Hotel Columbus

It was okay.

The breakfast is good, but nobody offered help from the kitchen, or anything different when we wanted it. The emergency lighting system also wasn’t working properly. The rooms smell musty, and they have for a while. The hotel was built years ago but hasn’t kept up with the times, so it feels stuck in the past. It’s habitable, but there’s a lot it could improve to bring in more guests.

A good low-cost place to sleep if that’s what you’re after. The breakfast was fresh, plentiful, and tasty, the service was good, and the location right in the center was excellent. My room even had air conditioning. On the downside, the furniture looked worn and neglected, and there were only two outlets, both by the door and neither near the bed. There wasn’t a water fountain or filter at reception, or even coffee while we waited for check-in. Bring your own toothbrushes too, since they don’t provide them. They did provide two hotel soaps. I’m not sure I’d stay again. Maybe it’d be worth paying a little extra for a more comfortable, better equipped place.

The best part was the view from the balcony, right across from Praça Sesquicentenário, the city’s main square. The only waiter at dinner was also very kind and polite. It takes about seven minutes to walk from the hotel to the center. The stay itself was disappointing. The staff’s welcome was cold, unlike what I’d expect in the city. The parking area has lots of columns, so you have to be careful. The elevator carpets smelled bad and were poorly maintained, and the accommodation corridors were dark, with the lights only coming on as you approached them. The rooms had dark furniture, stained walls that badly needed painting, and a strong musty smell. Rainwater ran into the room through a poorly sealed air conditioner. The bathroom still had a bidet, old, poorly maintained fixtures, and a broken floor. After 11 p.m. they shut off the boiler, so a late shower meant cold water. The Wi-Fi was turned off at the same time. Beds aren’t fixed to the floor, and guests upstairs dragged them around, making an irritating noise. The color tube TV had only eight open channels. I hoped the meals might make up for the poor impression, but they didn’t. They’re served in an old, poorly maintained dining area, where the tablecloths, blinds, floors, and chandeliers also needed cleaning. Breakfast came in plastic cups, and the juice was artificial, which gave the impression they were cutting costs regardless of guest satisfaction. The chafing dishes were in such poor condition that a good cleaning or replacement would help. Breakfast and dinner were both weak, with few choices, and there weren’t proper dessert options after dinner. The sweets looked store-bought. Even with a “do not disturb” sign on the door, there’s no way to show that a room is occupied. Housekeepers knocked and asked whether guests were leaving so they could tidy up. I say tidy up because they changed only the towels, not the sheets. There’s no hair dryer in the bathroom either. The room rate is close to what established hotels in town charge, around 20% less, but this place only includes breakfast and dinner, while those hotels offer full board.