La Fortaleza De Haro
Calle 7 y Av. Perimetral Barrio El Eden, Puerto Ayora 200350 Ecuador
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About
#8 of 73 B&Bs / Inns in Puerto Ayora
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Value
Travellers' Choice
La Fortaleza De Haro is a Hostel completely built with Basaltic lava Rocks and wood from Santa Cruz. It looks like an old Medieval Fort, designed by the Owner, Roberto Haro, one of the first Naturalist Trilingual Guides and Divemaster of the Galapagos Archipel. He also owns Galapagos Aquatours, one of the best Excursion Agencies of the Island. Situated next to the National Park, and 15 minutes walking from the Charles Darwin Scientific Station. The hostel attended personally by his wife Gianna Vallazza has 4 Rooms which can host a total of 13 People. All the rooms have private bathroom, hot water, air conditioning, cable tv and wi-fi. Moreover each room is decorated with the Artworks of Mr Haro, which gives a Unique aspect to this Enchanted place. Free access to the swimming pool, cleaning service and breakfast are included in the price. La Fortaleza De Haro is the perfect place for lonely travellers, families, couples and groups of friends!!
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Property amenities
Free High Speed Internet (WiFi)
Wifi
Pool
Free breakfast
Snorkelling
Board games / puzzles
Sun terrace
Sun umbrellas
Outdoor pool
First aid kit
Umbrella
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Room features
Air conditioning
Housekeeping
Wardrobe / wardrobe
Bottled water
Clothes rack
Cable / satellite TV
Bath / shower
Complimentary toiletries
Private bathrooms
Tile / marble floor
Hair dryer
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Room types
Mountain view
Pool view
Suites
Good to know
HOTEL CLASS
HOTEL STYLE
Quaint
Romantic
Languages Spoken
English, Spanish, Italian
Location
Full view
75Somewhat walkable
Grade: 75 out of 100
34Restaurantswithin 1 km
12Attractionswithin 1 km
Contact
Calle 7 y Av. Perimetral Barrio El Eden, Puerto Ayora 200350 Ecuador
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137Reviews8Q+A21Room tips
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Wonderful experience at this unique and quiet property a short walk from the town. The owners - Gianna and Roberto - treat you like family and are attentive to your every need. If we are lucky enough to return to Galapagos, we would not hesitate to stay here again. Alicia & John from NY
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Date of stay: March 2022Trip type: Travelled as a couple
1 Helpful vote
Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 22 Mar 2022
My dear Alicia and John, Guests like you are the ones that give Brightness to our Fortress and Joy to us. You are welcome to your Home in Sta Cruz anytime you wish! Gianna and Roberto
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This is a homely environment. Robert designed a fort which has rooms to rent. His wife Gianna takes care of the guests. They live on the premises. The whole family is very blessed and it was pleasure to meet them. The room on top is the one you want reserved. It has amazing views of the bay and surroundings areas. There is a terrace and good size bathroom and beds. We were at the smaller room first near the entrance which was very small and uncomfortable for 3 of us. We upgraded. There is a pool to swim and Breakfast is a treat presented in the courtyard. It is only at 7:30 am. Gianna is there to chat with us. She is very particular and caring. We had bread, butter, jam, fresh juice, eggs and chocolate. It is a 10-15 min walk from town. A pleasant experience.
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Date of stay: December 2021Trip type: Travelled with family
Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 11 Feb 2022
Dear Archana, We were happy to host you 3, and specially when our kids were here, so we could enjoy of each others family. you are a very sweet lady and your husband and son are kind too. We are glad as well that you liked our continental breakfast with also fruits and good Galapagos machine coffee, which we serve for 2 hours until 9:30 Wish you abondant blessings!
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I have traveled for years and have never experienced such an incredible level of service. Gianna ensured that we achieved the exact experience we were seeking in the Galapagos. She reserved tours, ordered transportation, and even worked to successfully reclaim my phone that I had lost in a taxi. She even provided chilled calamine lotion for us to use on sunburns. She is clearly proud of her island and wants her clients to see all the beauty and amazement that it offers. In addition to the service, the building is surreal. It is truly a castle. We stayed in the tower room, which includes two terraces that overlook a nature preserve. Truly stunning. This is a magical paradise indeed!
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Date of stay: November 2021
Location
Service
Sleep Quality
Room Tip: Tower has two terraces-AMAZING
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Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 11 Feb 2022
Dear Chrystine, We are deeply grateful at your rewarding words about us. It´s a Luxury being chosen by persons like you who appreciate our care to give you what you look for in your Adventure here. And this is the encourage we need to continue putting Love in what we do at our Fortress. Send you both our Warmest Hugs!
