Stara Poczta

I used to remember Stara Poczta as much better, after visiting a few years ago. This stay was a real disappointment. The place and rooms feel very outdated and badly need modernising. My room was unbearably hot, and when I asked for air conditioning, they said it would cost extra, which felt unreasonable at £100 a night. It was also dirty, with a mouldy bathroom, torn pillows and duvets, a barely working hairdryer, and floors that seemed to have had only a quick vacuum. Breakfast was poor too: dry, stale bread, basic eggs and sausages, and shop-bought cake. The quality and choice didn't match the price. The building is beautiful and well located in the old part of the city, which makes the lack of care and hospitality especially sad. I won't return unless they make significant improvements.

My family and I left exhausted and feeling scammed. If you're given rooms 1-13, I’d leave. The hotel was nearly empty, but staff still refused to move us. There was no Wi-Fi, air conditioning, or elevator access in our rooms. I couldn’t work in the room I’d specifically booked for that, and my family couldn’t watch their entertainment. During the heat wave, with toddlers along, the only answer was two tiny heater fans. Opening the windows to cool the rooms let bugs in because there were no nets. We also had to wait four days for laundry that was promised in two. At checkout, they charged us 408 zloty for a half-full bag. The front desk hadn’t shown or told my mother-in-law the prices, and they charged 30 zloty to wash each pair of toddler pants, each about the size of an adult sock. That's more than twice what new clothes would cost. The front desk offered to keep our infant's open milk bottle since there was no fridge in the room. When we asked for it the next morning, it was gone. Restaurant staff said they had used it to fill the continental breakfast carafe. That seemed dangerously negligent, since the milk might have been spoiled or diseased. My shower leaked badly and flooded the bathroom. Even after I pleaded for another room, they tried unsuccessfully to patch it, and the room smelled terrible for days. We couldn't get a crib on the first night because staff "couldn't figure out how to open them," but we were still charged the exorbitant 50 zloty nightly fee for that night. There is a pool, but it's closed in the mornings and between 16-20. The kids sleep during the only hours it’s available, so we never got to use it.

The pool was a letdown, and the hotel's layout was confusing. Our rooms felt old and neglected, while the staff came across as a bit rude. Breakfast was disgusting: old sausages, ham and bread, plus rubbery eggs. The food overall was mediocre, and we left hungry that morning.

The breakfast was fine, nothing special, and the staff were friendly. But the rooms are small and not timely. On a five-night work trip I could have managed one night here, but not a longer stay. There’s barely room for luggage in front of the bed, which leaves no way to work at the "desk". The socket is just one, and not close to the bed. Honestly, I can't recommend the hotel.