3.5 stars out of 5 is, to be frank, pretty generous for this noisy 3* star apartment-style hotel.
However, it was cheap as chips (£30 / $38 USD) a night and the space you get for the money is really fantastic. There is a dining table, with settings for 4 people. The sofa (which was as comfortable as a plastic bag full of coat hangers) folded out into a bed – probably great for kids.
Behind these magic doors is found the kitchenette, which had a reasonably large fridge, a microwave and kettle (and obviously a sink, but nowhere to dry dishes).
Plenty of cutlery / silverware was provided which was great.
The coat hanger sofa of destiny.
This was a random piece of furniture I used it to keep my rucksack on!
You can see in the next pic how the room split into living and sleeping quarters. This wardrobe unit was perfect for my needs.
The bed was a zip-up type – either a two single bedder or a king. It was fine in terms of comfort. I’m a bit wobbly about whether covers have been washed or not and especially cushions, so those came right off. There were some microfibre blankets in the wardrobe.
The San Diego prides itself (on its website) on providing all guests with tea, coffee and milk. The milk was absent but there were loads of sachets of coffee. As you can imagine, it was lowest common denominator, but would keep you going in the morning!
The views were along Rodriguez Peña Street, which means into other buildings.
There are some trees gasping their last in the pollution.
In fairness, that tree looks pretty healthy. It must thrive on carbon monoxide.
Here I am, struggling to breath.
Summary: never again in my life would I stay here. While, as you can see the room was fine and big, it’s a bit worn around the edges and needs a deep clean throughout. But it’s the noise that’s the killer. I asked for a room to the back of the hotel as I’d read the Tripadvisor reviews and was told (on check in) that I was getting one on the highest floor. I was given a room on floor 7 (of 12 – this could have been worse) at the front of the hotel. Gabriella and the Front Desk feign ignorance, even when using (like me) limited Spanish to make a clear request, which is not good enough. I didn’t sleep at all well here and since arriving in Santiago, have slept like a dormouse recovering from heavy medication 🙂 Avoid like the plague.
