North Star Micro Hotel - Umhlanga — Hotel in KwaZulu-Natal

Our party of 11 adults and 4 kids booked a week in advance for a luncheon in the garden on the deck. On the day, we confirmed our a'la carte menu choices for each person at least 4 hours before arrival, in the hope that all would be arranged upon our arrival, with no surprises. (We actually had asked for this menu several times in the week, to no avail).

Our lunch arrived 45 minutes later than requested (we scheduled it for 3pm as we arranged a family photo shoot on the beach thereafter) with 3 persons' lunches being forgotten. Notifying the waiter of this oversight, the 3 meals were delivered 15 minutes later, with the fish from the Fish & Chips being absolutely raw (as in frozen raw!) under the batter, and the fried calamari (the 2 pieces we could actually identify as calamari on the plate) being more batter than calamari. The grilled calamari and salad (can't really mess this one up) arrived for 6 persons and was micro (as in the hotel). The pics speak for themselves! At R299 a plate, one would expect a decent serving - this looked like a starter portion! The kids had the best meal: chicken strips and chips.

There is no excuse for this as the hotel/manager were notified well in advance, not only of our booking, but of our order, and so had more than sufficient time to prepare ahead. In addition, the party who was there to watch the soccer on tv, opted for the carvery/set menu and so our unfussy menu selection would have in no way interfered with their lunch in so far as running out of calamari etc.

The sea view was great, but the staff could have cleaned the beach directly in front of the hotel as the litter seriously distracted from the view. We left, having paid a hefty bill, and stopped at Steers on the way home as we were all starving! Steers, with all honesty, put the North Star kitchen to shame.

2/5 is being kind, because the waiter was friendly and polite, and tried his best to sort out the chaos. The manageress never came once to enquire about our luncheon and there weren't many tables, so it wasn't a big ask. It seems the soccer was far more important to her than the R3600.00 mess she was happy to...

Beware of fraud! First of all, it must be mentioned that the hotel is constantly holding events for external guests (business meetings, birthdays, restaurant...) so it can happen that it is quite crowded and loud or that you are not allowed to use the pool or that it is overcrowded with external guests. We were given a friendly welcome but when we entered the room we noticed that the ceiling was covered in mold from the air conditioning. My wife is allergic so this was an absolute no-go. We went to reception and a member of staff explained to us that they are constantly painting over it (wow, great solution). So it was clear that we didn't want to stay here anymore. We had paid for 3 nights and finally agreed with the hotel manager that 2 nights would be refunded and they would keep the first one (I think that's generous on our part and not just on the hotel's part). We even got the whole thing in writing and we were told the money would come within the next 14 days. Of course, nothing was refunded, and emails weren't answered (several times). We contacted Booking, but also no chance (which is actually crazy that this hotel is still allowed to be online). Booking ultimately refunded part of the amount as a gesture of goodwill, but the hotel didn't refund anything. Maybe you'll be lucky and there won't be any moldy rooms here, and maybe you'll be lucky and it won't be overcrowded either.But after a discussed and written confirmed payment was not made, this hotel is operating fraud and therefore you should think carefully about whether you want to stay here, what a pity for the nice people...

Our party of 15 booked a luncheon at The North Star for 2pm on a Saturday noon. Having booked well in advance, and having confirmed each persons a’ la carte menu choice on the morning of our arrival, (this after requesting the menu several times in order to do so) one would expect that all would run efficiently upon arrival. Whilst our deck view near the beach was lovely, the food, sadly, was not an equal delight; our Calamari portions were micro (like the hotel) with us questioning if they were main or starter portions and Smothered in Cilantro. Some people’s meals were forgotten with some not having received their food, and when the waiter was called to advise of this, food was then brought about 15 -20 minutes after the rest of the party began eating theirs - however the fish (fish and chips) was absolutely raw, the fried calamari was all batter with very little calamari, and all sides that had been ordered, were forgotten. The children’s portions were in fact tastier and better sized portions than the adults options. Not once did the manageress on duty come over to enquire about the meal, albeit that the waiter must have reported our dissatisfaction/concerns. The beach directly in front of the hotel could be cleaned by hotel staff in order to eliminate all the litter that was strewn which distracted from the sea view.

In short; the Steers take-aways that we all had to buy en route home were tastier, cheaper and more filling than our lunch experience. For the price, it was definitely not worth the money spent. A disappointing experience. But great to have spent time...