(These are my opinions, so take them with a grain of frugality! I rate hotels up to ***** with price/performance is most important. A ***** place gives you the best deal for the money spent, not necessarily the nicest in town or the cheapest.)
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Costa Rica
San José
Cuba
Havana
1. Hotel St. Johns
2. Casa Colonial
Cary y Nilo
Gervasio No. 216
e/ Concordia y Virtudes
Centro Habana
www.CasaColonialCN.com
email: orixl@yahoo.es
renta@casacolonial.com
Telf: 862-7109
Cellular: 22537-670290979
Comments: $25 dollars/night per person. Have not stayed here yet. My friend seemed to be very comfortable. Seems like a good place. Last time we were sent to the next place.
3. Room for Rent ***oo
Dr. Ernesto
Garcia
Lealtad 159
e/animas y virtudes
Centro Habana
Phone:537-861-2753
email: garciaruiz49@yahoo.es
Comments: $25 per night per person. Nice simple place. Yes this is really the name of the house. The people were very friendly and accomodating. The place is a little homley.
4. Casa Humberto Acosta**ooo
Compostela No. 611, 2do.
Piso entre Sol y Luz
Habana Vieja
Phone: (53) 7 860 3264
Comments: $30 per night, not including breakfast. Pretty clean and friendly. This is a great location in the middle of old town, halfway between the Capitol and the harbor. Beds were terrible, however and we did not get a good night's sleep. Also we had dinner in the house and that was a big mistake. We paid a large price ~$8 for a very mediocre meal. If they got new mattresses they could earn 4 stars.
Santa Clara
1. Casa de Hospedaje **ooo
Elsa Maria Guerra Perez
Maceo #330
e/9 de Abril y Serafín Garcí
Santa Clara, Villa Clara
Cuba 50100
Phone: 216686
Comments: $25 per night per person. Food OK but costs more. Nice ladies. (Elsa and her sister Noris.) Not much privacy. House is very clean.
Santiago de Cuba
1. Room for Rent***oo
Sr: Nelson Putin & Sra Raida Mojena
Ave. Garzon No. 277
Esq. M Apto 5
Raparato Sueño
Santiago de Cuba
Tele: 627965
Comments: $20 per night plus 2.50 for a very good breakfast. Great folks with very comfortable rooms. The rooms have no view and are a little boring. The last picture is me on the porch, which was where I spent a lot of time. Good location, around 5 blocks from the center of town and 5 blocks from San Juan Hill. If you want a Casa Particular, this is a good choice, but the hotels in Santiago are cheap and you can share a room in a good one for less money.
2. Hotel Libertad
Calle Aguilera, across from Plaza de
Marte
Santiago de Cuba
Tele: 627710
Website: http://www.islazul.cu/
Comments: This is a very nice looking hotel in the center of town. If you want a hotel, this is a great recommendation. I have not stayed here, but I had a friend who has and loved it. Prices are variable due to season and luxury of room but it is easy to get away with ~$40 for a double. The attached restaurant is very nice and highly recommended, even though they made me pay with CUC and not pesos nacional.
Ecuador
Cuenca
1. Hostal Casa del Barranco***oo
Calle Larga 8-41 y Luis Cordero
Cuenca, Ecuador
Telf: 2839763
email: casadelbarranco@hotmail.com
Comments: This is a very nice hostal for around $14. You can get a room directly above the barranco with a great view and a nice balcony access. Private bath was clean and had plenty hot water. The breakfast was a little skimpy. Very very nice people, though. Above is Olmedo the owner.
Restuarants:
1. Sankt Florian
****o
Calle Larga y Luis Cordero
Cuenca, Ecuador
Comments: This is a great inexpensive restaurant in the city center. Their daily lunch is excellent and inexpensive. Good service and friendly staff. I prefer a table upstairs on the balcony overlooking the barranco and the southern part of the city.
Loja
1. Hostel Marbella ooooo
Right across from the Bus terminal
Comments: STAY AWAY! I have only put it here to warn people. This was the worse room that I have stayed at in Ecuador (and Cuba and Mexico for that matter) It's only redeeming feature was that it had hot water. I think a bench in the terminal might be preferable. Take a taxi to the central and get one of the many good hotels there.
