This was our third year at the Empire. It's always clean and comfortable. The pool and lounging area is very comfortable, with plenty of shade (important when Penticton gets hot). Close to the beach. It's good basic accomodation.More
An older motel with a couple of nicks and scratches, but superbly updated and maintained. Was I ever surprised once I arrived, immaculately manicured grounds and exterior. Once inside where I met an extremely courteous and helpful lady, I could see the inside was just as nice as the outside. The room was spotless and had everything that I could need for the next couple of days, from kitchen to pool. Every time I left my room I was greeted by a staff member and asked if I needed anything. Will definitely go back.
Thank you for taking your time to write a review for us!
We needed a room for four days on very short notice and decided, on the basis of the Trip Review ratings, to gamble on this one. All we really needed was a bed & bath, so we declined a kitchen suite and took a very basic double room. 2 small double beds, a full bath, tv, microwave, fridge & desk, tucked into a tiny space, but it worked perfectly. Lots of shelf & closet space, plus several large mirrors made dressing easy. Lots of counter space in the bathroom - nice! Excellent water pressure & lots of hot, even at the busy time in the AM with everyone getting ready to go out.
Beds were very comfortable; linens & towels spotlessly clean. NO "old hotel smell". Air conditioner was on when we arrived - a nice touch as the room was pleasantly cool. (The AC fan was a bit loud at night, so we turned it off, opened the bathroom window & enjoyed the au naturel cool night breeze instead.) The only thing missing was an alarm clock. Otherwise, better than we had expected.
I would definitely stay there again. Very basic, but very clean & comfy. We were in the back building, above the pool, and we were a bit concerned that the weekend would be noisy, but the other guests respected the "no noise after 11 PM" signage and retired to their rooms.
Oh - and it was very reasonably priced - $84 per night - a better rate than was quoted on Booking.com.
The décor was very kitschy - faux patchwork quilts and dangling little ornaments on the walls, definitely like Grandma's house, but, like Grandma's house, spotlessly clean. Even the list of rules on the door sounded like Grandma - "please respect other guests and keep quiet" was the gist of it, and the other guests seemed to respect that. Very peaceful for an Okanagan hotel on the weekend - the place was full Friday & Saturday nights and we were impressed by the general decorum, even from the sports team of teen boys who showed up and took over the pool area.
If I could change one thing, though, it would be the vertical blinds on the windows. It was hard to get them closed 100% completely, which was a bit of a concern because of people walking past our room along the common verandah. They probably couldn't see in, but a curtain would have felt more private. (Also curtains would keep the room darker for sleeping.)
Thank you for writing a review on our property. Much appreciated for you feedback. Hopefully we will see you in future.
I know, sounds like a strange title but it's true.
The hotel is nice, very clean and cottage like. The rooms have patchwork quilts, wallpaper borders, and hand crocheted doilies on the dressers and nightstands. Feels like a visit to grandma's house.
On our second day there, we left the motel, closed the door and hung the "do not disturb sign" on it. When we returned later that night, the "do not disturb sign" was pinched between the door and door frame as if someone had closed the door with the sign on as opposed to putting the sign on after closing the door, as we did. We went in to find that someone had gone through our luggage and an expensive pair of shorts had been taken.
No, I did not forget them, in fact I had worn them the day before. They were taken from the pile of dirty clothes that still had the shirt and socks I had worn along with them. Maybe it was the cleaner or possibly someone else. The hotel uses a standard style key so there could be a copy out there in someone's hands. Either way, it shouldn't have happened.
It was late and the office was closed so I went to the office the following morning and reported it. We checked out with one day remaining in our visit. I asked for a refund on the remaining day but they would only return 50% of what I had prepaid.
Also be forewarned, for their is a large construction site across the road.
Dear Guests,
I am really sorry about your missing short when you stayed with us. But we have checked with our housekeepers and they never serviced your room because you have DND on all the time. Most of our staff been working for us last few years and never had any stealing issues so far.I have checked our Security Camera and did not see any body entering your room. All rooms entrance are monitored by Security Camera. We have checked the whole room at check out and could not find your short. Again, I am really sorry about your loss.
I stayed here recently for 4 nights. They were very helpful and accommodating. Our ceiling fan was wobbly and making a lot of noise. They said they would fix it the next day and during the interim brought us a fan we could sit on the dresser. I asked for a late check out and they were good with that - a two hour extension. I found the rooms to be very clean and comfortable. I would definitely stay here again.
First, the good news. Nice big room, clean, well decorated. Good bed. Decent TV with cable (no HD). Wifi works well. Desk staff was OK, but when we asked for restaurant recommendations, he was not knowledgeable.
The bad news: The shower/tub has no grab bar except very low on the tub, and there is no rubber mat on the slippery tub. The curtain blows in when the shower is on, and the drain was very slow, so water built up in the tub. We were on the second floor, and found a broken and very loose step on the stairs. We told the desk clerk, who seemed uninterested. The step remained broken - and very dangerous, for the 3 days we were there.
Thanks for writing the review on our property. We are really sorry that you were not satisfied with your stay at our property. We did not know that you had problem with the room otherwise we would switch you downstair room with grab bars. We have replaced the loose steps and fixed the tub drain in that room. Sorry, our front desk staff is very new to penticton area and could not help you with your restaurant selection. We will continue to provide the best for our valued guests.
