Hotel Nacional Inn Araxá

After more than two weeks here, we came back to find our rooms emptied and all our belongings gone. The hotel had decided to move us into rooms that were even worse than the ones we had. That was a shocking end to a stay that had already been awful, and in my 33+ years of professional travel this is one of the worst hotels I've experienced. The new room was a nightmare. Both rooms were tiny, with two beds that felt like padded cots, possibly even smaller than single bunk beds. There was barely room to move, and no place to sit except the bed. Each bed had one small pillow, so it was hard to prop yourself up comfortably to read or use a computer. In the second room, the sink had no hot water, and the shower took about 10 minutes to warm up. Its temperature kept changing while I showered, and there was no heat in the room. The windows weren't sealed, so it stayed around 55 to 65 degrees. The minibar was crammed with overpriced items, and there wasn't a coffee maker or microwave to heat water. The first room on arrival was barely tolerable, but the hotel itself was a serious letdown. Breakfast and dinner had the same buffet every day, with pasta and bread at dinner and only about two different items on weekends. There's a menu too, but it's limited and not very good. The restaurant was decent, at least. Staff tried to accommodate us, but nobody working here had more than a 25 to 50 word English vocabulary, and they didn't seem very interested in helping when they couldn't speak the language. The good waitress Vilma was a bright spot, as was the courtyard with its lovely plants and flowers. That's about the whole list of things I liked. Avoid this place.

On each of my two work stays, the floor was wet and the bathroom had a leak that left standing water. The visits were two months apart and in different rooms.

Surrounded by nature, this place feels restorative for the body, mind, and soul. I highly recommend it.

Excellent spot.