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Reviews of Hotel Portal de San Diego by HMC

3.5 out of 5
Hotel Portal de San Diego by HMC
Calle 2 de Badillo # 36 - 17, Centro Historico, Cartagena, Bolivar

Reviews

7.8

Good

Rating 10 - Excellent. 20 out of 75 reviews" "
Rating 8 - Good. 33 out of 75 reviews" "
Rating 6 - Okay. 17 out of 75 reviews" "
Rating 4 - Poor. 4 out of 75 reviews" "
Rating 2 - Terrible. 1 out of 75 reviews" "

8.2/10

Cleanliness

8.4/10

Staff & service

7.6/10

Property conditions & facilities

Reviews

8/10 Good

Kal, Atlanta

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Old Town Gem
Very nice and small hotel located in old time. I will definitely stay here again.
Stayed 1 night in Oct 2017

4/10 Poor

Verified traveller

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Good Location for the price and friendly staff
This hotel has a good location in the walled city and a helpful staff, but the rest is disappointing. Towels and sheets had holes and stains. Room didn't have a closet, safe, or a working iron. The air conditioner worked, just took a long time to cool down the room and housekeeping would shut it off after cleaning the room. The staff was great and very helpful but the actual room was bad.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Our bedroom was on the front of the hotel and was so noisy at night. Good situation and beautiful place, excellent staff

6/10 Okay

Maria

The problem was Hotel.com.
The big problem was that when we arrived, they said they never received our reservation from Hotel.com. So, the problem here is Hotel.com. And it is the second time that we have a problem with our reservation with Hotel.com. The people from Hotel Portal de San Diego was very nice and helpful, and they found another hotel for us. We stayed one night there and next day we had to move to another hotel.......Not something that we had planned.....

8/10 Good

Jackie, New York

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Simple & good low cost hotel with perfect location
I stayed here for one night. I would recommend this hotel for anyone looking for something low cost with a great central location in the old city. There were lots of great shops on the same street where you could buy gifts, food, water, etc. and all the attractions in the old city were just a short walk away. They keep the front door of the hotel locked and you have to ring the doorbell to get in, which I liked because I felt very safe traveling on my own. The hotel and location felt safe and the staff was nice. I didn't ask for much but they watched my bags for me when I got there very early and couldn't check in yet so that I walked around and did some siteseeing without having to worry about my luggage. And they helped me get a taxi back to the airport quickly when I asked. The room was small but I wasn't expecting it to be big. There was a window with a view of some rooftops, which was pretty, the shower had hot water, there was an air conditioner that worked great, and the wifi was amazing from my room. The breakfast was good too - nothing fancy but they had coffee, juice, fruit, eggs, which seems to be the typical thing at most places I stayed in Colombia (some hotels did eggs without the fruit). I had no issues and I would definitely stay here again if I was looking to stay somewhere simple and save some money with a great location and all the amenities I need without anything fancy or extravagant.
Looking down on the restaurant area near the lobby from the second floor
View from the lobby balcony
View from the lobby balcony

8/10 Good

Rockower, Washington, DC

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice, affordable hotel in the heart of Cartagena
Nice, affordable hotel in the heart of Cartagena. All the modest comforts needed in a great location

6/10 Okay

ALBERTO, Montreal

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Relatively small room but confortable. Bkfst contained the essentials. Very clean. Well man tainted. If you go to Cartagena is to walk around and you use the hotel room to wash and sleep. It does the job. For the price I consider it a very good deal. Yes I recommend it and I would return.

