Lotus Luxury Villa

Comentarios destacados

• SarahMckUSKiwi

  01 enero 2014
  Manage your expectations

  This was our first trip to Cambodia, where we stayed 3 days in Phnom Penh and then went on to Siem Reap. The trip was booked through a travel agent and we had very little input into where we stayed. Our first choice of hotel was not available and the travel agent suggested Lotus Luxury Villa - it was described to us as a Hotel. We were picked up from the airport in the car from Lotus and the driver and receptionist were very welcoming, although not very talkative, as they were not confident english speakers. The reviews here that state that the Lotus Luxury Villa is essentially a big house with bedrooms that they let out is quite correct. On arrival and check-in we were informed that we had been upgraded to a larger and nicer room - it really did just look like a room in someone's house with a bathroom inside. The furniture was old and did not match, the bed was rock hard, with one pillow, a bedspread / duvet which did not quite cover the whole bed and a bottom sheet that looked like it had been sewn together from different sources and did not entirely cover the bed or tuck in around the mattress. There was a built in wardroom and there is no arguing that the room was very large - one window looked into a neighbors house (note to self - keep the curtains closed when changing) and the other out over the back yard where it looks like any household refuse not otherwise removed was pitched out a back window. The bathroom had a sink / mirror and spa bath with an shower head over it. The water pressure was a disaster and the temperature hard to control - the hot water inevitably ran out about half way through the shower. Water ran down the shower head and onto the wall and down the side of the bath, which became alarming when we noticed that this is where the spa bath was plugged into the wall! There was a shower curtain, but water sprayed everywhere and was hard to keep off the floor. The bath was very high and there was nothing to hold onto to steady yourself when you climbed in and out of the bath - I think this would be a serious issue for older or unsteady folks. We were also given tiny slivers of soap (it literally looked like someone had carved a tiny bit off a bar and put it in wrapping) so stopped into the mini mart around the corner to buy an actual bar of soap and face cloth (none supplied) we could use to wash properly with. We had a literal key to the room and had to leave it at reception when we went out if we wanted the room cleaned - i guess it was nice to know it was secure and there were no concerns about our possessions. We had breakfast included everyday and at downstairs at the cafe or outside in the small courtyard - it was actually pretty good. We ate a meal on arrival and were given an edible fried rice. We also had free WiFi and there are a number of routers to give good coverage, but we did notice that it went on and off a lot and we got dropped out and had to log back in often, which made using it next to impossible. I realize that this very much a first world problem, but it's hard if you're trying to book things or look up maps, or god forbid, actually do a bit of work while on vacation. The pool is tiny and located right next to a fence against a dusty and busy road, so we didn't avail ourselves of that. Not quite the getaway between tours sitting around the pool we had imagined. It is only a 10-15 minute walk to some of the major sites in the city, so we did a bit of walking to restaurants etc and called in for coffee at Gloria Jean just around the corner. If you don't feel like walking there are plenty of tuk-tuks around and usually few sitting outside if you want to jump straight in one. They are very cheap and friendly modes of transport, but remember to negotiate a price in advance. We enjoyed the city very much and did a tuk-tuk tour, visited markets and night markets and then one day used the Villa car to go out to the Killing Fields outside the city. The driver seemed reluctant because of some major roadworks he thought would hold us up and stretch the 40 min / 1-hour each way journey to 3 or 4 hours, but his boss overrode him and although traffic was slow, we still got there in an hour - he also took us to the Museum in the city on the way back. The price was very high at US $50 compared to some other tour operators, but we knew what kind of car we'd be getting. We saw others on their way out there in tuk-tuks and they were bouncing up and down in roadworks and getting covered in dust, so we felt we'd made the right choice. Overall we enjoyed Phnom Penh very much and would come back, but not to the Lotus Luxury Villa. It was not a horrible experience, just not what we had been expecting and although the people were very nice, wasn't as relaxing as our normal choices. I don't think there were many others staying (I think we only saw one other guy) so the small staff were able to cope, but I'm not sure how that would work if they were very busy.

  

• JanetS303

  30 enero 2014
  Lacking in basics

  We should have looked at the reviews more closely. The room was large and clean, staff very friendly, but, there is no point in any of this if the basic facilities are not great. The white bedding had stains on it. Wanted to pay for drinks etc on credit card, but was told by the members of staff on duty, they did not know how to work machine and could we pay by cash. The breakfast was good, but they only had a choice of coffee or breakfast tea, there were no other teas available at all, considering nowadays people tend to drink decaf, herbal etc. Take your own toiletries as there are very little. Two small unlabelled bottles of half full yellow liquid, don't know if it was shampoo or body wash. Clearly they just fill up when they are being used. 2 very small soaps and 2 toothbrushes with mini toothpaste, one of which had the paper surrounding it open and already been used. But the biggest problem was, and has previously been mentioned here on TripAdvisor, was the lack of hot water. We were told to put the switch on 15 minutes before you need a shower/bath. We had a whirlpool bath, with an overhead shower in it. You have to lean right over the bath (not your average small bath), as taps were on far side, which is no good if you are small. Try to work out how all the taps work, there didn't seem to be any simple way of doing this. Once you eventually get the hot water running, you have approximately 3 minutes before hot water runs out. Fine if you are a man with little or no hair, but women who have hair they want to wash and condition, this was impossible. And the simple problem was, the heater under the sink that supplies the hot water. It is so small, and when you google this, it is meant for offices, doctors, dentists, to wash their hands. Not for having a bath, and certainly not be able to use the whirlpool, as the water filled up to 3 inches below the jets. Now I don't know if all the rooms were the same, but none of the rooms should have this lack of hot water. And as I said before, because this has been mentioned already on TripAdvisor and nothing has been done about it, I am giving this hotel a low rating. They have a beautiful building, nicely decorated and furnished, they need to sort out basics, perhaps then, they would have more guests staying, (only saw 1or 2 couples on different occasions), they have a lot of competition from other hotels and it is the capital after all.

  

• Curt W

  23 octubre 2014
  Use as backup hotel

  The pictures show a beautiful hotel but these pictures must be 20 years old. The pool is small and overrun with foliage so as to make it unusable. The pool was also dirty. The room was a good size with minimal amenities . The bed was very hard and the toilet had to be fixed every day as it did not flush properly. The breakfast was modest but OK. You could pick French toast or pancakes or other western food but you did not get a lot. The coffee was very strong. You can sit outside near but not by the pool and eat or have a drink and this was very pleasant. The staff are nice but do not speak much English (can't say if they speak other languages). The evening meals are limited and we tried to order items from the menu but were told they did not know how to cook them. When checking out I was unable to se a credit card even though the hotel had credit card signs displayed. This almost made me late getting to the airport. There is a wonderful restaurant called "the Atmosphere: about a 7 minute walk away but not any others. The hotel is supposed to be in the city centre but it is not. You cannot walk to the downtown area. There are tuk tuks near the hotel transport you the downtown area.

  

• erwin m

  14 septiembre 2015
  A Pearl in the Crown

  Lotus Luxury Villa is exactly what the name say's, the Staff where really friendly and helpful, the Pool is small but always clean and the Room I had was just a Dream. The Location is good away from the busy Street's but on a TukTuk it will only take a few Minutes to the center of the City.

  

• Gider123

  22 febrero 2016
  Nice place to stay

  I like this place a lot but the pool is small the room is clean but the staff doesn't seen to have a lot of experience with their work. The location is not bad I think they should improve the pool size. NICE STAY