Review: Aerotel Jeddah Airport, Saudi Arabia

I also found it underwhelming. Thanks for reminding me about the unmarked door!

When I was there in August, it was completely full, so I'm glad I made my reservation weeks in advance (I acquired my boarding card for JED-FCO whilst in Singapore).

There's simply no excuse for the lack of Wifi either. Mind you, I wasn't overly impressed by the transit hotel in Delhi either (but that was 9 years ago now).

This review if it gains traction will definitely get the receptionist fired, so probably remove that part?

Insightful. The thought never crossed my mind of getting a daytime hotel for a long layover. I had just under 9 hrs layover in DFW on Christmas Eve and spent it in the flagship lounge. While it was very quiet apart from two 77Ws arriving from LHR simultaneously there were some chaise lounge chairs and showers. I wonder what the Hyatt Dfw was going for considering Dfw was a ghost town. Might have splurged $200 USD.

Why should it be removed? Those sort of comments (i.e. genuine and founded criticism) are the ones that can very much help determine whether or not one would want to stay at the hotel. That comment will either 1) not affect the receptionist in any way or 2) will make sure that there's better treatment for future guests (be it from the same lady or someone else). Don't get me wrong, it'd be a shame for her to be fired, but that doesn't take away from the fact she wasn't being a least bit hospitable in an industry that requires a bare minimum.

@Ben I guess this is already the case... but just in case, don't listen to this type of nonsensical comments.

Why should Ben remove a part of his honest opinion? This behavior is downright rude…and very fitting to the general attitude towards guests in the Middle East. The best you get is ignorance, the worst is actual hostility. I’ve had it all down there…

9 hours in the best flagship lounge on the planet is still too long! A cheap, quiet airport hotel room with a proper bed is worth $200.00 any day you need some proper sleep. You can still spend 1.5 hours in the lounge before take-off anyway.

Hey Ben, how was the quality of the bed?

I try to give everyone in the service industry the benefit of the doubt but there is no cause for rudeness. I doubt it was a cultural miscommunication or lack of English. And even if so, Jeddah is an annual destination for millions upon millions of Muslims from all walks of life and every corner of the world. So one would think they could staff and train accordingly. No excuses.

Most disappointing business class lounge on December 5th, 2023 by Turkish Airlines. Will not fly them for treating their high paying passengers like this.

Not sure where you have been but the Middle East is a big place. Jordan for eg has wonderful hospitality including at hotels.

What was disappointing about it?

This is what I don’t understand about western culture. Ben is not the employer of the receptionist. If the employer chooses to fire the receptionist, that is a business deal between those two parties.

Either way, it is not Ben’s review that gets a person fired. It is the person’s own conduct.

The receptionist as described here reminds me of a time I was boarding a flight at EWR, I had an exit row seat so when I scanned my boarding pass at the gate, it beeped.

The gate agent asked me “Exit row. Whee lane?”

Took me a few seconds to figure out she meant Willing, as in Willing and able to assist.

The lobby used to be the Saudia lounge when the airport first opened in 2020 during covid. This was also when the airport had zero duty free and 1 crappy coffee shop airside

Thanks for the review. So I will come prepared when passing through Jeddah in January on a 9 hour layover.
But whatever it is it will be preferable to staying at the Saudia lounge which on our recent outbound flight was cooled down to probably somewhere around 59, 60 degrees. We weren't expecting to have to bring winter clothes and my wife caught a bad cold which ruined the first week of our vacation for her.

Actually in the Saudia lounge in Jeddah i was able to find i think 4 separate comoprtments with like sofa bed and could conveniently rest. Not noisy.

In the room you can use the free airport WiFi what requires login via SMS OTP. Not too complicated.

The pillows were too high and hard but the receptionist was friendly.

We stayed at this hotel for one night in November (9 hour transit), and the feeling was exactly the same. We waited at the reception, and finally the receptionist arrived after one hour. As this is the only hotel in the airport and you can't get out without a visa, the quality will probably never improve...

If the hotel corridor side of the hotel door did not have a handle to open it, how did you (or anyone else) get out.

Being from Europe, having worked in the hospitality industry for over 3 decades I am now living in Jeddah (for work).

First of all, even though I am very curious and always wanted to experience the Hajj terminal I never managed to do so in my 120 times I have used the airport. Chapeau!

Then unfortunately, I can only agree with you about your findings about build quality. Many hotels here in Saudi have very mediocre build quality. The level of craftsmanship is mainly substandard. I am living in 5 star hotel which newly opened when I arrived early 2022 and while it is not as bad as what you described it is not what one would expect from a internationally renowned 5 star hotel brand. And the same is true for many places/hotels I have been staying in in this country. Hardware-wise there are many big plans to improve but it is still a long way to go. Surprisingly, the quality is somewhat better in most other countries on the Arabian peninsula.

I was very much surprised by the lack of friendliness you mentioned. So far I have experienced the people to be extremely hospitable and very friendly and never ever experienced anything opposite.

There is visa on arrival for more than 60 nationalities. So you could get out and experience Jeddah. It's worth it.

It seems to be a statement of wealth here. Working in Jeddah, my Saudi colleagues call my office the Sauna because I have set the AC to 22°C/72°F automatic while they always set it to 17°/18°C or 63°/65°F.

But honestly, from my European experience it seems to be the same when I travel to the US. We always think the rooms are cooled down way too much.

cultural differences are enormous. in some countries it is an insult to look someone in the face. in some for employees to say any more than the bare minimum.in some to shake hands, in some not to shake hands. in some not keeping distance. in some standing away. i don't jumop to conclusions about behavior strange to me in other cultures.