El Velero Hotel

Pros - it's in the Lonely Planet so you don't have to think about risking anywhere else in town. It's functional and the rooms are clean. It's very cheap. Cons - the rooms on the ground floor are very dark in terms of natural light. Our room (109) was in urgent need of some TLC (crumbling paint work, damp, chipped tiles) The a/c unit was so loud you couldn't use it during the night, the ceiling fan was very loud and I spent the night in constant fear that it was going to fall off of the ceiling and decapitate me whilst I tried to sleep. There were no sheets on the bed and you could feel every spring in the mattress. External window didn't lock and not sure the room door did either. No towels provided. Overall - I wouldn't recommend this hotel to friends and wouldn't visit again. See below. Top tip - Generally it really isn't worth staying in Tolu unless you absolutely have to. The place is dirty, run down and was like a ghost town when we visited. Maybe we were just off season but the filthy beaches made even going for a quiet swim unappealing. If you need to get a morning boat to the Islas San Bernardo then you may well need to stay here. I generally feel like the 15 hours that I spent in this town were 15 hours of my life wasted. In fairness, both of our guidebooks did elude to there being nothing much to see here but Lonely Planet in particular made the place sound much more appealing than it actually is, a sentiment that reflects both the town and this hotel.