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| ACARIGUA, VENEZUELA Name: Hotel San Carlos Address: Price: $15.50 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1997 Review: A sprinkling of inexpensive hotels located throughout the city and this is one of them. Okay hotel located a short distance from the bus terminal by taxi ($2 -fair price!) from the downtown area. Rooms are simple, fairly clean, fairly spacious and come with air conditioning and that’s about it. Not too bad as far as budget hotels go. Friendly staff. Can be recommended. ADAMANTINA, BRAZIL Name: Villaverde Hotel Address: av Rio Bueno Price: $18 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1999 Review: Okay hotel located a short distance from the bus terminal by taxi ($3.50 - too high! - can easily be walked within 15 minutes) and is on the main shopping street in the downtown area. Rooms are simple, adequately sized, spotless and come with color tv and air conditioning. Oh, yes! Since the name of the hotel is “Villaverde” (“Greenvilla” in Portuguese) all of the rooms are, of course, done in green (green walls, green carpet, green lamp, etc). A little sickening to look at after awhile. Helpful staff. Recommended! Price includes breakfast. AGUAS DA PRATA, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Aguas da Prata Address: av. Washington Luis 9 Price: $35 Rating: Honorable Mention Reviewed: 1996 Review: Several charming hotels in this small resort town of 7,000 and this is one of them. Very pleasant and quaint hotel located a few short blocks to the bus terminal and is in the center of town. Rooms are fairly clean (carpet could be cleaner), fairly spacious and come with color tv and remote control, fan and a frigo bar. The above price includes three meals a day (the usual Brazilian breakfast plus lunch and dinner). If you want a room with just the usual breakfast (minus the lunch and dinner) expect to pay $20 per night. Amenities include a mini playground for the kids. Obliging and friendly staff. Very economical and highly recommended! Bonus: The hotel has a lovely and spacious porch/terrace in which to to sit and people watch. Drawback:There was no shower mat in the shower which makes for a safety hazard. Also, it is my recommendation to take the room price that does not include lunch and dinner because the food is terribly bland and tasteless. There are other suitable restaurants in town where you could have your noon and evening meal. Warning: The hotel staff are heavy sleepers. If you have to leave the hotel at around 6 a.m. (in order to catch a bus, for example) you may encounter problems. You can enter the lobby from your hotel room but since the lobby doors are securely locked you may have trouble leaving the premises. My only suggestion would be to make as much noise in the lobby as possible (as absurd as that sounds). Eventually, within about 10 one of the staff members will wake up (from all of the noise you created) to unlock the doors and let you out. AGUAS DE SANTA BARBARA, BRAZIL Name: Estancia Rio Pardo Hotel Address: av Santa Barbara 19 Price: $31.50 Rating: Honorable Mention Reviewed: 1996 Review: Several Hotels in this small and peaceful resort town of 6,000. Excellent three star hotel (the second best) conveniently located a block from the bus terminal and is in the center of town. Rooms are clean, spacious and come with color tv, fan and a well-stocked frigo bar. Amenities include a swimming pool and a wading pool for the kids. Most rooms (mine included) overlook either the beautiful countryside or the swiminning pool. Helpful and friendly staff. Highly recommended! Travel Tip: The town is very peaceful and safe to walk around in the early part of the evening provided you stay in the center. Also, the excellent restaurant in the hotel is worth trying. Bonus: The hotel will give you a lift to the bus terminal in their private courtesy van even though it’s located only a short block away. AGUAS DE SAO PEDRO, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Aguas de Sao Pedro Address: Price: $18 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1993 Review: Good Hotel located within walking distance from the very small bus terminal and is on the main avenue where most of the other hotels and handicraft stores are. Rooms are simple, fairly clean, (except for the carpet), spacious and a balcony overlooking the main avenue. Perhaps it’s a bit overpriced for what you get but this is one of the least expensive hotels in this expensive resort town. Friendly. Recommended! Price includes breakfast. AGUDOS, BRAZIL Name: Agudos Palace Hotel Address: av Benedito Otoni 188 Price: $16.50 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1999 Review: Very good and quaint hotel located four blocks from the bus terminal one direction, four blocks from the downtown area in the other direction and is situated across from a lovely park (small handicraft fair on Sunday). Rooms are fairly spacious, fairly clean (carpet isn’t) and come with color tv and a frigo bar. The hotel has a mediocre restaurant (“nothing to write home about”). Very friendly and helpful staff. Recommended. Price includes breakfast. Drawback: In my particular room the window was broken which let the mosquitoes in so I had a few bites by the time morning came. There’s this one type of mosquito in