“Good value in a low-cost suite near downtown, especially for cyclists and walkers”
While the décor and layout (and even the receptionist!) are 1960s throwbacks, we found this classic motel to be clean, quiet, and pretty well appointed considering the price we paid.
For $78 a night all in we got a suite on the second floor with a kitchen area, a queen bed in its own room, and tidy bathroom, and a spacious living room. There were closets and cupboard aplenty and lots of room in the bedroom for luggage. The furniture appeared to be 1960s vintage but proved to be in excellent condition. The bed was particularly comfortable with a selection of excellent pillows. The bedroom was quiet since it was at the back, away from the road, and overlooked a bamboo-laden garden. The sheer curtains on the main windows were a great touch, essential for privacy and light where the exterior walkway passes by a room’s main windows, but absent in most motels. Another nice touch was the electric baseboard heater and thermostat in each room. These enabled us to quickly adjust the temperature to our liking, such as warm in the bathroom and cool in the bedroom at night. Bad or noisy temperature control can be a big annoyance in low-cost motels.
Our room was pretty quiet in general. This surprised us since Gorge Road can be busy, especially at rush hour. However, the motel is set back quite a way from the road and has several gigantic cedar trees in front. Moreover, the three-story wing of the motel extends well back on the property, perpendicular to the road and along the rear garden. Also, the motel was not busy during our stay. With a lot of guests, there may be more noise, since the between-room soundproofing was thin enough for us to hear the TV from the room below ours.
The location relative to Victoria’s main attractions is very good. For cyclists, the Galloping Goose Regional Trail passes only a block away. Walkers can follow the Galloping Goose across the Gorge waterway and along the waterfront into downtown, or stroll over to new Jutland Road neighbourhood with its condos, waterfront, and the chic Glo Europub. For drivers, downtown is only 10 minutes away and access is easy to highway #1 (up island) and #17 (to the ferries). Walkers should be aware that this is not the best neighbourhood in Victoria, particularly late at night when a few nearby motel pubs and beer stores attract delinquency, as they during our Saturday night stay.
The motel does not offer breakfast, which is fine since what some motels at this level try to pass off as a “breakfast” are nothing more than a muffin, powdered juice, and stale coffee. Instead, we got a kitchenette room. For breakfast out, you’ll need to take the car but nearby Douglas Street has a White Spot, Denny’s, Serious Coffee and more.
The only deficiencies that we encountered had to do with security. The old-fashioned room keys should be replaced with a more secure and decidedly modern electronic card system. Also, our room’s door had only a small deadbolt and chain as secondary security. Not good enough for a motel with exterior access. These problems may be compensated for by the vigilance of the caretakers, who appear to live on premises in a unit that overlooks the main parking area.
If a room at the Robin Hood is at the price that you can afford in accommodation (especially in summer high season, when Victoria hotel rates go up so high), then I can safely say that you would be hard pressed to find a better return on your accommodation dollar.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
