Sydney Guest House

What People are saying

We should have read the reviews!

benclark97 on 18/11/2017 17:30

Other than the bland old decor, the first thing that my girlfriend and I noticed when we arrived at Sydney Guest House was how unwelcome we felt. The owner wasn't overly friendly and didn't seem to understand that a smile goes a long way.

We were shown to our very small room which was along a very creepy and old looking corridor of which there was a bed placed on its side up against the wall right outside our room. The room itself was ok. We had a cooker, fridge and lots of storage space. The shower room was somewhat disappointing, however... We were told that the shower head wasn't able to attach to the wall as it had been broken that morning. So my girlfriend and I had to hold it over our head with one hand whilst we attempted to wash ourselves with the other. We both commented on the nastily smell in there as well.
The overall cleanliness of the room wasn't bad, although a few hairs still remained on the shower glass.

That evening we went out into the centre of Plymouth and we were really pleased with how close it was... approximately a five minute walk to the main high street.
We returned back to the guest house after a lovely meal out, hoping for a good night's sleep. Unfortunately we didn't sleep as well as we hoped we would. The mattress wasn't overly comfortable- the springs dug into us quite a bit- and we could hear people and cars outside very clearly. We were surprised by this as we were led to believe that the windows were double glazed... which didn't seem the case.

During the morning, my girlfriend went for a walk whilst I was having a shower and getting ready to leave. I was shocked to hear the bedroom door open and someone talking (I think it was the owner) whilst I was in the bathroom! When she noticed that our belongings were still in the room and she heard me in the bathroom, she left immediately... but that still doesn't make it right that she just walked in before we had checked out!

Overall, the main thing I would say would be that the owner needs to make her guests feel more welcome... not only by changing her attitude but also by tidying up and completely redecorating.

We would not stay here again!

Unbelievable

Bethan R on 10/10/2017 16:42

I booked a room for a gentleman I support as an emergency overnight placement - I booked using the company card and tried to call all afternoon to explain that a man with a learning disability would be brought down by his support worker but the number was disconnected.
When the support worker and client arrived there was no one there to welcome them. I then received a call from a woman who worked there complaining that I had not contacted her to inform her he would be coming and refusing to allow him access due to his disability and the fact he was supported. Horrendous service and I have reported this...

DO NOT STAY HERE !!!!

Lesley H on 12/08/2017 12:34

We booked a two night stay for the firework competition.
No chance of checking in before 4.
Externally very dirty and shabby, torn awning, garden chest high in over growth, weeds and bits of rubbish, scruffy entrance.
An entrance hall jammed with old dusty silk flowers, semi dead plants and second hand furniture. A very pleasant gentleman , not the owner, welcomed us, and others but then it was all downhill from there, first room was twin, we wanted a double, second room was dominated by a full kitchen area a double bed squeezed in, no room to swing a cat, so third room on the ground floor a bit better in size BUT absolutely STUFFED with second hand, old, fusty furniture ! Sheets, duvet cover, blanket and towels all looked old and second hand, and smelt it too.
The filthy bird dropping covered window looking out into an equally filthy bird dropping covered yard, furniture I would not expect anyone to sit on. Woken both mornings by other guests that needed their morning cigarette going out there, loud chat and coughing (yuk) . . .
No fridge to keep milk in but a motley selection of old plates and cutlery in the draws, one knife, two forks, one spoon and one teaspoon.
Bathroom was spacious but cold, a dirty used scouring pad for washing dishes, bin with previous guests panty liner and tissues still in it. Vile !!
NO mention of any breakfast procedure, although you could see a dining room door but it was locked.

This is the worst B& NO B we've ever stayed in - if I could give NO stars that would be too much !!!
All this for £100 A NIGHT !!!
NEVER AGAIN !!!!
Next year we'd rather pay more and stay somewhere more welcoming and less of a second hand junk shop !!!

The worst hotel I've ever stayed. DO NOT BOOK THIS HOTEL!

akasakateahouse on 05/05/2017 11:19

I cannot explain what happened to me and my son. Just briefly, NEVER THINK ABOUT THIS HOTEL.

Bad management, unbelievable owner lady. We were kicked out because of the double booking after one night stay, even we had 2 nights booking. Why did we have to leave? When we returned to the hotel, our luggage was moved out of the room without my permission, I was not even allowed to check just in case I might have left something in the room.

Can you believe this? My room was already occupied by somebody else, although I was entitled to stay that night.

Moreover, the lady was angry and shouted at me because I made a phone call to booking.com by which I booked this weird hotel. The land lady shouted me saying my English was rubbish! Some kind of racism term. Can you believe this? This odd thing really happened.

NEVER THINK ABOUT THIS HOTEL.

Worst guest house I have ever stayed in! DO NOT STAY HERE!

KateRow on 24/04/2017 17:27

To summarise my stay:

The owner is RUDE
The guest house REEKS of smoke
The rooms are unclean
The rooms aren't equipped with facilities stated
There is no parking

I booked a 2 nights stay over a weekend as I was working in Plymouth. I called ahead to let the owner know what time I was checking in. The owner was incredibly rude on the phone which raised alarm bells.

On arrival, there was nowhere to park as there were double yellow lines or permit only parking. I put my hazards on and knocked on the door. A lady answered (presumably a staff member) and said the owner was not in and she didn't know what to suggest with regards to where I should park. A man arrived and claimed to be a friend of the owner and encouraged me to pack in the permit only area and he would keep an eye out until the owner got back - who he said had a permit. The owner refused to move her car and said I should pack in the DR's private car park in the street behind. On moving my car, fortunately a 2 hour no return space became available.

I walked into the guest house and it reaked of stale cigarette smoke and ironically had a handwritten notice saying anyone caught smoking in their room would get a £200 fine.

My room was MISSING the following items, that were stated on the room description:
- a fridge
- a hairdryer
- an iron
- milk sachets for tea and coffee (when I asked the staff membe told me there wasn't any?!)

The room was very dated, with old single pane windows. The paint was chipping and there was mould on the walls and ceiling. The space where I assume the missing fridge should go has a screwed up dirty jade cloth wedged in a corner and the sides were dirty.

The bathroom was the nicest of the two rooms, but the bin hadn't been emptied and the towels had brown stains on. I had to also deal with a pubic hair on the toilet seat?!!

When I went to go back to work, I knocked on the dining room door and asked to speak to the owner. I explained I made a mistake and would no longer need the second night stay and that booking.com would be in touch to see if I could cancel. She said she hadn't heard from them, that it wasn't a problem but the process meant that it couldn't be refunded until she recieved a phone call from them so she could confirm this. Her tone was rude and patronising, but as I was keen for my refund I kept quiet.

She later knocked and asked me to leave the key in the box in the morning, do assumed everything was ok and I could book to stay elsewhere the following night. I later spoke to booking,com who informed me the owner had screamed down the phone at him and said she wouldn't give me a refund and that she had said no such thing to me?!

I slept terribly as the windows were so thin I heard cars and drunk people all night. I could hear people walking up and down and opening doors above me, but the main issue was the duvet smelt horrible - like it hadnt been cleaned in a while.

Please do not give this woman your money!