Hotel Mercure Penang Beach — Hotel in George Town

This hotel is the most worst hotel in the Accor group. Even ibis budget hotels have better service. Upon arrival at the hotel to check-in, there is no counter for accor members as we usually see at Accor hotels. That is fine. I joined a queue and suddenly the person at the check-in counter walked away. i was puzzled and asked another counter if i should queue at another counter, and was ignored. then i asked another counter, and again ignored. i asked again if the check-in person at the counter will return, and was told she went to a room inspection, and will be back. then i ask will it take a long time or should i queue at another counter.. again i was ignored. WHAT IS GOING ON?

So i just stayed there until the lady (Indian lady, Mares or something like that) returned. i passed my identity card to her. no words were muttered. she proceed to prepare key card for another guest, and i asked her, will this take long? should i queue at another counter, she just said, wait aah... i need to do this for this gentleman. OK. so i wait.. shortly afterwards she passes the keycard to another gentleman and proceed to check-in for me. No words were muttered. She could have said, Sorry to keep you waiting.. or Welcome to Mercure.. or.. thank you for your patience.. nothing were muttered. so i wait.. then she passed a paper for me to sign, and ask me card or cash? ok, i will pay by card so i pass her my credit card. no other words were exchanged.. finally i had enough and told her, this is the most inhospitable hotel, and she could engage me more, welcoming me to the hotel, sorry to keep me for waiting etc.. she just said sorry. and thats it. no other words exchanged.

once the key card is ready, she just passed it to me. she did not inform me if i have breakfast with my stay, where is breakfast, what time is breakfast served, parking issues, where to park the car and how to "validate" parking. nothing.

I requested for additional key card, and was provided one. Again, no words said. is she mute? is this how hotel reception is trained?

next, at the swimming pool, i took a towel to be used at the beach, the towel is not clean and i have no idea what the stain is. Is the towels even washed?

next, fruit basket actually came pretty late, around 10pm, when we just went to bed. there is some nice macarons with strawberries and chocolates. It is lovely. BUT at 10pm? seriously? Macarons is sweet and should not be consumed right before we sleep. This should be served in the day time and would be better appreciated to receive it in day time like in any other hotels in Accor group.

On the next day i wanted to ask for late check-out, at 840pm, but the reception is empty, with the bell hidden behind the "Counter Closed" sign. I proceeded to ring the bell. waited awhile, no response. ring the bell again.. waited, no response. ring the bell again.. no response.. then i ring the bell repeatedly. then a gentlemen ran out from the office and proceeded to SCOLD ME for ringing the bell, stating he was on the break and spilled water on himself. Why is the reception UNMANNED? why is there no replacement staff when he is on break? IS IT NORMAL FOR MECURE PENANG BEACH TO SCOLD CUSTOMERS FOR LACK OF SERVICE? If this is how the hotel treats a Platinum Accor Plus member, i have no idea how they will treat other guests.

WHAT IS GOING ON WITH THIS HOTEL? THIS IS THE 4TH RECEPTION STAFF WITH HORRIBLE MANNERS AND SERVICE.

I WILL NEVER RETURN...

1-star Google Review for Mercure Penang (Accor Group)

To Accor International, Asia Pacific Management, and Mercure Penang — I sincerely urge you to take this review seriously.

My recent stay at Mercure Penang was supposed to be a happy family trip to celebrate my wife's birthday. Unfortunately, it turned out to be the worst hotel experience I’ve ever had under the Accor group.

My child with special needs (OKU - 6 YEARS OLD) vomited after breakfast at the hotel restaurant, resulting in soiled bedsheets and blankets. I apologise for the inconvenience to housekeeping, but the real issue began during check-out when I was falsely accused of breaking a glass table in the room.

This accusation is completely baseless, and I was shocked and hurt by it. I personally inspected the room with my family before leaving. There was no damage, only the soiled linen due to my child’s condition. I even left a cash tip on that same table. Suddenly being told that I had broken it was not only upsetting but also felt like defamation.

