Casona Plaza Hotel Puno — Hotel in Puno

BEWARE OF BAIT AND SWITCH. I reserved my room through Agoda. When I arrived the woman at reception claimed my reservation was actually at a different hotel 2 blocks away with a similar name (Casona Plaza Centro). With a haughty attitude, she told me "we don't work with Agoda." I thought I had made a mistake with the address and dutifully made my way to the other hotel, which isn't quite as nice as the Casona Plaza Hotel Puno. (Both hotels are part of a small Peruvian chain called Casona Plaza Hotels.). When I got to my room, I looked at my reservation (which I had shown to Reception at the Casona Plaza Hotel Puno) and realized my booking WAS for the hotel I was sent away from.

So I went down to reception and told the kind lady there that my booking was with the Casona Plaza Hotel Puno and I want to stay there. At this point things got weird. She called the other hotel to advocate for me and after some back and forth, handed me her cellphone so I could talk to the receptionist who had sent me packing 30 minutes prior. She firmly explained to me that I had no booking at her hotel, that "we don't do business with Agoda," and that if I wished to stay at Casona Plaza Hotel Puno I would have to pay more than twice what I paid for my reservation. I repeatedly told her that I have a valid reservation for her hotel, which I made based on the description and reviews of the hotel, but she didn't care, telling me to take this up with Agoda. Eventually I gave up and handed the phone back to the receptionist at the hotel I'd been banished to, the Casona Plaza Hotel Centro.

To my surprise, the receptionist told me to wait a few minutes while she made another call. When she was done, I was told I could return to the Casona Plaza Hotel Puno and stay there. Super grateful for her help, she understood I was right to insist that my reservation be upheld at the other property.

I liked the facilities -- comfortable bed, clean, nice breakfast, nice bathroom. But the unnecessary drama was totally unwarranted. I wonder how many guests have been turned away without realizing they were being conned.

I do have one concern about the hotel -- they have a propane heater in the lobby that's not designed for indoor use. Carbon monoxide accident...

Puno is an ugly city on the shores of Lake Titicaca. The city was founded by the Spanish in 1668 and currently has about 140,000 inhabitants. The city is at an altitude of 3,830 metres, as Lake Titicaca is the highest navigable lake in the world. This altitude gives tourists a terrible headache.

The Casona Hotel Puno is in downtown of Puno, very close to the main street, we walked to the cathedral in a few minutes in the morning. The surroundings of the hotel are not pretty, but I can't imagine the surroundings of a hotel being pretty here unless it is somewhere outside the city. Most of the houses are unfinished and unplastered because then you don't have to pay taxes on them - so the whole city is defined by buildings like this.

The hotel is nice, the rooms are average. The bathrooms are adequate, but could do with a thorough renovation, you don't feel the urge to spend more time in them than necessary. The window overlooked the street, but there was not much to look at from the street. Coca leaves were placed in the room, cocktails were available in the communal area - I didn't like either of them.

No dinner was provided, breakfast was nutritious and tasty, but nothing particularly noteworthy.

We arrived at the hotel in the late afternoon and left the next morning after breakfast - it was perfect for that, but I wouldn't think of spending an extended holiday here....

The Good: location is great being one block from the central Plaza de Armas. Effort was clearly put into the construction of the hotel and rooms. A heater is provided and the water is hot.

The Bad: stained bath tubs, missing grout and faulty elevators show maintenance is not the hotel’s strong suit. Also for some reason all the towel rods and hooks are positioned for 2m/8ft tall people.

The Ugly: the staff seemed determined to cut every corner possible - and then lie to cover it up. The bath tub had leftover hair from the last guest. The eggs for breakfast are a secret menu item - unless you try and ask for them you will not be offered any. Finally I nearly missed a tour because when my guide came and approached the receptionist to ask where I was, the receptionist told her I had already “left”, and so the guide left without me - I was sitting just a few feet away having breakfast and wondering when my tour guide was going to arrive. (The guide finally called the hotel just as I was pacing around the reception area and this time I was brought out to meet...