Rondônia Palace Hotel

The staff were friendly and accommodating, and they really tried. Breakfast was simple, but clean and generally fresh. My room was very clean, everything worked, and the noisy AC did work. It looked like a 1950s motel, which was fine with me. This is an old, mostly well-kept hotel in an urban area, not on the beach or in a park-like setting as some travel photos might suggest. The pictures other guests posted are accurate, and the room price gives you a fair idea of what to expect. I was generally happy with the place, including the rough interior and the homeless encampment on the streets outside. It was a cheap, decent choice for a weekend and for getting something done at the embassy the next week. A very friendly English-speaking person at the front desk helped smooth things over. At checkout, though, that person was on a meal break. A woman I hadn't seen before handed me a bill for bottles of water I hadn't used. There's a supermarket nearby, and I leave the room as I found it, or close to it, out of respect for the cleaner. She kept pushing the bill over and saying "frigobar." I told her in Portuguese to have the cleaner check the refrigerator, but she insisted I pay. I asked when the English speaker would be back and was told 30 minutes, so I sat down to wait. She used a walkie-talkie and eventually said everything was OK. I don't know what was going on, but it felt like a blatant attempt to rip me off over a small amount. She even had a printed invoice ready for two bottles of a brand I wouldn't drink. I never made a fuss or complained during my stay, so there was no reason to target me over some annoyance. The rest of that exchange isn't important. I won't return, since the hotel seems to allow this kind of petty rip-off. Also, this was the first time anywhere I've stayed, even in the smallest South Asian countries, that a hotel wanted to charge daily for a tiny in-room lockbox. Certainly not in Brasil!

It's okay. The price is nice, breakfast is good, and it's pet friendly. The room looks like it could be from the late 70s, but it's clean and customer service is good. The Wi-Fi only works in the little room because the walls are brick. There's a little room with a table inside your room, you'll know what I mean if you stay here. It's close enough to walk to the beach with my dog. The beach feels very safe day or night, with great police presence, and the street itself is quiet.

I found $100 missing from my wallet while packing to leave on August 10, after staying here from August 9. The wallet had stayed in my suitcase, which I left open on the floor, and I never took it out or used it. I reported this at the front desk and asked them to check whether anyone had entered my room. At first, they said the hotel wasn't responsible and that I should have put valuables in a safe. They promised the manager would review the cameras and get back to me Monday, but no one did. I called Tuesday and was asked to email the details again, with another promise of a reply by day's end. That didn't happen either. On Wednesday I called once more and was told the manager would respond by Thursday evening. I'm writing this at 6:30 p.m. and still haven't heard anything. I can only wonder whether the manager might have been involved, since no one seems willing to investigate. They treated me like a fool throughout. Avoid this place if you don't want to risk losing your things.

For the money, this was a great deal, especially with breakfast included and a location close to Flamengo beach. The building feels a bit dated, though it seems it was quite fancy once. My room was huge, with both a spa bath and a private sauna, which I'd never come across before. The metro makes it a quick ride to Copacabana, or to Lapa in the other direction. The only letdown was some mouldy grapes at breakfast. For the price, I wasn't expecting everything to be perfect.