Pousada Serra da Bocaina — Hotel in Região Geográfica Imediata de Angra dos Reis

“There is a place for everyone” and this small Pousada isn’t necessarily terrible, but I do think it’s important that an honest review is “out there” so people have proper expectations and don’t book this place solely based on their reviews, which is what happened to us.

I almost never rate less than 5 stars by the way 😑 but there were a few points that, had I read from someone else, I never would have stayed at Pousada Serra de Bocaina.

❌ Deal breakers ❌

Room smells heavily of cleaning products, which never fade away. I would reccomend switching to a more natural and less scented product to clean, as it’s really awful for people who are sensitive to toxic perfumes.

-WIFI is weak, the worst we experienced in Brazil.

Despite having many windows, the rooms don’t feel private. They are also on the unsafe side to open and close.

Hot water was very sensitive. Two times during my shower it went completely cold, then hot again, then cold again.

The Pousada only has 1 blow dryer which they share between all guests. The front desk man actually came to knock on our door close to 8pm to ask for it back 😳😬 I was shocked to say the least.

There is no way to make coffee or get coffee before 8am 😱 you have to walk outside of the Pousada on this long freeway-type road to finally reach a coffee place open that sells small coffee in tiny styrofoam cups!

Absolutely no sound proofing. It’s an older Pousada so this is understandable, but be ready for random waves passing by of partiers, loud music and cars.

even the electricity was very poor. When I used the blow dryer (that the hotel loaned me) it made the lights in our room flicker.

Breakfast was very underwhelming. I had read so many positive reviews about it and was actually hoping it would turn things around the next morning, but no, it only confirmed how I felt about the place: cheap.

It’s very confusing why they would offer such poor amenities to their guests. We are currently staying somewhere not far away that has more amenities and is AMAZING and not much more $.

Positives about Pousada Serra de Bocaina:

Although I would never stay here again, the rooms are OK, old but clean 🧼, and the property itself is pretty with lots of plants and...

Very disappointing! ||We stayed 3 out of 4 planned nights because we couldn't stay longer. ||Positive points: beautiful garden, good shower, average+ breakfast, which helped us staying 3 nights.||BUT...||My sister had stayed here twice, so she insisted this was a good place for us to stay with my two boys. Unfortunately, the first owner, a French guy, is not there any longer. We arrived at Dec. 16th, Saturday. The owner/ manager was not there. She was traveling. Although we were the only room booked for the weekend, the staff didn't know we were arriving! We had to guess which room was for us, and we have made a down payment of 50% of our 4 nights staying - my sister had a message from the manager, otherwise the staff wouldn't know! So, needless to say the room was dusty, untidy. My nose started to itch. The whole place - hall, living room, room, etc. - was covered in dust and lots of spider webs in the corners. Even in the next day, that the staff were aware of our presence, everywhere was still dusty. Our bathroom had marks of gravitational drops of pee in the lid of the trash can - the marks were there before we arrived and are probably still there! (I have pictures but I will spare you!) Our room was in the upper floor, which was a sauna in the afternoon/night, since they don't open the windows. That room had slim curtains that wouldn't block the sun in the morning and the air-conditioning was really noisy - felt like sleeping with an old airplane turned on in your bedroom. The restrooms in the lower level, to be used when guests come back from the beach and/ or while they are downstairs enjoying the garden and swimming pool were impossible to use, they were so dirty! ||To top it all, on Monday, we were by the pool, my kids swimming, and then comes one of the housekeepers and jump in! The staff uses the swimming pool while the guests are there! How professional is...

Ideal place to stay in Paraty with comfortable rooms and gorgeous grounds, but what makes this pousada truly special is the warm and generous hosts, Patricia and Stephen. They are full of ideas for where to eat and play, as any good hosts would be, but they really do go above and beyond to make the place feel like a home away from home. As world travelers themselves--she's Brazilian, he's Australian--they know how to treat strangers like long lost friends, so my boyfriend and I fell in love with the place and even extended our trip an extra night to maximize our time in paradise. Unfortunately, he fell ill and spent the bonus day in bed, but Patricia and Stephen showed real care and concern for him and made sure he had provisions, including a fat stack of DVDs to watch. No one wants to get sick on vacation, but these sweet folks made it bearable. ||||The grounds are really lovely (aided by the fact that Stephen is a landscape designer), with a great pool, lovely flora, and even grape and passion fruit vines. Breakfast is super fresh and full of options. ||||It's about equidistant to the historic center and the waterfalls. Can't...