Pietra hotel Fianarantsoa — Hotel in Fianarantsoa

I stayed at the hotel Soafia on an overnight stop in Fianar. This is good, basic accommodation, but a bit offbeat and quirky, in a nice sort of way. The place is a bit of a maze – up and down stairways, down labyrinthine hallways, etc. – and there is no shortage of kitsch. ||||The location isn’t the best, along the main road but a couple of km from the city center and haute-ville, a good 10-15 min walk. There are a few small eateries in the area but the best ones are further into the city center. ||||The rooms are huge, probably double the size of a normal hotel room. And the bathroom is huge as well, about the size of a small hotel room. A massive wooden wardrobe and shelf complex covers one entire wall – no shortage of storage areas! The place was reasonably clean and seemed to be well-maintained. Room amenities include TV, AC, and small fridge – no internet here. My room had a nice balcony which overlooked the pool area.||||The restaurant was this enormous, characterless room, very much like a typical Chinese restaurant. I ordered a meal here and it wasn’t too bad. They have a good varied menu. Service at the hotel was nothing special but it was satisfactory. ||||This isn’t a bad hotel and it fulfilled my needs for an overnight stop, however I would probably look for a different place if I ever came back to Fianar – there are better options in town. It has a definite Chinese feel to it which is not what I wanted in Madagascar. At about $35 per night, it was...

We stayed here for one night on our way to Isalo NP. This is an odd hotel, utterly out of place decor (it's like a giant pagoda). The rooms are absolutely massive with equally massive bathrooms. More or less clean.||Ours didn't have a stand up shower (attachment in the bath), but plenty of hot water.||We got a fair amount of noise from outside the room - couldn't work out where it was coming from but the place is littered with corridors - but nothing that went on into the night.||No mosquito net.||The restaurant was ok, service pretty slow, and I'd strongly advise skipping the hotel breakfast (the standard bread roll and coffee) and going to the bakery at the front instead - the food there is great, freshly made hot and tasty.||||Located well away from anything you'd come to see in Fianar but we were only here for a night and were off first thing the next day so that wasn't too much of a problem for us. If I was coming back to Fianar I'd spend a little more and go for something closer...

The Soafia is the only hotel I have ever stayed at that reminds me of a labyrinth! While the room I was assigned to was rather large, it felt small and somber due to the dark tainted pinewood covered walls. The shower was adequate, with plenty of hot water and impressive pressure, but clearly, the piping was defective, as every time I, or the next door guest would turn on a faucet or the shower, the pipes would make incredibly loud noises! The hotel was generally clean and the staff rather aloof, clearly not ecstatic to work there...When we asked the receptionist for a restaurant recommendation, he flatly stated that he didn't know as he never eats out!!! The hotel restaurant was depressing, very few people, and cold... In conclusion, this hotel is truly a "sleep and run" hotel. Well at least, the price was quite...