Hotel del Paine

Fantastic views and great views from your cabin window. A place not to be missed when visiting Patagonia. The box lunch of salmon salad is fantastic along with all the other goodies, and desserts are wonderful. We enjoyed sitting out on the benches in the evening enjoying the sunset and the wonderful views in front of us.

This was so grossly over priced for the quality of the food, service and amenities. The room was fine but not facilities for making hot drinks other than in the corridors but there were no cups to use or hot water. So you needed to walk all the way back down to the other end or go to the bar and sign for it. All evening meals from the restaurant were cold when served including morning scrambled eggs from the Baine Marie. There is no quality control on the meals as we ordered vegetarian sandwiches and the 3 came out different. Mine had lettuce, tomato mushroom capsicum and corn in a dry roll! We re ordered pasta a second night and it was definitely not the same as previously and tasted as if it were out of a packet and not edible. Drinks- cocktails were impressive to look at and generally nice. Drink service at dinner was appalling and you had to keep asking for a drink from arrival to when you left. We got an all inclusive package because it seemed it was going to be cheaper. Well all inclusive does not include tips it seems. So we had to sign for our meals and drinks every time which they had a total for. You then had to decide if you would agree to the 10%add on. A cup of coffee was $8USD for example. So it adds up every time. The staff would chase you out of the restaurant/cafe and hover over you while you signed and agreed or not. It was so over bearing and uncomfortable. And the service was terrible but I am not sure they knew how to do their work. The excursions were ok but most can be done without a guide. Those staff were generally very good but one did not read our small group well when going to the base of the towers and raced ahead of everyone without keeping an eye on the slower ones. And one did have an injury on the way back which he didn’t know until the person came out with the help of two other walkers. The region is lovely and we saw amazing cloud formations and sunrise and sunsets. Not sure I would recommend it though as I am sure there are places easier to get to with better hotel facilities.

Starting with the positive; -Accommodation is very nice. I really like the individual cabins (4 rooms to a cabin). They are clean with great views and very comfortable beds. Our room had a table and chairs by a window, and it was lovely to look outside and see horses grazing in the garden. -Great location by the National Park entrance. Nature at its best, and stunning views from the front of reception. -Reception and waiting staff in the restaurant are very nice and provide very pleasant and helpful service. Especially our waiter Diageo - very professional. The negative; -You are told what time you are having your dinner; either a 19:30 or 20:30 sitting. -Hope for quiet neighbours as the timber walls are thin with no soundproofing! -Chef or management has no idea what to cook for vegetarians. My first night was ok (few veg side dishes in the buffet) but after that it went downhill. Day 2 I had one pasta option on a ‘buffet’. After this I mentioned the limited options to reception who passed it in to the kitchen and she assured me it was sorted. Day 3 (set menu only) I was expected to have a large version of everyone’s side salad. After a day of hiking I was hungry! So I asked for something else and got 2 grilled peppers with 2 almost raw eggs cracked into each. (Worst meal I have ever been served) Day 4 was polenta that everyone had along with 2 slices of a boiled potato and 2 tablespoons of veg on top. These ‘meals’ are not acceptable when it was a) mandatory with the booking to pay for half board and b) there is nowhere else nearby to eat instead. Everywhere else in Chile provided very well for vegetarians during my 3 week stay, even in more remote places such as nearby Puerto Natales and Easter Island. This hotel are 20 years behind the rest of the world in this aspect.