apart from that, it was worth every rupee. We were a group of women traveling with family from 29 feb 2020 to March 2020, and the hotel made us feel safe and at home. The rooms were clean and cleaned every day, staff were friendly, and the food was great. Thank you, Country inn and Suites, for making my birthday and our trip so memorable and sweet.