You get what you pay for!
11 September 2006
The Stroomi was by far the cheapest place I could find to book for a group of us (13) for a mate's stag do. The Stroomi hotel is located well away from the center of town approx 10min taxi ride, and is a what appears to be a run down area of the town. Both the guidebooks we used aired caution about the area, and although we had no problems ourselves, locals were seen being asked to leave the hotel by the security on the door. We used the security boxes at £1 a day charge.
The rooms are small but adequate, nothing spectacular and all had ensuite. Most importantly they were clean! towels were supplied and changed regularly.
The restaurant is small and I must be honest I did not once make it to beakfast, so cannot vouch for the food, although I saw some main meals come out and they looked reasonable.
A taxi fare to the town center varied considerably from around £4 to £8, taxi drivers seem to charge as they wish, and the meter appears to be set as they see fit, so I would strongly advise agreeing a price before getting in, or at least getting some idea of cost.
There is a small kiosk across the road from the hotel, which sells drinks, sweets and magazines etc as the hotel has no such facility, although the restaurant doubles up as the bar until 2100hrs. The bar is quite literally that, appears to be in one room on the ground floor which has been converted. Prices were reasonable, although slightly more than in town a beer would set you back between £1.50-£2.00.
In summary if you are after a romantic weekend, Im sure there are nicer hotels, but if you are on a shoe string budget or just looking for a place to sleep then there is no reason to be too concerned. We would all happily return the next time one of us decides to get hitched!
Kevin, UK
Group of Young Friends/Couples