Avoid this place at all costs. I rarely write reviews but I have to warn people about this place. When I got there, I drank from the "purified" potable water they put in the rooms - terrible idea. I woke up in the middle of the night in excruciating pain, nauseous, fever, vomiting every 10 minutes. Had an absolutely brutal first 2-3 days because of that food poisoning.
The staff was completely unhelpful - I asked their 24/7 digital concierge if they could bring me some water because I couldn't get out of bed. They declined, just offering that I could spend $120 for some therapeutic healing ritual. I continued begging them, and eventually they said they could bring a bottle of water I could purchase (the regular drinkable water which is normally free for everyone, that I was asking for, was literally like 50 feet from my door, but nope, gotta gouge the sick person). Even then it took them 3 hours, by which time I had already crawled (literally, it took like 45 minutes) down the street to the pharmacy to get water.
After I recovered, it was still awful. Multiple nights at ~10pm someone would start this insanely loud yardwork, and I had to come out and shout over it to ask them to stop. On what planet is that a reasonable thing to do at a hotel at 10pm?? On weeknights also. And it wasn't some one-off contractor, the people clearly worked with the hotel regularly.
I'd been traveling around central america for about a year, and this was far and away the worst experience.
Response from the property
Dear Mr. Andrew Zotti,
Thank you for taking the time to share your feedback with us. We are truly sorry to learn about your experience and sincerely appreciate the opportunity to better understand what occurred.
After carefully reviewing your comments, we initiated an internal investigation. However, we were unable to identify any reports related to the issues you described during your stay. Our Guest Services team found no record of these incidents, and we also reviewed our WhatsApp communications and the live chat on our website, but we were unable to locate the conversation you mentioned having with our Concierge team.
In an effort to further investigate the matter, we also attempted to contact you directly; however, we did not receive a response.
Regarding the drinking water, we take this matter very seriously. As part of our investigation, we consulted with the hotel's physician, who advised that the symptoms you described are more commonly associated with foodborne illnesses than with drinking water. The physician also explained that, when evaluating these types of cases, it is important to consider all food and beverages consumed during the 48 hours prior to the onset of symptoms to help identify a possible source.
In addition, we contacted Ecofiltro, the company that supplies the water filtration systems used throughout our hotel. They provided us with technical information regarding the performance and effectiveness of their filtration systems, supported by laboratory testing and recognized certifications. They also provided the results of the monthly water quality tests performed on our drinking water, which we would be pleased to share with you.
Regarding the noise you mentioned, we also conducted a thorough review with our Maintenance, Landscaping, and Security teams, including a review of our security camera footage. We confirmed that no gardening staff were working during the afternoon or evening, and that no construction or hotel maintenance activities took place in the area of your room during your stay.
While we are unable to determine the exact source of the noise you experienced, it may have originated from neighboring properties, as private residences surround part of the hotel. Nevertheless, we sincerely regret that this affected your rest and appreciate you bringing it to our attention.
We hope to hear from you so that we may further clarify the situation.
We sincerely appreciate your cooperation and would be grateful for any additional information you may be able to provide us atencionalcliente@portahotels.com
Warm Regards,
Tripadvisor· 2 months ago
Google· 3 months ago
Summary for your reference