Golden Tulip Dar City Center in Dar es Salaam

PLEASE READ THIS REVIEW CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU BOOK.

Worst experience I’ve ever had — misleading rooms, poor hygiene, hidden charges, and intimidating behavior
When I went to the Golden Tulip, they first told me they didn’t have a room. I checked online while standing there and suddenly there were many rooms available, so I booked one room with two beds. After that, they still gave us a room with one bed only. I told them I booked for two beds, but they said this is the only room and if I don’t like it, I can leave. I asked to speak to the manager and requested an extra bed; only then did they add it.

Inside the bathroom we found a cockroach.
In the fridge they put water and snacks, but no one told us these would cost money.

At checkout, I went to pay for the restaurant charges and suddenly I saw an extra $47 added. They said it was for room service/minibar. They also said there was a paper in the room explaining this. I went back and looked carefully. There were many papers in the room with instructions and details—who reads all of that on vacation?—but I didn’t find anything clearly saying we had to pay for the snacks if we ate them.

I called them and asked them to show me the notice. They came and, guess what, there was a very small paper hidden above the fridge. How is anyone supposed to see that? I told them no one informed me and I can’t pay for something that wasn’t clearly shown.

We were in the middle of the night and had a 5:00 a.m. flight. I asked them to call the manager. They said the manager was sleeping and if I wanted to talk to him, I had to wait until 9:00 a.m. I told them we had a flight, but they didn’t listen. The staff then acted in a way that felt aggressive and intimidating. They took our luggage and put it in the office, and we couldn’t take it back while the dispute continued. We called the police after they started to attack us and they hurted me, and they threatened us with a gun, but it was late and they took time to arrive. In the end, we paid the money just to get our bags and leave for the airport.

This is the worst hotel I have ever stayed in. My advice: do not go there. I have photos to support what happened. Choose another place and stay safe.

This is my first hotel review as the experience was unacceptably poor. My initial room was infested with cockroaches everywhere - walls, floor, bed, and bathroom. After requesting a room change, the new room had non-functioning electrical outlets, a broken TV remote, and flickering lights. The bathroom lacked basic amenities. When they sent a technician to fix the electrical issues, the repair took too long. They refused my request for a refund when I decided to leave early. Save your money - there are much better hotels nearby in the same price range. Would not recommend. I'll never go back there.