Albatross Hotel

Came Saturday to Monday for Labor Day weekend and from the beginning Bill was incredibly helpful. Pretty busy weekend everywhere which is expected but he treated everyone amazing. Helped accommodate our room as well as gave us a quick tour of the common areas before showing us to our rooms. Very comfortable and quaint. Loved the location. Exactly what was needed for a nice, long, relaxing weekend by the beach. Also provided discounted beach passes which was a major plus. I will definitely recommend and visit again when I’m in town. Thank you for a great weekend.

From the outside, this place looked so shady it was scary. However, it was quite the contrary. It’s a really old building — built just after the Civil War, but it’s safe and and ghost-​free! The owner is really really nice. It was the best lodging services I have ever had. He was very hospitable and helpful in every way. He was an absolute delight.
The building is 3 floors and the rooms are pretty small, but cozy. You had the choice of a single, queen, double, or private. For the private, I’m not sure what the bed size is, but you have your own private bathroom. For the others, it’s a shared bathroom. There’s a mens’ bathroom, womens’ and a powder room. There’s a communal kitchen and two refrigerators on the ground floor and a large dining area. The owner supplies us with a light breakfast (bagels, donuts, coffee) which is really nice.
We got a queen. The room is small, had a drawer and a sink with soap and shampoo. The room is clean, decently lit and the bed is comfortable.
Cons: the internet is pretty poor and the only TV is downstairs. That was probably a good thing because it foreced me to chill out rather than do work. And when you by the shore (only a minute walk), how much TV would you actually be watching?

3.5, rounded up for top notch and super friendly service.
First, it is important to align expectations before booking with Albatross. If you are expecting an experience where you won’t see or interact with any other guest, that may be a difficult order at Albatross. They offer private rooms with shared bath and common areas. It is less than a block from the beach and offered a great deal for those staying the weekend of the NJ Marathon.
Upon arrival, you’ll be greeted and toured around by your host. Judging from our interactions, I’d guess he is the owner. He is friendly and willing to offer suggestions, advice, and support to meet the needs of your stay. He even worked with us to ensure we could shower after finishing the marathon well after check-​out times.
Overall, while the Albatross might not look like much, its a pretty cool place and I’d return for a future shore visit.

Proximity to the beach is the only thing this «hotel» has going for it. The website says the owners lovingly restored the place but it reads a lot more like your grandma’s house than anything remotely modern. I’ve seen other reviews that say the owners/​employees seem bothered by their guests and I couldn’t agree more. The tone was anything but welcoming. At one point during the stay I was told that I’m not allowed to have food in my room and had to eat outside or in the dining room which closes at 10:00pm and is not as well air conditioned as my room would have been.
Also the «Showers» that are communal on each floor consist of 1 tiny stall per floor. You’d think there would be more than one or at least more space considering the potential number of guests but I guess cramming as many rooms as possible in was more important than guests being comfortable. And showering after 10:00 pm is forbidden which was particularly amusing this weekend since they had advertised their vacancies to a weekend long event in Asbury Park that had many events that didn’t start until 10:00pm or later. High speed internet is advertised on their site but I saw no evidence of such. Maybe it was a single computer buried somewhere similar to how their TV/​DVD access was a single TV in the living room.
All in all I’d advise staying elsewhere even if you might have to pay a little bit more. Having a nicer hotel that doesn’t treat you like you are an unwelcome guest in their home will be worth a few extra bucks.