Hotel Bangui, Bangui

Once you get past the hotel lobby, this hotel is far from modern and has needed significant upgrading to its rooms for a long time. We and others in our party had rooms where the A/C did not work, there were no toilet seats, the carpets were dirty, mildew grew in the shower, and the sheets and mattresses look like they are decades old. The elevators did not work which forced us to use the stairs frequently. The quality of the food at breakfast was poor and it was expensive. So we ate downtown at the Grand Cafe which has great breakfast at a lower cost. Beware of the vendors who are aggressive in selling pieces of art. Do not give them money down for an order. Pay only after you are satisfied with what you have purchased. The person we bought from lied to use about the price, and would not give us our money back. The management seemed to allow this until we complained. Rather, go to the local Artisian Market in Bangui where you will find an excellent selection of art for 1/2 the price. Although we found the people who worked at this hotel to be friendly and helpful as much as they could be, and the location on the river was nice, the overall value of staying here is very low.