Chonor House

It was a once in a lifetime experience stay which room is all contained by Norbulingka arts. I could watch Himalaya mountains from the window.

I recently had the opportunity to stay at Chonor House, and regrettably, the experience was far from satisfactory. For a property that carries such a reputation, the quality of service was surprisingly poor. One of the most frustrating issues we faced was with the food service. Despite placing our order two hours in advance, the food was still not served on time. I had to personally go to the kitchen multiple times to follow up and remind the staff—something no guest should be expected to do. There was a clear and troubling lack of coordination among the staff. Even basic services like room service, housekeeping, and addressing simple queries required repeated reminders. This pointed to either inadequate training or ineffective management, neither of which reflects well on the establishment. What made the situation worse was the behavior of one staff member, who was blatantly rude and disrespectful. Such unprofessionalism is completely unacceptable in the hospitality industry and left a lasting negative impression on our stay. What was intended to be a relaxing and enjoyable visit instead became unnecessarily stressful. I sincerely hope the management takes this feedback seriously and works to improve both staff conduct and operational efficiency. Chonor House has potential, but that potential is currently being undermined by poor service.

We so enjoyed our stay at Chonnor House. It was so traditional and unique in a lovely location amongst the Mountains. The staff were friendly and we loved the walk down to the street market at the bottom of the hill. The view of the Monastery was great too from our room and the outside breakfast area.

Excellent location but would be difficult for people with mobility problems. If you like generic, international 4/5* hotels, this place is not for you. By staying in this unique hotel, you’ll be supporting the Norbulingka Institute. Staff are friendly, food is fine and the rooms are totally unique, some with great balconies and incredible views. But it is all a little tired I’m afraid.

A quaint guest house more than a hotel. Be prepared to take your bags up a hill and then climb stairs to get to the reception. Our room was small but had a lovely view of the mountains and the temple further up the hill. The beds were comfortable and the hot water worked well. The breakfast croissants are nice but everything else was average. McLeod Ganj being a hill station it would be perfectly normal to expect everything to be up a hill or down a hill. The yoga shala has a spectacular view and we were lucky to have a gong meditation there.

The guesthouse entrance is up a very steep narrow road and there are further steep steps to reception. We were warmly welcomed with a cup of honey tea and our bags were carried from the car for us. Our room was in an annex opposite the reception area. It was shabby and very basic but we accepted it and went out to explore. The real problems started when we tried to sleep. The generator outside our window was off and on all night - I was told it drove the air con for the kitchen freezers. Then the stray dogs who had been sleeping peacefully in the alleyway during the day came alive once it got dark and again at various times throughout the night and early morning. We asked the night receptionist if any other rooms were available but were told not but she would leave a note for the manager. We spoke with the manager next morning and were moved to a much nicer room at reception level at no extra cost. Although it was still possible to hear the generator in this room it wasn’t so bad. The dogs however are a permanent problem. You should also be aware that there is building work ongoing on the 3rd floor which I believe was the restaurant. Breakfast was taken in the lounge. All of the staff we approached were very helpful but they must have been aware of the generator noise and hopefully something will be done about it.