Cafe Pontchartrain, New Orleans

comfortable beds, central A/C, limited cable, movies, and i got upgraded to a king size bed for free. the street car wasn't runnning and the bus stopped at around 11 so getting back to the hotel late night was either a long walk or a cab. service was very good. i didn't eat at the restaurant.

This hotel is in need of a renovation ASAP!!! When we got to the lobby all was well, my thoughts a nice hotel with alot of historical value. This is not you everyday commercial hotel/motel. The hotel is in serious need of a carpet cleaner, I did not walk around without shoes for fear of getting a foot fungus. The wall were peeling and just dirty. There was NO hairdryer and our phone did not work the entire time we were there. The elevator is a death trap so beware. The beds were way too soft for my liking. In our room there was a closet that smelled of moth balls. Our view was to a brick building. The parking was overpriced but there is plenty of street parking. We did ask for a rolling bed and that was delivered with no trouble. Good luck to those who stay in this room. This hotel is run down and next to a scary vacant building next door. Ironiclly that is the very hotel we stay @ last time. It didnt survive Katrina.

At one time, the Pontchartrain was the finest inn at New Orleans; its inhouse restaurant the rival of any in the city. Indeed, the Pontchartrain was my hotel of choice art New Orleans for over a half century. With the death of its owner-operator and its consequent sale out of the family, it slid quickly into the status of "dump": nasty, deteriorating rooms and a rude, inattentive staff. The only redeeming feature was the man on the door, Calvin, the sole survivor from the "good old days".

My husband and I stayed at the Pontchartrain Hotel June 23rd through the 27th. We had stayed there 12 years before for our 10th anniversary; this, too, was an anniversary trip. We had had a wonderful time before and thought the hotel was wonderful, but after reading all of the negative posts, we thought that maybe the hotel had gone downhill. How wrong we were! We arrived at the hotel at about 11 am. The lobby was sparkling clean and the employees couldn’t have been more helpful. We knew check-in was at 3; we asked if we could leave our bags and were informed that we could go to our room immediately! When we walked in (we were in the Charles Boyer suite), the room was spotlessly clean (a concern, given what we had read) and wonderfully cool. During our stay, the room was kept spotless, and our request for extra pillows wasn’t a problem. We had breakfast in the coffee shop. It was a bit pricey, but the Eggs St. Croix (Eggs Benedict made with crawfish instead of bacon) was delicious. We would, however, recommend the coffee shop a block or so down as a daily, better bargain. On Friday and Saturday nights, the hotel bar, which has a most gracious and friendly barkeep, includes a piano player who just stepped out of a Tennessee Williams play. The room, full of locals singing along, made us feel we truly were part of the local scene. We met a businessman who told us he started staying at the hotel when he couldn’t find a place in the Quarter; now, he’d never stay anywhere else. This reflects what we mostly want to point out; there were parts of the hotel that were faded and obviously reflected the former grandeur of the place, and we did have a problem getting wake-up calls ( thank goodness for the alarm clocks). The cable is basic and there isn’t an Internet connection in the room, although there’s a hot spot in the café. However, this is a hotel for people who want to experience the true spirit of the south. If you want to stay at a hotel were you want to know what to expect up front, such as a Marriott or Embassy Suites, this isn’t the place for you. The Pontchartrain is a place for travelers, not tourists.

I got one of the large rooms overlooking the bridge at a cheaper price than most New Orleans hotels. The staff was very helpful and informative. There is street parking alongside the hotel so need for valet.

I just stayed for two nites at this hotel. I was totally disgusted at this hotel. The front entry ceiling has paint peeling, one of the front glass doors was broken, the valet/bellboy is never at the front to help with luggage or park your car. Then you get your key from the desk manager who is totally indifferent. The best part is arriving in your room - what a disgusting, dirty room. The carpet is fraying, had a huge stain and smelled of mold. The chest had two missing doors. They put out a small blanket at the foot of the bed - when opened it is full of holes cigarette I think. The lampshade was decaying and parts of the shade were hanging off. The curtains on both windows were full of holes and hanging off the rods, impossible to keep the light out. The bathroom ceiling warming light was completely missing. The towels were dingy and yellow. There was actually dirt and dust on the ceramic tile. The toliet was impossible to flush and when you did get it to flush, it ran for hours. I left it running Sat. morning before the maid came and when I returned that night it was still running. This hotel is a dump and is not that cheap. The valet parking costs $18.00 per night and after two nights my bill was over $300.00 to stay in the dirtiest dingiest place I have ever been. I would never set foot in this hotel again.

While we enjoyed our stay here it was probably because of the city and the hotel location. We think the parking is far overpriced at $18 per day. Also, we had to live with one tiny bar of soap during our 4 day visit. Our friends on another floor had the same one too. No shampoo. No hair dryer in room (you have to ask for one) Bathroom was in dire need of repairs such as paint peeling from ceiling, painted ceramic tiles were peeling, no shelf or anything to put your toothbrush. Bedspread had a burn in it. Chandeliers and carpet dirty.

The convenient location and nice atmosphere made for a pleasant stay. It is right next to a trolley stop, and some site-seeing tours leave directly from the lobby. The staff were helpful, and the hotel itself is nice, although in the room I had paint/facilities were just a hint worse for wear. All in all a good stay.

This hotel was nice in the late 90's but now it is absolutely horrible! It is filthy dirty, furniture that looks like it was taken out of the dumpster, and the two day/night managers,are rude, unaccommodating and could care less about any guest.
We made our reservation for the grand suite and connecting double 7 months prior to our arrival and with the hotel directly. Upon our arrival, they did not have our room saying it had maintenance problems. However, the room was occupied. They continually lied to us and put us in rooms that were disgusting. Do not stay at this hotel. The only redeeming factor was the door/bellman, Calvin. An absolute Prince and much too accommodating to be working there. They gave us no discount for not having our rooms and made no apology. Absolutely arrogant and the most rude managers I have ever dealt with. It was shocking to see how little they cared. You'd have better rooms and service at Motel 6
than at the Pontchartrain.