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4.5
#6 of 6 hotels in Santa Cruz La Laguna
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Value
Arca de Noe Hotel is a gorgeous place to stay in Lake Atitlan - we're famous for the most rustic and eco-friendly style hotel, and even with the best lake front cabins to relax!There are more elegant hotels in the region. There are certainly more expensive places to stay, but no hotel at any price can match Arca de Noe's quiet ambiance.The hotel has ten rooms, five with private baths with very hot showers! our hotels runs with 100% solar energy system! and help the environment. At our Hotel we have a Restaurant, Free Wifi, Transportation, Day tours and Hikes and many more activities. 100% local family owned - Spanish, English, and French are spoken.
Star ratings are intended to indicate the general level of features, amenities, and services to expect. This property is classified according to Giata.
HOTEL STYLE
Mid-range
Quaint
Languages Spoken
Spanish
Location
Main Street Close to Main Dock, Santa Cruz La Laguna 07014 Guatemala
Hotel Arca De Noe
182 reviews
Getting there
Somewhat walkable
Places to stay are graded on a 0-100 scale. The higher the grade, the easier it is for travellers to find restaurants and things to do within walking distance.
On Lake Atitlan there is a special place Arca De Noe that is run by the most wonderful couple, Pedro and Paulina. There are fabulous meals made by Chef Domingo and the view is magnificent. The rooms are comfortable with gardens all around. You can learn Spanish there although they speak English, they have language instructors if you want to take classes there. Pedro can take you on beautiful nature hikes around the lake. He can arrange day trips to markets and hot springs. Very reasonably priced. Worth a visit. The village of Santa Cruz is special.
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Date of stay: May 2019Trip type: Travelled solo
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Staff is very friendly (Spanish speaking) and the menu is simple, yet very tastefull. The location is next to the Lake, with a nice view and some candles. In Total we paid 100Q for dinner + drink. All in all, we would recommend going to this place.
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Date of stay: June 2022Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We loved our short stay at casita 1. The casita was very cozy. We loved spending New Year’s Eve and waiting for the New Year’s by the little fire pit. We had a great view of the fireworks in town and across lake Atitlan. The food in the restaurant was also great with an amazing view of the lake and volcanoes. We highly recommend making dinner reservations at the restaurant. The food was excellent and has a romantic atmosphere at candlelight. Chef Domingo and the restaurant staff were great. Highly recommended.
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Date of stay: January 2024Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Upon arriving I had some hope, but that started to diminish as the day went on. The restaurant is also part of the reception, and so when checking in you can clearly see what the kitchen looked like. I could see that there were many dirty looking dishes, appliances, flies all over, etc. It did not look clean, and because of that I did not want to eat there. After getting into the room in the bungalow, it looked crusty, not well constructed at all, the sheets all looked like they were random old ones from someone's home and we're stained and smelled funky. The room want properly cleaned either as there was food crumbs on the desk, there were many spiders, and spider webs that looked like they have been there a while. I had to kill a scorpion that easily crawled inside through one of the many gaps in the doors and windows, walls, ceilings, etc. Trying to go to sleep was near impossible with the noise that some animal was making as it chewed on the ceiling wood planks and pranced around on them. I imagine it was a rodent. Either way it was unsettling knowing a wild animal was chewing and scratching things directly above our heads. There was also a big gap above the bed that you could see into that ceiling space. No screens on the windows. Everything was poorly constructed to keep out the elements and I felt it just isn't worth the low price. The bed also has these weird cement bed posts that easily can ruin your knees as you try to squeeze through the one bed's side 6 inches from the wall. So after a night of zero sleep from keeping eyes for the invaders, we decided to leave after one night and forfeit the second nights reservation. Things can look "rustic" but it's not worth it if you're having sacrifice quality and common sense. Sorry, but this place needs a major makeover, and I would just avoid it if possible until they do.
One positive though is that this was the first place that had actual hot water, and plenty. That was nice since the other places I was in before did not.
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Date of stay: May 2022Trip type: Travelled with friends
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
We stayed at the Casita Sunrise, the one at the highest point in the property. The room is small and you have to walk through steep stairs to get to it. The view from the room was great, however, there is little privacy as some windows have no curtains, we had to hang some scarves we had for privacy. The bed was comfortable and they clean the room every day. There is a dirt path going uphill that takes you to the back of the property and closer to downtown. The place itself is calm, however, there are several street dogs in town and once one barks the rest follows. There is a spanish school in the property however we never saw it open and the place itself looked dead. They have a restaurant service but you have to reserve by 5 for dinner. The boat service from other towns going to this one finishes at 5:30 pm. The service at the reception when their receptionist Stephanie is there is terrible, she is very condescending and lacks touch for customer care, thank god there is the Iguana Perdida right next door which is where we got most of our answers when we had questions about the town, how to get around etc. Also be aware there is a community tour agency Santa Cruz Jo who offers tours for good prices, we got a weaving class of about 3 hrs with Tomasa a local indigenous woman for 100Q pp and a traditional temazcal bath for 200 Q pp compared to what one of Stephanie’s relative tried to charged us ($35 USD pp) for one activity. There is a book with the number and activities available at the Iguana’s reception. Also, we were never able to take a proper bath, the temperature does not regulate, is either too cold or too hot, there is like 3 seconds of ok temperature then it is either too cold or steaming hot.