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We were planning to stay here for 2 nights, but eventually stayed here for 6 nights. The host (Gianna) is a very friendly lady. She helped us with bookings for the tours. Breakfast is good: fresh bread/croissants with eggs and marmalade. Also coffee and tea. The rooms are basic, but clean! The beds slept good. Wifi is bad… as everywhere on the island. Try to het online before 6am :). At that time it’s ‘fast’. Overall we loved our stay at this place. Rate 5/5. Thanks Gianna (and Roberto) and see you in the future!
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Date of stay: October 2021Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 11 Feb 2022
Dear Guests, we are very thankful at your Positive Opinion, and welcome you to our Fortress whenever you wish. so hopefully we´ll meet again here in the future as you say!
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There are not enough words to describe our amazing stay at La Fortaleza De Haro! We were greeted warmly upon our arrival by Gianna and Roberto, and that first class hospitality never ended (even after we checked out). As soon as I even booked our stay, I received an e-mail with ideas on our Santa Cruz itinerary. Gianna recommended a solid plan, which led to an unforgettable experience. They genuinely care about their guests. The hotel is super cool, clean and in a nice, quiet location (and was built by Roberto). Breakfast was fabulous, and we enjoyed our time by the pool. This is a fortress, and you will not regret your decision to stay here! If you have the opportunity to stay in the tower, do it!!
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Date of stay: July 2021
Value
Cleanliness
Service
Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 11 Feb 2022
Our dear Guests, We apologise for responding until now, but we have not been receiving Notifications from Tripadvisor since the World Crisis started, and did not think on writing them to ask, because I thought people were not leaving Reviews here anymore. We thank you so much for your Generous Opinion about us, it's always a Delight to host People that appreciate our Care! I just need to ask you the Favour to identify yourselves, so I can recognise you because I always remember our Guests, but now it has taken us too much to see the Comments. Wish you lots of Blessings!
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Very shabby. The hostel was not clean. Everything seemed to be there by chance, no order or vision…. Pieces of unfinished construction a bit everywhere. The host tried her best to make us feel comfortable, but the place was just not worth the price. Not recommended
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Date of stay: August 2021Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 11 Feb 2022
You are right about the construction not finished. unfortunately the world had passed thorugh a financial crisis due to the virus, and the flights were cancelled, so it was a year that tourism was not able to recover, therefore neither pay any debts like mortgages and so, and even less continue building. However the pieces of construction are not on the places where the guests stay. Fortunately the pictures are not edited because we prefer to publish reality, actually the one of our profile here is kind of dark and shows a couple of columns where a constrution will take place as soon as possible. The good thing is that most of our Guests do appreciate and even admire what is built here so far, also our care to make them have a delightful stay, as well as the cleanness of our swimming pool, teh calm location, the services and the breakfasts we offer.
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I’ll start off by saying that Roberto and Gianna were amazing hosts, from the moment we arrived at the hotel with 2 friends of mine, they were very kind and helpful when we asked them for recommendations on what to do on each of the 4 days we stayed at the hotel. The breakfast service was excellent and plenty to get us through the day until we could eat lunch. I loved the design of our room, we stayed at “Andromeda”, the bathroom had a window with view to the nature from the Galapagos National Park. The medieval design of the hotel makes it very unique and i would definitely stay in this hotel the next time i visit the islands.
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Date of stay: February 2021Trip type: Travelled with friends
Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Dueño at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 3 Mar 2021
Our dear Guest and Friend Mauricio, it was a Privilege to host you and your friends in our Fort that is also yours now. We are honored by your words because it encourages us to see that our Guests enjoy what we make with Love and Care for all of you. Looking forward to host you again in a near future!
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We stayed for 5 nights and were so well looked after by Roberto and Geanna. The room was very comfortable, with all you need for a comfy stay with good wifi, very hot water, comfy mattress. Breakfast was lovely. The pool was clean and refreshing for an end of day cool down. Geanna helped us with where to go including to eat and we went on their Bay Tour trip and loved it- great value at $35. Lovely little extras like access to suncream left by guests (its so expensive on the island). In summary a great location- very quiet but only 5 mins from the main drag.
