Hotel Santa Fe

I have a history with Hotel Santa Fe going back 30 years. Back then, it was the only truly luxury hotel in Puerto Escondido, and I remember it being amazing, with beautiful rooms. I think it may need some updates now, but it has a wonderful restaurant and deserves another visit. My husband and I are planning to return to Puerto Escondido this winter. Don't give up on this gem.

The location is great, the rooms are a nice size, and the hotel has a lovely look, but that's where my praise ends. My family, two adults and one child, stayed four nights, and the experience left a lot to be desired. We struggled to get enough towels each day. The base price is reasonable, but they charge or threaten to charge for everything. You have to sign for pool towels every time, even though there are plenty. Hairdryers and irons aren't in the rooms and have to be requested. I chose this hotel because it says it's “family friendly,” but I don't think that's accurate. The free breakfast is minimal, and orange juice costs extra, which seems odd when children generally drink juice with breakfast. The website says babysitting is available for a surcharge, and I confirmed by What's App before arriving. Once there, nobody seemed to know what I meant. They offered to find an outside babysitter at a price I thought was very expensive. When I found a cheaper option myself, they said the hotel normally charges another 500 pesos just for the person to sit in the room, without using amenities or staying overnight. That seems ridiculous. I'm also fairly sure we experienced a racist incident as we were leaving. We'd arranged a taxi to the airport days ahead for noon and confirmed it again when checking out at 10:30. When we came back at noon, there was no taxi, and we were told to wait while they called one, despite confirming it an hour and a half earlier. Then I saw a taxi pull up and thought it was ours. A white couple who hadn't been waiting walked up to the Host, who let them get in ahead of us. Our taxi didn't arrive until 12:15. I didn't appreciate the Host putting them first. I won't stay or recommend this hotel again. There are several nicer places nearby and in La Punta that I'd choose even if they cost more.

We had a great Valentine's weekend. The room was nice and the beds were super comfortable. I ordered fish tacos at the restaurant and they were delicious. I liked the location, and felt safe walking the 10 minutes down to the main beach area.

The restaurant was another letdown. The food was average, service painfully slow, and prices ridiculously high. Breakfast wasn't included despite the room rate, and wasn't worth paying for: everything was cold and the coffee was terrible. The tables, chairs, and dining area looked like they were from the 1970s and had never been renovated. Guests aren't allowed to bring their own water or drinks into common areas, only drinks sold at the hotel's exaggerated prices. After paying so much for a low-quality room, that felt unfair and greedy. The common spaces were just as poorly kept, with a dirty pool, worn beach towels, and badly maintained facilities. Our room was damp and uncomfortable, with a terrible humidity problem even though the air conditioning ran all day. Mold covered the bathroom, and the toilet leaked and clogged every single day, so we ended up using the public restrooms. Metal surfaces were rusty, doors were worn out, walls were stained, and the ceiling fan looked ready to fall apart. There was no fridge or kettle, and the thin curtains let in light from dawn. The “terrace” was filthy and covered in cobwebs, as if it hadn't been cleaned for months. Most rooms seem untouched since the 1970s, and the place feels more like a neglected roadside motel than a proper hotel. The staff were unhelpful and seemed unmotivated, doing only the bare minimum. We were three people and asked for a third towel five times, but never got one. I complained several times about the broken toilet, and nobody came to fix it. I regret booking this hotel. It's excessively expensive for the terrible quality of service. A complete rip-off, outdated, dirty, and badly managed. I would never recommend it.