Don't do it to yourself!

I am amazed that this hotel managed to scrape a 2* as it was more like a 1*.

We got to our room after a very long flight. The room was like a prison cell with barely any windows and no balcony. We changed rooms with an elderly couple who had been put on the 3rd floor but had mobility problems so we swapped. That room was opposite the main rd leading to Baga and was very noisy all night long. The curtains were white and very thin so we woke up every morning at 6am.

Having read other reviews talking about the state of the bed linen I have to agree. I actually got bitten by a bed bug and had a severe allergic reaction where I had to go to hospital and then stay indoors (in another hotel I might add) for 2 days. My hands were completely swollen and I had a horrible rash. The linen was very old and stained with god knows what and the mattresses had huge yellow stains on them and were covered in dirt and sand.

The room was very shabby and the shower was just a dribble.

The pool was very small and we didn't use it after seeing various frogs jumping around the edge. I never saw it cleaned either.

Having stayed in Goa before and at quite a few different hotels I have always thought that even if the hotel was awful I could never fault the friendliness of the bar staff however I found the bar staff at Park Avenue to be grumpy and rude.

We had breakfast included which consisted of juice and cold toast.

We had a very bad experience with this hotel and ended up staying in another place as we couldn't bare it. But it seemed that there were people there who liked it so I guess it all depends on what you are looking for.

This is what you would expect of a 2 star hotel in Goa.

Location is good, right on the Baga Road not far from the Calangute crossroads. Because of this it can be noisy, we had a room at the back of the building and found it to be reasonably quiet. The downside of this is that there isn't much of a view from the balcony other than the local vegetation.

Rooms are cleaned daily as long as you hand your key to reception. The sheets and towels are changed regularly but have seen better days.

We had a sitting room as well as a bedroom which was quite spacious but not much storage. No surfaces to put things on in the bathroom other than the top of the cistern. Hot water was via a geyser which had to be switched on 5 minutes before use.

The beds were comfortable enough and the ceiling fan was adequate, there was no aircon in the room. The only TV that we came across was in Reception and was covered by a cloth most of the time.

The pool area was clean with about a dozen sunbeds. I think most people tended to go to the beach which was about a 10-15 minute walk away.

With the exception of one breakfast we didn't eat at the hotel but the bar/restaurant area was quite popular with residents. There was entertainment most nights of varying standards.

All in all, this is a fairly average hotel but we have decided that we are getting too old for 2 star and wouldn't come back here.

We did not want to spend our first visit to India in an anonymous international hotel and were pleased to find that the Park Ave had plenty of character.

Fresh linen was provided daily, however it is fair to say that the sheets could do with throwing out rather than re-laundering.

The staff were friendly and attentive - however the breakfast was very poor. After day 1 we didn't bother and ate at our favourite Beach Shack.

We found out that Indian beds are rock hard... next time we'll take sleeping mats of our own. We were on the ground floor and were lucky enough to have air con. Most rooms did not have air con and it must have been very noisy with their windows open.

The hotel is centrally located. The noise from the constant beeping of horns is everywhere in Goa - so expect it here!

When we arrived many of the residents wanted to be moved. (God knows what they were expecting for their money?) However as the week progressed they changed their minds and one group even ended up trying to book the same room next year!

Though I would not object to staying in this hotel again I would prefer the independence of self catering in future.

Hotel was very noisy due to a taxi rank next door and location.

Rooms were basic but clean, some rooms were more basic than others. Ours had a settee and two chairs but no wardrobe, our friends had a wardrobe, but one plastic chair. So very much potluck.

Swimming pool was small but was cleaned every day as was the surrounding area (sometimes at 5 in the morning, bit noisy).

Staff were very friendly and helpful.

Food was ok but better eating places around.

Sheets were spotless but pillows were rock hard (buy one in resort).

One downside to our holiday was our video and stills camera were left in the bar area one night, we were the only people left and bar was closing, but next morning it had not been handed in and staff say they didn

The hotel is situated right on a very busy part of the main Baga Rd in Calangute next door to a popular and very nice bakery. However, it is VERY noisy, with taxis, motorbikes etc constantly tooting their horns and a large amount of dust and pollution from the road. The rooms are set out in either 3 or 4 storey blocks around a central small/medium pool, which also served as the main eating and bar area. There are no lifts and it is quite a climb on a hot day to the 3rd floor!

The hotel staff are also none too quiet in going about their early morning (6 - 7am) duties e.g. talking loudly and dragging tables and chairs across the poolside/restaurant/bar area. Many guests had to resort to buying ear plugs in order to get any sleep. Also the sound from the bar area late at night as the last stragglers returned home and had "one for the road" often kept you awake till the early hours.

The rooms were a good size but very basically furnished with minimal wardrobe space, only one small drawer in the bedside cabinet and no storage at all in the bathroom. The bedlinen and towels were old and bobbly but clean and the curtains etc left alot to be desired! But the room was kept spotless very day by our very polite cleaner Shaylish who left some fantastic towel sculptures on the bed every day and even managed to pick some flowers for us, which he displayed in an empty water bottle!

The beds were hard (good for bad backs)but the lumpy pillows undid all the good and gave you neck pains. The fridge was kept well stocked with reasonably priced water, soft drinks and beer but you were charged 40% commission if you wanted to store your own stuff.

The electrics left alot to be desired and a power cut at least once a day was the norm. The Shower unit constantly tripped out the electrics and as there was no phone in the room and it was such a long drag to reception to report a fault, we ended up having to make do with a cold shower many times.

The pool was hardly ever cleaned in the three weeks that we stayed in the hotel and other guests told us that they had seen "a man with a rag wiping the slime off the tiles round the edge and swilling the rag in the pool"!! There wasn't a whiff of chlorine to be smelt and you could never hear the filters going, so needless to say we didn't use the pool once.

Breakfast (continental, included in our package) was a small glass of canned orange or pineapple juice and two pieces of toast and jam with unlimited coffee/tea. But you could purchase other cooked items, which were acceptable but not great. We didn't sample anything from the lunch or dinner menu on recommendation from other guests!

The staff at the hotel were a pleasant and friendly crew but we didn't stay in long enough to form any relationships. We ate and swam/sunbathed elsewhere.

The resident entertainer and his wife, were a friendly British couple but the standard of entertainment on the whole left alot to be desired, apart from the weekly Indian Traditional Dancers who were great.

The hotel could do with a total refurbishment and even then will still be noisy due to it's location. But it is classed as 2 star and I suppose you get what you pay for! We would not go back to this hotel again.

My partner and I stayed at this hotel, this being our 18th time to goa staying at many hotels. We found this hotel to be spotlessly clean, bed sheets and towels changed every day, room boy very helpful and polite nothing was to much bother for him.

Our room was over lookng the main road which kept us amused, when sat on the balcony watching the Goanian way of life especiallly at night.

The food was very good and plenty of it we enjoyed our stay there and would return again which we will be doing in the near future.

Irene, Bromfield