Strand Guesthouse - Hostel

We only stayed one night, instead of the planned one night, and our stay, which cost over R1000, was a nightmare. There was practically nothing we liked about that awful room, and we would never recommend Strand Guesthouse. The website photos were totally misleading, and the room we got wasn’t like them at all. It wasn’t clean and had an awful smell. There were no dishcloths or toaster; the basin was chipped and blocked, and instead of a proper tap there was just a plastic pipe coming out of the wall. The bathroom was so cramped you had to sit with your feet in the shower. The whole place was no bigger than a single garage. The toilet didn’t flush properly, and sometimes the water kept running. The advertised Wi-Fi wasn’t working when we arrived. The Malawian man said he was working on it. Then the power suddenly went off. Two hours later we found the guy and asked about it. He said, “Oh sorry I forgot to switch on again.” The TV channels listed on the website weren’t there either. Netflix asked for a password, but it didn’t work. There were no other channels. When we asked, the same guy came to the room and tried something for half an hour. He said he’d come back, but never did. The room had a coffee menu, but when we tried to order, we were told the machine was out of order. There was no coffee, tea or sugar in the room because it was apparently “out of stock,” which was a joke. The advertised braai facilities had no braai dish or tongs. We couldn’t sleep because something loose on the roof seemed to bang in the wind. There was clearly no maintenance. Every time we called, we reached another foreigner who didn’t understand Afrikaans and either said “sorry,” “don’t know,” or spoke English poorly. We were told they didn’t do refunds. A cleaning staff member received us, and we never saw a manager or owner. The hostess turned out to be the cleaning lady too, a Zimbabwean. I would never use bookings.com again. This is a disgrace, and I’d be ashamed to rent a place like that to tourists. Management showed a clear lack of self respect.

The staff at Strand Guesthouse were friendly and apologetic after the terrible experience at bed Rock guesthouse, which apparently is part of the strand guesthouse house. They gave us their last available room, and it was clean, but the place seemed poorly maintained. The shower tap was broken, the sink was cracked, and the toilet seat was loose and uncomfortable. The room was tiny, and its only fan didn't work, so ventilation was poor.

The key deposit was a surprise because nobody told us about it before arrival, so if you don't have cash you have to go withdraw some. The reception area was dusty, the bunk beds had mould, and the shower looked very unhygienic. I wouldn't recommend staying here.

I was unsure after reading the reviews, but the stay turned out much better than I expected. The area was peaceful, the beds were comfortable, and the white linen and towels looked lovely. There was plenty of hot water, and Nonnie was delightful, helpful, and very friendly.