My partner and I went to Queretaro for four days this spring, to check out the town and get a little r&r. We live in Guadalajara, so were are familiar with colonial-era buildings that have been converted into hotels. One often has to sacrifice comfort or modern conveniences for charm and that sense of history that comes from staying in such a place, but at the Quinta Santiago, that is not the case.
We stayed in a nicely appointed and spacious room in the back corner of the property (room 117), which had two televisions, air conditioning that worked like a dream, an in-room safe, and plenty of lighting and electrical outlets. I would like to stress the last of those again: there were PLENTY of lights and outlets. Often old colonial hotels are dark and you have to rotate all your electrical devices as you need them around one electrical outlet. You have plenty of light and open outlets at this hotel.
High-speed Internet access is free and is provided by an Ethernet jack at the desk. If you do not have your own cable, they can give you one at reception.
The room was split into two levels, with an upstairs that had its own desk, sofa, television and a stained glass window with a depiction of the famous city aqueduct. Downstairs there was a bed, desk, television and a decent sized closet, where the in-room safe was located and they kept the ironing board and iron. The bathroom had an enormous marble shower (no tub) and just outside it was a vanity with plenty of room for all our toiletries.
The staff was very friendly and helpful, and it seems that at least some speak English quite well. They were very attentive to all our needs and requests (things like finding restaurants, getting taxis, etc.). The housekeeping service was fantastic. The rooms were always spotless and tidy after the maid's visit.
We had considered staying at the Casa de la Marquesa, but decided it was too expensive to use without first having seen it. The Casa de la Marquesa is on the way back to the Quinta Santiago from the Plaza Constitución, so we stopped in one evening to check it out. In contrast, it seemed much darker and very snooty. We were thinking of having dinner at the restaurant there, but after waiting for over five minutes for someone to attend to us, we decided to leave. While I would not judge the entire hotel on the lobby and restaurant host/hostess, it did make me glad that we had chosen the Quinta Santiago instead.
I would not say that the Quinta Santiago had any bad aspects, but there were a few weak points. The bed was more firm than we tend to like it, although that is the norm throughout Mexico. We wish they had a restaurant, but their food service is limited to a small continental breakfast (which did include toaster waffles and pancakes). The breakfast is included in the cost of the room though. We would have liked the bathroom to have a tub/shower combo, but it does not. It seems that there would have been plenty of room in there for a tub, but again, showers are the norm in Mexico. The iron is wired directly to the wall in the closet, forcing one to iron right next to it, and the iron itself was cracked and could have stood replacement. Still, if we didn't fill it with water, it worked okay. The hotel is not directly on any of the main plazas in the historic center, but rather a few blocks off to the side. It is only a half a block down the street from a smaller plaza that is well-shaded, with a news kiosk and shoeshine stands.
None of these weaknesses were enough to keep us from recommending the hotel based on the price, overall comfort and location. I have given this hotel an overall rating of 4 out of 5, but I would give it a 4.5 out of 5 if tripadvisor allowed half-point ratings.
This review is the subjective opinion of a TripAdvisor member and not of TripAdvisor LLC
