Transcorp Hotels Calabar

Room service can take a while, but the food is good. Breakfast is buffet style, with filling options like rice and spaghetti that can keep you going all day. There isn’t much choice in teas, though. The hotel is old, but it’s maintained reasonably well. The sheets and towels were clean, and housekeeping did a great job. Mary from Housekeeping and Sly a Concierge especially stood out for going out of their way to help.

The rooms are badly worn. I waited two and a half hours for room service, and the food left me with serious food poisoning. I ended up in the hospital. It’s 1:20 a.m. as I write this, and the music is still ridiculously loud. I called several times asking them to turn it down, but nobody responded. They said it would stop at 1, but it hasn’t. There are plenty of other places to choose from, yet this was an awful experience.

Be ready for some noise and busy traffic around the hotel. It hosts events, a church meets in one of the downstairs halls, and it’s right by the roadside. The rooms are spacious, and I was pleasantly surprised by the reasonable rate. Breakfast is included and the food is well cooked. But on both mornings I went, there was food out without staff attending it. Once, two staff members were there but spent their time talking with another guest. Customer service needs more attention. If you’re vegetarian, tell them ahead of time, since there wasn’t a vegetarian option.

This old hotel needs a revamp. There are broken tiles along the corridors and walkways, plus old furniture, poor looks, and weak maintenance. I’d choose a smaller boutique hotel instead.