8/10 Good

Cindy, Washington, DC

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Great B&B in the old section of Cartagena
This hotel was simply amazing- very secure, very easy to get to, very easy to be comfortable in. The inner courtyard was a great place for my friends and I to hang out, and a wonderful breakfast location in the mornings. The breakfast wasn't the best ever, but certainly was amazing to have included in the stay and very convenient. But my real review goes to the staff here- it seems like we ran into ever possible issue and they helped us out completely through everything! We arrived around midnight from the airport, and the desk is staffed 24/7, so there was no issue with checking in late. We ended up having one more person in our group than we thought we would when we booked the hotel, and they worked with us to accommodate the extra guest. And then we discovered we had accidentally booked only 2 nights instead of 3 (I know, we were terrible guests), but they shuffled some guests around to a sister hotel so that we could stay one more night in our same rooms. And that's on top of their usual duties, and helping to book an island tour for the day. I'm sure it isn't the best hotel in Cartagena, but it was clean and comfortable and just what my group needed for a few nights!

10/10 Excellent

carrie, Saint Paul, Minnesota

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Quaint room in heart of Walled City
This room was the perfect size. I like a small, quaint, simple room though. There are no bells and whistles besides a free breakfast. There is a TV but who watches TV on a vacation? It is right in the walled city, but not right in middle of the noisiest nightlife part. 2 blocks away you can find cute restaurants. 10 minute $5 cab ride to airport

8/10 Good

jessica, Boston

Liked: Staff & service
Overall good stay. Staff was friendly and free breakfast is included. Rooms were basic, but clean. Location was close to many things, but a few blocks from some of the nicer streets. Recommend Kilo on the block for a great dinner (pricier side)!

6/10 Okay

George, Houston

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Good price and location, but impossible to rest
Overall, the attention was great. If you want to rest, don't stay here. There is excessive noise, mostly coming from inside the hotel that is controllable but they don't attempt to fix. Loud door bell (imagine hearing that all night long. Why not a light that only the receptionist sees), drunks coming in, reggaeton blaring next door and front desk doing nothing about it, kitchen slamming dishes waking up ever guest at 7 and not apologizing.

6/10 Okay

Juan

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Good Value with Great Central Location
Great central location right in the heart of old town Cartagena. Fairly basic accommodations but clean and has what you need. Air conditioning is only in each individual guest room; the common areas can be hot but are shaded. Front desk speaks English. Adequate fruit and eggs with bread breakfast. Satisfied with this place and think it provided good value.

2/10 Terrible

Verified traveller

Disliked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Bad experience
We were offered the room behind the reception area. No privacy at all. It probably used to be their office. We declined to stay there. The only option was offered a very small space( I would not call it a room) with a bed for one person. Quality of breakfast just joke. Stuff- completely confused, no help at all. Minibar had an open bottle of wine. I am not sure if the room was cleaned, and checked. I would never recommended that place anyone. So many other options that pleasant.

6/10 Okay

Dave, Huntsville, AL

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Acceptable, but Tiny
I think this is probably true of most hotels in the Old City, but the room was incredibly tiny--there wasn't even enough room for a chair, so the bed was the only place to sit. Cartagena is very hot and humid, but the window in the bathroom is open air--a kind of lattice frame, but no glass, allowing the outside air to come in--If you wanted the room to be cool, you had to keep the bathroom door closed. This open window resulted in a constant battle with ants. The staff, however, was extremely friendly and ready to help in any way they could.

8/10 Good

Dave, Huntsville, AL

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Room comfort
Comfortable, no frills hotel in a good location
The rooms are quite small, but I had friends in another hotel in the old city and they said the same about theirs. Because it is so old, space is very limited--if you want a larger room, probably should opt for Bocagrande. The reason I gave it a 2 for room comfort is that there's not even enough room for a chair in this room. The location is good--close to a lot of things--and the staff was as helpful and courteous as they could possibly be. The construction is rather old--the place hasn't been remodeled in awhile, but there's nothing particularly wrong with it. Just be willing to tell the many street vendors, "No, gracias"--they will constantly bug you to buy stuff, and the initial price they quote is usually about double what they will really accept.