particular that gives out an annoying buzzing sound which kept me up most of the night. ALAGOINHAS, BRAZIL Name: Pousada Frei Leao Address: Price: $9.50 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1994 Review: Hotel located a good distance from the bus terminal by taxi ($6) and within walking distance from the downtown area. Rooms are spacious but shabby with dirty, ugly walls to look at. Also, the window is partly broken which means an open invitiation to mosquitoes. Barely clean and barely recommended. Price includes breakfast. Footnote: It has been my experience when reviewing any hotels in 1994 that things have gotten relatively more expensive than the previous years when traveling to this country. An explanation is that this year Brazil has introduced a new currency which is the Brazilian Real which is almost on par with the U.S. dollar. The Real is good for the Brazilian economy. Unfortunately, it makes things more expensive for the tourist. In previous years when Brazil was using the Brazilian Cruziero $6 would be outrageous for cab fare. However, this year it seems to be the average cab fare within the city (even a relatively short distance). Also, another thing to remember is that most cabs in this country don’t have meters. If you want to go from the bus terminal to the downtown area (which is usually not far), cab drivers will quote a flat rate of 5 Reais ($6). Since you (the traveler) may have luggage and you (the traveler) may not speak Portuguese there is very little you can do about the situation except pay the man. Always remember to inquire about the fare before stepping into a cab because otherwise you’ll be gyped at the end of your journey. ALCOBACA, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Sul Americano Address: av Atlantica 1111 (praia de Alcobaca) Price: $18 Rating: Honorable Mention Reviewed: 1994 Review: Very good hotel located a few short blocks from the bus terminal, is in the center of town and is situated right across from the beach. Rooms are spotless, very spacious (two rooms) and comes with a frigo bar (empty) and a ceiling fan. The grounds leading to the room are very picturesque. Amenities include a swimming pool. Good value since the above price is for a “chalet” type of accommodation. At night you can hear the waves coming up to shore. This hotel is definitely recommended. Travel Tip: On the beach you will find many excellent seafood restaurants. . ALEGRETE, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Riograndense Address: Price: $11 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1996 Review: Very few hotels to choose from in this city of 79,000. Adequate hotel conveniently located a couple of blocks from the bus terminal and a few short blocks from the downtown area. Rooms are clean, small and come with a sink. The bathroom (doesn’t work properly) is located down the hall. Run by two friendly ladies. Can be recommended! Price does not include breakfast. Drawback: An occasional spider or two. ALFENAS, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Dourado Address: rua Manoel Pedro Rodrigues 72 Price: $20 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1996 Review: Good and adequate two star hotel located a few short blocks from the bus terminal by taxi ($5 - much too high!) and a block from the downtown area. Rooms are clean, fairly spacious and come with air conditioning. Can be recommended! Price includes breakfast. ANA RECH, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Bela Vista Parque Address: av Rio Branco 1965 Price: $59 Rating: Honorable Mention Reviewed: 1998 Review: Ana Rech seems to be a wealthy town with some pretty posh and ritzy looking homes (unusual for Brazil). Ana Rech is a small town located a mere 12 kms. from Caxias do Sul. There’s not much to the town. Just a few upscale homes and a small main street with a few stores, a couple of restaurants, a bakery and a post office. The hotel (the only one in town) is a little difficult to locate and you may have to ask the locals for directions as it’s hidden away off the main street in a secluded area. The hotel is situated on sprawling grounds that is diligently attended to by a number of gardeners. The rooms are fairly spacious, spotless and come with color tv and a frigo bar. The price increases significantly if you want a room with a balcony with any kind of a view. The hotel staff is a little quirky. The hotel can be recommended as a good place to stay in spite of a desk clerk with a attitude problem. Footnote: Maybe Mr. Attitude had a change of heart for the nasty way he treated me when I first checked in. Upon checking out he knocked $11 off from the posted room rate. However, he still gets demerit points for his attitude in my book. ANCHIETA, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Anchieta Address: r. dq. de Caxias Price: $24 Rating: Honorable Mention Reviewed: 1994 Review: Simple but very pleasant hotel located a couple of blocks from the bus terminal, is in the center of town and across from the beach. Rooms are simple, fairly spacious and come with a fan and small writing desk. The wallpaper and bedspread are especially colorful (nice change of pace). Friendly and helpful staff. Very quaint hotel and very much recommended. Price includes breakfast. ANCUD, CHILE Name: Hotel Lydia Address: Price: $15.50 