The George Hotel

We came from London UK to visit KZN. But this hotel provided a very poor service and was in no way related to what is shown on the website. Our experience was well below expectations for the following reasons. 1. The staff appeared to be dis-interested in welcoming us and showing us the facilities. 2. There was no food to be had at the hotel - although the website indicates a pleasant looking restaurant. To be simply told there was no breakfast - and not to offer to reduce our payments seems outrageous. 3. The bedrooms need a makeover. The shower room was shabby. 4. There were lightbulbs missing in the library so it was not possible to sit there and read. This visit was a great disappointment. The hotel has a lot of potential, and the grounds are attractive. It is an important historical location and it was a great shame to see it so neglected.

First the positives: the staff we came in contact with were efficient, friendly and helpful. The room was clean, with clean linen, towels changed daily. Load-shedding is a pain, but there were battery bulbs everywhere so one was not left in the dark. The breakfasts were full English, fresh cooked (but no jam/marmalade) Then the not so positive: The building is ..... well, it is what it is, and we thought it was eccentric and full of history. There are amazing photographs, on every wall, but it's all a bit run down. The images on the hotel website are not accurate. Our room was fine, but there was only one bedside light, and there was only one knob for water in the shower, so you had to turn on one tap, then change the knob for the other tap. Did it matter? No - but some people might moan about that. Welcome to Africa... There is no licence, so no bar, but they were happy for us to take in our own drink. There is no restaurant, but they were happy to provide food if planned in advance - simple, plain food. They were happy for us to get a pizza and eat it there. It's expensive, compared to other places in Eshowe, but what you get is an authentic experience in an authentic African venue with no frills. We had a good week, during which they hosted our birthday party for 30 people, and arranged a cultural visit for us. What we observed was the hotel mainly being used by people staying overnight for work. We were the only tourists. The George has a dodgy reputation in the eyes of local people, but would I stay there again? Yes.

We were phoned an hour before our arrival to be informed that the restaurant had closed, due to too few people checking in, even though we had paid for dinner, bed and breakfast. On arrival, after a hard day in the field, at 40C, we requested a drink, only to be told that there is no bar. We stated that we just wanted some drinking water, of which there was also none in the hotel. So we went up to shower, just as load shedding kicked in, which meant no water pump and no shower for 2 and a half hours. When the power came back on, I found that that fan, airconditioner, tv and wifi did not work. The water ran from the tap again, but was filthy brown, which meant I couldnt even boil it to drink. When I filled the kettle, a colony of ants emerged. We decided to check out a day early, understandably, and the hotel receptionist told us that we would be reimbursed. She emailed me a few hours after checkout to tell me that they would only reimburse if we had given 72 hours notice. I asked her to get the manager/owner to contact me, which he did. However, he was extremely arrogant, attacking and uncooperative. To add insult to injury, I discovered that I had been attacked by bird mites during the night in the hotel. Avoid this establishment at all costs. What a pity, as it used to be a fine establishment years ago, but has really gone to pot.