Pokoje Gościnne Jaworowy

We booked this at the last minute after I missed the New Year’s Eve dates, mainly because we needed somewhere that would take our dog. They accepted him, though the pet fee was 100 PLN. The carpets are everywhere, and I think the dog slept better than we did. I won’t stay here again. The room was clean but tiny, with old furniture and a standard well below what the price suggests, even if it wasn’t exceptionally high for Bukowina. The bedding felt rough as sandpaper, and seemed as if it came from the Sobieski era. The beds were short and uncomfortable. I’m just under 175 cm and barely fit, while my companion didn’t. There weren’t any cleaning supplies or even hand soap. When I asked for soap, they said they don’t provide it in the rooms. Shampoo was a nightmare too. The shower temperature swung between scalding and lukewarm, and the clogged drain left a little pond behind. The toilet brush looked about 20 years old, which was disgusting. We’d called ahead to ask about a kitchen where we could make tea or something, and were told yes, absolutely. But without buying breakfast, access was so limited that in the evening everything was closed and we couldn’t even get drinking water. In the morning we had to squeeze in around the owners to boil water to take to the mountains or back to the room.

The food was fresh and quite good, and there’s a children’s play hut in the yard. The location is handy, near central Bukowina and the pools. Still, fitting two adults and two children into rooms this small is way too much. The bathroom barely gives you room to turn around, and the room’s cleanliness left something to be desired. The mattresses smelled as though they were about 20 years old, and the duvet was so heavy that I woke up feeling like a train had run over me. If the owners improve the standard, this could be a nice base for trips to the mountains and pools.

Breakfast was okay, but the room was unpleasant: too small to move around in with two people, with a bad smell and duvets and pillows that felt awful. We also had no towels or hairdryer. The 20 PLN resort fee the lady charged for one night was a complete joke.

For the price, it’s a simple, cheerful stay, and we didn’t expect a mansion. The rooms are small, but warm, almost too warm. In winter, getting there from the bus stop with a suitcase and baby in a stroller takes a while: it’s 500 m over snowy sidewalks. The thermal baths are 1.3 km away, and a sled helped us manage with the baby. Though check-in is listed as 3:00 PM, they let us in at 2:00 PM at no extra cost. We skipped breakfast, but used the microwave and gas stove in the basement kitchen.