Albury Paddlesteamer Motel

I’m genuinely baffled by the positive ratings for the Paddle Steamer in Albury. The reviews and photos are the reason we chose to stay here, but our experience was completely different. As soon as we walked into the room, we were hit with an overwhelming wall of musty smell. I understand that older motels can have a lingering smell, but this was on another level. It was very humid, so we immediately turned on the air conditioner - only to switch it off again because it blew out an even stronger musty odour. It smelt like the unit was full of mould, and I wasn’t willing to risk getting sick. At first glance the room looked reasonably clean, but it didn’t take long to notice otherwise. There was rubbish left inside the bathroom cabinet, stains dripping down the wall near the toilet (make of that what you will), and the mirror had round orange stains all over it. The carpet under the bedside table had been removed, exposing bare concrete, and the remaining carpet looked filthy. The fridge hadn’t been wiped out properly. The kettle was dirty and still had water sitting in it, even though it had been put away in the kitchenette drawer. The only real positive was that the sheets appeared clean. Unfortunately, the smell made it incredibly difficult to sleep, combined with the heat and humidity from not being able to use the air conditioner. The pool also looked very green (we didn’t use it). There was quite a bit of noise from other guests. Around 9:30pm a young group came through swearing and being loud for about 45 minutes. In the morning, a bus load of guests were knocking on doors and chatting loudly without consideration for others, and no one appeared to ask them to keep the noise down. I completely understand that more affordable places are often older with dated cabinetry and furnishings, that’s expected. But cleanliness and basic maintenance standards still need to be met. Sadly, this stay didn’t meet that standard for us.

Don’t waste your time booking this place, we had a booking with a voucher and halfway there we get a call cancelling our accommodation. Now while I was shocked I was not surprised because in other reviews on this forum it’s happening regularly. Don’t waste your time stay at Mantra Albury at least they are friendly and accommodating and it’s newer. Well done paddle steamer left me up the river without a paddle ( see what I did there).

The room was a good size and the bed was comfortable Our room was very near reception and the main road at front of the motel, noisy during the night They offer tea and coffee, but we only had one teabag in the bag and had to go ask for more black teabags There was a constant noise from the bathroom like a valve venting all night.