Because of the seriousness of this false accusation, I have lodged a police report — and I have shared it with the hotel. This is not a small issue. It is about honour and integrity, and I will not accept such an accusation quietly.

To make things worse: Upon check-in, I was told there would be a complimentary birthday cake for my wife — but it was never delivered to the room as promised.

I requested a simple table setting for a candlelight dinner at the F&B outlet — my request was rudely rejected. The F&B Manager kindly assisted and arranged the decoration. I truly thank him for his excellent service, but the rest of the staff were poorly trained and unprofessional.

The birthday cake was finally given at night at the restaurant. I offered to pay, but the F&B Manager provided it complimentary. His service was the only bright spot.

The next morning, I called reception to request a laundry plastic bag. We waited nearly an hour. After two calls, the bag finally arrived — and the staff said he was only just informed. This shows clear communication breakdown between departments. What’s most disappointing is that the management seems to ignore the poor service standards of the staff. Where is the hospitality training? Where is the customer care that Accor is known for?

Accor Group, your reputation does not only depend on your facilities — it depends on the quality of service you deliver to your customers. And at Mercure Penang, that service was deeply disappointing.

This entire experience has left a very bad impression on me and my family. I have stayed at many Accor hotels before with good experiences — but this time, the false accusation, poor service, and broken promises made it the worst stay ever.

I urge the management to: Review CCTV footage after my check-out, Identify who entered the room after I left, See who took the cash tip, And find out who actually broke the table.

This case needs to be investigated thoroughly. I hope higher management will step in to protect the values and reputation of the Accor brand.

Extremely disappointed and hurt.

FROM SHAH ROL HUSSAIN CHECK IN AT MERCURE PENANG: 04042025; CHECK...

Dear All.com Customer Service,

I am writing to formally raise a serious concern regarding my recent stay at Mercure Penang Beach (Room 544) from 15 to 17 August. While the online presentation of this hotel promised a modern and stylish experience, the reality was drastically different and left me with a strong sense of disappointment and mistrust.

Misleading Presentation vs. Actual Condition The official photos depict a bright, modern, and well-maintained property. In contrast, the actual room condition was outdated, resembling facilities from the 1980s. The walls were already stained and showed signs of poor maintenance, creating an impression of neglect. This discrepancy between marketing and reality borders on misleading advertising.

Serious Safety Hazard – Water Leakage On the night of 15 August, after returning to the room at around 11:00 PM, I discovered a large pool of water on the floor, caused by continuous leakage from the ceiling air-conditioning outlet. This posed a significant safety risk, as a slip could have resulted in injury. While maintenance staff promptly brought equipment to extract the water and housekeeping cleaned the floor, it was evident from their preparedness and experience that this was not the first occurrence. Later, I also found multiple reviews from other guests reporting similar issues.

Poor Handling by Hotel Management What was even more unacceptable was the lack of proactive guest care:

The front desk did not offer me an alternative room, even though the issue was clearly severe.

I had to stay awake while maintenance worked inside the room late at night.

No form of compensation or gesture of goodwill was provided afterward.

Overall Impression These incidents indicate systemic management failure. Rather than properly maintaining the property, the hotel seems to only apply temporary fixes. This not only damages the hotel’s reputation but also risks customer safety and trust.

My Suggestions:

Hotels listed on your platform should be subject to stricter quality control to ensure online descriptions and photos reflect reality.

Properties with repeated infrastructure issues (like water leakage) should be flagged or suspended until permanent repairs are made.

Guest care protocols must include proactive solutions (e.g., room changes, compensation offers) to avoid leaving customers feeling disregarded.

I trust All.com values customer trust and safety. I sincerely hope this feedback will prompt your team to review the hotel’s suitability for continued listing on your platform. Otherwise, future guests may face the same frustration and potential hazards that I experienced.

Thank you for your attention, and I look forward to your...