Oro Verde was presented as a top-notch modern hotel in Cuenca. Ugh, it was awful. The room was dirty and very dreary. The carpet was stained, bed linens old and worn, TV didn't work, window broken, etc. The breakfast buffet was not pleasant, food obviously recycled for several days. The location was terrible, it required a cab ride for anything, no stores or restaurants anywhere nearby. So, we moved several days later to the Hotel Santa Lucia which was less expensive and absolutely gorgeous, right in the heart of the city.

After making reservations at this hotel, I checked the TripAdvisor reviews and worried that we had made a bad choice. An older review complained about quality of breakfast, inconvenient and ill kept up bathrooms, and unfriendly staff. Apparently the hotel has improved greatly on all counts.

While our room was typical US-type, but could have used a bit more lighting. Our bathroom was clean and well-maintained and had ample storage space around the sink. The staff, while limited in speaking English, were helpful and friendly. Best of all were the lavish breakfasts. There was a wide selection of excellent breads and fruits, and eggs and breakfast meats were also available.

While the hotel is located outside of downtown, this made it quiet. The river was a short walk away, and we watched women washing their clothes in it. It made for a pleasant walk toward town.

The clean and well maintained Oro Verde hotel in Cuenca which is part of a Ecuadorian hotel chain is located somewhat peripheral to the downtown Barrio Historico. It takes you about 20 minutes to walk from the hotel to the central square. (This walk will be initially unpleasantly leading along a major thoroughfare, and turns upon entering into the fabric of the historic part of town into a pleasant stroll where you can discover many sights and details of the town which you would miss while traveling by car. ) The walk is only recommended to the adventurous and young-at-heart since you need to cross a large round-about which hosts a portion of Cuenca’s daily 24 Hours-of-Le-Mans car race. The taxi fare for the same distance is a mere $2 (and like always, negotiates first). The staff is very helpful and friendly (I arrived without my luggage), provides no-cost shuttle service back and fro the airport, free vouchers for many items, such as the (good) breakfast buffet, ironing of jackets and pants, and welcome drinks. Architecturally speaking, the hotel is a mix-and-match assembly of different buildings, some under construction (the noise starts reliably at 8 a.m.). The rooms are very nicely furnished; they also contain the ubiquitous Latin American 1’ step between the room and the bathroom due to either the lack or the interest to architectural detailing. It is for that reason, and others, that the hotel is unfortunately completely inaccessible for ADA. Fast wireless internet service throughout the hotel is provided. The room lok out to the nice river, the opposite street-oriented side is very noisy. Take the five-star rating with a grain of salt.

Overall- not a bad place. I had a problem. There were NO lights near or around the mirror in the bathroom. If it were dark outside you couldnt shave and women could not put on makeup. I complained and they tried putting a small flouresent desk light on the wall. The next day while I was out, they had a crew come in and install three lamp fixtures above the mirror. Made all the difference in the world. I cant help wonder how long that problem existed and why no one else had ever brought it to managements attention.