Great Place If Only They Weren't Stingy With Internet
Written: Aug 04 '08
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great staff, location, breakfast
Cons: Stupid one hour internet codes and expensive minimart
The Bottom Line: If you happen to be in Concepcion, this is a great place to stay. Probably the best in the area.
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| Darkmistress's Full Review: Express Concepcion |
After foiling the attempt of our former employer to have us arrested for over staying our visas in Chile, a friend of ours took us to the Holiday Inn Express in Concepcion while we tried to decide if we wanted to stay in South America. We had interviewed for jobs and were awaiting answers on those as well, so we ended up staying at the hotel for a week. By and large it was our most stress free and relaxing time in Concepcion. We were coming off a horrible job situation and had nearly been deported, but being at the Holiday Inn was almost like being back in the US. Except for the funky breakfast thing. And the fact that the staff spoke broken English.
Our check in was very easy. We had a native Spanish speaker and he handled a great deal of the transaction for us. From my perspective it looked exactly like it would have in the US. The desk clerk did speak quite good English, but it was easier for them to communicate in Spanish and we were too tired to care at that point.
We went up to our room alone. According to the hotel rules, no one other than guests and staff are allowed up to the rooms. If you are meeting someone, you should meet them in the lobby. They aren't wildly strict about this, but it was nice to know considering the high theft rate in Chile. The room looked exactly like every other Holiday Inn I had been in. Big bed, dressing area outside the bathroom, iron and safe in the closet. But then the noise started. Workmen were fixing something at the bottom corner of out wing. We were situated about three doors from the end of the hall and on the second floor, but thanks to the concrete construction, that power saw might as well have been in our bathroom. We called downstairs. They assured us that the work would be finished momentarily. A half and hour of momentarily later, we called again. I happened to be standing by the window (trying to figure out exactly what they were doing down there) when a member of the desk staff walked over to the workmen and had a short conversation with them. A few minutes later our hone rang. The workmen would be finished at 5 (it was about 4:30 at this point) but they would be back at it tomorrow morning at 9. Would we like another room? You bet your sweet bippy.
My husband went downstairs for the key while I packed up the stuff we had gotten into in out 35 minute stay in the room. When he came back up he said that they had given us a smoking room, but didn't think anyone had been smoking in it and it might be alright. This seemed odd to me, but having just avoided deportation, I was feeling flexible. The next room looked almost the same as the last, but did have a distinct odor. My husband went back down to the desk and said it wouldn't do and they gave him yet another room assignment. This last room was where we stayed for the rest of our week. It had a “kitchenette.” An area about two feet square that housed a little fridge, a sink, a microwave and a cupboard. It was very nice, but we did find that each morning we had to open the windows a little to let out the humidity. The air in Concepcion is so humid that the windows steam up every night and if you don't let that humidity out it runs runs down the window and makes icky pools on the floor. The big draw for me was the big bathtub. I love a good soak a little more than the average gal so I made a beeline for the bathtub. I didn't realize how large it was until I stretched out and my feet didn't touch the end. I figure the tub had to be about 5 feet long because in a normal slouch I had a couple inches toe clearance. It was delightful. I felt like I was six again. While I understand that a big bathtub is not enough of a reason to fly to Chile, I also think it's important to celebrate the little things.
Holiday Inns everywhere have a free breakfast and I like to avail myself of it. Breakfast in Chile isn't quite the same meal it is in the US. There were breads, cereal, and fruit, but there was also sliced ham and cheese, and cookies. Seriously, cookies. And they weren't bad. You will find what they call fresh cheese on the buffet too. This is just cottage cheese in a block instead of in little blobs. Everything was always well stocked and attended. They also didn't frown on you snagging a piece of fruit or a yogurt to stick in your room for later.
The location is technically between Concepcion and Talcuhano and across the street from the mall. This is an excellent spot because it's very easy to find good food at the mall and there is a grocery store there if you want to lay in some supplies. If you intend to go into town, you have options. You can risk your life renting a car. Chileans drive like there is no tomorrow. You can take a taxi, but it will cost you and the drivers can be fussy about where they will go. Three months there, I never figured out the taxi system. They seem to think they're little buses. Or you can take a bus. The buses aren't much easier to work out, I'm sorry to say, but if you walk to the other side of the mall and across the highway, you can catch a #50 bus that will take you downtown. As for wanting to get anywhere else, good luck with that.
This Holiday Inn also had a little convenience store. While this was a nice feature, they were charging highway robbery prices. You'd be far better off with cross the street to the mall and visit the Santa Isabel supermercado.
I had but one ax to grind with this hotel. Internet service. They had it, but you needed a code to get into it. You got a free hour each day as a guest, but for more they wanted you to pay. Now, here's the rub. If you asked for another free hour, they would give it to you. Your choices were: keep mooching for free hours or pay for something that you could have gotten for free. The whole thing just seemed stupid to me. I can see how they wouldn't want everybody in South America bootlegging off their signal, but why not give it to the guests for free? Give us a code that's good for all day even. Don't make us beg. It's demeaning. And it makes me swipe more stuff from the breakfast buffet. (Not really, but the thought did occur.)
This hotel was spacious and attractive. The lounge area downstairs was quite nice and there was a pool and a jacuzzi outside. I didn't test either because we were there in the winter. The ground were well kept and the staff was pleasant. Now if they could just fix that Internet thing, It would be perfect.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
Darkmistress
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Location: Concepcion, Chile
Reviews written: 484
Trusted by: 140 members
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