6/10 Okay

Lindsey , toronto

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Room comfort
Good location but would not go back
The hotel was okay for the price but the Air Conditoner we so noisy that we couldn't sleep. We had to turn it off because of the noise but then the room was too hot. The bed was not that comfortable and the pillows were not comfortable. The staff were nice and the breakfast was good.

10/10 Excellent

George

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
I would book it again.
Excellent

10/10 Excellent

Katia , Salt lake city

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, room comfort
Good location, comfortable, great staff
This hotel was lovely and with the kindest staff--quiet and clean, not exactly spacious but enjoyable (like most boutique hotels).

8/10 Good

mati

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Just what we needed
My wife and I stayed in this hotel 2 nights in may, location was excellent we walked everywhere within the walled city and a short taxi ride to the airport. The staff was very helpful and polite they gave us a map upon arrival and told us the main tourist destinations. Our room was small, just a bed a cooler a small closet a desk and the bathroom, but very clean, free wifi worked better in the lobby area than in the rooms. The hotel does not have any other amenities but if you are not looking to stay in the room all day it will be perfect for you. They also served a yummy breakfast (eggs made to order, fresh fruit, juice and coffee)

4/10 Poor

seaNYC

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Doesn't quite reach "You get what you paid for" status
We were looking for a hotel in Cartagena's city center and this Hotel Portal de San Diego is ideally located. Originally we were going to pay up and stay at the Sofitel but were swayed by fairly good reviews and a much better price point (~$80). In hindsight we should have booked at Sofitel. San Diego has about 10-12 rooms, half of which are either behind the hotel lobby desk or in front of the dining area on the main floor. We stayed in the room directly behind the front desk. We could hear them and vice versa. Also, cleanliness was an issue: we found what looked to be bloodstains on the sheets after checking in. Aside from the good location, the staff was very friendly and helpful. In conclusion, I wouldn't recommend this hotel but if you are going to book, insist on an upper level room.

10/10 Excellent

melina, argentina

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
very nice
Great value for money Very charming, clean and perfectly located

8/10 Good

Bill, Williamsburg, VA, USA

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Nice Place, Nice People
I was at Hotel Portal de San Diego for four nights on a business trip in October 2012. My room was on the 3rd floor. It was pretty basic but attractive and comfortable. Everything was very clean and the staff was friendly and helpful to me. The hotel is beautifully decorated inside. It is well-located in the historic center, only a few blocks from The Hard Rock Cafe and many shops and restaurants are nearby. A great hot al a carte breakfast was served and there was a stocked refrigerator ($1.00 beer) in the room. A few downside items were no desk or chair and a weak and unusable Wi-Fi signal (but a computer in the lobby). There was an air conditioning unit in the room but the very clean and modern bath was open to the weather through a concrete grille in the wall. That seemed strange to me. The lobby and public rooms were also open to the weather and were fairly warm. But I really liked the hotel, staf, and location and would definitely stay there again.

10/10 Excellent

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Everything was as good as you could ask for.
Small, quaint and beautiful hotel. An ideal location. Wonderful staff and service. Wonderful breakfasts. Very attentive and caring staff.

6/10 Okay

Danguole, Reno, NV

Liked: Staff & service
Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Save some money and look elsewhere.
I traveled to Colombia and stayed in hostels most of the way, but with Cartagena being my last stop, I wanted to treat myself to a real hotel, and I kind of wish I would've just gotten a private room in a hostel. The good about Portal de San Diego: -The location is excellent: right in the heart of the walled city/historic center of Cartagena. There are bars, grocery stores and restaurants just yards away, too. -The staff are friendly and helpful. -I only ate breakfast here once, and it was good. -It's safe; you get buzzed into the building. The bad: -Terrible showers, considering the price. Poor water pressure, and lack of hot water at times. The temperature was also difficult to control. -Not spotlessly clean; my sheets and pillows had an odd smell the first night, until they were changed I suppose. There were also a couple small stains on my sheet that first night. -The wireless internet was fickle and would come off and on... Annoying. -The TV in the room is useless; basically static on all channels. I don't watch TV at all when traveling, but it bothers me that I probably paid for something unusable. -It's not very quiet; I had earplugs, so I slept fine, but without them I'd imagine it'd be difficult to get a good night's sleep. In sum, stay somewhere else and save some money. I stayed in cleaner hostels with better showers and more reliable internet for a fraction of the price.

