Mercure Budapest Castle Hill — Hotel in Budapest

I am writing this letter in absolute frustration and anger regarding the disgraceful cleanliness and service I endured during my recent five-night stay at your hotel. What should have been a pleasant experience was completely ruined by your staff's incompetence and disregard for basic hygiene standards.

Upon first entering my room, I thought everything was fine until I began noticing the sheer level of filth that was clearly overlooked. The side table was sticky with what seemed like spilled juice – a mess I had to clean myself, as no one else had bothered to. The dresser was also dirty with the same sticky substance. And worst of all, I found random hairs behind the toilet lid – utterly revolting and completely unacceptable for any hotel room, let alone one in your establishment.

I immediately reported these issues to the reception, and while the staff were polite, that's where any semblance of good service ended. I was told housekeeping could take care of it the next morning, which I accepted since it was late. However, the next day, after being out of the room for most of the day, I returned to find that the bed had been made and fresh towels provided, but none of the disgusting filth I specifically highlighted was addressed. The side table was still dirty, and the hairs were still behind the toilet. Unbelievable.

At this point, I had to go back to the reception – for the second time – and once again politely explain that the room had still not been cleaned properly. Another round of empty apologies was given, and I was assured the issue would be taken care of the next day.

The following day, I saw housekeeping on my floor while I was leaving for breakfast, so I foolishly assumed they would finally address the mess. But when I returned several hours later, to my complete disbelief, nothing had been done! The bed was made (again), towels replaced (again), but the side table remained sticky and the hairs behind the toilet lid were still there – absolutely disgusting and a clear indication of either complete incompetence or sheer laziness from your staff.

I went to reception yet again, explained the situation for the third time, and expressed my frustration. But apparently, no one at your hotel understands the basics of customer service or communication, because my requests were ignored again. How many times does a paying guest have to complain about filth in their room before someone actually does their job? This isn’t just about a dirty room anymore; this is about your hotel’s complete disregard for its guests.

To add insult to injury, the dismissive attitude from your staff was downright insulting. One of the male receptionists had the nerve to say, "Yeah, some of these little things happen." Excuse me? Little things? Filthy rooms and ignored complaints are not "little things" – they are basic failures that completely undermine the guest experience. I did not stay at your hotel for free, and I expected far better than this disgraceful level of service.

This has been one of the most disappointing hotel stays I have ever experienced. And to think that even when I checked out, nothing had been resolved – the room was still dirty, the same hairs still behind the toilet lid, and the same sticky mess still on the table. It’s an absolute joke. This entire situation reflects horrendously on your hotel and your brand, not to mention the failure of communication and basic respect for guests that was evident throughout.

I strongly urge you to take a serious look at the complete failure of service during my stay and rectify this immediately. I will not tolerate being treated like this, and I expect a proper explanation and compensation for this...

Worst hotel I've ever stayed at. HOTEL HELL. Honestly this place is the absolute pits Where to begin?

Room was filthy and no bathtub as described on website.

Changed room to another filthy room but with a bathtub. No water pressure and plug broken so could not fill bath.

Hour later someone finally comes to fix it. A plumber I assumed. He took the plug out of the bath, snapped part of the shower and told me it was now working. Obviously it wasnt. So still no bath.

Tried 2 more rooms and finally got given another disgusting pig sty like hovel but this time with a working bath.

Given free breakfast for duration of stay as compensation for all of the awfulness with the rooms. Thought OK that's a nice thing to do.

But then it gets worse.i have a message on my door to go to reception on the second morning. Thought it might be serious...

No! It wasn't, they wanted me to pay for breakfast now! Humiliated in front of a queue of guests as the receptionist says I haven't paid enough money for breakfast (which was compensation). I shyly told him about the offer his colleague had made because of the sheer filth of the rooms. He scuttled over to the manager and came back and said sorry don't worry have a good day. Don't think it is good enough. It's poor service and just another show of how poor this hotel is.

Anyway, to top it off I go for breakfast in the restaurant (more dusty than the rooms and that's saying something). Lo and behold the staff are clearing everything away at 0955 when breakfast is served until 1000.when I asked for a glass of OJ I was tutted at... Well sorry but my watch says its 0955 - the OJ should be out on show. They also took my plate away when I hadn't finished. And there was no water. I had to go to the kitchen myself and fetch a glass of water. Also the eggs aren't cooked properly so avoid unless you want to get sick.

When I tried to change money at the front desk I was made to wait to one side for 40 minutes until a member of staff could deal with my request. I missed an event because of it.

The tvs done work properly either the sound on them is broken.

This hotel stinks and looks like it was last cleaned in the 1990s judging by the decor. Honestly it's awful please whatever you do don't stay at this hotel.

It's a 1* hostel not a hotel. Truly truly saddening to see the great hotel trade mistreated in this way.

PLEASE WHATEVER YOU DO, DO NOT STAY...

We visited the Mercure Castle Hill for four nights in August 2025 as a family of two adults and one child aged 10. |On arrival the hotel was clean and modern looking. |The trainee who checked us in was not particularly friendly but did give us information on breakfast times etc. |We had paid extra for an extra bed in the room for our daughter which was a pull out sofa bed and I. Our opinion would have not been suitable should she have been any bigger. The mattress was only thin and it was loud and squeaked on every movement. |We felt the room was quite small for three people for their nights. The wardrobe was tiny and only had 8 hangers. We ended up leaving our clothes in our suitcases which gave us even less room. |The bathroom was the smallest we have ever encounter and when the shower was on despite our best efforts, the floor flooded every time. |The double bed was comfortable. It was 34-36 degrees when we visited and despite the room temperate in our room being turned right down it never seemed to get cool. |Breakfast was ok. Not good if you’re a later riser like us as they start to clear away from 9:20. On three mornings we have to ask for cutlery, napkins and food items (croissants, melon and bread) that had ran out and were met with eyes rolls despite is only being 9:20 and breakfast supposedly being available until 10am. |The location of the hotel is great for the castle and the metro however be prepared to walk or get transport to the main areas which is around 2 miles away from the hotel on foot. |We walked around 30000 steps a day whilst also using Ubers at least once a day. |We love Budapest. 5 days wasn’t enough and would highly recommend. I would have preferred to stay on the other side of the river and The Mercure City Centre hotel was ideally located. |What would have been nice on our last day would have been to the use of a courtesy room. We have never not known the before, even on city breaks and had been walking around in the heat all day as we had a late flight.||Tip: Don’t get on a bus without a ticket. You can not buy them once onboard and will be fined £50 for a couple. |You must validate any ticket you buy for the metro before getting on. There are little yellow machines dotted around if you don’t use the app. |Also, never just jump in a taxi, always use uber or bolt app. We paid £13 for a...