Hotel Alcaraván — Hotel in Itagüí

This is one of the worst hotels I have stayed at. If I had the option to give zero stars, I would have given that only . When I booked the room, I booked with air- conditioning and when I arrived at the hotel for check in, receptionist told me that the room is without air conditioning, just with a wall fan (not even a ceiling fan) and told me that air conditioning will cost me extra. I showed her my room booking on my phone which showed that my booked room was with air-conditioning. Then she gave me the remote control for air con. Later that day at 10:00 pm , my air conditioning was switched off because they have switch at reception itself to turn off the air-conditioning. When I went to reception that why they did that, one of the receptionist(another one working that time) was very rude when I confronted her about it. She said my room doesn't have air conditioning. I told her that I booked room with air conditioning and showed my booking to her too on my phone , she said it's not showing with air con on her computer. I said "that's not my problem". You will identify her very easily as she has earplug piecing in her earlobes . She said "I didn't give you remote for air con, other girl did". I said "that doesn't matter , right now you are working here as a receptionist and you switched off my room's air con, so you are responsible for it". Because she was rude to me, I had to show her place in reply and then she got quiet . After 10 to 15 minutes of arguments, then they switched air con back on for the night and said tomorrow, their boss will speak to me. I said ok. Next morning, when I went to have breakfast, someone from the administrative department came to talk to me . He said the same thing that room is not showing on their system with air con. I said "I don't want to talk to you anymore, if you want to switch off the air con, you can but I am going to write everything in Google reviews and told him that you know very well that people book rooms in any hotel after reading the reviews". He asked me if the house keeping staff can take away the air con remote control from my room , I said "if you want to , then go ahead". Next day I noticed that the wall fan's oscillating string was broken and therefore the fan wasn't throwing air towards the bed in the direction I was sleeping. I immediately called the reception and the housekeeping lady brought replacement wall fan but it didn't get fixed because it's attachment design was different from the one which was already in room and then she told me that I can change my room and the room she wanted me to change didn't have the city view because I booked my room with city view, so I obviously said No to it . Then she found another wall fan for replacement that was fixed in my room for oscillation. Also , in the name of "toiletries", they only provide small hand washing soaps, they don't provide any shampoo, shower gel or conditioner. Rooms are so cramped. Pathetic hotel . I booked for 7 nights but I left on 6th day evening only because of how bad this hotel really is PS: reply to your response:- You should clarify to yourself that the conditions of my reservation were NOT met as specified in my booking. Don't tell me what's important to review and what's not. I review everything before making reservations. It's important for you to review your staff behaviour and it's important for you to review to provide toiletries when that's standard in all the rooms. Will you say same thing for toiletries that we offer rooms with and without toiletries? Your hotel is a joke. I chose the most economical rate WITH AIR CON because I got a good deal via third party booking app which your hotel website couldn't give , so you people thought of ways how to get more money by giving excuses and lying. All your staff is just full of money hungry people especially when they see foreigners have made the reservations. This is your standard copy-paste line saying "We appreciate your feedback and will take your experience into account to continue improving". You ain't gonna improve...

Like all South American hotels, the rooms here are small by USA standards. With that being said, you're in Colombia!! Get out the room and go explore. Who cares about the square footage? You're only going to be sleeping there anyway. The rooms are clean. The staff isn't bilingual so hit up Rosetta Stone or buy a phrase book if needed. The restaurant is has okay food at an okay price but you can eat better elsewhere, sometimes even cheaper. The bartender is super friendly and if you make an effort to communicate, she will go out of her way to communicate back. She's trying to learn English. Rooms do get a bit warm in the day with only a fan, but nothing unbearable. Nights are perfect temperature. The area nearby isn't park avenue as there are many prostitutes around, but I walked to/from the metro, bar hopped and met the locals 8 nights in a row and had no problems. The are isn't glitzy but if that's what you want then pay a fortune in poblado and leave the real Medellin to us that know better. Directly across the street from the mayorista so you got some everyday stores and a bancocolombia. My advice is to get a free civica card at one of the 4 end metro stations, put 20.000 pesos on it (6.33 usd) and walk to and from the metro daily, not even 10 min. For the price, the hotel is a bargain. If you want luxury then go pay for it. For efficiency look no further. There is a little noise but there's a little noise in all...

I kept reading good things about Medellin so decided to spend two weeks there. I know a few Spanish words ... really not anything. Had a great time and staying at Alcaravan was a big part of the success. The staff don't speak much English, but they'll try to communicate with you. (Google Translate worked well). The Hotel has a good made to order breakfast for about $2. Rooms are clean and comfortable. Oddly the shower did not have a nozzle. Just a stream of water. But it was hot water so I was happy. The neighborhood is quiet ... though if Colombia is in a football match you will hear fireworks all night long. The hotel will do your laundry for about $5. You are outside Medellin here, but the Metro is only a few block away (10 min walk max). The Metro will take you all over Medellin for $.70. I love Metro culture (Calidad de vida). Very pleasant experience. Also, the hotel is next to a large market that includes many shops and fruit stands. Downtown Itagui is also a short ten minute walk and you'll find great shops and restaurants. I liked Itagui because it is not touristy, but it is a nice area to live. Poblado is nice too, but it is filled with tourists and much more expensive. ...