Hotel Las Islas

We chose Hotel Las Islas expecting a high-end, relaxing and memorable experience. Unfortunately, our stay was marked by a succession of operational problems, poor communication and a lack of proactive service that was very disappointing for a hotel at this price point. The problems started upon arrival. Our room was not ready, and although we were told the team would make an effort to provide an early check-in, we were only taken to the room at the standard check-in time. Once in the room, we discovered that the hot tub was not working and wasn't filling up. This was disappointing and we did not get to enjoy the amenity at all on our first night. We requested a room change for the following day. The next morning, we were woken up at around 8:00 a.m. with a call from reception to be informed that we would be changing rooms later that day. The new room was not ready and would only become available several hours later, which made the call unnecessary, especially since all communication with the hotel staff had been through WhatsApp till then. We packed our belongings and went to the beach, asking the hotel to move our luggage and bring us the key to the new room there when it became available. The key never arrived. We contacted the reception at least 3 times after breakfast to check in on the room key, which was always “on its way” but never there. We even stressed that we needed access to medication in our luggage, which had already been moved and was locked in the new room. My husband eventually had to leave the beach and ask a restaurant employee to contact reception on our behalf and stay with him on the phone until the key arrived. Only then was the key finally delivered, as promised. The new room was presented as an upgrade because it had a private pool. However, the pool was completely empty. We informed several members of staff throughout the day and were repeatedly told the pool would be filled. When we returned to the room around 4:00 p.m., the pool was still empty. Only then were we told that it actually could not be filled because of an energy problem on the island. This should have been communicated to us immediately instead of allowing us to spend the entire day expecting the pool to become available. Without a functioning pool or hot tub, the supposed “upgrade” felt like a downgrade. When we pointed out all of these issues to the hotel, they offered us a 40-minute couples massage and a helicopter transfer to Cartagena on our departure day as compensation for all the inconveniences thus far. The massage was good and we appreciated it, but the most important compensation, the helicopter transfer, never happened. On our third day, there was a power outage in the hotel. The room had no electricity and there wasn't even a flashlight available in the room. We had to use our phones to illuminate the room and take a cold shower before dinner. Basic communication about the situation was lacking. We were not proactively informed about the outage or given any estimate of when power would return. The biggest issue occurred on our departure day. The helicopter transfer had been agreed and confirmed for 12:00 p.m. We went to reception and checked out at 11:45 a.m. to be safe and they drove us to the helipad. After waiting for a good 15min in a hot waiting room with no AC at the helipad, we discovered that the hotel had actually booked the transfer for 12:30 p.m. and furthermore that it was delayed. We waited for more than an hour without any meaningful update. We repeatedly had to call the reception ourselves to find out what was happening. Eventually, we were told that the helicopter would not come and that a car would be available to take us to Cartagena. We returned to reception, only to find no car and no one available to give us clear information. We spent more time waiting at reception, being eaten alive by mosquitoes, and eventually went to the Club House while repeatedly calling the hotel ourselves for updates. We were ultimately taken to Cartagena by car and arrived hours later than we planned, missing the plans we had carefully arranged for our last afternoon in the city before our flight. What is particularly frustrating is that, when we finally got into the car, the driver told us that he had been called only shortly before arriving at the hotel and only took 30 minutes to reach the hotel. This made it clear that the alternative transportation had not actually been arranged when we were initially told that a car was "ready" for us. What was supposed to be a relaxing vacation became extremely stressful due to poor communication, proactivity and frankly professionalism by the hotel staff and management. The nightmare didn't end when we left Baru however. After pointing out all of this to the hotel's general manager, the hotel offered to refund one night's accommodation, which we accepted despite considering it insufficient given the extent of the problems we had and disappointment in our stay. The hotel told us that the refund had been processed on June 19 and that, because it was an international credit card, it could take up to 60 calendar days. The documentation they provided didn't allow us to identify the refund, and, importantly, the card number shown on the document they provided did not correspond to the card used to pay for our stay, which we pointed out to them repeatedly since then. As of today, August 17th, no refund has been received and the hotel has not responded to a single email since July 6th. We asked the hotel for a traceable transaction reference (such as an ARN/RRN), but have not received any response. The property itself is beautiful and clearly has the potential to provide a wonderful experience. However, a beautiful property cannot compensate for repeated operational failures, poor customer service and incompetent staff. For a hotel at their price point, we expected a significantly higher level of coordination, attention to detail and proactive communication. We definitely do not recommend it and would never return.

