Hotel Dolphin - Bhakkhali

We had a very bad stay. The hotel looks nice from outside, but the rooms have very small beds and the toilets aren’t properly maintained. They gave us a menu for lunch and dinner, but about 80% of the dishes weren’t available. I brought them chicken and specifically asked for it not to be too spicy because I had kids with me. It came out so oily and hot that even the adults couldn’t enjoy it. Their chef doesn’t seem to know how to cook properly.

The place isn’t worth the high price, and the staff, including the manager, were rude. The location is bad and security is the worst. We booked a super deluxe room, but it didn’t have a single bulb, the doors had no handles, the ceilings weren’t properly painted, and none of the clocks worked properly. The geysers weren’t working properly either. The food was ordered from outside and cost too much. The head manager kept hiding from us even after we called him repeatedly. There’s so much wrong with the hotel I could write a whole book about it. If you want a good vacation, I’d suggest booking somewhere else.

The morning service was so slow that nobody was available to take even a tea order before 8 am. We had to get tea outside and ended up late for the beach. I’d planned to order before we went, but the service put us off. When we returned, the manager rudely told us to leave the room within ten minutes. The staff were also indifferent when we asked for another menu because the one in our room was unreadable, with much of the print missing. They never brought a replacement. We had to buy mineral water from the hotel because they said their Aquaguard wasn’t working and wouldn’t provide regular drinking water. The blankets smelled as if they hadn’t been washed for ages, and one of our rooms didn’t have a blanket at all. The doors were broken, the toilets weren’t up to standard, and the rooms were poor quality for the high price. The manager was rude, and the staff were irresponsible. I’ve had good experiences at other Dolphin group hotels, but this one was a disaster. Next time, Dolphin Group hotels will be my last choice.

There are plenty of small restaurants within 500 metres that have better food, more variety, and better service at the same or even lower prices. Hotel Dolphin is still a nice, affordable place to stay if you’re willing to eat out. The location is convenient, the outside looks good, and the garden has benches, swings, and slides for children. The open dining hall has a soothing feel, most rooms are spacious and comfortable, and the staff’s conduct is satisfactory. Food service at the hotel was awful. Dinner ordered before 8 pm didn’t arrive until midnight, and even small meals took far too long. The food quality wasn’t good, and they made shabby excuses about the small portions. The place seemed heavily understaffed. We had to ask five times for things as simple as a glass of water, a spoon, or another serving of rice. Drinking water wasn’t refilled in our room either. We had to notify reception, then wait a long time for them to sort it out.