Malaga Inn — Hotel in Mobile

We seriously thought about leaving the hotel shortly after arrival - we were that unhappy.

I feel a little bit guilty about this review because the Malaga Inn owner seemed like a nice enough guy. I don’t want to pile on with the bad stuff, but I’m going to be honest.

First, the good:

The location is fantastic Their maintenance guy, Brian, was wonderful. He was attentive and really tried to fix the problems we experienced. The building itself could be charming - it was originally built in 1862! The beds were very comfortable The towels were decent The courtyard was lovely

The bad, in no particular order:

The woman who checked us in was very uninterested and ill-informed. She could barely be bothered to direct us to our room and was basically unable to answer any questions or help with issues when we approached her. We also found out the next day that she was supposed to ask us our preference for room cleaning, but since she did not ask us, the next day’s staff assumed we did not want our room cleaned, so it was not done (and we were waiting because we wanted it done!)

The room itself was very unappealing and old. No other way to say that.

Upon arrival our TV did not work and it took Brian and the owner a long time and lots of effort to figure it out. In the end, the fix was pretty simple, involving connecting a cable or something.

Now this might not be a big deal to everyone - it actually wasn’t to us. But it could offend some people so I’m mentioning it anyway because it’s super unprofessional. When Brian plugged in the cable and the TV came on, the owner actually dropped a loud F-bomb in response to him figuring it out! That’s really not cool, especially considering we were 2 women sitting there in the room with them.

While they were there, they did attempt to fix our annoying running toilet with a new part, but we didn’t have the heart to tell them that after they left it started running again and did so on and off 24 hours a day.

The room had zero hangers in the closet and exactly one small hook behind the bathroom door.

There was no counter space. Like practically none by the sink and no desk. One very tiny table between the beds and a very small round table next to a chair, taken up with the coffee maker. We opened up the ironing board to have a flat surface to put things on.

No refrigerator in the room.

No coffee in the lobby.

One of the most annoying issues: The room had no overhead light and one very dim floor lamp, plus the lights over the sink. It was so incredibly dark in the room at all times. The only way to get any light was by opening the curtain, which was a problem since we were on the 1st floor right on the courtyard.

The towels were under the sink on the bottom of the unattractive old vanity - with the doors of the vanity wide open on arrival so we could see the towels and the pipes. Again, no hooks or towel racks.

One of the beds was wobbly and hit against the wall at every turn.

At 7:00 a.m., we were woken up by very loud grinding/sanding in the courtyard. Loud enough to wake both of us. It went on and off for a long time. Later in the morning, I saw the owner and mentioned it to him, and he said it was the repairman working on the elevator. He said he’d tell them not to do it again. Not sure how you let something like that even happen at 7:00 a.m.!!

Sadly, the next morning, we were again woken at 7:00 a.m. by incredibly LOUD voices from the courtyard. I have no idea if it was other guests or workers, but I was extremely thankful for the random guest who I heard open their door, whistle, and ask them to shut up! The entire hotel is just so loud it’s ridiculous. You can hear every word from the courtyard and nearby rooms.

The hotel needs some TLC and serious updating. Ultimately, it’s a shame because this hotel is in a perfect location and could be beautiful. The owner needs...

My wife and I stayed at the Malaga Inn for two nights as the first stop of our honeymoon, and it turned out to be a memorable experience filled with Southern charm, history, and a touch of the paranormal. Between the friendly staff, welcoming locals, and the cozy downtown atmosphere, we left wishing we had stayed several nights longer.

I stayed here for two nights with my wife as the first stop of our honeymoon, and we both had an amazing experience. Before booking, I highly recommend using the official Malaga Inn website instead of a third-party site like Expedia. When I made our reservation, I had no idea this hotel is considered the 6th most haunted hotel in the United States.

That said, if you’re interested in the paranormal, I’d definitely suggest calling the hotel and speaking with Kathy about which rooms are said to be haunted. Speaking of Kathy, she was incredibly kind—just like the maintenance man, Brian. As someone who isn’t very extroverted, I actually found myself looking forward to chatting with both of them. My wife and I left our room several times each day, and about half the time, one or both of them were either at the front desk or walking around. We’d often stop to talk about the hotel, the city of Mobile, or even our personal lives.

As for the city itself, just about everyone we met was genuinely kind. There was a gentleman named Ross, whose ghost tour I found listed in a binder at the hotel. His tours require at least six people to run, but unfortunately, he couldn’t gather enough participants for our dates. Even so, he took the time to talk with me over the phone for more than ten minutes, sharing recommendations for restaurants and interesting spots around downtown Mobile.

Speaking of food and local businesses, there are several places I’d highly recommend checking out while you’re in town. For breakfast, The Breakfast Spot is fantastic. If you’re a coffee lover, Great Day Latte serves some amazing coffee. For lunch or dinner, we stopped by Wet Willie’s, where we had delicious tacos and gumbo at an incredible price.

Another spot worth visiting is The Haunted Book Shop, which perfectly fits the local theme. I ended up having a great conversation with the guy working the counter there—he even told me about a secret speakeasy at Las Floriditas and gave me the password for that day, so I didn’t have to search social media for it.

One thing that really stood out during our stay was how every business owner and employee we met gave shout-outs and recommendations for other local spots in the downtown area. It’s clear that the community here supports one another, and that genuine hospitality made the whole experience even more enjoyable.

Between the charm of the Malaga Inn, the kindness of the staff, and the friendliness of everyone we met in downtown Mobile, I honestly wish we had booked three or four nights instead...

This is not ment for the hotel to reach out to me or apologize this is so other family’s never have to go through what I see many people have already experienced.

I work at a hotel, and if we treated our clients the way I was treated, we would have faced immediate termination, especially given the unprofessional appearance of the staff member. The woman who helped me initially was very kind, but the one in the photo was rude and seemed to be in need of assistance herself.

I felt like I was being given the runaround, and she acted as if she had no idea how to process a refund. This experience was completely unexpected, and I have since filed a dispute with my credit card company. I’m baffled by how they maintain a 5-star rating—being a small town, it seems likely they’re paying for these reviews.

I made my reservations through a third-party service because they had a 4.4-star rating. Upon arrival, I spoke to a friendly lady who handed me my key. However, I had to carry my luggage up several flights of stairs to reach my room. Once inside, I was immediately hit by a terrible smell. Upon checking the beds, it appeared as though someone had recently slept in them, with dirt or stains present. To make matters worse, I found a water bottle cap in the middle of the floor and a cigarette left on the dresser. The area around the coffee machine was also dirty, suggesting that someone had simply remade the beds without cleaning.

Seeing this, I was disgusted and didn’t want to spend the night in that HOTEL/MOTEL even though it was already past 10 PM. I had been in the room for less than five minutes before I went back downstairs to explain the situation to the same nice lady. I wanted to avoid making a scene in front of other guests, so I waited until they had checked in before addressing my concerns. The lady informed me that I would need to wait until 11 PM for the manager to arrive. I was okay with waiting the 20 minutes.

When the manager finally arrived, she acted in a way that was quite concerning, almost as if she were under the influence of something. While I understand that she may have had a medical condition, her attitude towards me was very unprofessional. I tried to keep the issue discreet to avoid drawing attention from other guests. She explained that she couldn’t issue a refund herself and that I would need to go through the third-party service.

After waiting for 45 minutes on hold for the third-party company, I learned that the manager needed to send an email to confirm the refund. I felt like I was being shuffled around without clear answers, and as of now, I’m unsure if I’ve been refunded. I decided to dispute the charge with my credit card company, as the entire experience was extremely frustrating and the customer service...