10/10 Excellent

Ieda, São Paulo, Brazil

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Very good value for money in the historical center of Cartagena
Hotel Portal de San Diego is extremely well located, right in the heart of the historical town of Cartagena, two blocks away from Plaza de los Coches and in walking distance to main attractions in the old town. The staff is very lovely. The juices and fruits served at breakfast were so tasteful! It is a simple hotel, but with a pleasant athmosphere. It was definitely very good value for money, specially when you don´t want to spend much on accomodation. I certainly recommend this hotel!

10/10 Excellent

Catherine

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Mi estadía fue corta (2 días) pero muy agradable. El personal es amable y colaborador. Desde el check-in, Jessica de la recepción, me ayudó a guardar mi equipaje porque llegué horas antes de la entrega de la habitación. Asimismo el joven del turno de la noche, guardó mi equipaje nuevamente porque mi vuelo salía tarde. La ubicación del hotel es recomendada, en pleno centro histórico, cercano a varias tiendas donde se consigue de todo: comida, bebidas, ropa, hasta alquiler de bicicletas y toures (justo al frente). La habitación es me gustó, la pedí interna y así me la dieron; es algo pequeña pero era justo lo que necesitaba. La cama es bastante cómoda, tenía nevera y tv muy bueno (incluía Netflix, me gustó mucho). El aseo del cuarto, del baño (incluye elementos de tocador) y del hotel en general es excelente. El desayuno estaba incluido en la tarifa y lo disfruté mucho: te sirven porción de fruta, junto con jugo de fruta (diferente cada día), bebida caliente, canasta de pan fresco y estaba delicioso porque lo sirven semi-tostado y lo acompañan con mantequilla y mermelada riquísima. Como plato fuerte ofrecen varias opciones de preparación de huevos y te los preparan al instante. Adicionalmente ofrecen pancakes. Recomendación: sugiero reemplazar la miel común por miel Maple. En conclusión, disfruté bastante mi estadía; lo recomiendo y volvería.
Stayed 2 nights in Jan 2018

10/10 Excellent

Wesley

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Ótimo Hotel
Ótimo hotel, perfeita localização. Jessica e Kevin, os recepcionistas são super gentis e dispostos a ajudar, assim como o resto da equipe. Estão de Parabéns. Certamente retornaremos.
Stayed 4 nights in Dec 2017

6/10 Okay

Ieda M.

Liked: Staff & service
Stayed 5 nights in Dec 2017

8/10 Good

Bianca Viana

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
O ar condicionado era muito bom, quartos espaçosos, mas simples. A cama era grande, mas com uma separação no meio. A localização era boa, perto de restaurantes, lojas e mercados e de fácil acesso aos pontos turísticos. Bom para uma ou duas noites.
Stayed 1 night in Dec 2017

8/10 Good

Fernanda

Liked: Staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2017

8/10 Good

Maria

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities
Stayed 3 nights in Nov 2017

10/10 Excellent

Thiago

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Pessoal muito atencioso e simpático
Adoramos tudo!!!
Stayed 8 nights in Oct 2017

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Excelene atendimento, acomodações a melhorar
O melhor atendimento de todos os hotéis que nos hospedanos na Colômbia (total de 5). Destaque especial para a recepcionista Jessica, super prestativa, educada e solícita. A área comum é super aconchegante, com instalações novas. Contudo, os quartos precisam de reformas urgentes. O primeiro quarto teve vazamento do ar condicionado e inundou nossas roupas e acessórios quando acordamos, além de um vazamento enorme no banheiro, que se estendeu para o quarto. No dia seguinte fomos acomodados em outro quarto, contudo, também apresentava vazamento (em proporção bem menor).
Stayed 3 nights in Oct 2017

