Hotel de los Faroles

This was the worst hotel experience of our recent Spain tour, and I wouldn’t recommend it. We had to call to get parking advice because finding parking was difficult. We had a booking at Piso San Pablo, but only learned on that call that check-in had to happen at a different hotel, Hotel de los Faroles, apparently under the same ownership. They hadn’t told us this before we arrived. We came late at night and were told our actual reservation was another 10 minutes away. After walking around 15 minutes from the car down a very dark road with all our bags, we had little appetite for finding another place. They offered us a room at Hotel de Los Faroles for an extra 5 euros, saying it was ready. We felt this was misleading and planned: Google later showed the other property was only three minutes away, so it seemed they made it sound farther to get us to pay extra and stay there. It felt like this hotel chain was shifting guests between properties to suit its occupancy, perhaps because the other place was overbooked and this one had spare rooms. The reception staff member was nice and seemed to be following instructions. The room was just okay, but the toilet was disgusting, with a horrible brown stain. We love Cordoba and will come back, but never to this hotel.

The room was tiny, and after sleeping there one night, we both woke with itching and rashes. We saw bedbugs on the bed, but when we reported it at reception, they denied it and said they couldn’t do anything. We had to leave and book another hotel. We hoped Booking.com would help, but then more problems followed. At arrival they asked for my bank card details for a guarantee, even though I’d already paid everything. The next morning they charged €126 for six nights of parking. I had no car, since we came to Cordoba by train, and when I told reception it was a mistake, they were aggressive and said the system had done it and they couldn’t change it. We lost the money and had to spend two of our six days dealing with banks, blocking my card, and reporting them to the police for stealing. The police told us the hotel was supposed to provide a complaint form in this situation. We went back for one, but they refused at first, despite being required to provide it. We said we’d call the local police, and only then did they hand it over, reluctantly. Great start to our stay in Cordoba.

The lobby is spacious, with a large bar, and the hotel is centrally located. Rooms were clean and comfortable, with Wi-Fi, and breakfast had a nice selection.

The interior was very nice, though the room felt too small for four beds.