Al Massa Bader hotel

The food was good, though there wasn’t much choice in Pakistani dishes. The hotel has 20 floors but only 10 elevators, which feels far too few. I think it should have 15 or 16.

This account is based on the experiences of Umrah pilgrims from Pakistan, with the booking made through the agent Decent Travel Wadiyar. The one real plus for us was being very close to Masjid Al-Haram. The lobby, though, was often crowded with bees and people eating, since food isn’t allowed in the rooms. Our triple-bed private room booking turned into a private room with five beds, leaving the small room very cramped. The room and bathroom were only barely clean enough. At night and throughout the day, traffic horns came straight through the window on the fifth floor, which had no noise insulation. There was no soap or toothbrush holder in the bathroom. Housekeeping didn’t come at all during our four nights. We had to ask the floor staff a couple of times for a quick five-minute mop, but there were no changed sheets or refills of shower gel, soap, or tissues. Checking out was just as poor. We got no answer to our greetings, only a rude “we will let you know when bus arrives, it is coming.” Check-in itself was okay, but hotel management didn’t really deal with us. A Pakistani “manager” sat in the lobby with papers and handed over the room key after seeing the travel and hotel voucher. He had gone out when we arrived, so we waited 10-15 minutes. Once he returned, getting the key was smooth, but I found his manner pretty rude and there was no warm welcome. Overall it wasn’t a pleasant stay, especially because of the poor and rude “Pakistani Management” and lack of room service. If daily cleaning matters to you, I’d look elsewhere.

We stayed for 10 nights and had booked two rooms. The housekeeping team were excellent, friendly and efficient, and always got the job done. Five stars for them. The hotel itself is a bit run-down and a fair way from the masjid, though it costs less than many other options.

The rooms didn’t live up to the modern-looking reception. Ours was dated and needs renovation, with cracks in the toilet, dirty marks in the tub, and small flies around the bathroom. We had four single beds despite needing only two. The online listing said towels, a kettle, and a safe were available, but none was in the room. There was a fridge and wardrobe, at least. Reception brought towels and tissues quite quickly, within about 30 minutes of my call. We arrived at 14:05, after the online check-in time of 14:00, but were told our room wasn’t ready. Staff said most Makkah hotels apparently check in at 16:00, which made the online information misleading. They found us a room in about half an hour, but only gave us one key card when we realistically needed two. We also had to pay a deposit, which we were told would be returned after checkout. We later realized it was connected to strict rules, including not taking food to the rooms. That felt unfair, especially when seating in food places can be hard to find or someone is unwell. At checkout the room had to be inspected before the deposit was returned. We regret not taking photos or videos when we arrived. It’s around a 15-minute walk to the Haram, so the hotel does the job if you mainly need somewhere close to the mosque, but several things could be improved.