Detailed review by fizzytom
fizzytom
Gateshead, United Kingdom93%
Hostal Las Cuatro Naciones is situated on the edge of old Cadiz. It’s an old building and the hostal occupies the first floor; you go up a flight of stairs just beside the bar which is underneath and you must ring the bell for reception as the door is usually kept locked. Do wait a minute or two in case the staff are busy and making their way to the door.
This hostal is very basic as you’ll see as soon as you get inside. This was probably quite a grand property at one time but is looking the worse for wear nowadays. It is, however, clean and safe. The staff are young and friendly and we were checked in quickly, having arrived without a reservation.
The rooms are located around the edge of the hostal, with some communal rooms in the centre, so you can walk the whole of the way round and get to the front door from your room by turning left or right, it makes no difference. Our room was a fair size, neither large nor tiny and it had only a bed and a couple of chairs. There was no space to hang clothes but this didn’t matter to us as we were living out of rucksacks. This probably illustrates what kind of accommodation this is.
There is no air conditioning, nor was there an electric fan. It was stifling hot in June and we had to have the window open all the time, even at night. A narrow alley runs between this building and the next and our room overlooked the lane. In the next building a Spanish family would watch South American soap operas until the early hours, with their windows wide up and the volume turned right up.
Although this hostal is quite big, we didn’t really see any other guests though we were occasionally aware of other people in the hostal so the noise really come more from outside than inside. The bin men came daily and made a terrible racket around 5.30 a.m. which was more than a little annoying.
The bathrooms are shared and are certainly a level above the standard of the rooms. They are modern and sparkling and were cleaned several times a day. It was also good to find that there were enough facilities for the number of rooms and we never had to wait to use either the shower or the toilet.
There’s a small communal lounge area but this is the only area apart from the rooms. Breakfast is not available but there are plenty of cafes and bars in the area as well as bakeries. The hostal is situated in a good location within easy walking distance of the main tourist attractions and the main squares. It’s a ten or fifteen minute walk to the beach, depending one you prefer.
This budget hostal is for people who don’t mind very basic accommodation, and who intend to be out most of the time. The rooms are OK but you wouldn’t want to spend too much time in them.
Calle Plocia 3
956-255539
Cuatro Naciones5
