Palms Hotel

I was here for four work days, and I regret the choice. The sewage smell was there the whole time, and the facilities were basic and dated. The fridge smelled moldy, and there was no Wi-Fi. Cockroaches were the worst part: I killed 5-6 small ones every day in the shower room, and found a few near the bed too. Thankfully there were no large ones, but seeing the small ones made me feel sick because it suggested larger ones might be around. During the day the young male receptionist and two women were nice and helpful. The older night receptionist was unpleasant. When the power went out in my room in the middle of the night, I called him. He said he’d come fix it, but after 30 minutes nothing had happened. I called again and he claimed he’d already fixed it, though he hadn’t. He eventually came and restored the power, staying sullen the whole time. Even though I’d booked a room for two and paid for two, he and a housekeeper refused to give me two bath towels and two bottles of water each day because I was staying alone. There weren’t even face or hand towels. I’ve never known a 3-star hotel to restrict guests to one bath towel, though the other receptionists were kinder and gave me an extra one. The housekeeper also kept knocking at 8:30 to ask about cleaning despite my “Do not disturb” sign. What’s the point of the sign? I won’t come back or recommend it. I feel bad for the younger receptionists, but that’s how it is.

The restaurant has a great view and lovely sunsets, and the rooms are clean and comfortable. Staff are usually friendly and helpful. It’s good value for money, although being on a main road makes it a bit noisy at night.

The breakfast was yuk, the lifts were very slow, and room service was horrible. The AC didn’t work, the Wi-Fi wouldn’t connect, and an electrical socket was broken. Staff were arrogant and acted like they were doing us a favor. There were plenty of other problems too. I wouldn’t recommend it.

The bathroom smelled of sewage, and cockroaches were coming up. On my last day, a company was spraying the whole area to get rid of rodents. The daytime reception service and staff were outrageous and unprofessional. They made it clear I was bothering them while they played games on their phones. The general manager’s attitude seems reflected in the staff: they refused to meet me about the smoke detectors not working, which is a safety risk for all guests. As someone from a hotel group, I was badly surprised by how little service there was, if any. Shame. There were no real non-smoking rooms. Walking in, I was hit by the smell of smoke, and as a non-smoker I couldn’t sleep. The smoke detectors clearly seemed obsolete and not working. Worst experience ever in Mauritius.