Hotel El Tope

When we reached the hotel, we were upgraded to a suite with a balcony which turned out to have a view over the pool. The room was as good as we could've hoped for with a massive bed and the cleaning service was excellent. The food was plentiful at braekfast and dinner times (we went half-board) although some of it was a bit bland, but that doesn't detract from what was available. A big thank you to Santiago, Angie and the rest of the staff in both the dining room and bar for their service. The hotel is half-way up the hill so their is a bit of a climb after visiting the "beach" area, which consisted of about 50 metres of black sand. The walk along the promenade was lovely as were the restaurants and bars, then there was the walk back to the hotel which was a bit of a trek for my partner who has COPD. we found a lovely tapas bar half-way up the hill which was a great rest stop. There were a number of German tourists in the hotel who were very nice and a bit more chatty that the UK ones. We also witnessed their carnival parade which was brilliant and 10/10 for the enthusiasm of everyone who participated in the parade. All in all, it was a lovely week in a lovely hotel. Hopefully we will be able to return in the near future

My wife and I had stayed at the El Tope a number of years ago and felt it was time to go back. Disappointingly the hotel did not meet our expectations. I booked a Superior Corner Room almost a year in advance. I requested a specific location by email and this was confirmed by the hotel. When we arrived the room we expected was not available. We were told by a very unhelpful receptionist that rooms are only subject to availability - despite my confirmation email from the hotel. One of the other receptionists was more understanding and we were told that the room we wanted may be available the next day. We were also told that one of the reasons that our chosen room was not available was that the hotel has an agreement with a German Travel Agency for the best rooms. You can draw your own conclusions as to who this hotel prefers to cater for based on this and my further comments. The hotel advertises Air-conditioning on its own website and on other booking sites. However, this is false advertising as it is not turned on in the winter and even in the summer months it is only on for certain times of the day. My wife and I arrived just after the Calima (host sandy winds from the Sahara) so the temperatures were up in the high 20's and there was still a lot of sand about. Opening a bedroom window doesn't really help and is not good for those with respiratory problems or sensitive to noise. The food in the restaurant is definitely geared towards central European guests. The English speaking TV channels (of which there are only about 3) were not working. Despite promises, this was never fixed. German channels were working perfectly. Despite booking a Superior room, you still have to pay for the use of a safe and there are no coffee/tea making facilities - unless you pay extra. There was no bath; only a shower. No toiletries; just wall mounted bottles. The aluminium patio door was old and needs replacing as its very difficult to open. Despite an engineer trying to oil it, it was no better. The waste bins are unlined - very unhygienic. Drinking glasses were not wrapped and coffee were not cleaned adequately each day. No iron or ironing board in the room. No face tissues provided (this was a superior room). No information book in the room The standard of the superior room was in our opinion fairly basic. Overall, we felt the hotel was penny pinching, not catering for UK guests and needs a overhaul. A fancy bar does not make a good hotel. We spoke to the manager before leaving and advised him of our findings and that we were very disappointed that despite promises we were not offered another room and the TV channels were never corrected. Given the price charged there are better hotels than this in the area. We would go back, but only if the price was right and we would lower our expectations. In our view this is a 3 star hotel - not 4. Hence the 3 out of 5 score (which given the above is very reasonable). In the meantime, the hotel should immediately change its advertising of Air-conditioning to at least 'Seasonal' as currently it's just a downright lie.

The Hotel El Tope is half way between the Le Paz area and the front. There are steps down and a not too bad slope down to the front. The rooms that face the mountain with a side view of the sea have the sun in the afternoon, which is pleasant to sit and overlook the pool. The sun starts to reach the sunbeds and the pool about 9.30 ( in March). The staff are helpful and friendly. especially the dining room staff. The dining area is large and you do not feel crowded at all. The food is variety and delicious . Every night is different. The rooms are decorated nicely and have a fridge and a safe( the safe you have to rent) The bathrooms are clean and spacious.Would stay there ain.