Casa Barros Vacation Condos

My wife and I stayed for two weeks and ended up pleasantly surprised by the accommodations. We liked the studio suite, the furniture in the dining and seating area, and the comfortable bed. The bathroom was nice and had good water pressure, though there were no towels until we went to the front desk to ask. The rest of the kitchen was nice, but it had only a frying pan and an odd assortment of cups and glasses. The couch had a small spot, but that seemed okay for a place near the beach. No room service was provided, and we had to do laundry to get clean towels. The room had a washer and dryer that only dispensed hot water, which was nice for the white towels. The pool was a letdown: the water was dirty, so neither of us went in, even though my wife loves pools. The cushions were dirty and umbrellas were broken. I rigged one so she could get some shade. A family using the BBQ grille made a mess, complained that things weren’t working, and a worker said they had broken the umbrellas. We still had a great stay. The room suited us, the air conditioner worked, and we picked up a few things to make ourselves more comfortable.

The apartment itself was nice, but the kitchen wasn’t fully set up for cooking or cleaning. They limit two people to two towels, even though the room sleeps four, and there are no extra towels or sheets for the badly stained pull-out sofa. The pool photos are misleading: two loungers were broken, the cushions were badly stained, and the cement seats had no cushions. It gets very loud at night and in the morning, so bring earplugs.

The location is great, but it was extremely noisy. The windows and doors do nothing to block sound, so bring earplugs. I picked this place because of the Expedia photos and was disappointed once I arrived. The studio looked nice like the pictures, but although it’s meant for four adults, we got only two towels and were told that’s what a studio gets. We had to insist on more. The pull-out sofa was stained and came with no extra sheets. The kitchen had no pots, dish soap, sponges, or anything for cleaning up, and there was just one glass until we convinced staff to bring more. The pool area was worst. Expedia showed new loungers and umbrellas, but there were only two old, broken loungers and no umbrellas. The lounge cushions were disgustingly dirty. We complained, but nothing was done. Two broken loungers for the whole hotel! I’m not sure whether the units are individually owned, but they need to be better equipped. I also just found out that the rooftop pool area at the Best Western visible from here lets people use it for free if they buy a drink. I’d strongly recommend going there.

The room was spacious, with a refrigerator, washer and dryer, lots of closet space, and comfortable furniture. The location was great and the staff pleasant. Traffic noise at night was an issue, though. The basics were missing. I asked for an extra pillow and towel and was told no. There were a few cups, glasses, and plates, but no dish rack, towel, soap, or sponge, and kitchen supplies were very limited. They didn’t provide even one coffee filter or enough coffee and sugar for our first morning. One small toilet paper roll lasted us two days, and there was no Kleenex. The bathroom had just one small bar of soap, and the mattresses need protective pads. We enjoyed our stay, but a little more attention to detail would have earned a higher rating.