Hotel Bello Caribe Rodadero — Hotel in Santa Marta

I stayed here for 2 nights during my solo bicycle tour through Colombia. In order to obtain a better idea of local accommodation standards and costs, I waited 3 weeks into my bike tour (after staying in 15+ hotels and hospedajes) before writing this review. I speak Spanish and was therefore able to communicate well with my host(s).||||Pluses||I had a spacious & bright studio apartment on the upper floor. It was a corner room with good views of a pretty tree in bloom and of plants across the street. It was centrally located, with a supermarket 5 minutes’ walk away. The beach was 400 m away (measured by me). There was some road noise but was relatively peaceful considering its in-town location. It had a kitchen with large refrigerator and microwave. Quiet A/C. Good in-room Wi-Fi. It had a bar table with high chairs and a comfortable couch. Good ensuite bathroom. ||||I liked the owner and his son. The maids were friendly and cheerful. The hotel was clean and looked modern and brightly painted.||||Minuses||It used 3 recessed LED lights in the ceiling. One wasn’t working when I arrived and another failed while I was there. However room lighting was still sufficient. There was no drinking water, but I purified water from the faucet by means of my Steri-Pen UV purifier. It tasted fine.||||Summary||The room was good value at 90k COP (about USD 33) in the center of a tourist area. For the second night I received a 10k discount. I would stay there again.||||Note: before asking the price, check for a last-minute deal on Booking.com. On the same day, there is often a 10-20% discount. (This assumes one hasn’t already booked a room, which hasn’t so far been necessary). I have had 3G service everywhere so far, on my T-Mobile US smartphone, so I sit outside and check prices before entering the hotel. The front desk wanted 110k but honored Booking’s price. They acknowledged that had I made the reservation with Booking it would have cost them 10-15% commission. ||||My rating: 4/5. Location as measured with my GPS:...

Es un hotel muy económico, a unos 15 minutos caminando de lugar donde empieza El Rodadero. Lo bueno del hotel es su precio, y la condición de las camas y muebles ya que todo está en perfecto estado. Ibamos en un grupo de 7 habitaciones y nos colaboraron con la entrega de 2 habitaciones a las 2 pm, lo que nos facilitó arreglarnos para salir al aeropuerto después de una mañana de playa. Lo malo: las habitaciones son muy diferentes entre sí. Yo estaba en una doble pequeña y fue perfecta, pero otras 4 personas que estaban en este misma categoría de habitación no tenían por ejemplo closet, así que hay cosas en la comodidad por mejoras. Ahora bien lo mas malo de todo es que en el hotel están llevando a cabo unas obras de ampliación, así que el olvídate de descansar... A las 7 am empiezan con los ruidos de una obra, lo que te despierta de inmediato y no te genera comodidad alguna para permanecer en...

The room is very dated and our room was tiny. Also the shower was cold and had no shower head so felt like getting urinated on (I'd imagine).||The staff member was nice and helpful but there's too many negatives. ||It's also a twenty minute taxi ride from the centre of...