Meliá Century Hotel Ponce

The location is fantastic, and the lobby looks great. The rooms were a very different experience. The carpet was old and dusty, the paint on the bathroom fixtures smelled strong and was peeling, and the sink and shower heads were rusty. The towels were worn thin from overuse and bleaching, the sheets were stained, and there were ants in the bed. There was no hot water in the shower. I was told they had run out of gas, which is a management issue. It took 45 minutes to get clean sheets because nobody was at the front desk. Parking was a nightmare too. A wedding filled all the spaces, leaving none for hotel guests, so I had to park three blocks away, with no parking attendants. The pool was murky enough that you couldn’t see the bottom, and it was closed during the wedding.

The common areas are beautiful, but the rooms were a letdown. We chose this place because it was a Melia hotel and expected at least a satisfactory stay. Instead, it was the worst hotel I’ve stayed in. When we wrote to corporate, they said this Melia was independently owned. As a customer, how would you know? Their response destroyed our trust in the Melia brand, and we won’t stay at a Melia property again. The first room we were given was dirty and structurally damaged. Reception said the hotel was full and there was nowhere else to put us. I said we wouldn’t stay in that room, and then they said they’d see what they could do. While checking the website, I saw that a deluxe king was available. When I told the clerk, he offered us a deluxe queen at no extra charge. It was better, but still far from stellar. There was no Wi-Fi in the room, the sheets and blankets were stained, I had no hot water in the shower, and the light fixture kept flashing. We’d also been given a towel in the first room, and instead of asking us about it, staff came into our room and took it while we were out. On our second day, I showed the manager photos of the first room, and she was aghast. She offered us a king suite, but my husband turned it down because he didn’t want to move again. The hotel clearly needs renovations. I still can’t understand how anyone thought it was okay to put a paying guest in that first room. In Ponce, the Fox Hotel and Ponce Casino Hotel are options on the square, and there are also vacation rentals.

Great location, but the rooms definitely need updating. They smell of mildew, mold, or urine. Sometimes there’s no hot water, no phone in the room, and no housekeeping. It’s disappointing and misleading given how nicely they keep the lobby.

We booked a stay at Melia Century Hotel for the first week of December, then had to cancel within the period when we’d be charged 50% of the stay. The hotel never acknowledged the cancellation, even though we called and emailed, and we were charged the full amount. When we asked for at least a partial refund, someone told us at one point we’d get a full refund. Nothing has been refunded. Now my phone number is blocked, so I can’t call anymore. We’ve left many voicemails, messages with staff, and emails, but haven’t received a single reply.