Hotel Villa Playa Grande

This hotel provides airport transfers - that's where the positives end. Non-refundable (one-night penalty) reservations made on *********** for three non-consecutive (2+1) nights. The hotel listing didn't mention any non-standard payment policies. After booking I received a very lengthy (2 pages) message from the property outlining their payment policy: 1) advance payment is required within 48 hours of receiving the message, otherwise the reservation will be canceled, 2) credit cards incur a 5% surcharge (not mentioned in the listing) and payment must be made in advance, 3) the payment process is extremely convoluted and requires sending them personal details and screenshots via Whatsapp, 4) the alternative is to pay cash on arrival (USD only), however the guest must promptly reply to an email sent the morning of arrival (when the guest could be on a flight, not have reception, etc.), otherwise the reservation will be canceled. Since the reservation is non-refundable (on-night penalty), this very non-standard payment policy should be disclosed PRIOR to booking, not after. Airport transfers worked fairly well. They also pick up and drop off at another hotel in the area. They run every hour, so you may need to wait a while depending on your time of arrival. For transfers to the airport, you reserve the ride at the front desk. Especially if you have an early morning transfer, be aware that the ride arrives early, and you get a rude call from the front desk. The hotel is located several km from the airport. No soundproofing. There are quite a few barking dogs in the area. The rooms are very basic. The first room had a misaligned door that didn’t latch. There are no chairs or luggage racks. Poorly located power sockets (behind the bed). The safe didn’t have batteries and its door didn’t close. When I inquired at the front desk, they said a key is required and they would request one for me – if that’s the case, why don’t they provide the key at time of check-in? Acceptable bed and pillows. Amenities include a refrigerator; on day 1, two small bottles of water were provided, but they weren’t replaced on day 2. Bathroom with everything in working order. Shower with hot water and acceptable pressure. Out of three nights, the wifi worked for about 4 hours total. The rest of the time it was unusable. I had no mobile connection. At check-in they ask guests to reserve breakfast time. When I went to breakfast the next morning at the scheduled time, there was hardly anything: only a few pieces of fruit, and I was told that arepas were being cooked. The restaurants also serves other meals, and credit cards are accepted for payment without surcharge. The staff speaks no English, and some of them are rude and unpleasant. Would not stay there again.