Hostel la Casona — Hotel in Iquique

Showers/toilets are not really clean.||||Only two combined showers-toilets for men, three for women, not necessarily on the same floor as the room, you have to go outside to reach them.||||Once hot water became cold while showering, but it got warm again after a while.||||Next shower: Hot water becomes cold just when I am well soaped - and it stays cold...||||No toilet paper in the common toilet, even after a friendly hint to the owner it is only refilled after half a day. Next day: No toilet paper in the other toilet...||||No soap in the common toilets.||||Towels only upon request. On departure we were asked where we left the towels (hopefully not in our suitcase...).||||No trash bin, no water in the rooms.Rooms were never made during our stay (in accordance with its price class).||||We had a double bed, but the bed sheet was for a small bed - after turning once in the bed the sheet got out of place. ||||Breakfast only after 9 AM, which is too late for most excursions. When we asked if we could have breakfast earlier because we booked a tour at 8:45, 8:30 was the earliest. When we arrived at 8:30 there was nothing prepared, asking for the breakfast, we got just an unfriendly answer from the owner (the shop isn't open yet). Finally we had something to eat at 8:45 (our tour was fortunately late, too).||||Next breakfast, we were asked to move from the nice court into the dark dining room - presumably to make sure that we see the sign that we have to clean our breakfast dishes ourself (when we booked a private room with breakfast we did not expect this). ||||One of the yogurts is a few days beyond the expiration date. The expiration date of the other one is not readable because of an accidental (?) scratch on the package...||||Positive: ||||Almost always hot water for a tea available.||||Pool table available.||||TV in the room.||||Laundry possible (cold, it remains open if also the hotel laundry is done cold), the owner was hanging our clothes one the washing cycle was finished.||||The hotel is managed by a couple; he was quite unfriendly while she...

The lack of hot water has been going on for awhile here. When I asked an employee when hot water will be restored, she said she didn't know and that the situation was indefinite. ||||The other thing that irked me was how inconveniently the bathrooms were located. Not only do dorms not have their own bathrooms, they are located on an entirely different floor altogether. To get to the bathrooms, one has to climb down a narrow spiral staircase which is not lit. Not good if you have to use the bathroom in the middle of the night. I almost tripped coming down the stairs at night.||||I paid USD16 for a shared room. This is not the cheapest cheap hostel around, yet it lacks all the basic amenities one would expect of a hostel in South America. Its a pity because I think the hostel is promising and has the potential to be one of the better hostels in town. The staff are great and are very friendly and helpful. The common rooms are cosy and the kitchen...

It is located far from the main Plaza, but close to the beach (but that is easy in Iquique) . Room was very small. Hot water was not reliable at all. And most disappointing was the breakfast. It is served only for 1 hour, if you are "too late" (as in exactly the last minute of the hour) they are angry. And if you are on time you have to hope for somebody that will give it to you. You get three pieces of bread en only jam for halve a piece. They will not give more. And last but not least. We had to wait for our nightbus, but were kicked out of the hostel many hours before. We surely weren't bothering anyone. Not nice we would say and not...