HikerTom wrote:
I expanded my current trip, both at the front and back ends, already had a spa room at the Presidente booked for the original six nights, needed something for the new first two nights, Prez wasn't available, so decided to check out the Amistad, construction and all. Got a large deluxe room for the first night, but had to move to a standard room for the second.
First off, I've never stayed at one of these former mansions turned B&B/hotel, used to places like the HDR, Prez and Amon Plaza, so I have certain expectations. Second, the construction is still going strong, so if you're the type who likes to crash during the day you'd better be a deep sleeper because there'll be hammers, circular saws and drills going on and off all day long.
I'll also say right off that I don't see the place becoming another SL. It is CRT-friendly, but there is still a large ecotourist/tour group/church group/non-monger clientele. On the morning I had to switch rooms, I was in the breakfast area when a huge group came in, at least 25 people, many being younger-types in their 20s (some nice-looking girls too
); most had on the same kind of logo t-shirt and all wore nametags. If you stay here be prepared to keep quiet.
The breakfast buffet IS good. All the usual things: gallo pinto, scrambled eggs, sausage chunks, bread and toaster, plus mini-pancakes and short french fries posing as home fries. No one to custom-cook eggss though.
The large deluxe room I was in, #301, is one of the new or remodeled rooms. It's not as big as most of the HDR rooms, let alone the Prez's. What made it worse is that is has two beds, a queen and a twin, and so the room was quite cramped. A single queen or king bed would be far more preferable. The mattresses were thin, but firm enough for my liking, but quite low to the floor. There is a small desk with the wired internet port; cables are available from the office if you forget to bring one (quite possible in this WiFi world). Floor is all-tile, and decor was pleasant enough. TV is small and in this room was mounted on the ceiling. There is a stand-alone wardrobe closet but no dresser or mirror. The bathroom was huge in relation, probably half the size if not two-thirds of the room. Very large shower stall, no tub, and one whole quarter of the floor area was empty space. Hot water takes at least a minute to appear. A nice touch was the toothbrush holder above the the sink, which was in a full-size vanity. All-in-all I wouldn't mind staying in this kind of room for a few days, as long as it only had a king bed.
Can't stay the same for the standard room I was in, #104. This one didn't look like it had been remodeled, it was more cruder than the deluxe room and had the long-used look of a rinky-dink motel here in the US. It was smaller as well, but still had the two beds, making it very cramped. The twin bed almost blocked access to the desk, leaving just a narrow space to walk through. The location of this room and some other first-floor rooms is horrible: right by the office or entrance, and up against Calle 15, with seemingly paper-thin walls so you'll hear the traffic roar by and anyone talking outside. Oh, the hotel's entrance has a locked-gate, so anyone without a keycard has to ring the doorbell, so you'll be hearing "ding-dong" quite a lot. I think Matt the owner said in the announcement thread that CRT'ers wouldn't be satisfied with these standard rooms, and I'll say that he's right. They might appeal to those who think the Nuevo Johnson is hot stuff, but I would never stay in one again.
I might stay here again, but not until after the construction is done and seeing what other changes and additions are made. I think Matt also mentioned that some rooms are going to be combined into larger suites, and if so I might wait to see what they are like.
HikeTom,
Just a note to answer some of your concerns.
First of all I apoligize that they put you in room 104. One of our worst rooms. I will give you a penthouse suit (no cost) on your next stay to reimburse you for your trouble. I feel Myself and the Hotel staff have always been fair and honest on the construction and standard rooms not being the normal quality CRT members are used to. Especially those that stay at the PREZ and SL. But to answer a few of your questions.
1 We anticipate construction to be complete by mid august (at least the majority of it). In TICO Time this means problably January. The construction is currently done from 9:30 AM to 6:00 PM. Late risers will be disturbed. I apoligize in advance. We will not do construction on labor day weekend. This is a busy weekend for all and would not do justice to the hotel or its guests.
2. Upon completion of construction, we are upgrading all our deluxe rooms to one bed (king or queen depending on the room), new mattresses (as i agree with you on this one), 27-32 inch televisions, sofa (sleeper) or chair - room permitting, wood floors (medina) will be installed similar to the lobby area, general update of the decor (as wolfgangs tastes were not to my or most peoples liking)
3. We are upgrading the windows to be triple pane to reduce street noise and those ph***ing dogs we all love so much.
4. I agree with you that we will never be an SL of HDR - nor do we want to be. These are unique hotels that fill a nitch. We will be more like the Castillo Hotel. We are close enough to the SL and HDR that CRT members will find the location of Amistad convienant. I enjoy the SL (and the fact that it is 15 second walk) for playing -probably one of Bill's better customers. The reality is SL is booked full most of the time and we are happy with his overflow. In no way would i put my hotel or most of the hotels in the same class as the PREZ. Hotel M and Sleep Inn are closer in comparison to the Prez.
5. We have always stated that the standard rooms are not to most CRT members expectation. We are combining many of these rooms to make suites. At the end we will go from 44 rooms to 36-37 depending on the make up of the Hotel Structure. These rooms will be more to your taste. They will have large rooms, king beds, large tv´s (some flat screens).... similar to suites at the Prez. We are removing the rooms in the first floor to make a large lobby and are considering a bar that would only be open to Hotel Guests. Not sure that i want the headache. Besides I like to drink at the SL. Otherwise this will be another suite. We will keep some of the standard rooms and update the beds and decor to offer cheaper rooms to CRT and other guests that do not want to spend $60-$70 dollars on a hotel room.
6. I will address the doorbell issue. It is only a problem on the first floor. Once we redo the lobby we will move the location of the bell.
KNOW THE BIG QUESTION THAT I SEE POSTED FOR EVERY HOTEL ON THIS SITE - ARE WE CHICA FRIENDLY!!!
We are and always have been Chica friendly. Wolfgang (the prior owner) always have had gents bringing in the girls (We now offer them CRT memberships TOM
). He was cheap and liked to charge $13 or $15 which deterred many folks. That being said - we do not want to be like the SL and HDR that has the girls hanging out in the lobby. Both are walking distance (less then 2 minutes) that have a much larger selection of girls to choose. We do have groups and church business (small percent 5%), but this has never been a problem. Many of these folks partake in similar activities (after all this is Costa Rica). We have had College Professors and Tour guides bring all kinds of girls (and some boys - we have a no ask no tell policy) back to the rooms. I think CRT members are more concerned on this subject then the groups. Church groups book the entire hotel so this is never a problem. We do ask that the girls that eat breakfast in the lobby wear clothes (We also request CRT members that eat in the lobby wear clothes
) We will let you order breakfast and have it delivered to your room for those CRT members that may not feel comfortable.
Hope this answers all the concerns above. I have a vision for the Hotel that will fill a certain nitch and recognize we may not be to everyones tastes. If you bring your concerns to my attention I promise they will be addressed and a win-win solution will be found. We welcome all comments (favorable and unfavorable) as this is the only way to initiate change. It will take time to train the staff for the changes and finish the construction, for this I apoligize in advance. If brought to my attention, all concerns will be addressed!! Again HikerTom - I do appreciate the honest report. Drop me a PM and I will forward you a certificate for free stay you can use for the Penthouse when you come back!!
Pura Vida
Matt
Don´t hold my typing and spelling against me - not a strong point
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I turned her down...gringas are gringas. But yes, I did parade a lovely or two past the tourists. Hey, it's legal, we're adults...if they disapprove, so be it.
