Najayo Beach Hotel, San Cristobal??

AlterEgo · #1 01-28-2009, 11:40 AM

Has anyone stayed at the Najayo Beach Hotel since it was purchased by the Docimen Cement people and supposedly renovated? It was pretty dumpy before when the Italians owned it - a couple of guys my husband works with stayed there and the stories they told were pretty amazing. (just a pipe out of the wall with no shower head, they had to ask for a toilet seat, etc.) We wanted to spend some time in that area but don't want to make a reservation if it's still in the same condition.

BPL888 · #2 01-28-2009, 04:48 PM

I stayed there last year and it was nice. It had all been done over. Years ago there was a swimming pool but that is gone now. It was $1200 pesos for a single room(big enough for 2) and $1500 pesos for a larger room that I did not see. The restaurant was good and the service was good. Nothing fancy but comfortable enough. If you are out that way you might also consider the Hotel Playa Palenque. If you do a search you will find some info and a website for them.

AlterEgo · #3 01-30-2009, 10:21 AM

Thanks for your input - did you have hot water and electricity the whole time?

We stayed briefly at the Hotel Palenque a few years ago, but their water is solar heated and the people who got up at 6-7 a.m. used it all - by the time we'd try to take a shower at 9 it was like icicles. It was February and a little overcast, which didn't help the solar properties. Rooms were very spacious apartments though, full size fridge in the kitchen, but the stove was disconnected (not that we'd have used it anyway).

BPL888 · #4 01-30-2009, 01:02 PM

I've never noticed any problem with the electric and I have been up late, 2AM, and early ,5AM and it was always on. The hot water has always been a little inconsistant, but I never knew why. The odd cold shower did not bother me so I never mentioned it to them. I really like this hotel because of the good food, friendly help, and quiet area. Don Pedro and his wife have always made me feel welcome and helped me with anything I needed. A few times I have had transportation issues (car problems and bus company strikes) and they have always gone out of thier way to help. Not much to do at night but a great place to relax with two beaches and the pool. There is a large development planned for next to the Cocolandia beach so I'm afraid the tranquil nature of the area may change.

sweetdbt · #5 01-30-2009, 01:17 PM

I stayed at The Hotel Najayo Beach for a couple of days at the end of October. The room was fine for the price, and the water was hot. I don't recommend the restaurant there at the hotel. Really slow service, and the food wasn't particularly good (or inexpensive either for that matter). The hotel is right on the beach, I would guess about 100 feet from the water, and I liked the overall ambience of the place. Totally Dominican clientele at the beach. I don't recall seeing anyone who looked like another gringo in 2 days. Would go again.

AlterEgo · #6 01-30-2009, 10:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sweetdbt

I stayed at The Hotel Najayo Beach for a couple of days at the end of October. The room was fine for the price, and the water was hot. I don't recommend the restaurant there at the hotel. Really slow service, and the food wasn't particularly good (or inexpensive either for that matter). The hotel is right on the beach, I would guess about 100 feet from the water, and I liked the overall ambience of the place. Totally Dominican clientele at the beach. I don't recall seeing anyone who looked like another gringo in 2 days. Would go again.

Haha, if you'd been there in early October you'd have seen a bunch of gringos - my family [husband is Dominican but looks European or Arabic, we were there with our daughter, son-in-law and grandson]. We stick out like a sore thumb

We stayed in SD but went out to Najayo and Palenque just about every day. Everyone in Najayo knows my husband, he's been going there since he was a kid and we've had a house and about 20 acres of land there for over 25 years. We spend days at the house, but I've got this thing about hot water, and we've given up trying to get hot water in our bathroom there. We're lucky enough when there's electricity. So we stay at a hotel for the hot water and air conditioning.....
We've stayed in Palenque too, at both hotels there, but never at the one in Najayo. Maybe this time we will. We're looking into the big development that's going to be built on the beach in Palenque, it looks like it's going to be beautiful.

AlterEgo · #7 01-30-2009, 10:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BPL888

There is a large development planned for next to the Cocolandia beach so I'm afraid the tranquil nature of the area may change.

Yes, we saw the billboard when we were there, and are seriously thinking about buying one of the villas. You're right about Peter and his wife, they were very gracious and there's a lot to be said about having a Dr. living there

But I need my hot water and a/c. The grounds are beautiful too.