MWC
añejo
Registered: Thu Jan 16, 2003
Location: Connecticut
Posts: 5295
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Review Date: Tue Apr 26, 2005
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Recommend? yes |
Price paid: Not Indicated
| Rating: 9
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Pros:
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great room rates; very comfortable stay; very convenient to southbound collectivo; 10th Avenue is mellower than 5th
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Cons:
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reception not 24/7; occasional water supply issues; doesn't take plastic
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HOTEL REVIEW – HOTEL VILLA DEL MAR
What a great find! With only seven rooms for rent, the Hotel Villa del Mar is more like a guest house than a hotel. In fact, the owner actually lives here. Rather than palapa-funky atmosphere, Villa del Mar goes for a hacienda-style elegance. Stone and smooth surfaces abound, for a very cooling effect. Furnishings and decorations are tasteful, with a colonial bent. (The public spaces at the reception area are drop-dead gorgeous.) If you go to their website: www.hotelvilladelmar.com, you will find the information and photos there completely accurate. And check those reasonable room rates!
You enter from Avenida 10, between Calle 2 & 4. (Entrance is more visble from Calle 2) You will be given a key to the large iron gate that blocks the entrance. (There is a buzzer to ring when you first get there to check in.) There are two buildings on the property: the main residence, which also houses the reception area, plus three guest rooms (1, 2 and 3) on the second floor; and an adjacent building, which houses Rooms 4, 5, 6 and 7 on the second floor, overlooking Avenida 10, and above several non-noisy commercial entities.
Rooms offer queen or king-sized beds (mostly queens), in clean, spacious surroundings. The furniture is colonial style, with generous storage, including a large chest of drawers with an ample mirror and a big top to lay stuff out on. Some rooms have a/c, or offer the possibility of having a/c; all rooms are equipped with room fans that go from gale-force to gentle breeze. Rooms 4, 5, 6 and 7 have small balconies that overlook Avenida 10. Some rooms have a refrigerator (the website isn’t clear on this; check with the owner if it’s important for you to have one). The sink was separate from the toilet and shower area, and offered a huge counter to put toiletries on. The sink. shower and toilet all reflected healthy water pressure, hot and cold; however, the entire water supply crapped out twice while we were there for a week. In fairness, the problems were solved within hours of their being brought to the staff’s attention.
Most important: COMFORTABLE BEDS! even by American (as opposed to Mexican) standards!
The staff was very friendly and hard-working; a little Spanish would certainly help you communicate with them. The owner speaks both English and Spanish, and was also very nice.
Rooms and hallways were well-lit.
The hotel shares a pool with two other hotels: Casa Tucan, and Paraiso Azul/Casa de Gopala. Our family loved the pool area. Here the theme was definitely palapa-funky, with colorful murals, a bird cage, and a hammock area. Trees and palapa roofs provide filtered shade to part of the area, but the pool deck stays sunny most of the day. There are all sorts of pathways between the properties, plus the requisite lounge chairs and chairs and tables. Supposedly there is a bar in there somewhere, but we never saw evidence of it, and saw lots of people bring their own drinks to the pool without hassle. The pool looked clear and well-tended the entire time we were there.
The grounds are kept neatly manicured. There are walkways around the main residence and out to the street; but to get to Room 4, we had to navigate a set of concrete blocks, which was only a concern when we were carrying our luggage. Also, to get to the pool area, you will have to walk over a path worn into the grass. Small nits, easily answered with a pair of flipflops.
There are a few quirks:
1. The water, as I mentioned.
2. The reception hours are 9 am to 9 pm, and they stick to that very strictly. So if you need to arrive late, or leave early -- either let the owner know ahead of time, to see if you can come up with a working solution, or stay elsewhere for that first/last night.
3. You must surrender a photo id for the keys, which will be returned to you only when the keys are returned. This was a problem for us, because we had to leave very early on our last day. The owner was away, too, and we couldn't negotiate with the receptionist in our meager Spanish. Fortunately the owner's teenage son was there, and he agreed to have us roust him out of bed at 6 am -- which, after much window knocking, he finally did do! So it did work out, but it was nerve-wracking.
4. They accept credit cards for a deposit via paypal, but not for subsequent payment on the premises. Cash only. (But check, as their website recently seems to have changed on this)
5. The owner is admittedly not very computer literate, and the website is plagued with crashing and dumping problems. You would probably be best to telephone her at the hotel rather than rely on emails, or the website's reservations process.
As the website says, the Villa del Mar welcomes children. They have a very friendly bulldog, named Romeo, who regrettably earns his name on the unwary leg! (But quickly ceases when told NO!). But our girls (7 & 12) didn't let that keep them from adoring him.
The location was fantastic for us -- on 10th Avenue, between Calle 2 & 4. Very close to the PDC-Tulum collectivo, and an easy walk to LaQuinta and the beaches.
I would encourage you to give it a try. You certainly cannot beat the comfort and elegance level for the price.
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