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Date of stay: February 2020
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 4 Mar 2020
Our dear friend Nicholas, We are so thankful that you appreciate and share your Experience with us. Its so Magic how people make Soul Connection, and I was just thinking of you guys today, because I was wondering how your sweet Sue continued with her Sunburn. We remember you both with Affection, and welcome you back to your Fort anytime you wish! Gianna and Roberto
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Gianna & Roberto are amazing hosts. They go above and beyond to ensure their guests are well catered for and attended to. The property is beautiful, you can see the passion, love and thought that has gone into making it, the beautiful castle it is today. The pool area is a great place to relax and cool down after a hot day, the whole family had fun in the pool. The breakfast was very good quality and substantial, served al fresco in their beautiful cafeteria. The walk into town is only an easy 8 minute walk where you will find plenty of restaurants, cafes and shops. Noting previous reviews have marked the property down, based on nearby construction, this was no longer an issue when we stayed. We would certainly recommend staying here and would like to thank Gianna and Roberto for taking such good care of us!…
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Date of stay: February 2020
Rooms
Location
Service
Helpful
Response from Roberto Haro, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 26 Feb 2020
Dearest Laura and Family, We have no words to express our Gratitude for having enjoyed, and share with other people about your stay at our Fort, which now is also yours! As well we need to say that we were honored and privileged to host you 4. It is people like you who encourage us to continue with the same Love and Care for all those who choose to stay here. Abondant and Blessed hugs from Gianna and Roberto
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My husband and I stayed here for 3 nights after a 7 night cruise around the Galápagos Islands. Let me just say that if I had shown my husband a tent on dry land for 3 nights he would have been delighted, such was his nausea on board the boat trip, but that’s another story (divorce proceedings might take place if I try to involve a boat in any future holidays 😂). So, our little fortress was a welcome sight. We were greeted by Giana and sat and waited while our room was made ready. I gather this was because the previous guests were late to vacate their room but it wasn’t too much of a bother to us, we were happy just to sit outside and relax. Giana gave me some information on what to see and do in the area and had an excellent map. Unfortunately she only had the one copy and I failed to find anything as useful in other locations on town. Our room was the sun and moon room which was very spacious. We had an issue around our booking a few weeks before we arrived in that somehow our booking was “mislaid” and the room given to someone else. It got resolved but it does concern me that our booking wasn’t registered with them through Hotels.com. Glad I had made an inquiry before we got there, I would have been hugely unimpressed to find out they weren’t expecting us. The issue around the construction noise that the previous reviewer mentioned is no longer an issue (this was my query as I didn’t want to be having a racket all day), there is no work in the vicinity of the hotel that would disrupt you. There does appear to be work a few roads away so looks like this may be a general upgrade of either the roads or lighting, we didn’t get close enough to check. Our room itself was fine, nothing fancy. Nice to have the outdoor seating area where I sat of an afternoon while hubby had a snooze. Air con was too cold for me, I couldn’t adjust it to suit. Shower was hot and so lovely to shower while looking out to the nations park. Breakfast-nothing to write home about. First morning the croissants were a bit stale, much better the days after that. Scrambled eggs and a bit of simple fruit. I think the fruit could have been a bit more adventurous than banana chopped up with grapes or kiwi. Location, couldn’t ask for better. Easy walk into town, laundry (much needed) maybe 5 mins walk away. Filtered water available to fill up your bottles with. Pool, didn’t swim in it but did sit around it for an hour late afternoon one day. The first morning we were there, a bunch of folk from the Darwin foundation seemed to be using the pool for testing their equipment and I did think that was a bit off had we wanted to enjoy the pool. Thankfully we didn’t that day but there was no mention of it. All in all we were quite happy. Would I book there again? Perhaps not but I wouldn’t dissuade anyone from staying. Hotels on the island aren’t cheap. …
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Date of stay: January 2020Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Helpful
Response from Roberto H, Propietario at La Fortaleza De Haro
Responded 7 Feb 2020
Dear Ailsa, We thank your opinion, specially the fact of saying the truth about the street construction. We just need to let you know that we cooperate with the Darwin Foundation for a few hours every certain months of the year, and only if nobody will use the pool those moments, as it happened indeed! Also remind you that you did have the Suite you booked, and I even wrote you asking at what time you would arrive, but didn´t get your answer. However we were waiting for you. We are pleased for the things you enjoyed! Gianna de Haro
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PRICE RANGE
$70 - $84 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
EcuadorGalapagos IslandsSanta CruzPuerto Ayora
NUMBER OF ROOMS
4
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Claim Your Listing Frequently Asked Questions about La Fortaleza De Haro
Which popular attractions are close to La Fortaleza De Haro?
Nearby attractions include Rancho Primicias (0.6 km), Santa Cruz Fish Market (0.7 km), and Charles Darwin Research Station (0.8 km).
What are some of the property amenities at La Fortaleza De Haro?
Some of the more popular amenities offered include free wifi, free breakfast, and a pool.
Which room amenities are available at La Fortaleza De Haro?
Top room amenities include air conditioning, a view of the mountains, and a pool view.
What food & drink options are available at La Fortaleza De Haro?
Guests can enjoy free breakfast during their stay.
What are some restaurants close to La Fortaleza De Haro?
Conveniently located restaurants include FraFre GastroBar, TJ Restaurant, Cocktail & Coffee, and 1835 Coffee Lab.
Are there opportunities to exercise at La Fortaleza De Haro?
Yes, guests have access to a pool during their stay.
Which languages are spoken by the staff at La Fortaleza De Haro?
The staff speaks multiple languages, including English, Spanish, and Italian.