Why we DIDN'T want to stay at the Staybook Hotel in New Delhi
Updated: Apr 7
We arrived at Indira Gandhi International Airport after a long travel day pretty late in the evening. We were weary and tired, and most grateful that our first hotel in India had been able to arrange a pick up service directly from the airport.
Our immediate feeling about the airport was that it felt old, a little tired and dated. That being said the best judge of an airport in our opinion is getting through it smoothly, and smoothly we did. To be honest the carnage started once we got outside!
Okay, perhaps carnage is a strong word. But it was busy. Really really busy. There were literally people everywhere, and luckily we had our driver who was seemingly pulling us away from the chaos. The trip from arrivals to the parking lot seemed very far, and by the time we had got to where we needed to be, we were pretty exhausted.
Even having traveled to 37 countries at time of writing, it is fair to say that we still need time to acclimatize to new environments. No matter how many different cultures we see, each one is unique and different, and from the moment we land we are consciously and sub-consciously taking it all in. While we had done plenty of research and knew what to expect, we were both pretty weary as we stood in the exhaust-filled car park waiting for our guy to fetch the car. In the five minutes we waited a hundred people could have easily walked by. Even at 11pm at night, this place was rocking! There was a lot happening and it was a tad overwhelming.
We were most grateful to see our driver pull up and to be fair to him he was super friendly. He cracked plenty of jokes, told us some information about his country, and was happy to help with our luggage. His vehicle was okay too; almost like a Suzuki Carry van but as a 5-seater, also (and perhaps most importantly), the air conditioning was really solid too. So overall we felt pretty secure and confident that we would get to the hotel okay, which was about 45 minutes from the airport. Before we get into this breathtaking ride, lets take a look at what is coming up in this post:
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Driving like Lewis Hamilton - an introduction to India's roads
Just before we were leaving, after getting our stuff in the trunk, our driver made a point of saying 'don't worry, I drive slow'. Rather an odd thing to say, but as perhaps intended, it was actually quite re-assuring. Well, that was prior to take off anyway!
Many a nervous glance was shared between us as our juddery driver crunched through the gears and sped across the roads out of the airport like a man on a serious mission. While it may seem like a glamourous exaggeration it is not. We are talking 120-140km p/h easily most of the way there, including some pretty dangerous and hairy manoeuvres that you would expect more from a high speed police chase than a simple airport transfer.
We tried not to say too much about it, although Leon did reciprocate the 'drive slow' joke midway through the ride with a comparison to Lewis Hamilton. We think he got it, although one can never be too sure!
As it was late a night there was not much we could see, although we do have to say that driving out from Indira Gandhi International Airport was a breeze. Long stretches of well lit highways keep the traffic flowing, and owing to the G20 event just a few days earlier, there were India's flag colours lit up in lights around all of the lampposts too. Couple that with lot's of G20 livery, flowers and all, at every intersection, it looked really nice. Clean and modern; we were almost feeling like perhaps India might just upset our pre-conceptions. But it was night, and we had not seen the hotel yet.
We made it to the Staybook - Hotel City Stories - By Aira Xing, Paharganj, easily within the 45 minutes. Our driver was certainly right on that at least, and we were just glad we made it without any major incident. We had planned to give the driver a tip, and indeed once our bags were out of the trunk he did stand intentionally close to persuade us to do so. Leon initially gave him 200 rupees, of which he asked for more, so left him with 500. In all honesty, our hesitance to tip at all would have been warranted given the crazy driving. But, well this was our first night, he got us here, and hopefully his extra bunce on the job was worth it. Who knows what his situation is right?
Back in February of this year we visited Vietnam for the first time, followed by Cambodia shortly after. Thailand was our 'home' for five months at the start of 2023. So it is fair to say that we 'know' a little bit about the road situation. Lots of bikes, tuk-tuks / rickshaws, scooters, cars, and a whole bunch of traffic. Well let's just say combine that experience all into one, roll it up in a ball, and India will be the one to kick it. India's roads are on a whole other level!
Our Staybook Hotel (City Stories) New Delhi Review
We chose Staybook - Hotel City Stories - By Aira Xing, Paharganj (the 'name' on booking.com, a bit shifty on the description though) as it is close to the famous Connaught Place / Circle, and is in the heart of New Delhi. Right on a main road, finding transport was not a problem. Besides, a 4-star rating on aforementioned booking.com, plus some nice looking photos, and then of course a great price. All combined, we had high hopes.
