Hotel Novo — Hotel in Merced

Value is that intersection between quality and price. I've stayed at many hotels in San Jose, over the past year. Hotel Novo has 3 things in its' favor. Location, Staff, and amenities. Location: About 100 meters/yardes from Avenida Central, a long street that is closed to vehicular traffic and is for pedestrian use only. Lots of goods and services here - a shopping district and urban walking path that connects you with a lot of downtown San Jose. Very convenient. At night, after about 9:00 or so, the street below Hotel Novo is quiet and mostly void of people, except for the private security that strolls the street. That is an exception to the rule in downtown San Jose. Many other places are more noisy and less secure. Hotel Novo was quiet and safe. Staff: All are very friendly and accomodating - Staff at the desk speak English. When working with Houskeeping and or Restaurant employees, use Google Translate if you don't speak Spanish. ALL of the hotel employees I engaged with were SUPER people! I really felt like I was their guest. The personal hospitatily was FANTASTIC! EVERYONE had a very genuine smile, each of them puts their best foot forward! Well above the normal expectation for a 3 star hotel. The Staff merit 4 stars, maybe even 5! A top quality team effort here at Hotel Novo. A special shout out to every employee I encountered at Hotel Novo, Housekeeping, Restaurant, and Desk - "I appreciate you, and the work that you do! I will stay with you again." Amenities: Hotel Novo does a good job making people from the States feel more at home here. The 3 star restaurant is pretty good - 3 stars, but not fancy. Menus are in English and Spanish. Breakfast comes with the room. They offer PANCAKES, a comfort food of mine from the States. For dinner, I had a New York, with baked potato and veges; she had a tenderloin, with baked potato and salad. We each had a cocktail. The bill (in colones) was about $45 US - very fair for the fare! Our room had all the usuals, plus a REFRIGERATOR (a 'must have' in Costa Rica) and a BATHTUB! The first bathtub I've seen in a 3 star in Costa Rica, OMG! AWESOME! Bring your own plug - they can be hard to find here! With a bit of thought, we improvised a plug for the bath. Water is warm, but never truly hot. It's okay, I got to take a bubble bath with my girlfriend. Bring your own bubble bath, It is foreign to Costa Rican culture. We used shampoo, an adequate substitute for the night. Overall, Hotel Novo is the best value I have seen in San Jose. Moving forward, it will be my...

PROs:||As budge accommodations go, I thought this stay was ok. I think it really depends on your expectations and the price at the time of your stay. The price was cheap during the off season in mid-July - $30/night for a standard 1 bed room. For that price, the room is a very good value in San Jose. You would be hard-pressed to beat that. They actually charged me less than the reserved price on booking, which was $40/night. It would've still been ok for $40, but I don't think it's worth more than that.||The breakfast here was small, but good. Guests can choose from a menu with about 4 different choices that are then cooked for them, along with a side of gallo pinto. The breakfast area was pleasant and spacious and the staff was friendly. The bed was only average in comfort, but the sheets were crisp and clean. The A/C and the fridge both worked well. The bathroom space was decent and the counter was long. The room and floor were clean, and the maid service was good. The location is very close to the 7-10 bus station - about an 8 minute walk, as well as about a 10 minute walk to the central avenue and downtown sights. There is an AM/PM convenience store a block away. The girl at the front desk was friendly.||||CONs:||The standard 1 bedroom was definitely NOT 300sq ft. as advertised. It was more like 200sq ft. The room was a little small and the "balcony" was a narrow ledge with standing room only. The Wi-Fi was spotty and did not work the last day we were there, but there are 2 computers with internet that are available (free) for guest use. The neighborhood is a bit darker than the other downtown streets at night, but I did not see as many prostitutes or drug addicts here. There were many homeless people asking for money, but they were not threatening. I didn't really feel unsafe walking around the area day or night, but I did remain aware of my surroundings and vigilant. There really isn't anything in the immediate area except street markets and Chinatown. There are some fast food pollerias nearby, but the food isn't good. You really have to walk to...

PROs:||As budge accommodations go, I thought this stay was ok. I think it really depends on your expectations and the price at the time of your stay. The price was cheap during the off season in mid-July - $30/night for a standard 1 bed room. For that price, the room is a very good value in San Jose. You would be hard-pressed to beat that. They actually charged me less than the reserved price on booking, which was $40/night. It would've still been ok for $40, but I don't think it's worth more than that.||The breakfast here was small, but good. Guests can choose from a menu with about 4 different choices that are then cooked for them, along with a side of gallo pinto. The breakfast area was pleasant and spacious and the staff was friendly. The bed was only average in comfort, but the sheets were crisp and clean. The A/C and the fridge both worked well. The bathroom space was decent and the counter was long. The room and floor were clean, and the maid service was good. The location is very close to the 7-10 bus station - about an 8 minute walk, as well as about a 10 minute walk to the central avenue and downtown sights. There is an AM/PM convenience store a block away. The girl at the front desk was friendly.||||CONs:||The standard 1 bedroom was definitely NOT 300sq ft. as advertised. It was more like 200sq ft. The room was a little small and the "balcony" was a narrow ledge with standing room only. The Wi-Fi was spotty and did not work the last day we were there, but there are 2 computers with internet that are available (free) for guest use. The neighborhood is a bit darker than the other downtown streets at night, but I did not see as many prostitutes or drug addicts here. There were many homeless people asking for money, but they were not threatening. I didn't really feel unsafe walking around the area day or night, but I did remain aware of my surroundings and vigilant. There really isn't anything in the immediate area except street markets and Chinatown. There are some fast food pollerias nearby, but the food isn't good. You really have to walk to...