Posada Araceli

Jo kept my room spotless, and Jo and the rest of the staff were friendly and eager to help. Coral gave useful tips on restaurants and transportation. The Posada is well placed, close to the Medieval town, Altamira cave with prehistoric paintings, a grocery store, and the bus stop. The fresh bed linens even had embroidered edges.

Breakfast was very basic, and the coffee was pretty awful, though maybe I've been spoiled by the excellent espresso you find almost everywhere. At 4 Euro it's unusually cheap, and the staff serving it were the friendliest. The place itself is compact and simple but practical and clean, good value, and very close to the centre of a truly wonderful little town. We had almost no wifi in our room, so bring a good book for a rainy day.

The location is great, but parking is limited, getting to the room wasn't easy, and breakfast could be a rough start. The breakfast room was too small, so some guests had to wait their turn. Breakfast itself was okay. We stayed at Posada Araceli for two nights, which felt like enough. Our room was tiny, hard to stand up straight in, and clean but nowhere near spotless. There was a stale smell under a strong thyme-like scent, possibly artificial. The bathroom had no window or ventilation. On the second day, someone had left a duster on the table among our belongings, with our teabags underneath it. That felt anything but sanitary.

Travelers and backpackers, beware. We were short on time and asked the receptionist about activities, but he completely misdirected us. He also gave us all the wrong bus information for our next destination. Do your own research instead of trusting what they tell you. We didn't feel welcome here. The room greeted us with several odors, and the strongest was a throw rug that smelled like rotting flesh. Breakfast was pathetic: two slices of ham, one slice of cheese, stale bread, and plastic-wrapped cakes with butter for 8 euros. That doesn't seem like breakfast to me. Maybe an old person or a baby would like this place!