Las Golondrinas El Zonte El Salvador

Alberto was awesome and pointed out lots of restaurants and coffee shops, plus the only ATM in town. We tried good street food up and down 22, including papusa and tropical fruit stands. The pool was great and very clean. It’s a great little spot, an easy walk to all of El Zonte. I’d definitely come back.

We reserved this hotel two months before our trip, then the hotel cancelled a month later without giving a reason. We think it may be because our booking was for only three nights and the website now says there’s a seven-night minimum, though it didn’t say that when we booked. Prices have gone up since then, and we’re having a hard time finding another hotel at a similar rate. I wouldn’t recommend this hotel.

The biggest problem came on our final day, when the water stopped completely. For more than 28 hours there was no running water, no working toilets, showers or sinks, and no way to wash hands. With over 20 of us, including elderly people and young children, it became a health and hygiene issue. We had to flush toilets with buckets of pool water. I understand mechanical systems can fail in a large property, but the total lack of communication was especially concerning. Alberto, the host who introduced himself when we arrived, didn’t respond to calls or texts, and Airbnb support couldn’t reach him during the outage either. I’d stayed at this property three times. The first two visits, under the previous owner, were consistently very good. This time, with new ownership and management, the property’s condition had noticeably declined. Before we arrived, I was told it had been sold and a new management company would handle the booking. Many details about our group of 20 hadn’t been transferred. The house wasn’t clean to an acceptable standard. The outdoor pool area hadn’t been serviced after the prior guests, with pigeon droppings on the deck and food residue on the lounge chairs. The indoor floors were dirty. There was heavy soap scum and hard-water buildup on the shower glass, toothpaste stains on mirrors, and towels that were worn, frayed or torn. For a group this size, those conditions raised basic sanitation concerns. Maintenance was poor too. White walls had lots of scuff marks, toilet seats were loose, and several LED bulbs weren’t working properly. Compared with my earlier stays, housekeeping and maintenance seemed much reduced. It’s a six-bedroom home designed for about 20 guests, but appeared to have just one housekeeper, which isn’t enough for a property this size. This was nothing like my previous visits. The place used to be high quality, but this time it didn’t meet basic cleanliness, maintenance or habitability expectations despite being priced at a premium.

Really cool hotel, and it was very clean. Awesome.