Blue River 2 Hotel — Hotel in Ho Chi Minh City

Most awful experience ever.

Booked here for our first 2 nights in Vietnam. Wanted something simple, yet clean, friendly and close enough to walk around the center.

We arrived about 5pm having booked a Deluxe Double. This wasn't a fancy room and we didn't expect a fancy room but it looked to be bright and airy with a view over the street. When we arrived, we were greeted with a stone cold face of a man who clearly HATED his job and what he did. We did not get as much as a smile or a welcome from him. He then proceeded to book us into a room which was definitely not the room that we had booked and paid for upfront. It was small, old, claustrophobic and had a window that if you put your head out, you would hit the wall directly outside it! We stayed an hour or so and then decided to go back and ask about the room we had booked to be told no, he would give us that room tomorrow but not for the 2 nights we had paid for. We asked for a refund as we were fully prepared to leave and find somewhere else without and dramas but what happened next beggars belief!! The man got really irate, disappeared for a good 15 minutes and we witnessed him on the security cameras, going up to another room and telling people to pack their bags and move!! There were family members staying and they were given the best rooms even though we had booked that room! He stood shouting while they packed, brought them to our room and told them to stand outside. He then proceeded to call us, had opened our room and entered before we got there and told us to pack our bags as the other people stood in the open doorway waiting for us to move! We were then put into the room that we had bookes but it was literally a straight swapover. It didn't matter that people had already laid on the bed or used the shower and left hairs everywhere, because no cleaning was done, just a straight swap from one room to the next!! We stuck it out as it was near 6pm at this stage and decided to grin and bear it. The rest of our stays was just grunts for greetings and absolutely nothing warm or welcoming! We had an early check out (5.15am as we had booked an Uber to take us to the airport).

The front door was locked and the same man was asleep on the couch in reception. We used 1 bottle of water, 2 cans of local beer & 2 cans of coca-cola from the fridge in the bedroom but there was no mini-bar pricelist anywhere in the room or hotel for that matter so we didn't know how much it would cost. The man got very agitated and agressive and demandes 2 MILLION VND for what we had drank - over $100!!! He would not unlock the door for us to leave, he just kept demanding the money and arguing with us. We missed our cab, had to rebook another one and refused to pay such an extortionate price for 5 drinks! After much frustration and arguing, he then said 110,000 VND which was DEFINITELY more believable. It was such a scary experience, our first 2 days in a foreign country and here we were being locked in a hotel with a psychopath screaming at us for money and would not let us leave! We happily paid the 110,000 and ran out of that place as fast as we possibly could.

We have travelled the world and have been in some questionable places but never in our lives did we feel so threatened, scared and relieved to get the hell out of somewhere!!

And the best thing? This guy wasn't just a worker, he was the delightful owner!!!

STAY THE HELL AWAY FROM THIS PLACE,...

Do not go near this hotel. It is located in a scary alley. The entrance to the hotel is misleading. From the outside, it looked fine. From inside, no. When I entered the hotel, the clerk yelled at me to take off my shoes and that I was not allowed to step inside the place with shoes on. There is a room in the lobby (yes ! in the lobby) where they play a very loud piano. Luckily, I didn't book a room in advance because in Vietnam I always ask to see the room before I pay. Of course, the cheapest room in the hotel, she told me, was already occupied and she showed me the most expensive room (intended for several people and not one person). This expensive room is cramped, small, old, and dusty. There was a smell of cigarettes. I asked to see another room and she said there was none... really strange, because this hotel looks empty and in a dark alley (I've attached photos). From the fourth floor I heard the piano, and I asked the clerk if they always play the piano inside the hotel ?! So she cheekily told me yes, and if it didn't suit me to go to another hotel. I am so happy that I always have a procedure to see the hotel and the room before I pay. Otherwise, I would have paid and not stayed here. By the way, the elevator is terribly old and slow. We waited 5 minutes to go up to the 3rd floor and another 5 minutes to go back down to the lobby. May the low price not tempt You guys or ladies, this is a terrible hotel. After an hour, I found an amazing hotel that costs a little more but is worth...

Considering how cheap it was, overall this hotel wasn’t too bad. No frills. Cheap and cheery. ||Positives: The air conditioner worked a treat and kept the room very cool. The owner was lovely and despite having very limited English, understood our charades to demonstrate what we were talking about. She was friendly and smiley. Breakfast each morning was lovely - three choices, all cooked fresh. It’s reasonably close to the action, within walking distance to bars, street food and restaurants in the backpackers area. The rooms are elevated so there’s no risk of flooding after the daily torrential downpours. It’s Ok for people who don’t mind walking 20+ minutes through the hectic streets and crossing the crazy intersections through non-stop, weaving bikes, mopeds, cars and buses to get to places. This can be considered a high-Adrenalin bonus! ||Negatives: The bathroom had been hosed down before we arrived and was still very wet. The toilet roll in the holder was soaked, and was sitting on top of another toilet roll insert which had been stuffed with used toiled paper. Revolting! The bed was uncomfortable - extremely hard and the two pillows were very thin and hard also. They had no other pillows available. The small elevator has a very strong stench...