Hotel São Francisco de Icaraí

This place feels like it’s been forgotten with time. At 130 reais a night for one person, the price is completely out of line with the quality, which was nonexistent. They didn’t give me a towel when I arrived, and there wasn’t one in the room either. When I asked for one, they handed me a towel that smelled like a wet dog. I had to dry myself with that awful smell for several days. My friend in the next room had exactly the same impression of his towel.

For R$ 217 a night, what we found was absurd. It felt like the hotel had been left to fall apart, and some of the staff were awful to deal with. The Wi-Fi only worked in certain rooms, so we had to move. There was no water in the shower twice, and the manager wouldn’t let us shower in another room until we complained through booking. Towels weren’t left in the room, either, you had to ask for them. The beds had torn mattresses, the old sheets were dirty, and there were cockroaches everywhere. The elevator made so much noise it kept us from sleeping. Breakfast was coffee, bread, butter, scrambled eggs and watermelon.

The location is handy, close to pharmacies, shops, markets, pizzerias and more, and the service was good. It’s a simple hotel, but I had a pleasant stay and thought it was good value. A few room details could use attention: some bulbs were burned out, only one bathroom light worked, and the shower spray went backward. The short pipe made it hard to bathe. The TV was tiny and not good for watching from bed. These are suggestions, not complaints. Congrats to the staff for the service!

The staff were good and flexible about the accommodations, and they were willing to talk things through. The location, reception and price were all good too. The room itself could use some work, with better paint and cleaner comforters. My double bed was two singles pushed together, and the gap kept opening up. I’d recommend it for a short stay.