Mercure Bengkulu — Hotel in Bengkulu

I was frankly quite disappointed with my stay here. This particular property was a disappointment on all fronts.

1. Check in. I gave my foreign credit card specifically telling the receptionist to block an amount as deposit so that various payments could be charged to the room which could then be settled at the end of the stay. Instead the receptionist charged the card with the full stay amount which resulted in me being charged foreign exchange fees. The settlement would have been done at the end of the stay with a local card and hence no forex charges but thanks to this blunder I got charged extra. To add insult to injury, one of the senior front desk personnel even told me that the hotel was having some issues and hence could not 'open' a credit card for additional charges. This later turned out to be untrue and Ms Putri properly opened my card without resorting to lies.
2. The hotel boasts of sound proof rooms. Nothing could be further from the truth. You will hear everything around you, so forget trying to rest in your room.
3. Breakfast area. The egg counter is located in such a way that you have to talk pretty loudly to inform the chef what you want. Even though fresh juice counter is there, you can't get a sugar free fresh juice. Even though this is an Accor group hotel, the quality of the baguette is questionable.
4. The hotel supposedly promotes minimising plastic use to the inconvenience of it's guests. I would much prefer a bottle in the room which I can carry to my workplace rather than having to stop everyday at a convenience store to buy water. Overall a very pathetic state of affairs. Sad to note such a detioration in service and property quality in what used to be a blind choice for business travel. Location wise it would have been nice to be closer...

This was a stay for me and my wife back in April. Check-in day, the hotel texted me saying they were overbooked and if I didn’t respond within an hour or so they would cancel my reservation. Luckily I caught the message in time and was able to keep our reservation.

After checking in and getting to our room, we found that they had given us a twin bed room instead of the double like we had booked. We also found a number of disgusting cleanliness issues. Stains and hair on the bed sheets, unknown white stains on a fabric sitting surface by the window. Some unknown filth on the chair cushions. The bathroom mirror had splatter marks above the sink. The toilet had poop around the toilet seat.

The hotel got us into another room which was properly cleaned, but that first room really tainted our perception of the place. The fact they had an additional room ready to move us to made me question why they tried to cancel our reservation earlier in the day.

The next morning at breakfast was busy. We were able to grab a table right when another group had left. We were standing there next to the table for around 15 minutes trying to get someone to clean it off, but the staff would walk past us rather than help clean the table so we could have breakfast.

If you stay here, be sure to check the cleanliness of your room...

October 2023 Update:

It has been a month since my first stay with Mercure Bengkulu. With a stark contrast to my previous experience with the hotel and the staff members, I am very thrilled to say that the hotel in itself; has successfully transformed into an establishment worthy of Accor Group.

It was evident that the management has poured copious amounts of effort into improving the service quality of their housekeeping and front desk team members.

The room I stayed in is in an amicable condition, devoid of dust and dirt. The bedding and the towels are in pristine condition.

The staff members starting from the security guards all the way to the front desk and room service team were warm and welcoming. They were professional in performing their duties and I was given all the amenities and proper welcome as an Accor Plus Gold Member.

The hotel has a Spa, a swimming pool, and a proper gym. The facilities were well maintained and the staff members were attentive and helpful.

All in all, I was very happy with my stay and I look forward to another night with...