Polylepis Lodge — Hotel in La Libertad

I made an account just to write this review. I really wanted to love this place, because I care deeply about ecological restoration and protection (the main reason I chose to come here was to support the mission of protecting the rare, ancient and sacred Polylepis trees and experience the forest) but never in all my life have I had to defend myself so many times from being manipulated and advocate for basic needs at a hotel. And this was as a solo female traveler. Issues from extreme to needs improvement and also a list of nice things are below. ||Extreme issues:|- When I arrived the front desk asked me to pay 50% more money than was owed. I bought a promotional package over their business account a week prior. I had to insist on a receipt. Good thing I did because I had to prove to the front desk that the sum they asked of me (written on a random piece of paper) was incorrect. I was given no explanation for why they asked me for more money. Very disorganized at best, and dishonest at worst. |- I was put into a different room than was sold to me (the package I bought showed photos of the room I was being sold). When I brought this up to the staff they didn't know what I was talking about, and hours of my morning were consumed in showing proof of purchase. It resulted in an upgrade of room, which I really appreciated as a management best practice and gesture, but I would have rather not had the stress and loss of time.|- The package I bought included free breakfast. When I checked out I saw on my bill breakfast charges for each day. Once again I had to advocate and defend and PROVE to them that they sold me one thing and were trying to make me pay more money than was agreed. I didn't get an explanation or apology, but they took them off my bill. Again, disorganized at best, dishonest at worst.|- The dinner i ordered on my birthday made me EXTREMELY sick. I was prescribed medication for typhoid and it took me 4 days to recover (I mistakenly ordered a local raw fish dish - clearly it was contaminated). I texted all the business account numbers i had desperate for help because I was vomiting and had diarrhea all night (and days later). Would you believe it, not only did this place CHARGE ME an inflated price for the 2 emergency meds they gave me (which i later found out at a pharmacy cost less than $2), but they CHARGED ME FOR THE MEAL. At this point I was too sick to fight it and just needed to get out of there. But seriously, wow. ||Areas that could improve:|- The spa isn't open unless you reserve it. I had the feeling they didn't want to open it just for me and made me wait until there was a critical mass|- Booking a spa service was difficult. I tried to book a massage with the person at the spa desk. They told me to book it with the staff at the restaurant. Why? No idea. Ultimately, neither restaurant nor spa booked the massage for me. But i had to ask 3 people 3 times and chase after them to confirm and schedule out the day. It takes WAY too much effort to get anything done here, and you have to communicate with multiple people, who are hard to find in person. |- There is often no one at the front desk. You have to text various numbers via whatsapp, and you never know which account or which person will reply to you, or on what time frame|- It's very cold here, and your rooms are heated by a fireplace (which I love for the record), however they give you no tools to do this yourself, you're totally dependent on the staff doing it. I asked 3 people to start the fire for me, and it took 3 hours to get done. It was my birthday and I was freezing in my room. Not a luxury experience. |- The times of everything are always changing. One guide told me he was changing the start time and route of a guided tour, and then he changed his mind again, but it wasn't communicated to me. Constant back and forth, unpredictable, poor communication. Lame. ||Best aspects:|- The forest is incredible and i absolutely loved it|- The hike guides were lovely and friendly and took great photographs|- The restaurant staff was lovely and very accommodating as well. they seemed genuinely apologetic about all the mishaps. |- Once the fire is going in your room, it is...

The people operating the lodge were exceedingly friendly. No complaints about them. ||We booked online and the reservation apparently was never received at the lodge. No big deal. It happens.||The dining room wasn't heated. Not for dinner nor breakfast. Ok. My wife, daughter and I were the only quests that night so I can see heating up a faily large hall just for the 3 of us would be wasteful. No big deal. We put our jackets on and ate half a warm meal and half a cold meal since it was about 50F (8C) in the dining room so the food got cold fairly quickly. ||We had the suite with the Jacuzzi and the breakers blew while we were taking a bath. Again, no big deal. It happens. It was actually funny running out in a bathrobe in almost freezing weather to tell someone to flip the breakers again. ||||All of the above is really not a big deal. Where one needs to draw the line is on two things: ||||1. The hot water tank for the jacuzzi is simply too small. When the jazuzzi is about 1/2 full the water starts coming out luke warm. We paid $322 for the one night including dinner and breakfast. I think a hot water tank capable of filling the Jacuzzi fully with hot water can be expected for what is an above average price. ||||2. The room heater feels like staring into hell or sleeping in a brothel. It emits a bright red light through the whole room. So you need to make a choice. Either you sleep in a warm room flodded in red light or you sleep in a dark but cold room. There is no other choice. ||||The dining hall is beautifully made with see-through floors where you can see the water flowing below you. The scenery around the lodge is ok but you can get better vistas at the...

I like this place but I think that it is too expensive to stay there and you can do a lot of things with that money in another place. There are some things to take in mind if you want to stay here;|1. If you love adventure or hiking this place it’s not for you! They offers some hikes but it takes you like 15 minutes to get in there. They said that it’s a one hour of hike but it’s because you take a lot of photos. But if you are looking for a place to relax it’s ok!|2. There are only three activities of hiking and then you don’t have nothing to do there! So if you stay only one night there it’s completely worth it.|3. The room was ok, I really like it and the water was warm.|4. All of the guides were completely kindness and helpful.|5. The food was too expensive! The breakfasts cost was $15! |6. The last day I made a reservation to the spa, but nobody was there! The water was cold and I can’t use it. Also that day the personal didn’t take care of you! ||Anyway I had a good experience, but I will never come back. I think I can use that money in better things and I can visit polylepys trees in better place with a good price. So, if you don’t care of you...