Senegambia Beach Hotel

What People are saying

Awesome trip

QueenShubbyon 28/06/2017 06:23

Beautiful place! Great food and ambience!
I enjoyed every bit of my stay there. Did not get to go around Banjul but it's a beautiful African country and surpassed my expectations! Definitely visiting again sometime!

Too many issues

Ben_E_Phillipson 27/06/2017 20:04

I stayed at the Senegambia during my most recent previous visit to The Gambia, about 17 years ago. At that time the service was atrocious, if Trip Advisor had existed at that time my review would have crashed their algorithim. I can say they have improved since then, but still not enough - at least for travelers on business who require some level of service. The staff are friendly and I believe they are trying hard, but the systems in place make it difficult for them.

Starting with the rooms: I stayed first in Room B24, which is part of a brand-new block. In fact so new that the smell of wet paint hit me when I first entered. Tip to management - maybe wait until the paint dries before renting the room out. The room was spacious and fairly comfortable, I slept well by myself although the two twin beds pushed together would not have been ideal for a couple. On a positive note that internet connection was surprisingly fast, exceptionally so for West Africa. But my two colleagues who were in downstairs rooms in the same B block had no wireless service in their rooms at all. Things got really interesting when I tried to bathe. The shower stall had no door, and the door between bathroom and bedroom would not stay closed. Besides that the bathroom floor had a slight slope slanting into the bedroom, so all of the shower water flowed out of the bathroom making a massive puddle on the bedroom floor right in front of the closet Later when I went to the closet to get some clothes I fell down hard, getting bruises on my hip and ankle. Fortunately I am in pretty decent shape, an elderly person would have been seriously injured - and since the room had no phone they would have had no way of calling for help. The next day I piled up all the extra towels in the space between shower stall and bathroom door. That managed to stop the flow, but even then a lot of water leaked out of the faulty seal - making a somewhat smaller puddle around the toilet.

Later I stayed in room Bantaba 16, which was larger and had no shower leakage problems. Internet connection there was weak and unstable, and in fact didn't work at all using the list of wireless passwords given out at the reception - I had to go back to get a different one correcting a mistake on that list. Could not call, because while the room seemed to have a phone it wasn't actually connected to any system. Also in that room I coudn't get the safe to work, tried many times following the instructions but eventually gave up - and was told later by the receptionist that I had to pay separately to a different company to use the safe - information that they didn't bother sharing when I checked in.

On the positive side, the hotel location is perfect - right on the beach and in the middle of many shops, restaurants, bars, clubs, etc. catering to foreigners. No fitness room, but I signed up for a month at Elite Fitness which is fairly nearby, excellent gym facility. Hotel food pretty mediocre, but so many good restaurants around there is no real reason to eat there other than breakfast. One annoying aspect for people there for business is that they close the swimming pools at 6:00 (officially) or even earlier (in practice), meaning no time to swim after returning from a working day. I asked why they close the pool and the alleged reason is that no lifeguard is available - seems pretty silly considering the alternative I used was to swim in the ocean instead, not exactly any safer. If the management is genuinely concerned about guests' safety (as opposed to avoiding paying overtime to pool cleanup attendats working later hours), they could try making the room showers safer. I also had one staff member try to beg money from me - a constant occurence walking around outside in The Gambia, but should not happen inside the hotel.

I can say the price was quite reasonable by West African standards, at least during low season with a corporate rate.

Very enjoyable after initial problem

Sellonfudron 18/06/2017 20:16

I am a frequent visitor to Gambia, but this was the first time I have stayed at Senegambia Beach Hotel. I booked a three day stay through Hotels.com. When checking in the reception desk wanted a copy of my booking, but I could not immediately produce the evidence as the wifi reception was not strong enough. I paid a quick visit to Reo's opposite the road where the wifi I knew was strong, and kept the page on my phone to show at reception. Stayed at room Bantaba 10. The grounds are spacious and well kept. Our room was spacious, clean and comfortable. Did not go to the beach as it is badly eroded. The swimming pool area by the beach was quiet, as the peak holiday season had just come to an end. The lunch from the restaurant by the pool was good value. Did not eat in the evening as I prefer to try different restaurants in the Strip and beyond. A choice of eating breakfast inside or in a terrace outside, there was a good choice to suit different preferences. Overall I think the Senegambia Beach Hotel is good value and I would recommend.

Hotel and place

Lisa Ton 30/05/2017 08:21

We visit The Gambia every year its a beautiful country friendly people. We often go to senegambia hotel to use facilities it very friendly lovely hotel plenty to do for all families adults next to the beach staff are very help full you wont be disappointed going there

An amazing experience.

Teresa092on 28/05/2017 14:54

Really enjoyed our visit. Lots of wild monkeys about. Be careful they will pinch anything. The food was ok. Nothing special though. Very clean and tidy. If you want to go out and explore on a trip please don't book though your tour operator. There are a few good local tour operators which are a little cheaper, a lot better, and the money goes back into the country. We used Arch tours, we had an amazing time on the four in one tour.
The thing that puts us off going back though is the beaches. There better than expected but not really safe to swim in the sea, as the current is really strong. Also I love a nice quiet walk along the beach, which we couldn't do because every few metres a local will try and be your best friend. They are friendly but persistent. As soon as you get rid of one another tries. We just wanted to be left alone, but it was impossible. Spoilt the trip as I am a beach lover.
Expect a lot of tipping too. They all expect it.
The quiet pool was like a little oasis, but was spoilt again because the water was beyond cold. I mean freezing cold!!!