We just returned from 5 nights at this property and will definitely return some day. We took the boat option for transportation, this worked out wonderfully. We were greeted at the restaurant/marina with a small snack and drink. The immediate atmosphere is tranquil and remote feeling. The hotel lobby is in the middle of the mangroves and is something I’ve never experienced. Very cool. The room was a beachfront villa. Immediate reaction was excitement. A beautiful thatched structure a nestled into the landscape. It had a salt water pool (slippery, but nice) that was salt water from the sea. Staff was attentive with changing towels and turndown service. The room was always made up with fresh water supplied and swept. The property itself is VERY quiet and subdued. There is not much by way of entertainment, you must do that for yourself. We would go to the clubhouse bar on the third floor every day where we met Efrin. He was the best bartender there and was so personable, fun, and chatty. The entire staff at breakfast was wonderful, and so sweet. We did a couples spa treatment that lasted for about 2 hours. A body scrub, then saunas, jacuzzi, massage, facial. Our attendants, Dina and Edith, were magnificent. The breakfast was good. The rib stew was AMAZING! The lunch options were the best meals of the day. Red snapper, tuna sandwich, gazpacho, and chicken sandwich are highly recommended. Dinner had amazing service. The food was good. The ravioli was the best dinner I had while there. The menu should’ve more authentic for Colombia and the music at dinner… ditch the classical music. This is sustainable resort, pretty isolated into the forest and mangroves, and nature is all around you at your fingertips. Wildlife is all around you.

Special place, blessed with wild nature and great beaches; lacks to cover details to the finest, given price it's a must. Nice food, more variety is needed. Needs to be updated in some aspects, but overall is a good experience, could be better if attention is paid to all the potential the surroundings can give

This hotel is the perfect example of how a beautiful location can hide a deeply mediocre operation. The place itself is stunning. Incredible jungle, beautiful ocean views, amazing natural setting. The staff is genuinely kind and polite. But kindness does not replace common sense, execution, communication, or service standards. Everything in this hotel is designed around what works for THEM, not for the guests. Nobody communicates proactively. Nobody anticipates problems. Nobody takes ownership. You have to ask for things multiple times before anything actually happens. There is zero sense of operational urgency or assertive hospitality. And the best example of this disaster: This hotel is extremely isolated. There are only 3 ways to get there: - Boat - Long and uncomfortable ground transportation - Helicopter During check-in, they explained all transportation options very clearly. What they somehow forgot to mention is that the boat transfer back to the city only has around 10 seats per day and sells out quickly. So the day before departure, when I asked to confirm the boat schedule, they casually informed me there were no spots left and the only option remaining was the awful ground transportation. At no point during check-in did anyone think to say: “Would you like us to reserve your return transfer now? Availability is very limited.” That is not a small mistake. That is a complete lack of service criteria and operational intelligence. Luxury hospitality is not about smiling and saying “of course.” It’s about anticipating problems before the guest has to discover them themselves. This hotel has the aesthetics of luxury, but not the mentality of luxury.

I was so excited for this hotel. I actually planned our trip to Colombia for our stay at las Islas. I looked at the website a we decided to splurge for my birthday. First let me start with the positive. The setting and staff at the hotel was wonderful. Micheal, oratio, ribalto, Olga and everyone else were so kind and warm. And the beach and setting is really beautiful and special. But other that, everything else about our experience was way below standard for a leading hotel esp for the price point of $750 usd a night. First, it was not explained well on the website that we were booking a room on an island that required a boat ride. I have a two year old son and the rides eps at night did not feel safe. But the issue was the communication. At no point the option to stay on the main property presented to us. The communication was very poor not only about the room and location but everything and the staff especially at reception didn’t seem to have the experience or authority to notice this and make changes. Other issues: the bed was not comfortable, food was hit or miss, Overall this property has a ton of potential but feels a big neglected on all levels and continues with a price point that does not match the level of service or luxury advertised.