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1990 Review: The rooms in the hotel were adequate but nothing special. Certainly not worth the price I paid for it. ANDRADINA, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Social Address: Price: $8.50 Rating: Worst Reviewed: 1995 Review: Several cheap hotels within walking distance from the bus terminal and this is one of them. Dumpy Hotel with extremely basic and shabby looking rooms which are, surprisingly, fairly clean. Run by a family. However, this hotel is only for those who are financially desperate and can’t afford to stay anywhere else. There is a sink in the room and the bathroom is located down the hall. This hotel is best avoided. Drawback: Bug, insects. ANGOL, CHILE Name: Hotel Olimpia Address: Price: $9 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1990 Review: Adequate hotel located across from the Plaza de Armas. The hotel was nothing special. ANGRA DOS REIS, BRAZIL Name: Palace Hotel Address: Price: $36.50 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1992 Review: Good two star hotel located a short distance from the bus terminal by taxi ($2) and is located in the center (although somewhat seedy) part of town. Rooms are clean and come with color tv, air conditioning and a poorly stocked frigo bar. Recommended. Price includes breakfast. Drawback: Beware of any enormous bugs that may come up through the bathroom plumbing. ANTONINA, BRAZIL Name: Regency Capela Antonina Address: Price: $48 Rating: Honorable Mention Reviewed: 1992 Review: Good moderately priced two star hotel located in the center of town and within a short distance from the bus terminal by taxi ($2.50). Rooms are comfortable, clean and come with color tv, frigo bar and air conditioning. Helpful hotel staff. Recommended. Price includes breakfast. APARECIDA, BRAZIL Name: Grande Hotel Presidente Wenceslau Address: Price: $15 Rating: Honorable Mention Reviewed: 1998 Review: There must be at least 100 hotels ranging from quite good to quite bad in this city of 33,000 so choose wisely. All, however, are quite inexpensive. Aparecida is quite a religious tourist destination with many, many souvenir shops selling various religious items at inexpensive prices. I was in awe when I first came to this city as there were so many unique hotels within a very close proximity to one another and I had trouble making up my mind. Finally, I settled on this “gem” of a hotel located a short distance from the bus terminal by taxi ($6 - too high! - he took the long way around so I wouldn’t know what a short distance it was; can easily be walked) and is right in the heart of the very touristy downtown area. Rooms are clean, spacious and come with color tv and remote control and a ceiling fan. Most rooms (mine included) have a balcony with an aerial view of the city and a beautiful church. The hotel is an excellent value and highly recommended. Price includes breakfast. APARTADEROS, VENEZUELA Name: Hotel Parque Turistico Address: Price: $33.50 Rating: Best Reviewed: 1997 Review: Approximately an hour’s ride from the bus terminal in Merida by por puesto (shared van costing $1.50), you’ll find yourself in this small somewhat touristy town of 2,000. There’s not much to this town except a couple of handicraft stores, three hotels and this excellent hotel. This hotel would probably be the only reason for wanting to come to this town. Very good hotel (the best that this town has to offer) located almost directly across from where the por puestos stop. The grounds that the hotel sits on are very sprawling and picturesque. Rooms are very spacious, comfortable and come with color tv. You don’t really need air conditioning here because you get the cool mountain air. Some of the rooms (mine included) have a balcony overlooking a large pond with ducks floating around in it. The hotel also has a restaurant. It’s a bit pricey but the food is scrumptious. Some English spoken at the reception desk and even in the restaurant (which is unusual for any South American restaurant whether it’s upscale or not). This is definitely an upscale hotel offering excellent value. Highly Recommended! APUCARANA, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Kosmos Address: Price: $17 Rating: Mediocre Reviewed: 1993 Review: In this somewhat poor city of 95,000 there are only 2 or 3 adequate hotels and this is one of them. Good hotel located right around the corner from the bus terminal and right in the heart of the downtown area. Rooms are clean, fairly spacious and come with black and white tv and a well-stocked frigo bar. Recommended. Price includes better than average breakfast. AQUIDAUANA, BRAZIL Name: Hotel Fluminense Address: Price: $6.50 Rating: Worst Reviewed: 1995 Review: Cheap hotel located several blocks from the bus terminal (maybe a good 25 minute walk) and is in the immediate downtown area. Rooms are extremely basic, dowdy looking but, surprisingly, fairly clean and come with a fan (doesn’t work). The bathroom is located down the hall (but the toilet has no seat to sit on). For twice the price you can get a room with your private bathroom in it. This hotel is definitely only for those travelers who are financially hard up and can’t afford to stay in any place decent. Best avoided! Drawback: Spiders |
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