As it happens, when we arrived, our friends Jackson and Marjo were already there. They were on the balcony when we were offloading our bags and paying our tip. Try as they could, they shouted to us by name, hoping to catch some sort of wave or smile or anything. But we couldn't hear them! Already a tad traumatized after some very near misses on the way there, and weary from our flights and travel day vibes, the noise of Delhi took over. The honking! Oh the honking. Loud, intrusive and near-constant, the honking was sure to drown out any hopes they had of us hearing them, even from only the second floor of the hotel. You can catch that moment in our YouTube video, be sure to check that out later!
With the chaotic traffic behind us (even at 11pm?!), we made our way with our bags through a pretty dingy doorway and through to an elevator. There was a guard on hand to help who was very eager to get us through and up to the reception. He, like many others, warned that it was a 'dangerous area'.
Our immediate impression was that the Storybook Hotel did not look like what we had booked at all. In all of the hundreds of accommodations we have stayed at, we have not often arrived somewhere which seriously made us consider our choice. In fact maybe only twice. Well this was the third! Moreso for the lack of honesty, and as our stay there progressed, also for the basic lack of safety and maintenance.
Now despite this less-than-rosy picture, it certainly was not all bad here. In fact, we would probably still recommend it (although it trod a very fine line, for Leon especially). You are very welcome to check out this hotel on booking.com, then for good measure, check out the photos on Google Maps of it. And our photos and room tour video (on our YouTube video, did we mention that already?!) We are certain you will see what we mean.
One stand out of the Storybook Hotel was the service. Above all else, good service can go a long way to masking things like poor aesthetics. We were shown to our room, offered help with our luggage, given towels, complimentary water and access to the WIFI. We became familiar with one guy in particular, the one helping us with our breakfast in photo and the YouTube video. He was cool, although a little odd in his ways. He had this wonderful habit of saying 'ten minutes' for everything. Literally any request. Like water or toilet paper for example. Ten minutes, and then it always ended up being 20!
However, we will call him out on some poor practices, like offering coffee and placing his fingers inside our cups, clenched on the rim. No gloves of course. He also had a rather strange habit of wanting to plate our food, using our utensils, and we did put a stop to that. But overall, even with his lack of English, he was our 'go to' guy at the hotel and he was pretty helpful and good at his job.
The food, and our main issue with this hotel
The food at the hotel did not look up to much, but it was actually okay to be fair. Breakfast was included in the price for us, and bizarrely the front desk even called our room at 8am to let us know it was ready. The 'canteen', we guess we should call it, was not up to much, and did not give a good first impression at all. Utensils were scarce, the plastic tables in the middle of the room had definitely seen better days, and the 'buffet' table consisted of 4 elements every morning.
The options for breakfast would bounce around between roti and yoghurt, spicy Indian pickles, oatmeal, cornflakes (with no milk), and coffee. The coffee came courtesy of instant granules and a rather dodgy water machine. The combinations were actually fairly decent, and while it did not inspire much confidence with its presentation, we both did enjoy the mornings. It was a little hot, although amongst the dilapidated room there is a ceiling fan that works. There is a balcony which is full of plants which is nice. Then of course there is the constant honking that fills the whole building, more incessant than ever in the mornings as the road outside starts to choke up. So breakfast was interesting to say the least. We were in India, and we certainly felt like it!
There is also a menu for in-room food, which was pretty decent. We did order a few things, which were okay, but it was not very fancy. It was efficient though and the prices were reasonable. There is a KFC opposite the hotel which is pretty handy if you like that as we do (although it is very different from 'western' KFC). In terms of other food options outside of the hotel, we cannot really say. We did not walk around much so we did not see if there were any stores or restaurants.
While the main corridor of rooms in the hotel looked tired, the very same and some can be said of the rooms themselves. In all fairness, the bed was comfy, although the sheets were stained in places. But okay, what are you going to do. We could manage. The rest of the room however, left much to be desired. Broken plug sockets, grubby light switches, damaged furniture and grubby walls. This was not the pictures we saw.
The worst part for us was the bathroom. This is something we never usually compromise on wherever we stay. It is important for us that we have our own bathroom and that is one of the various reasons hostels do not appeal to us (although we now know we can get private rooms with a bathroom). At the Staybook Hotel, it was a disaster. The only basic function that worked was the toilet, and even that was a struggle. There was only one tap for water, which would constantly be turned off, or if it was working kept spluttering and spitting out rather than actually working. And the worst part of it all, the water smelt awful. The kind of smell that Leon would associate with his plumbing days. For sure, something must have been dead in the water tank.
