Hotel Eden Resort By Bluebay

We chose this place because we were told it was the best hotel in town, but the food and service disappointed us, and they didn't honor the contract. The cleaning was poor, the service even worse, and the property looks like it hasn't been properly maintained for a while. I wouldn't recommend spending your money here.

We stayed two nights around Carnaval de Oruro, my wife and I, after our travel agent said Eden was the only hotel with its own “VIP-stands.” The idea was to watch Carnaval from the front row while being able to get straight back to our room or the hotel restaurant. We booked a Presidential Suite and paid USD 3.000 a night. That was foolish on my part. I asked for the biggest room available without realizing how much the hotel would charge us. I knew better than to take the claimed five-star status at face value. I wasn't expecting La Paz or Santa Cruz standards, and we'd stayed in remote parts of Bolivia before, so I thought I understood what to expect. Even so, the suite was filthy and badly maintained. The toilets had clearly not been cleaned properly; one of the two was cracked. Bathroom floor and wall tiles were dirty and cracked, with some held in place by sticky tape. The carpets may once have been greenish, but were grey from going who knows how long without vacuuming. The advertised 24-hour heating didn't work at all, despite a thermostat on the bedroom wall. None of the several WiFi networks worked either, until we pushed and got a personal router brought to the room. There were two shower towels and one face towel in the main bathroom, and none in the “guest toilet.” There was, however, a price list for items guests might damage or lose. The main problem was that there was no water from either the cheap plastic “massage shower” or the shower over the “jacuzzi,” so we couldn't take a proper shower on the first evening. The next morning, after I made a fuss, a manager came by. He talked about needing to buy a new pump and a blocked collector on the way to our room, then asked if we could use the public showers by the swimming pool. We were paying USD 3.000 a night for a “Presidential Suite,” so that was absurd. Shouldn't a hotel calling itself five-star keep its pumps replaced and its collectors clean? During the two Carnaval days, tiny Oruro swells to a million people, and hotels can earn most of their yearly income. Surely they could prepare for those days and make sure everything worked and was clean. The restaurant on the 9th floor had stained tablecloths, and crumbs covered every table and chair, from who knows how many meals. The “VIP stands” weren't included with the room. You have to pay separately to reserve your own seats. There were three of us at Carnaval, my wife, our guide, and me. I'm an amateur photographer, so I prepaid for six seats across both levels to give us more flexibility. When heavy rain came that afternoon, we found a hole directly over one of our upper-level seats. We put a glass underneath, and it filled within 15 minutes. The hotel sells “VIP seats” promising a covered, comfortable view, yet liters of water came through holes in the tented roof as soon as it rained. That afternoon the manager said the shower was “resolved.” We could finally get some warm water by standing at an angle in the “jacuzzi,” which wobbled under our feet, with our hands on the wall and our heads close to the showerhead. After pressure from our travel agent, he agreed to refund USD 500 “for inconvenience.” That was ridiculous given what we paid and how uncomfortable the stay was. A dirty, disgusting place. If you're planning to go to Carnaval of Oruro, consider booking somewhere else.

I didn't stay overnight, but I had breakfast and lunch here and really liked the view from the restaurant on the 8th floor. Prices are very convenient, the internet is fast, and the staff are friendly. I got a very productive and pleasant day of work done at the hotel. You can use the swimming pool for a relatively small fee, and I think non-guests can pay to use some of the other facilities too.

It's a good place to stay and has all the facilities.