Marcelo Beach Club

Marcelo is decent choice for those wishing to spend a few days on Togo's coast. I have mixed feelings about this area on the edge of Lome. The shoreline is either fancy hotels or slums and serious poverty. Reception staff were friendly and welcoming. My two floor suite felt luxurious to me, who doesn't normally stay in places like this. The wooden floor wasn't perfect. Sharp to stand on in places where it was uneven. Fixtures in the bathroom not that well maintained. Despite being seemingly nearly empty, they placed me in a suite which faced outwards, outside of the hotel grounds. I would have preferred to face inwards but once I was there, I couldn't be bothered to ask to move. The swimming pool is massive and was wonderful to have access to in the heat as it was. Would have been nice if they'd placed a few tables there too, instead of just sunbeds. The umbrellas weren't well maintained and were beginning to fall apart in places. The included breakfast in the restaurant was great. Very varied buffet, options to suit many tastes, good coffee. The rest of the food served in the restaurant certainly did not live up to the prices, which are astronomical for Togo. Unfortunately, any meal in this area is a battle between you and the flies. I found this very uncomfortable. A few flies are to be expected in a hot country, but this was like a plague. It was nowhere near this bad anywhere else I've visited Benin, Togo and Ghana. I can only guess that it is this way due to the squalid living conditions in the area around. One day I had a pizza and I was basically stuffing it into my mouth with one hand whilst constantly waving my hand over the remainder. All drinks have to be covered with coasters. The little cove they've created for swimming is a nice idea. The sewage (or whatever it was floating in the cove at hightide did not make it tempting to swim. So, if you want a hotel of reasonable quality in this area then you could do worse than Marcelo. But I would suggest that there are many better places for a beach holiday.