Hotel Y Cabañas Mar De Ensueño

“a sweet place with heart”

We spent 4 nights here. Yes, there some things that need repair/adjusting: -hot water can be scalding, -bathroom door leaned into floor -drainage in shower/bath is slow, -faucets in bathroom sink are too close to counter...... but the extra mile that the staff takes more than makes up for that. ... more

We spent 4 nights here. Yes, there some things that need repair/adjusting: -hot water can be scalding, -bathroom door leaned into floor -drainage in shower/bath is slow, -faucets in bathroom sink are too close to counter...... but the extra mile that the staff takes more than makes up for that. We aren't fluent in Spanish. They phoned the airline on our behalf, confirmed our flight and printed out our boarding passes.They told us where the farmers'stalls are nearby.... This place has a very laid back, peaceful vibe. We were the only nonlatinos there, it was mostly Chilean families and some Argentinians.

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“Great View of Beach & Ocean”

You have basically two options for a hotel in La Serena. You can either opt to be close to the beach in which case you pick a hotel on Avenida Del Mar which runs right beside it or you can stay in the central area with easy access to shops and restaurants. There is a dead zone in between which ... more

You have basically two options for a hotel in La Serena. You can either opt to be close to the beach in which case you pick a hotel on Avenida Del Mar which runs right beside it or you can stay in the central area with easy access to shops and restaurants. There is a dead zone in between which takes about thirty minutes to walk. We opted for the former as my wife loves the sounds of the waves. We had a terrific view of the beach and the ocean from our room. The hotel is set back some distance from the road so you aren’t bothered by the traffic. The room was fine. There is a pleasant grassy area outside the hotel and a variety of palm trees for shade plus a swimming pool – good for lounging around for a day or so. The breakfast offerings were OK but the hotel is in severe need of a new toaster. It took three goes to get the toast done properly. The staff should also reconfigure how the drinks are set up. Tea, coffee and orange juice are all dispensed out of one location created a real logjam on occasion. It would make much more sense to serve the orange juice elsewhere. Some of the reception staff spoke some English so we had no problems communicating. Overall, we had a very pleasant stay.

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“Great Family Hotel”

We were 4 adults and one 18 month old baby visiting family in the region. This is the perfect place for a family. It has a big lawn to roam on with a heated pool. It also has toys, bikes, and anything you would need for tooling around LA Serena. The ocean is an easy walk across the street and ... more

We were 4 adults and one 18 month old baby visiting family in the region. This is the perfect place for a family. It has a big lawn to roam on with a heated pool. It also has toys, bikes, and anything you would need for tooling around LA Serena. The ocean is an easy walk across the street and can be viewed from your room,or the lawn. The boardwalk is full of little kiosks. The breakfast was a bit of a zoo as it was Easter weekend, but the staff valiantly kept platters going if you could wait 5 minutes. Eggs are freshly scrambled in Chile, not the rubber ones in the USA. The rooms were clean and beds were wonderful.This would be a 3 star hotel in the USA. We were on the ground floor, which gave us the advantage of being able to walk out sliding doors directly to the lawn. The downer are the open drains in the bathrooms, which can smell bad as you are getting not only what goes down in your room, but whatever comes from the second floor as well. The restaurant attached to the hotel is great with most dishes delicious. However, the gnocchi need some work.Very mushy with a dense sauce. Overall a delightful place and definitely for families wanting the full Chilean experience.

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“Did not expect much”

The pool area was okay— nice green (it is real!) grass, and the pool warm. The staff was helpful in finding us transportation for transfer to the airport. The breakfast had just about everything we needed. We were just at the end of high season, and we seemed the only tourists there when we arr... more

The pool area was okay— nice green (it is real!) grass, and the pool warm. The staff was helpful in finding us transportation for transfer to the airport. The breakfast had just about everything we needed. We were just at the end of high season, and we seemed the only tourists there when we arrived at breakfast. The restaurant attached to the hotel— which seemed recommended, was closed the day we were there. It was a little bit of a pain to travel into town. We used Uber, however and that seemed to work fine. We had only the evening, and the town seemed interesting to have spent more time. In front of hotel is a gray sand beach that stretches for miles. And when the guidebook says it lacks charm, it is right. Cement block high rises line the road on the beach... not my cup of tea. Yet we were able to put our toes into the Pacific Ocean. Bottom line, if you really need to be on the beach (or at least, across a busy road,) and you are willing to put up with stained carpeting, and weary bedding, it is just barely ok. You do hear the waves at night— even over the sound of the traffic.

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