Hamanda Hotel

SOUQ Restaurant was fantastic, the best place we tried in san fernando. I also love the hotel's design and vision, and I hope management reads every review because the problems below are deal breakers. Until they’re addressed, I don’t recommend booking. I wanted to stay here after seeing it on Instagram, but the hotel’s quality and experience weren’t what I expected. There was no reception, and the manager was on leave when we booked. Customer service through IG or SMS was inconsistent and poor. Someone from Souq Restaurant helped us check in, but they had no access to a booking system or reception area. We were exhausted from a 2-hour drive and the hot weather; without the kindness of the restaurant staff, we might have left. We couldn’t sleep because of constant traffic noise from the road. The location on the main road is convenient, but the noise left us like zombies the next morning. This was a birthday trip where we wanted to relax, but it wasn’t relaxing at all. The pillows, pillowcases, sheets, and bath towels looked recycled from somewhere else and already heavily worn before the hotel started using them. I support sustainability and recycling, but these items were off-putting and almost gross. They should replace them. At this rate, a good B&B would offer better linens, pillows, and towels. The hotel felt like a low-end B&B charging hotel prices for its marketing. If you remove the restaurant staff, there was literally no one from the hotel team around. I’ve stayed at similarly aesthetic boutique hotels, and this is probably the only one I didn’t enjoy. The interiors and exteriors weren’t well maintained. The pool and common areas were dirty, including dusty tables where we had breakfast. There was no table or chair in our room, so we had to use the common area. Some of those tables looked as if they hadn’t been cleaned in a long time, as did the lamps and items on our room table. Maybe that’s intentional for the look, but guests use the shared areas, so they should be cleaned. Everything looked old in a way that wasn’t charming. I have more to say, but these are the main problems I hope will be improved, and I hope they help others reconsider before booking.

The staff were kind, which is the only reason I’d give this two stars instead of one. We booked a family room for two nights after seeing the hotel on Instagram. It looked nice, but the amenities disappointed us. The pillows were flat, the bed and pillows smelled, and one pillow was stained. Since the room faced the road, cars and trucks were audible at night. The hotel allows pets, but doesn’t seem to care for the community cats and dogs, which felt ironic. The restaurant food was good, but I wouldn’t book this hotel again if I return to San Fernando.

The staff were the best part of my 3 nights and 4 days there. When I came back, they’d get my meals ready right away, and they helped me carry heavy items to my room. The food was delicious too. The rooms and reception looked great in Instagram photos. It was an okay stay, nothing more. My deluxe room didn’t feel deluxe, and the online photos were very deceiving. The window looked out onto the restaurant below, with no natural light in the room. I had to spend time in the nearby lounge when I wanted sunlight. There were mosquitoes all over, and the can of bug spray they gave me ran out by the second day. Wifi was slow and couldn’t always handle Netflix. Stray dogs wandered near the restaurant entrance, and road traffic made sleeping less peaceful. There was no fridge or microwave in the room, so dealing with packed food or leftovers was difficult. The walls were super thin, and I could hear guests in the next room “doing it.” Other hotels in the area were booked for quarantine purposes only, so I ended up at this boutique hotel. If I had business in San Fernando, I’d choose it again, but I wouldn’t come back voluntarily for a stay. The friendliness of the staff made up for some of what the hotel service lacked.

The decor is unique and nice, and the staff are quite nice too, but the owner needs to improve the place before it’s worth recommending. Street dogs were allowed to roam or sleep in reception, and the next morning there was dog poop by our door that we almost stepped in. Breakfast was brought to the room, but there wasn’t a table or enough chairs to eat comfortably, so we had to carry it to the lounge a few meters away. Breakfast also starts late, at 9am. Stray cats roam the lounge area too.