Best Western Juffair Hotel, Manama

Well check-in at the desk was quick and easy (the lifts need key card access which is good for security - you can only get to the first floor bar without this). Anyways off to the room we went and I have to say it was a lovely room (505) but there was one problem - a conjoining door...ugh I hate those things I am always wary and never trust them! we rang down to reception to complain and were told no problem we can get you another room so they sent us up to i think 810 we were thinking woohoo a higher floor nice one since we asked for a high floor to begin with! We opened the door and oh my goodness really!!!! there were no windows at all!! none, nothing! These rooms were kinda built in the middle of a corridor? there were other rooms on each side of the hotel and then these plonked in the middle like they just thought sod it we have enough storage rooms let make these into bedrooms, they were really like attic rooms with no windows...how would I know when it was morning? lol we rang and complained again only to be told they had no other rooms at all (lies the hotel was in no way full). We ended up having to go back to dodgy door room one :(

Dont get me wrong it was a lovely room with loads of space, corner windows, flat screen tv, lots of storage, a fridge, safe, hangers, iron (leaky), ironing board, the bathroom was clean with toilet, huggggge mirrors and a big shower which held the heat well - the pressure was pretty decent too.

The next thing we could hear voices and thought huh? where are they coming from there were no rooms after ours and it wasnt coming from next door, we looked out the windows and it wasnt anyone outside or from the club or anything then we realised it was super bad in the bathroom and we finally worked it that it was the man in the room above us, seriously he may as well of been in the room with us it was that bad but what could we do they had no more rooms blah blah blah!

The first night we were there we went to champs bar in the hotel and had a few drinks and some chicken nachos which I highly recommend seriously they are good! we then headed down to wranglers downstairs as it was ladies night (ladies drink free) so we ordered ours drinks....had to pay for both!! I ordered a bacardi it was mostly a glass of alcohol with a dash of lemonade yum but no yuk there is no way on gods earth it was bacardi, I agrued with the barman he showed me the bottle I told him I dont care bottles can be refilled it was disgusting and I drink bacardi all the time! so we left there (I still necked my drink before going waste not want not haha).

We went somewhere else where ladies actually did drink free and as it was my bday I got free shots too woohoo...note hotel didnt care that it was my 30th bday they did noting special whatsoever!!

We got an ok sleep that night as we came home at I dont know when o clock after apparently eating a KFC that I only know about because my friend the toilet had share the next morning :( I know im gross but I was sick so there lol.

That day we went to champs again for breakfast (well lunch you know hangovers) I had a club sarnie with chips and my hubby had some other gigantic sandwich with every meat possible in it....they were ok nothing special, the fries/chips were over fried and hard, the bread was nice, the tomatoes were ridiculously thick like they thought awk sure cut the tomatoe into 4 slices and shove in the bread there, we left a lot of food...the coke was nice but it was from a tine afterall lol.

We went out and came back to the hotel later to get ready for another night out. Room had been cleaned and restocked which is great. We went to champs bar again to meet up with our friend so we could head on somewhere else....I went to the loo and as I walked down the corridor I though wtf my eyes started to water and my nose stung like crazy, I got back to our table and my friend went and asked the dorrman whats up...apparently there had been some trouble nearby with protests and the teargas that was used had all blown into the hotel, so all the doors were shut and we were advised to stay in the hotel/bar (they could of told me this before I went for a wee) Anyways we ended up having dinner there at about 11pm - as there was 3 of us we shared chicken nachos, chicken bites, chips with curry sauce - all of these things were nice even the curry sauce which I normally dont like, I do have to say that Champs is probably the best thing about the hotel, nice staff, decent prices, and open round the clock basically - plus they do frys with real pork/bacon!

So we stayed there til around midnight our friend left and we thought oh well up early to drive back to saudi in the morning so off to bed we went and that was it off to bed but no sleep from the thump thump thump of the nightclub and we could hear women in other rooms cackling like witches...also someone must of ordered some onion filled room service because all of the corridors on our level stunk to high heaven. We tang down to reception and they told us that the nightclub shuts at 2/3am and it would be quiet then....great 2 to 3 hours of noise no proper sleep for us!

The next morning we were completely shattered, didn't have breakfast because on check in no one actually informed us where they served breakfast incase we wanted to buy any! We waited on our taxi and checked out - it was quickonly because the staff cant be bothered holding a conversation with anyone.

We stayed here one time before and it was friendly in fact the last time the staff couldnt be any more helpful, quiet (higher room), clean/smelt nice, proper drink in wranglers downstairs bar and plently of rooms that didnt have joined doors!! now its a bit less personal, staff don't care and don't want to help and we will defo not be staying here again, we will go back to the Diva hotel where we usualy stay and won't mind paying that wee it extra.

This is at best 3* hotel!