Botinas Island

The disappointment started when I asked about an early check in. The rudeness of the email I received was impressive. It was not helpful, not clear, the language was poor, and the tone was simply rude, to the point that I had to complain about it. The room itself felt like they were constantly trying to patch things up rather than properly maintain it. The toilet door was only half painted and showed clear signs of wear and tear. The same could be said for almost everything in the toilet. Near reception, by the lift, there was a socket hanging from the wall. Maybe they were planning to install a light there? I really don't know. The signs everywhere looked old and tired, and overall, I don't even have words for the condition of the place.

The staff were incredible and went above and beyond to make sure you had a wonderful stay.

Hotel was good and the staff were helpful. One significant issue was an activity organized through the hotel. We were signed up to go to a football game at Maracanã. We were picked up at 4, got to the stadium at nearly 7 and then were told our tickets weren’t valid. We were abandoned by our host without a word and another person came over to help who couldn’t speak English. We were hanging around the stadium until close to 8:20 (the game started at 7:30) before we were told we weren’t going to be able to get in. We had to push very hard to get them to take us back to our hotel which was around 9pm. We did get a refund, but it was a waste of a night, supremely stressful and a terrible experience. Though the hotel were not responsible for this disaster of a tour, it was recommended by them so they get to share the responsibility.