Kingdom Hotel

The king suite they gave me was dirty and in bad shape. The sofas were especially filthy, the room lights didn’t work, and the sauna in the bathroom was broken. There was no tub curtain either, so a quick shower splashed water everywhere. The desk staff were rude and slow. The hotel was nearly empty, but I still ended up with one of the worst rooms, the worst king suite they had.

I had the buffet lunch, and it was excellent. Everyone I dealt with on the staff was extremely friendly, helpful, and professional. The hotel itself is very nice and upscale, and the room was huge, with a California king-size bed and a big bathroom. Some furnishings, especially the chairs, looked worn and due for replacement. Still, it was very clean and well-appointed by SA standards. I wasn’t as keen on the neighborhood, but the hotel was superb.

I was terrified as a solo female traveler. Someone came into my room at 5am, slammed the door, and ran off. I had no idea what had happened, whether anyone had been standing over me while I slept, or whether my things were taken. I screamed, ran into the hallway, and asked a maid for help. She called reception, but nobody came or called until I phoned the front desk myself and demanded help for over 5 minutes. When someone finally arrived, they only said, “sorry, must’ve been an accident”. I pressed for an explanation. A woman said she’d call someone and return to my room, but she never came back. I didn’t sleep at all. I’m not even sure I can say I “stayed” there. At checkout around 10am, I tried again to get answers. The front desk ladies laughed at me, which I have a photo of, and shrugged. I kept telling them I had a flight to catch and needed to speak to someone. After 20 minutes, a man said he’d contact Expedia about a refund and took my phone number. I still haven’t heard from him. They’d already moved me through three rooms because of party music and broken air conditioners and fans. In the third room, I stepped on a broken shard of glass, and couldn’t get it out of my foot until I got home. I’ve never felt less safe. I couldn’t recommend this place less, and would never stay here again.

The beds were comfortable, the rooms big, and breakfast was good. There was a free swimming pool and sauna too. But for two nights, the parties were so loud and went on until 2-3 am, so we couldn’t sleep properly. It also took 30 minutes by bus to get to the ocean. Still, it was a comfortable, calm place overall.