We literally could not use the water. Now you can get away with hand sanitizer and the like for that, and we never brush our teeth with tap water anyway. But how could we shower? We literally couldn't. Besides, the shower 'area' was not clean, and the shower head was so rusted that water would have a hard time coming out anyway. We did not even attempt to find out. This was the first time in all of our travels that we have not been able to shower. And we were in New Delhi, one of the hottest cities on the planet. Things were not looking good! Thank goodness the air conditioning worked ok, despite the numerous wires spewing out of the side of it. So at least we were not hot in the room. We had to improvise, and we used wet wipes. We did not feel clean, but it was better than nothing.
It is hard to sum up our stay at the Staybook Hotel New Delhi. We paid $140 CAD for 3 nights, which works out to be a little under £85. In terms of location and value, it certainly ticks the boxes. We also have to shout out the WIFI, which was surprisingly good for the first few days. The staff are friendly, although they were very pushy with our friends at the end of our stay for a review online. So much so they almost demanded they do it in front of them, and we have read about this in the reviews online too.
Despite the challenges, this was our hotel for 3 days and we had to accept our situation. We were a little disappointed, but we were not going to let this dampen our enthusiasm for Delhi. At least if you have read this, you will know what to expect. This is a 2-star hotel at best, but money-wise you really cannot go wrong. Bring plenty of wet wipes and you will be just fine!
The water bottle scam
One thing we did sadly catch wind of is that there is a known scam involving water bottles India. Water is refilled in a bottle from the tap, and the lid is heat sealed to look like it has not been opened. The hotel did provide bottled water in the room, and there was also a chiller by reception. It was not very cold, but we did indulge as it is important to stay hydrated in the heat!
While we do not in any way accuse the hotel of this bottle scam, some of the water was filled so high in the bottle that it just did not seem like they were genuine. We highly recommend double checking water bottles as bad water can cause discomfort and in some cases serious illness! We did use them, and the day after we left the hotel we all got sick, although we cannot be sure it was from the water. Just please be diligent!
How to find Hotel Staybook City Stories
Throughout our time in New Delhi it was pretty easy to get to and from the hotel. As the hotel offers an airport shuttle service getting there initially is no problem.
Despite its location on a busy main road, it is possible to get an Uber just outside. It is a tad tricky for the driver to park, but the traffic is so busy that it is possible. In terms of getting back to the hotel from any excursions, Uber does that easily.
If you do look to use a rickshaw, if the driver is not sure, you can use the address in the map below on Google Maps to get there.
Follow our India Series on YouTube
Join us as we visit Connaught Place, Dr. Zombie, ride the rickshaws through the streets of Delhi, visit the Akshardham temple, Delhi Gate, KFC and check out our accommodation. We met so many incredible and friendly locals BUT we also met some pushy ones too! We explore the streets and learn more and more about India! We head to an upscale restaurant that was INCREDIBLE!
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A new style for our blog
In this India series, we are actually trying something a little different from our 'normal' blogs. While we still plan to provide you with the best sights, food, accommodations and more, we will be telling the story from a more day-to-day perspective. India left such an indelible mark on us, and as much as we want to promote the country and tourism there, we have to tell it as it is. So that will include all of it; all of the things we saw, the people we met, how we felt as foreigners, the testing times we experienced, and of course our true thoughts and learnings from the country.
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Coming up: Our first scam in India, SIX in a rickshaw, Connaught Place and EIGHT HOURS with Dr Zombie
Our very first full day in New Delhi was an eventful one to say the least! Together with Jackson and Marjo, we wanted to check out the famous Connaught Place shopping hub. From the moment we stepped out into the bustling heat outside our hotel we were marked, eventually pushed towards a rickshaw, and somehow found ourselves dropped of at a 'tourist centre'. Following that, and after encountering a very aggressive beggar, we discovered Dr Zombie restaurant and bar, and well, the rest is an eight hour history they say...
Introducing Wanderlog - A new feature for our blog
We are excited to be launching a brand new element to our travel blogs, after Wanderlog reached out to us to let us know of their user-friendly embeddable maps. It is something we feel will add real value, allowing us to share our route including accommodations and city sights in an interactive and helpful way.
Wanderlog is a free travel planning app for iOS and Android devices that allows users to create trip itineraries, organize flights, hotel and car reservations, view places to visit on a map, and collaborate with friends. Please do let us know about this new feature in the comments below.
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