Soy Local — Hotel in Medellín

We were disappointed with our five-night stay at Soy Local. Things started well: Pablo, our host, was friendly and helpful both prior to and upon our arrival, but as soon as we were shown to our apartment (301, Nutibara), aspects of it started adding up that didn't sit right with us. This will undoubtedly sound like a list of first-world problems, but even so, here's a list of things we noted:||||The bathroom was very cramped, so much so that we had to rearrange things in it simply to fit in when sitting on the toilet or coming out of the shower. There was no ventilation either.||The were only three clothes hangers in the wardrobe and no hooks anywhere in the apartment for coats, despite there being plenty of empty wall space.||There was no safe.||Air-conditioning was in the bedroom only, so the kitchen/living room would either feel quite warm and stuffy or else it would be fine but the bedroom would be ice-cold.||The sofa was made from a material that almost felt like plastic and didn't breathe at all. It was also at odd angles, so we found ourselves almost sliding off at times. It was really quite uncomfortable.||There was no hand soap in the bathroom, so we had to use the bottle of bath foam provided.||Be careful of the stairs generally - they're quite narrow - and of the step up into and down out of your apartment, if there is one outside your door. (Also be aware that there's no lift. This didn't affect us and I don't count it as a negative, but it's with mentioning.)||The kitchen wasn't extensively stocked. For example, there was no coffee-maker or kettle or even a pot to boil water in on the stove. Cutlery, crockery and glassware are provided, which are used if breakfast is delivered to your room, but you're then expected to wash them up in a sink that only has cold water. (There's no hot water in the bathroom sink either.)||*The rug on the living room floor was very dirty.||||However, the main reason we were disappointed with our stay is the noise levels in the hotel. The quasi-industrial design of the place is great in theory, but there's no sound insulation whatsoever. Every word of what the person in the next [bed]room is saying and whatever noise they're making can be heard through the wall, so good luck sleeping if the neighbours are up talking all night, snore their heads off and/or enjoy an active life in the boudoir.||||Worse, the hotel gets you to sign off on its terms and conditions upon checking in - one of which is "no noise at night" - and then does nothing to enforce them. On our first night, somewhere in the hotel one room of people made a lot of noise and listened to music from around 2:30-5:30, which I eventually alerted the staff to via the 24-hour WhatsApp number, but got no response.||||The next night, when new neighbours started making a lot of noise around midnight, I complained again, this time immediately, but my complaint simply wasn't handled professionally: I did get a reply this time, but it was along the lines of "It's the weekend, people are going to party on the weekend, what can you do". For a start, you can take responsibility as a hotel and make sure all guests are abiding by the rules you made them sign their names to when checking in!||||I can understand and live with a certain level of noise - in this case from the surrounding bars and clubs in El Poblado - but even this wouldn't be as much of an issue if there was proper sound insulation in the hotel. Since there's not, you have to deal with that AND the noise other guests make that's blatantly against the rules. The very definition of a hotel is a place to sleep for the night, so if Soy Local can't (or isn't willing) to fulfil that remit, what's the point of offering accommodation?||||When we checked out we were asked whether we'd had anything from the minibar. I said one Coke. It was scratched from our bill as compensation for the inconvenience and lack of sleep we'd experienced. Which is to say the problems we'd faced were deemed worth about €0.85.||||Unless you plan to be up or out all night every night and/or don't care about neighbouring guests, give Soy Local a wide berth until you hear it's fully fixed its...

Second and last time I stay here. I live 1:30hre from Medellin and stayed the night as I had a meeting the next day and I didn't want to wake up too early. Everything started ok I have limited mobility and the place is not really accesible.(No elevantor or ramps) The real problem started at 5:00 a.m in the morning when I was woke up by a crazy loud noise in my room at the beginning I thought there was a truck park directly outside the window and that it would pass but when 1 hour went by I understood it wouldn't stop. I look outside and to my surprise the bakery on the same building had a generator blowing co2, making a loud noise and even making the whole room vibrate since 5:00 a.m. I went down stairs to complain about it and to even top the fact of what was happening the staff that assign me the room was well aware of it so it is a regular problem they have. I couldn't believe they know about this and they still put you in that room and charge you full price for it. As if this wasn't enough I got blame for the problem as the staff said he assign that room so I wouldn't have to walk to many stairs due to my limit mobility (Great now I'm the one to blame). I wish I could say that is the only thing but after not being able to sleep for 1:30 hr looking at roof without knowing what to do I get a knock on my door at 6:30 a.m when I open the door a really rude lady comes in with a basket saying it was the breakfast that was included and that she had to prepare in the room!! We explicitly ask to have the breakfast at 7:00 a.m and as neither me or my girlfriend were prepare for this I ask her to come back and to leave the room. She was super pissed about this as if she was doing me a favor by serving breakfast at the wrong hour nagging me about it and saying I would have to call reception(Funny because there is no phones on the room) so she would come back other wise she wouldn't do it. All this was culminate with no hot water on the room. STAY AWAY OF...

Second and last time I stay here. I live 1:30hre from Medellin and stayed the night as I had a meeting the next day and I didn't want to wake up too early. Everything started ok I have limited mobility and the place is not really accesible.(No elevantor or ramps) The real problem started at 5:00 a.m in the morning when I was woke up by a crazy loud noise in my room at the beginning I thought there was a truck park directly outside the window and that it would pass but when 1 hour went by I understood it wouldn't stop. I look outside and to my surprise the bakery on the same building had a generator blowing co2, making a loud noise and even making the whole room vibrate since 5:00 a.m. I went down stairs to complain about it and to even top the fact of what was happening the staff that assign me the room was well aware of it so it is a regular problem they have. I couldn't believe they know about this and they still put you in that room and charge you full price for it. As if this wasn't enough I got blame for the problem as the staff said he assign that room so I wouldn't have to walk to many stairs due to my limit mobility (Great now I'm the one to blame). I wish I could say that is the only thing but after not being able to sleep for 1:30 hr looking at roof without knowing what to do I get a knock on my door at 6:30 a.m when I open the door a really rude lady comes in with a basket saying it was the breakfast that was included and that she had to prepare in the room!! We explicitly ask to have the breakfast at 7:00 a.m and as neither me or my girlfriend were prepare for this I ask her to come back and to leave the room. She was super pissed about this as if she was doing me a favor by serving breakfast at the wrong hour nagging me about it and saying I would have to call reception(Funny because there is no phones on the room) so she would come back other wise she wouldn't do it. All this was culminate with no hot water on the room. STAY AWAY OF...