The Hosteller Bhandardara

I had a bad stay at The Hosteller Bhandardara. The property itself is beautiful and the staff were generally courteous, but at over ₹15,000 for three nights, I expected a considerably more comfortable, functional and thoughtfully designed stay. The main issues I faced were: * Café and access from the cottages: The café is self-service and more importantly, the cottages are quite far from the café and there is no internal route connecting them. This is a particularly serious design flaw during the monsoon. It doesn’t simply rain in Bhandardara during this time — it can be stormy and pouring, and I had to walk outside in the rain every time I wanted to go to the café for breakfast, lunch and dinner. My clothes would get completely drenched, and it is unreasonable to expect someone to constantly change clothes or pack extra clothes simply because of an infrastructural flaw in how the property has been designed. * Access to reception: There is no phone in the room to contact reception. When I needed assistance late at night, I had to physically walk all the way to reception around midnight in the drizzle to get help. There is an app for making requests, but the options are limited and if something isn’t available, there is no proper human alternative. When I had an ant infestation in my room at midnight, the app was not working and I had to walk to the reception (near the cafe) which is again far away from the rooms in the rains to get it addressed. * Ant infestation: This was the most serious issue. Ants were present throughout my stay and eventually started getting onto my bed and biting me. Having to deal with an infestation in the room, particularly one that reaches the bed, is simply not acceptable at this price point. I had an incredibly disturbed sleep all 3 nights of my stay. They did seal my room and give me bug spray, but that had minimal impact. I considered leaving early but couldn’t find transport out. * Room design and basic functionality: There is no chair or table in the room which should be basic at a room which is being charged almost 5k per night. If I wanted to eat in the privacy of my room, I had no option but to eat on the bed. There is also no warm water connection at the basin, so even washing my face with warm water requires using the shower. * The “it’s a hostel” justification: What I found particularly frustrating was that whenever I raised some of these issues, I was met with the response that “it’s a hostel.” I would have been perfectly happy to adjust my expectations if the property were charging hostel-level prices. But my cottage cost over ₹5,000 per night, which is well into the price range where I would expect the standards of a good 3–4 star hotel. You cannot charge hotel-level prices, provide subpar services and infrastructure, and then use “it’s a hostel” as the justification for those shortcomings. Zostel has premium rooms which they charge premium prices for, but the facilities also match the price point then. The price point has to be taken into account when setting expectations for the guest experience. I had specifically chosen this property for a quiet getaway during a difficult time, and unfortunately the experience was far from the peaceful and comfortable stay I had hoped for. when you’re paying over ₹5,000 a night, ₹15,000+ for three nights, you reasonably expect basic cleanliness, comfort, functionality and thoughtful infrastructure. I would have been much more understanding of these shortcomings at a significantly lower price. At this price point, however, I don’t think the experience represents good value for money.

It was so good one should definitely visit it and the hotel is on perfect place staff is polite everything is neat and clean worth the price will definitely visit here again.

Stunning Location and amazing staff and people make this property an amazing experience for a traveller. Don't miss out on the amazing sightseeing points nearby.

I was utterly disappointed with the food at the Hosteller. The pasta I ordered was made with some veg gravy. If I had called for paneer I guess I would have been served with the same gravy. The bed wasn't all that great in the delux cabin. The taps were leaking in the bathroom. The comforter was torn. The location was amazing. All they have to do is to get a good chef, rest is still manageable.