Casa TO — Hotel in Oaxaca

My recent stay at Casa TO in Puerto Escondido, Oaxaca, Mexico, was a blend of admiration and disappointment. The architecture and design of the hotel are undeniably stunning, showcasing the conceptual elegance of Ludwig Godefroy. However, the service and functionality of the hotel left much to be desired, especially considering the high price of approximately $400 USD per night.

Room Issues Air Conditioning: The design of the rooms is remarkable, with a structure embraced by the tranquility of nature. However, the air conditioning unit in our room was positioned above the bed and leaked continuously, soaking the bed. The front desk receptionist, though kind, could only offer a temporary fix by changing the bed sheets. This did not solve the problem, and we spent a very uncomfortable night with a wet mattress and bed. We were moved to a new room the next day, but even there, the air conditioning still leaked, albeit less severely. Sliding Doors: The sliding doors in our first suite, which led to a private garden, did not fully close. When we brought this up, we were told it was part of the design. Given the tropical rainy season, we woke up with numerous mosquito bites, which was extremely unpleasant. The next day, in our new suite, we found that the doors did fully close. Realizing that the earlier explanation was not accurate was both frustrating and disappointing.

Service and Amenities Spa Services: Before our trip, the staff recommended various services and excursions, emphasizing their massage and facial treatments. Unfortunately, these were the worst we have ever experienced. The facial, advertised as a "deep cleaning," involved applying a few products and rubbing them off, with no real cleaning or massage. The outdoor setting for the massage was filled with mosquitoes and flies, making it impossible to relax. The lack of bug repellent or any measures to address this issue was baffling. Dining Experience: The dining experience was equally disappointing. We found hair in our breakfast dishes on two occasions, both on top of and inside the flautas. Additionally, service was slow and inattentive. Despite there being only two tables occupied, we had to ask for sugar three times while the server was distracted, taking pictures of a guest's puppy. The restaurant was infested with flies, and no efforts were made to address this. Bar Service: Obtaining hot water for tea became an ordeal. While the female bartender was helpful on the first night, the male bartender on subsequent nights claimed he didn't know how to get hot water from the coffee machine, directing us to the restaurant. Even after being informed that he had been trained, he continued to refuse our request. The restaurant staff also turned us away, claiming they were too busy, even though there were only a few tables occupied.

Overall Experience Overall, the service at Casa TO was embarrassingly poor. Despite the beautiful design, the hotel's functionality and service fell far short of expectations. Guests should not have to beg for basic services, especially at such a high cost. While I appreciate the architectural beauty of Casa TO, I cannot recommend staying here. If you are drawn to the design, consider visiting the hotel during your stay in Puerto Escondido, but find alternative accommodations for a more comfortable and...

We stayed at Casa To for three nights, four days in the Terrace Suite. The property is just as pictured, super beautiful with amazing architecture. As nice as the hotel is however, their service did fall short on more than one occasion. The first issue we ran into was with the pool towels. After we went to the beach and returned to the room, I left my sandy towel on the floor in hopes that the cleaning staff would replace it with a new one. The cleaning staff ended up taking the dirty towel but not replacing it, so we went down to the host stand to ask for a new one. When we asked for a new one, the host told us that they had to have our old towel so we could exchange it for a new one, one to one. So we explained to them that the cleaning staff took our old towel when they cleaned the room. Then the host told us that the cleaning staff doesn’t do that, and then asked us if we lost it, and if we’re sure it’s gone etc. We explained to them yes we left it on the floor in the room and now it was gone. The host was still suspicious and went to go speak to another employee before finally agreeing to give us a bath towel to use at the pool (wouldn’t give us an actual pool towel.) The host ended up asking the cleaning staff if they took the pool towel from our room and they confirmed they did in fact take it. The whole exchange was really bizarre because it felt as if the host was accusing us of losing or stealing the towel. If we had known that we needed to exchange towels 1 for 1 at the host stand, I wouldn’t have left the towel on the floor of our room, but this information/rule was never communicated to us. Not when we checked in, never. And if its such an important rule for guests to follow, why isn’t the cleaning staff also aware of that so they don’t pick up the pool towels from guest rooms? For a 4 star hotel it just seems like such a weird rule. It’s pool towels, you would assume they have enough for guests to have clean towels whenever they want. The second issue we ran into with service was when we were planning for our departure. The night before we left, we asked the hostess if she could arrange for a cab to pick us up at 9am so that we can make our flight. She said of course, no problem, so we went to bed. The next morning when we were all packed up and ready to go, we went to the host stand to ask if our taxi was here. The morning host had no idea what we were talking about. There was no note from the evening hostess, and there was no taxi called for us or waiting outside. Luckily the morning host was able to call a taxi right away and it arrived within 15 minutes, but we still had to rush to make our flight. Not sure why the night hostess said she would arrange it for us and then didn’t do anything at all. It really left a poor taste in our mouth about the hotel as we were finishing our vacation there. Overall the hotel is worth a visit for the great atmosphere and rooms, but the service could use some big...

I was lucky enough to spend four nights at Casa To. It's by far and away the most beautiful, tranquil place I have ever stayed. The photos looked stunning but it was something else walking in and actually seeing it.

There are a limited number of rooms so majority of the time, we seemed to have the pool to ourselves. It felt like we had privately rented the entire property. This gives you the opportunity to take plenty of photos without an audience/feeling silly.

The entire staff are five star and couldn't be more helpful during our stay. They helped organise taxi's and a turtle release excursion for us. The tailor made cocktails were amazing and we ended up spending several evenings in the lobby just because it was so relaxing and such a nice vibe.

Not negatives but might be worth noting:-

Casa To is not in the centre of Puerto Escondido. We found it easy to book a cab out and hail one on the way back. Despite not being in the centre, La Punta has its own community with plenty of great restaurants, places to drink and (controversially) we prefered La Punta beach to Carrizalillo

The breakfast is simple, comprising of mostly toast and mixed exotic fruits. The mango was the best I tasted in the whole of Mexico. Don't expect a full breakfast buffet but they do provide nearby options for a bakery which we didn't need to use but looked lovely.

Our room neighbours were jet lagged/on a different time zone to us and were using their garden terrace at 4am where the noise naturally travelled. This is a guest etiquette rather than the hotel's issue and if potential noise bothers you, bring earplugs. This would likely be true of any boutique hotel! Otherwise everyone was very respectful of the tranquil vibe and we couldn't hear any noise from the pool area.

Someone said taxi's found it difficult to locate. This may have been the case when it first opened but all out taxi's were aware of the hotel and found it easily.

I feel so lucky to have experienced this hotel and would go back in a heartbeat. I wish I had spent my entire two...