CASA TAVERA — Hotel in Mérida

Having lived and traveled throughout Mexico and stayed at hundreds of properties over the years, our stay at Casa Tavera remains the worst hotel experience we have ever had. From staying at hostels in my 20s to gradually upgrading through the years to only 4 and 5 star hotels, I have to stay, I'd pick even the dirty hostel I stayed in Zacatecas in 2015 over Casa Tavera. While our experience happened in August of last year, it still stands out in my mind for how horrendous it was. For this reason, nearly a year and dozens of hotels later, I am finally leaving my review on google.

Our experience was so terrible I can almost not believe it happened. The afternoon we were due to arrive I received a call from a manager saying the hotel was fully booked but they would put us in a different hotel and then switch us in the morning, and provide a special breakfast. Even though the hotel they offered was of lower quality (and less expensive) he didn't offer to discount the price difference. So I said it would be better for us just to arrive the next day for the breakfast and we ended up celebrating my boyfriend's birthday by sleeping on a friend's couch. Around 11pm we were told by text that they could not do the breakfast because there were no kitchen staff. I thought this was suspicious considering the hotel was supposedly fully booked that night and all those bookings include breakfast. When arrived the next day, the hotel was completely empty - leading me to believe they canceled our reservation because they did not feel it was worth it to open just for us. I checked the login book and my suspicions were confirmed - despite being supposedly completely full, the check in book had no names in it for the day before.

I asked to speak to the manager and a different person called me, saying he would make up for this by getting us a discount at a nice restaurant that was still serving (there are dry laws in Merida but most nice restaurants still serve on the DL). We thought this was weird, but decided to try. When the bill came there was no discount, and we had to go through the embarrassment of having to explain to a manager, who then discounted our bill by a laughably small amount (the same amount we were charged by Tavera for two bottles of water). Checkout is at 12 but I requested a 1pm checkout and they told me that was fine, since no one else was coming in for our room. At 12:15 the receptionist came and told me that we needed to leave not just the room but the premises immediately or would be charged a sizable late exit fee for leaving at 1pm. This totally ruined what the cake made up for. To add insult to injury, they then tried to bill us as "no shows" for the first night through booking. Really???!!!

The property itself was very pretty, hence I am sure the positive reviews. Things might be better when there is an actual manager on site. As it is, for us Casa Tavera remains the worst hotel we have stayed...

Oh Casa Tavera! Your team of staff are lovely and the absolute star of the show. They went out of their way to be helpful and courteous at all times, and the tips they provided on places to visit, both in Mérida and around, were really appreciated and made our stay unique. We loved your breakfasts (and using Whatsapp to coordinate times is a great idea!), and really welcomed the effort made to provide variety each day. Karla, you're amazing and we remember you and your cookies for a long time to come! We hope to see you for the "grand opening" of the antique safe (if not before!) and really felt like one of the Tavera family by the end of our stay. Our only real gripe with the place was the continually erratic shower, which, sadly, has been noted several times by guests in previous reviews - scalding/freezing with nothing much in between. Come on Tavera, get that sorted and you will be the winner in town!! Put in a water fountain for guests to refill their own drinking water each day and it would be...

We have been extremely pleased with our stay at Casa Tavera. Veronica and Pablo, and everyone we have interacted with, have been professional, warm, patient and attentive. In addition to being in a central location with a short walk to main historic center, great restaurants and coffee shops, etc, the hotel is has a tranquil effect, with tasteful decor and a pretty pool. The rooms are spacious with tall ceilings, comfortable beds and pillows, and great showers. We have slept well each night. They ask for breakfast orders the evening before - each breakfast has been delicious - chilaquiles, enchiladas, fresh fruit, and breakfast cookies. What I want to highlight most is their excellent service. We’ve experienced a few travel delays and they have helped us book and rebook excursions, restaurants, etc. They are incredibly responsive to WhatsApp messages and have been kind, patient, and quick. They truly go above and beyond and we highly recommend...