Also, there are few restaurant options in town, like 2 or 3.
If you stay here or at the Iguana Perdida please feed the dogs who sleep outside, they are adorable and their only decent source of food comes from the tourist.
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Date of stay: February 2024
Value
Location
Service
Trip type: Travelled as a couple
Room Tip:The town is really small and there are almost no options for night life or anything to do after 5 pm
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
The bed was like sleeping on cardboard the bathroom did not look clean at all. There is no WiFi and the staff was unfriendly. Beware to take quetzales with you for they do not accept dollars unless they are un-wrinkled and flawless. Take into account that if you are looking to go eat out at night you just have two options around and both of them are not open menu you have to sign a list so you can dine in both places. The kitchen of the hotel itself was full of flies. However if you want to disconnect and starve this is great place !
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Date of stay: December 2023Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Take quetzales (the national coin) with you!
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Made a reservation for the restaurant, Arco de Noe on 4/6 for 4/7. Showed up and were refused because we did not confirm on 4/7. Were not told and had to go elsewhere. Unimpressed and disappointed. Should have been told about this upon making reservation.
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Date of stay: April 2022Trip type: Travelled as a couple
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
5 for the location, it's a nice view of the lake, the rooms are clean but avoid the garden rooms. I also found the common areas too tight for the number of guests. 2 for the service & unfriendly staff. Food is good, and restaurant staff are friendly but the receptionists were a nightmare to deal with.
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Date of stay: November 2021Trip type: Travelled solo
Room Tip:Avoid garden rooms
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Quiet place, nice room, great view for the atitlan lake. Antonio chef made great dishes. Ilia, Petrona, Vilma and Juana treated us wonderfully. I think it is one of the best hotels in Santa Cruz la laguna.
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Date of stay: June 2022
Cleanliness
Service
Sleep Quality
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Our room was under attack from huge spiders, seemingly constantly. The owners said the spiders don't bite, and we shouldn't worry about them. My wife and kids didn't completely agree.
Then there were the scorpions and the roaches. See the photos I have posted.
And the restaurant is right next to where the Tuk-tuks park, right by the main pier in town. This creates a constant stream of noise and gas fumes while eating. Awful. Too bad, really, as the chef is great and a super nice guy. And watch out for those tuk-tuk drivers who loiter outside the hotel - they were constantly catcalling and trying to hit on my daughters (ages 11 and 14). My girls felt incredibly unsafe the whole time we were there.
The owner is a decent guy and seemed to be doing his best. However, his wife Paulina, the co-owner, should not be in the hospitality business. She seemed to relish lecturing the guests about the hotel rules (don't drink Cokes or eat chips in the lobby/seating area if they were bought elsewhere, etc).
When we told her we were paying a lot of money to be staying in a private bungalow for several weeks, and would like, at a minimum, to be treated politely, and to have our myriad concerns addressed, she responded by saying that we weren't really paying all that much money in her opinion, and we could leave if we wanted to. Which is exactly what we did.
There are many nicer options on the lake. Life is too short. You'd be wise to look elsewhere.
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Date of stay: August 2016
Location
Cleanliness
Service
Trip type: Travelled with family
Room Tip:Rooms in other hotels offer fewer spiders, roaches and scorpions.
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Response from Tours-atitlan, Manager at Hotel Arca De Noe
Responded 6 Oct 2016
Dear Traveler From London, I am so sorry to hear about your experience at our Hotel. I am sure you are a well experienced traveler, for giving us such a review. At the mean time, our hotel is advertised as a rustic hotel, and huge garden and sometimes these insects can enter the rooms with not prior notice. We do clean the rooms every day, and verify right before you take the rooms. In the other hand one of the pictures shows that it was take somewhere else as I do not recognize the material used part of our rooms. This is the first time someone will consider us rude, and in fact I believe we are nice and polite to all of our guest! I think experienced travelers know that you are not allowed to enter food or drinks to restaurant and not use the restaurant facilities. We respect that you as a guest, we have had lots of families staying at our hotel and never mentioned that it is unsafe for their kids... I can prove if you reed the rest of reviews (families that have stayed here more than 5 times) The discount that you had is incredibly cheap, like 60% from our normal price including meals, when you had a meal that would probably cost at our restaurant $10 you had it for $5 ... considering that you where staying here for long term. Our hotel staff is always ready to help anytime! Again so sorry you could not enjoy your time with us! and we still do nor expect someone to call us rude again.
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This response is the subjective opinion of the management representative and not of Tripadvisor LLC.
There are more places to choose from in the Santa Cruz La Laguna area.
PRICE RANGE
₹4,114 - ₹4,702 (Based on Average Rates for a Standard Room)
LOCATION
GuatemalaWestern HighlandsSolola DepartmentLake AtitlanSanta Cruz La Laguna
NUMBER OF ROOMS
8
Prices are provided by our partners, and reflect average nightly room rates, including taxes and fees that are fixed, known to our partners, and due at time of booking. Please see our partners for more details.
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