10/10 Excellent

MARIA ALICE

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Simplicidade e simpatia
Atendimento muito simpático e atencioso da Jessica. O hotel é simples, mas atendeu bem. O local é ótimo, bem no Centro de Cartagena. O único porém é ter que subir 3 andares com malas.
Stayed 3 nights in Sep 2017

4/10 Poor

Anderson

Disliked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Quando fazemos a reserva de um hotel esperamos que seja um hotel e não um hostel, instalações péssimas, pequenas e improvisadas, era notável que o banheiro do quarto ao lado estava dentro da nossa acomodação. O quarto apresentava mofo próximo ao ar condicionado e durante a noite encontramos uma lagartixa. Os funcionários foram super gentis e no dia seguinte da chegada providenciaram outra acomodação, porém, era até melhor, mas nada comparada com as fotos anunciadas nos sites de vendas.
Stayed 5 nights in Sep 2017

8/10 Good

MARCELO

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Stayed 1 night in Jun 2017

6/10 Okay

Maria Helena

Liked: Cleanliness
Disliked: Room comfort

8/10 Good

Gustavo

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities
Muito bom custo-benefício
Hotel muito bem localizado e funcionários muito simpáticos. Quarto bem novinho, porém MUITO pequeno. Pontos negativos foram não ter elevador e a televisão que não funcionava direito.

6/10 Okay

THIAGO

Liked: Cleanliness, room comfort
O atendimento e acomodação foi muito bom na nossa primeira passagem pelo hotel, mas na segunda tivemos problemas, devido ao cheiro de mofo. Contudo, isso não prejudicou a viagem. Receptividade muito boa, todos os funcionários foram muito prestativos.

8/10 Good

Jorge D

Liked: Cleanliness
Muy tranquilo
A pesar de estar en el mismo Centro Historico, es muy tranquilo. Podrian habilitar un business center para poder trabajar.

4/10 Poor

Jean Michel

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Disliked: Property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Bien placé mais cher pour des chambres minuscules
Cher pour des chambres minuscules !

10/10 Excellent

andres, san juan argentina

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Hermoso hotel está hubicado en el centro
Excelente experiencia . Cartagena es un lugar hernoso la cuidad amurallada es impresionante

10/10 Excellent

Higo

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Buena ubicación
Estuvo bien, dentro de las expectativas por el precio.

8/10 Good

Adriana, Montevideo, Uruguay

Liked: Cleanliness, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
El hotel está muy bien ubicado. Recomiendo hospedarse en la ciudad amurallada, porque el calor es impresionante y conviene darse un respiro con el aire acondicionado entre las 13 y 15 de la tarde. Al estar dentro de la ciudad amurallada, es fácil de retornar y luego salir nuevamente a recorrer la hermosa Cartagena de Indias.

8/10 Good

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort
Es un hotel pequeño, pero con las comodidades necesarias.

6/10 Okay

Verified traveller

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service
Quarto muito apertado. Banheiro com vazamento no box. Apenas escadas, sem acessibilidade. No mais é recomendável.

6/10 Okay

Marlon, Belo Horizonte

Disliked: Cleanliness, room comfort
Vale pelo preço e localização apenas
Ruim. Quarto sem janelas, cheiro muito forte de mofo e ainda passei pela inacreditável situação de tentarem entrar no meu quarto porque o staff do hotel não tinha certeza se haviam hóspedes lá. Surreal, não voltaria.

8/10 Good

Amanda

Liked: Cleanliness, staff & service, property conditions & facilities, room comfort

10/10 Excellent

Angelica, Peru

Liked: Staff & service
Buen hotel y buen personal!
El desayuno estuvo muy bien y el personal el mas amable de Colombia