Hotel Santorini Express y Cabañas

We stayed this time at the resort hotel, Send Martini. On our last visit we stayed at the Casablanca Santini hotel. This resort is peaceful and tranquil, and I would recommend it to anyone wanting a reasonably priced stay in Santa Marta and time to enjoy the beach, weather, and ocean. The location is lovely, just across the street from a nice beach. The staff are pleasant and helpful. Our room was a little old, but clean and comfortable, with cable TV and decent WiFi. The food at the hotel restaurant was tasty and reasonably priced. There are three pools, one on the rooftop with a bar, plus a small, well-stocked convenience store selling incidentals, snacks, liquor, and beer. A main grocery store is about three blocks away, just off the main road. A cab ride to downtown Santa Marta takes about 2 miles. There's also a central commercial mall within a 10-minute walk, with all kinds of conveniences, several restaurants and coffee shops, and another main supermarket.

The views, food, and staff were all amazing at this great resort. It's about a 10-minute taxi ride from the airport and a 10-minute walk to the beach. Don't miss it.

The area around the resort is dusty, with several unpaved streets. The beach club didn't seem to draw anyone to eat there, and the rented sunshades are only set up in the farthest row of the spacious beach, where the walking vendors are most bothersome, though less aggressive than in Cartagena. The hotel's upkeep is minimal. Our otherwise nice room had a worn mattress and bed, and towels more like a youth hostel than a "4 star resort." Breakfast was very good, but the problem with the aggressive birds still hasn't been fixed. A higher fence reaching the ceiling, a sign telling guests that feeding the birds makes the problem worse, and a walk-through curtain at the entrance could help. The "sky bar" wasn't impressive either: no sea view from the bar itself, only a partial view from the small pool. The restaurant also seems to be introducing the American system of imposed tips, which is unusual in Colombia.

The location was the one real plus, along with the guys who carried our bags. Otherwise, our first visit left us disappointed. The rooms and pools were average for the price, and if you can pay a little more for Hilton or Marriott, I'd recommend that. The hotel didn't look like the Booking pictures, so we wanted to cancel as soon as we arrived. The receptionist just said, “ok step to the side,” and seemed careless. The reception ladies didn't greet us with a smile or offer good service. Breakfast was the same each day, and we hadn't expected birds to fly in and eat our food. One staff member, Fidel, had a nasty attitude and wasn't helpful. When we asked for hot water for tea one night because we were sick, he said they had run out and didn't look for another solution. I wouldn't come back or recommend the hotel. Please work on the staff's customer service, or more tourists will be turned away.