Exe Oriental Panama

The gym was a major disappointment. It’s a big reason I booked the hotel, but the room had no AC or open windows, so it was basically unusable. The WiFi was also terrible, both in my room and the lobby, with slow speeds and frequent lag. The bigger problem was the room itself. I checked in at 3 pm during a power outage. Power came back, but the elevator, water, AC, and WiFi didn’t work until around 7:30 pm. My room was on the 10th floor, so being without the elevator was inconvenient and a safety concern. Nobody proactively told guests what was happening or when it might be fixed. Once water returned, the pressure still caused the sink and toilet to spray unexpectedly. The AC wasn’t repaired until midnight, despite the outside temperature being over 90ºF/32ºC. I couldn’t comfortably or safely stay in the room for nine hours, from check-in until midnight. Staff were rude and dismissive, and didn’t apologize. Other guests said the AC had failed the day before too. Staff claimed nearby hotels had the same problem, but when I called them, they said their power, water, and AC were all working. When I asked about reimbursement, I was quickly turned down. This was inexcusable.

After a long flight, we arrived eager to check in, only to be told there was an “issue” with our room and that we’d be sent to another hotel. The front desk agent wouldn’t show us photos or clearly explain the new place. We looked it up ourselves and found it was nowhere near the quality or star rating of the hotel we had booked. They paid for an Uber, but that didn’t make the downgrade fair. Other guests were checking in without trouble, while we were moved despite having a confirmed reservation. Nothing changed until we said we had booked through American Express. Even then, communication was confusing, and we weren’t properly told the destination had changed before the Uber took us there. A really frustrating, disappointing experience and poor service. I wouldn’t recommend staying here.

This hotel is extremely bigoted. If you don’t speak fluent Spanish and have lighter skin, don’t stay here. I’m not the only one who’s had this experience, so read the other reviews. Plenty of city hotels welcome international travelers, and I strongly suggest booking somewhere else.

The location, right in the financial district, was perfect, and the bed and pillow were super comfortable. Breakfast was fresh, tasty, and amazing, but it didn’t make up for the other problems. The bathroom needed maintenance: the extractor was broken and made a loud noise all night, and there was black mold all over the shower. The building felt old, the stairs were scary, and the elevators didn’t show which floor you were on.