Hotel Holiday

My son was walking the Santiago path and called to book a room. He was quoted €80, then the woman asked for his card number to make the reservation. The amount charged turned out to be more than twice that, and she refused to cancel the booking when he called. Sadly, it feels like they just crook you.

The rooms were fine, large, and had working air conditioning. Maybe too big for me, but just right for a family staying one night since the queen bed can be separated from the twin beds. I gave one star because the host, who I assume was the owner, tried to rip us off. We paid for five rooms and had five hotel keys, but when he saw how many people were in our group, he tried to give us only three rooms. We could have all fit in three with the beds available, but he lied and said we'd paid for only that many. After we argued, he handed over two more keys. Liars get one star.

The room was clean, but the toilet hadn't been flushed. The large bathtub might have been a redeeming feature, except there wasn't even a plug for it. I should've checked the room first. I've never done that before, but maybe I will from now on. The locker-style exterior made me think the doors might roll back to reveal a window or two. Nope. It had a swanky prison feel, with bare bulbs and a tiny window for light. Definitely not good value for money.

The room itself was fine, if very large. At reception, the guy in the booth tried to take two of the rooms we'd already paid for by reducing our group from five rooms to three. After I threatened to call the local police, he gave us the other two keys.