Terrado Cavancha

I came away with mixed feelings. My 15th-floor room faced the beach and had a great view. The bed was good, the room was clean, there was a desk and chair, and the bathroom had basic supplies and plenty of hot water. I could walk along the waterfront path to and from Baquedano every day. It generally felt safe in daylight. After dark, I'd stick to the waterside path, since more people are around and it's mostly well lit. The hotel's location facing playa Brava has a big gap in the basics: there's nowhere nearby to get a decent coffee, a cafe meal, or breakfast. The closest option I found was by the Jumbo superstore. The hotel also doesn't appear on Uber. Even when I was inside ordering a ride, the app tried to set pickup at some import/export business instead. I had no instructions for calling the front desk from the room phone. Dialing 0 didn't work, so I'd have had to go down to the lobby. There was no laundry service either, which surprised me for a hotel of this size and location. The staff's customer service was poor. In all my interactions, I didn't get a hello or a smile, and questions seemed to irritate them. I noticed this at night when I checked in and again on mornings and afternoons. At checkout around 9:30 AM, four or five people were waiting while one person at reception handled the line very slowly. There was another woman at the desk, but she was busy with papers instead of helping the waiting guests. That came across as poor training and little awareness of what was happening around her. There was an earthquake during my stay, and I could see the room shaking for several seconds. A hotel staff member was in the hallway, so I asked if there'd been an earthquake. She said no. I checked the USGS site and confirmed there had been one, but management hadn't taken steps to notify guests. I found that extremely irresponsible. Later, when I asked reception, I had to work hard not to laugh at the reply, “era un temblor.” Potato PotAto, I guess. I booked because the hotel advertised a gym, but it only had three or four treadmills and no weights or machines. The Sky Bar had nice views, and I had dinner there once. Its staff were marginally better than those in the lobby restaurant, though it was closed on Sundays. I also had breakfast once in the lobby restaurant. The buffet choices weren't worth $17 USD to me.

This place is dirty and worn out, and the air conditioning wasn't cooling. It needed a remodel ten years ago. They really need to keep up with routine maintenance.

The restaurant service was lovely, and the Sky Bar staff were amazing. I loved staying here and found the location very good, with excellent service overall. One thing I'd suggest is putting hot water heaters or electric kettles in the rooms. Being able to make tea or coffee matters, and I needed hot water for the baby's milk at odd hours.

The staff gave us top-notch attention, and the rooms were beautiful with a great city view. The location was great too, about a two-minute walk from Playa Cavacha and 15 to 20 minutes from the historic center. We had a great experience, and I really recommend it.