I stayed with my husband a few nights at the Sedona Hotel in September 2006. One of the main reasons were their pool and being able to pay buy international credit card which is not commonly accepted at other places.

The hotel is a standard hotel, rooms are ok, maybe a bit old-fashioned and could use a renovation.

But staff were all polite, friendly and very helpful even with hiring a car for the day for the same price as we would have got it by negotiation out on the street.

Pool is nice but does not offer much shade.

Breakfast buffet was good, nothing spectacular.

All in all: an average hotel, nothing special about it except its good location.

Luckily we spent only one day in this hotel. It could have been any hotel anywhere in the world. There was nothing distinctive about it; it is average at best. Admittedly, the rooms were quite clean. The breakfast included in our rate was average as well. We felt safe coming and going from the hotel even at late hours. Would recommend employing the services of local guides/taxi/rickshaw drivers. In our interactions, many of them have college degrees and and speak functional English. We especially had a guided tour with Maung Maung (BSC in Mathematics believe it or not)- drives a small open blue "taxi" and is usually at 26th and 66th street near Sedona Hotel.

I have spent hundreds of nights in hotels right around the world and can say that my stay at the Sedona Hotel was the worst ever. An absolute nightmare from start to finish. Don't stay there - stay at the Mandalay Hill Resort instead.

Beware the water festival in April each year - do not stay at this hotel then whatever you do.

Good points:
There is nothing wrong with the rooms they are absolutely fine - typical 4 star standard. Modern, with a great view across the Palace or over the pool.

Bad points:
Water Festival. Each April Myanmar basically shuts down during the Water Festival. This involves thousands of youths partying in the streets throwing water on anything that moves. In Mandalay the Water Festival in held right outside the hotel. You cannot leave the hotel without getting completely drenched with water, and walking through water up to one foot deep. No taxis can reach the hotel as there are too many people. While we knew the Water Festival would be on, we had no idea we would e smack bang in the middle of it. We were virtual prisoners in the hotel as getting outside was such a mission. The noise from the festival extended throughout the hotel until midnight each night.

Concierge. The concierge at the Sedona is absolutely 100% useless. He advised us that the only way to leave the hotel was through the front entrance through several thousand people and one foot of water. He neglected to mention the back entrance even when specifically asked. He must get his kicks seeing tourists contend with the festival. When asked if the Castle was open he assured us it was, several times. In reality, the Castle was closed that day. This is like the major attraction in Mandalay - how can a concierge be unaware if it is open?

Service. From start to finish the service at the Sedona is terrible. Nowhere else in Myanmar did we experience such a "do not care" attitude from the staff.

Food poisoning. Whatever you do avoid the caes from the cafeteria - I ended up with food poisoning after easting one of their cakes.

Food in general. The lunch and dinner options at the Sedona are terrible. The worst meals we had in Myanmar were all at the Sedona.

Taxi to airport. The valet refused to order us a taxi from the street, and insisted the only way we could reach the airport was through his "friend" who wanted to charge us US$30 for the ride. This is untrue for starters. We declined and he said US$25. We still declined and he walked off. At this point we were going to be late so we ended up having no choice but to use his friend. This fare was around 5 times what is the standard fare. Absolute craziness. We hired a car for the entire day in Mandalay for US$20!!!

Pool. The pool and tennis courts were shut down for two days for a function. One of the reasons we stayed at the Sedona was for the fantastic pool.

Whatever you do, avoid the Sedona. We had lunch at the Mandalay Hill Resort one day - the staff there seemed much friendlier and organised - and the food was 10 times better.

We stayed 5 nights in Mandalay in the Sedona (my husband is American, I am German, we live in Korea) at the end of February just when the weather changed to really hot. We didn't regret a single moment. The location is convenient. We loved our comfortable room (poolside). The air-condition was fine. The buffet in the morning was extensive, excellent. The waiters were attentive. We especially loved the great tasting meals of Chef Junker in the Italian restaurant in the evening, it was much better than the food of the other restaurants in town we tried, among others the Green Elefant. The Deli had 2 computers with internet acces, $5 for 1/2 hour, (if I remember correctly). In the evening, at dinnertime, there was a Myanmar puppet and dance show next to the pool. But the famous Mandalay marionettes (puppet) theater is only 2 walking minutes from the hotel, a Myanmar traditional dance show is 5 minutes away. Very convenient at night when the town has one of the usual black-outs. The hotel generator switched on when the electricity was off.