Machala
1. Cabañas Colibri (Jambelí Playa)
2. Hostal Mercy
Quito
1. Hotel Posada Real ***oo
Plácido Caamaño 213 (N26-19)
entre Av. Colón y San Ignacio
Quito, Ecuador
Telf: (593-2) 255 2511\255 2809
email: hposreal@uio.satnet.net
Comments: $14 per night if you are associated with Sampere Language institute. Good simple and quiet place. Breakfast in the morning pretty good. Nice people. Remind them when you want hot water. Ask and they will let you use the fridge. No problems. Now with wireless internet!!
2. Akros Hotel**ooo
Av. 6 de Diciembre N34-120
Quito, Ecuador
Telf: 5932.2430600
5932.2430610
email:
reservaciones@hotelakros.com
Website: www.hotelakros.com
Comments: This was a nice, although pricy hotel. I did not pay, but the prices seem to be between $60 and $80 per night. The hotel was very clean and comfortable, and the breakfast buffet was great. The only reason that I rated it low was the high price. Even though it seemed too high for me it was a much better deal than most hotels in the states. The location was a little far from anything interesting in Quito, but it is at a trolley stop. Be careful on a crowded trolley, pickpockets need no time at all to make your valuables disappear!
Riobamba
1. Hotel Tren Dorado **ooo
Carabobo 22-35 and 10 de Agusto
telf: 3/2964-890
Comments: $10. OK place. great balcony view overlooking the train station (see pic.) Don't expect breakfast, even if you pay for it. In fact I finally had to wake people up to let me out so I wouldn't be late for the train through The Nose of the Devil. Fantastic location, about 2 minutes to the train station entrance.
Vilcambamba
1. Hostería
Izhcayluma*oooo
Way out of town in Vilcambamba
Comments: Clean and pretty comfortable. Nice private cabins. So why the low rating? Mostly the owners. They put me in a nice, fairly expensive cabin ($24) but didn't tell me that there was going to be a fiesta, right next door until 4:00 in the morning. When I asked about it the next day they just shrugged their shoulders, as if it was my tough luck. They also didn't give me back my towel deposit. When I asked the waitress for some cheese on my scrambled eggs, she looked like I had slapped her. Too much attitude. Also it is fairly far from town. One observation important was that the proprietors were not from Ecuador. The best thing about them was their hammocks and their map.
2. Le Rendez-Vous
Calle Diego Vaca de Vega #06-43 y La Paz
Vilcabamba, Ecuador
Email:
rendezvousecuador@yahoo.com
Comments: I didn't actually stay here but it seems like a very good option for $10 including breakfast, and friendly staff and very clean and tidy.
3. Rumi Wilco Ecolodge and Nature Reserve***oo
At the end of Agua de Hierro road ~ 15 minutes from the
center of town
Website: www.rumiwilco.com
Comments: Pretty rough but clean. Cabins are fairly open to nature and bugs. Only cost $6 and only had one community shower, kitchen access and a couple hammocks. The Nature Reserve is great. Friendly staff. If you have at least two persons the Pole House sounds great with private bath and kitchen right on the river. For a lot more pictures of the reserve visit my web-page on this trip to Ecuador.
Zamora
Diego de Vaca Y Amazonas
Telf: 07.2607030
email: hotelbetaniaz@hotmail.com
Comments: Pretty good deal for $13 including good breakfast. Very very clean and new. Terrace upstairs has a nice view and hammock. They probably could have gotten another star if they hadn't had such problems with inconsistent service.
Mexico
Puebla
Mexico City
1. Hotel San Antonio ***oo
20 Callejón 5 de Mayo No. 29
entre Isabel la Católica y Palma
Mexico D.F
5518-1625
5518-1626
Comments: $22 per night with private bath. Not super clean, but nice people. Good place and great location. Down a small alley behind Pizza Hut off of Palma, just south of 5 de Mayo. One block from the Zocolo. Take either the Zocolo exit from subway or the Tacuba station.
Zacatecas