We had been on a trip to Gangtok and Darjeeling from September 19-25, 2009, through Hammock Holidays, Bangalore. We were two families, including 2 senior citizens, a 4-year old and one 2-year old. At Darjeeling, We stayed at Hotel Cedar Inn.
Hotel Cedar inn is on top of the hills, 15 mins walk from St. Pauls school (of SRK’s “Main Hoon Na” fame). We stayed in the cottage, which has two levels, the bed on one and the tv area. It was tough making sure our 2-year old doesn’t fall off the steps. The wardrobe had no light, and the shoe polish cloth was already used by someone. The bathroom is not user-friendly. We were not able to turn on the shower without getting drenched, and the drain system is poor. The tv showed all channels red in colour. We complained and they changed the tv. But the remote was not working well anyway.The way to the cottage is winding and we had a tough time stopping the kids from rolling down the stairs.
They have acute water shortage, but they have a bath-tub for taking bath. No bucket and mug. We got hot water throughout the day from a geyser.We reached at lunch time only to know that we have to give a menu order two hours in advance, as they do not store food materials. The hotel provided a shuttle to go down to the town for lunch. We ate at Hasty-Tasty on Mall road. The shuttle picked us up again after a phone-call.
The hotel serves only continental food as a part of a package. So that day “especially for us”, they offered Chinese food. There were only 4 dishes and we were asked to chose out of it. Then at the dinner table we saw a big party of 20 chinese people. So much for service!!!The next day they apologised, and said “Indians ko Indian food hi chahiyae”. Same story again… Indian menu, four dishes. There were four more Indian families that day. So fake!!!
All sightseeing usually ends at 3pm so make sure you take a package at the hotel that includes breakfast and dinner. Going up and down for every meal is irritating.We feel that Cedar Inn prefers non-Indians. They follow European and American ways. It seems “it is difficult to get curd”! The hotel is in a lonely spot and you need a vehicle to get there. They use only onion, tomato, potato and frozen peas to make food.The room service is good, the staff are pleasant and helpful. It is the management that is pathetic. They provided us with a room heater as we had an infant with us. On a clear day the view is very good.