The Social Hub Groningen

I have to say that everything was perfect here. The rooms are very high quality, the staff are friendly and kind and the location is amazing

Breakfast can be better

The room was well equipped and clean, the service was excellent, and the location is just perfect. We will definitely return.

If I needed to summarize The Social Hub in Groningen in two words, it would be: disgusting and rundown. I rarely write reviews, but I want to make sure that future guests can learn from my experience and decide whether this ‘hotel’ is the right choice for them. I stayed there for one night and it was a nightmare from beginning to end and ruined my stay in Groningen. The first room they gave me was completely beat-up with stains on the wall, the carpet was worn down and stained and the furniture had dents everywhere. But the worst thing was how dirty everything in this room was. All the surfaces in the room were dusty and/or full of fingerprints and/or full of stains, the sink in the mini kitchen was covered in limescale and had clearly not been cleaned in a while. The top of the stove was also dirty with a weird, slimy substance. The worst was the bathroom – limescale and all kinds of other dirt (soap residue, etc) in and outside of the shower. Below the toilet there was a big blob of a white substance, which I hope was just body cream. So naturally I asked for a different room. The new room was not much better, which made me realize that the lack of cleanliness is a bigger, structural problem at this ‘hotel’. Again, there were thick patches of limescale in the bathroom: dust, fingerprints and splashes of dried liquids everywhere in the room – on the desk, the nightstand, the curtains, even on the TV screen. There were also some other issues: - The mattress was old, worn out and sagging. Plus - it was also slanted to one side, so I kept rolling over and couldn’t get a lot of sleep. -The temperature control in the room was either broken or disabled (so no way to heat the room even though it was cold outside). - There was no hairdryer in the bathroom, even though it was listed in the amenities for the room I reserved. - There was only one working elevator for 8 floors, and it was on the other side of the building. The second one was out of order. - Things get pretty rowdy during the night, so make sure to bring earplugs if you are a light sleeper. All of this makes me wonder – who is in charge of this place? These are not minor issues - the dirt, the stains, the worn-out mattresses, the disrepair, the lack of maintenance. So, I can only assume that it is a conscious decision by The Social Hub to not care about their guests’ experience and basic needs (cleanliness, a good night of sleep,...). And I must also assume that they are fully aware that their negligence is making their guests miserable and ruining their stay. Plus - this place is not even cheap in comparison with other hotels in the area. This is basically a run-down hostel charging hotel prices.

Although I was staying in a big, more expensive suit, the quality of air conditioning and the bathroom drain was awful. The price is way too much relative to the quality offered. I do not recommend this hotel, unless you are absolutely desperate.