Transit Airport Bed & Breakfast

We were worn out from traveling all day, after a cancelled flight, and scared in a new city. If we’d arrived earlier, we would have left and found somewhere else. Instead, we ended up with very little sleep in a rock-hard bed, with insects around and noise all night, after the scare with the mouse. The room was dirty, with water on the bathroom floor, blood stains and holes in the sheet, and beds that were way too short. Breakfast was inedible, including rotten eggs. The worst part was seeing a mouse crawling along the walls in our room. At reception, we explained what happened, and the staff member acted confused. We later saw other reviews saying this had been an ongoing issue. We asked for another room. At first she said no rooms were available, even though the whole building seemed empty. Then she said okay and showed us several rooms. At midnight, we had no choice but to accept one. I’ve never asked for a refund in my life, even after bad stays, but this place was so awful I want my money back.

In my opinion, there are better value places nearby. It’s close to the airport, but the location gets 3 out of 5 from me, and so does the room. Service was 1 out of 5. The receptionist who understood English refused to speak to me and spoke Swahili instead, apparently not realizing I understand it. They initially refused card payment, even though my Booking.com confirmation said only cards were accepted. They said the PFQ was broken, then the front desk staff accepted payment by card in USD under pressure.

The problem wasn’t simply that cockroaches appeared. It was how dismissive the staff were when we needed help. I travel often and understand that insects can turn up in Africa. At other hotels where I’ve encountered cockroaches, staff have apologized, offered another room right away, and treated the room, checked that the insects were dead, and cleaned up. Even if no room is available, the least they can do is show concern for a guest’s safety and comfort. Here there was no apology at all. At night, while I was in bed, a cockroach came out right beside my pillow. I called reception. A staff member sprayed a few times and left, without really addressing the problem. When I returned, the insect had disappeared and there was no dead cockroach, so it could still be alive and come back. I asked whether they could leave the spray in the room. After a long pause, the staff member reluctantly said I should return it in the morning. I couldn’t understand why they wouldn’t leave it. It wasn’t expensive, and of course I would have brought it back. We couldn’t find the first one for a while, so we sprayed a lot around the room and had to wait in the lobby. When we returned, we found it alive and moving. Then another cockroach appeared. My husband dealt with it while I was too frightened and fled to the lobby. The noise from the room was loud enough for reception to hear, but nobody came to help. There was no intention to assist. If there’s one cockroach, there may be another, so leaving us the spray was clearly the right thing to do. Their reluctance still makes no sense. The two cockroaches left the room, which was full of spray, and went into the hallway. I have videos and photos. There were rats in the breakfast area too, walking on the table where the food was set out. I’m being this direct because in replies to other Google reviews about cockroaches, the hotel says it maintains high cleanliness standards. Given what happened, how do they explain that? There are cockroaches and rats.

The bed was comfortable, and I was glad there was a mosquito net because the room had lots of mosquitoes. The AC worked, and there was also a ceiling fan. The hotel is just across the road from the airport, but it’s hard to find. I wouldn’t suggest walking there, especially alone at night, since the area doesn’t look safe.