Mucara Hotel

I spent three days there and never once got hot water, even though I was told each time I asked that it was available. I was freezing. The room was dusty in every corner, too. When I checked out for my late-afternoon flight, the young woman at reception seemed more interested in her phone than in smiling.

The aquarium and beaches are close enough to walk to, and the hotel is right behind the catedral. The Zocalo, malecón, and historic center are all right there.

Frida, who I believe was the morning receptionist, was nice. I ended up pretty happy with my stay and would come back. The location made getting around easy, and the Acuario was the farthest walk at about 30 minutes. Wi-Fi was included. I only used the room to sleep, so the TV, AC, Wi-Fi, and elevator were enough for me. I didn’t know about the roof sitting area until later because the front desk staff never mentioned it. They were polite but quiet and serious, and often on their phones. I’m used to more friendly, informative staff in the US, and there’s no ice machine. Ice seems hard to come by here. My room was tiny, with a twin bed, side table, little closet, a sink and mirror outside the bathroom, and a toilet and shower. It felt cramped at first, but suited me for sleeping. The AC worked well, though I couldn’t get a comfortable setting: too high made the room musty, too low made it cold. There was only a thin sheet, and I didn’t realize I could ask for a blanket. A thicker one would help, or you can sleep in a hoodie and socks. The bathroom was cramped, with pretty ceramic tiles, but the toilet needed a serious clean. The shower curtain didn’t keep water in, so the whole floor got soaked. I asked the desk for extra towels the morning after I arrived, and they left one for the floor every day after that. A longer plastic liner would fix the problem. The shower’s retaining wall was also pretty small. The water wasn’t always very hot. Showering early in the morning meant hot water, but later it felt cool, sometimes a bit cold. Since Veracruz is so hot, that was okay. There were tiny bugs in the sheets when I first arrived. I squished one and saw blood. After that first night, the bed was taken care of almost every day when staff serviced the room. One night, I noticed things had been moved. I told Frida the next morning, and she said they’d come in to change the shower head. My clothes in the closet and shoes by the front of the bed near my suitcase had also been moved. I chose to lock valuables in my suitcase, and I want to believe it was the cleaning staff. The mattress was really hard. Rates changed by day and season, sometimes from one night to the next. There weren’t extra hotel amenities beyond the TV, AC, Wi-Fi, and elevator, but that was fine for what I needed. You need to sign in with your own Netflix account, so remember to log out before leaving. The staff did make the bed almost every day, and Frida was nice.

The front room I had was bright and huge, with a balcony, though daytime traffic made it a little noisy. Reception was very friendly and even gave me a receipt without my having to ask. The hotel is close to the main square, where you can hear four bands playing at once in the evening.