Chatrium Hotel Royal Lake Yangon

Our first night was frightening. Around 6-7 pm on Sunday, just after we’d put our baby down, a loud machine approached outside. Then smoke filled the room and made it hard to breathe. I grabbed the baby and ran upstairs to reception. The owner eventually explained, in limited English, that it was the regular Sunday mosquito fumigation and fumes had entered our room. He knew it was happening but hadn’t warned us, even though we’d checked in with a small baby. It wasn’t acceptable. We asked to move to another triple room of the same size, but there was only one. The other rooms were smaller, and the owner wouldn’t discount one if we downgraded to avoid the smoke. We waited for it to clear, then went back to sleep in that room. It was a deeply stressful welcome. If we hadn’t prepaid for three nights, we’d have left the next morning. The owner’s customer service was a major letdown. Mosquitoes were another problem. There were plenty outside and several in the room, and all three of us were bitten every night. Our one-year-old got bites on her legs, arms, and face. There was no mosquito net, and I wouldn’t recommend this place for families with kids. The room itself was spacious, with a queen bed and a large single, and the beds were comfortable. It was a little dark, but the house was nicely decorated and quiet, away from busy, dusty streets. Staff were friendly. The owner would buy food from the nearest Chinese restaurant and bring it to us, and one of the boys would run to get a taxi when asked. Fresh towels and sheets arrived daily, but the floor cleaning was poor. The mop seemed to be used throughout without being rinsed, and there was no bucket in sight. The floor still felt dirty, and our feet got dirty again within minutes. The air freshener also smelled bad and felt suffocating. Breakfast had been preordered, but the owner refused to bring it to our room the first morning when I called reception. We fed the baby in the room, then ate in the courtyard, and didn’t get out until 11 am. After I asked several more times on later mornings, they reluctantly brought breakfast up so we could eat and feed our child together. That shouldn’t have been so difficult, especially with a little baby. This B&B isn’t baby-friendly. Communication was hard throughout. Nobody spoke or understood English well enough, so I had to repeat requests again and again. The young boys could understand a little but couldn’t speak it. The owner misunderstood my dinner request and ordered too many dishes for two people. He also misunderstood my airport taxi request: instead of waiting for my call around 10 am, he booked one right at 10, and the driver waited nearly an hour before we were ready.