Blue Mango Beach Hotel

The dining tables and kitchen areas were dirty, which we should’ve taken as a warning before sitting down. This was easily the worst place I visited in this tourist area, and I’d tell anyone considering it to stay away. We waited more than an hour for our order. When I went to check, the chef was outside the kitchen talking with other employees. By the third time we asked the waitress about the food, she just said we could leave if we didn’t want to wait. We took the problem to someone we thought was a manager, and the waitress started shouting that she hadn’t said that. It was clear there was no management.

The property was kept in good shape, and the cleaning staff and gardeners did a great job. I also found the room and facilities quite good. Service was the real letdown, from reception and the bar to the restaurant. Staff were often on their phones or eating, and it felt awkward having to interrupt them to order. The food was edible but pretty average. Orders took about 45 minutes, and once we ordered three pizzas but only two arrived because one had been forgotten. That wait was an hour and forty minutes. Management should train the service team better. With better service, Blue Mango Hotel could make for a memorable stay.

I had to ask for extra time at checkout after waiting so long for food, but the staff member said they’d charge for every extra hour. One of the staff later acknowledged the inconvenience and apologized, which helped a bit. I stayed three nights because it was the only hotel available with air conditioning. The room was clean and good, though the unit was too small to cool it quickly during the day, even with the windows shaded. It was okay in the evenings. The fan had been installed the wrong way, blowing upward, so it barely helped. Restaurant staff were friendly, but service wasn’t great. We waited over an hour for cut mango and eventually cancelled it. Another day, the pizza took more than an hour. We asked several times, but no one could explain why the person making it hadn’t started. We gave up and ordered something else, so we missed the pizza everyone talks about. The other food was great, especially the cazuela de mariscos.

The beach was too choppy for me to swim, but it was still a lovely place to sit and watch the sunset. There’s also a nice bar one door down on the left, where we had a delicious margarita. We spent two nights here for my birthday and to recover after the lost city trek, and had a great time. The staff were lovely, the food was good and reasonably priced, especially the pizzas and fish tacos. Breakfast was included, with four generous choices. I tried the pancakes and avocado toast, and both were delicious. Our room was very clean, and the bed was extremely comfortable. I’d recommend staying here if you want to relax by the pool and beach.