Carol H.
Yelp
My friend and I visited Taos last month and chose Casa Benavides for our stay. It's located very close to the town plaza and is within easy walking distance of many tourist sites and shops. The layout of the building proved to be a bit of a puzzle for us; we parked in the back parking lot (there is no street parking in front or on the side) and it took us a few failed attempts to find our way around to the front door and main building.
Many thanks to Tessie, who checked us in on our arrival. She was the soul of hospitality, greeting us with a warm welcome and a quick tour of the property.
We booked the Georgia O'Keeffe suite of two separate bedrooms, each with a queen bed. The artistic bent of the owners is evident in the little touches; Tessie noted that one of the owners had painted the lampshades earlier that day, to harmonize with the O'Keeffe paintings in the rooms.
The breakfasts each day were delicious, and we appreciated the kindness and efficiency of the breakfast room staff. The menu tended to be fairly similar each day (yogurt, granola and peaches were always the first course during our stay).
Our suite was of ample size for two people, with plenty of room to spread out. There were some unusual features which were a bit discomforting but might be easily remedied:
* One room is larger than the other, and this room has built-in shelves and small table and chairs--and was, therefore, where we gathered to play board games and to plan our daily adventures. However, the lighting in this room was quite poor. There was a ceiling fan but no overhead light; only three table lamps which did not sufficiently illuminate the sitting area. The window in the room faced the courtyard and did not receive a great deal of sunlight. The other, smaller room had a ceiling fan with a light fixture, and it was excellent for lighting the room. But there was no place to sit, other than a small straight-backed chair, or on the bed. It would make good sense to add a light fixture to the ceiling fan in the larger room so that guests could easily sit at the table and see what they were doing.
* The larger room was also the only room with a closet. It was big enough for both of us to hang up our clothes, but it would be nice to have at least a hook or small rack in the smaller room for a guest to place articles of clothing, so they would not have to wake up their roommate just to get their clothes in the morning.
* The table and all the chairs were clearly vintage antiques and very pretty, but they were not very comfortable. They were crafted for people much shorter than us; we used pillows on the seats to create a standard height to sit on. It might be useful to have at least one chair that would accommodate someone taller than 5 feet.
* The bathroom was well-placed in between the two bedrooms. It was lovely but, again, not very useful for two guests. There was a thin wooden shelf on the wall above the toilet and another shelf on the wall by the sink, but it would be helpful to have a standard-sized medicine cabinet in lieu of the thin wooden shelf. The sink was a pedestal variety and so did not have any vanity space, nor was there space elsewhere to place our toiletries.
A major improvement for the property would be the installation of sufficient and clear signage. Again, directions from the parking lot to the main building and reception would be very much appreciated; artful signs could be attached to or painted on the adobe walls without disturbing the ambience of the Casa. Signage that directed guests through each of the courtyards (there are three) and through the main building would also be helpful. Even signs that lead to the ice machine would be appreciated.
A small frustration was the inaccessibility of the main building when staff were not present. The notice in our room stated that the main building is open until a particular time in the evening, but this is not correct. We were told by the older gentleman at the front desk that the main building is locked up after the last guest has checked in and is not opened again until breakfast is served. On one evening, the doors were locked by 4:30 pm. And on the day we checked out, all the doors to the main building except the front entrance were locked as soon as breakfast service was finished. The difficulty with this arrangement is that, whenever the main building is locked, guests do not have access to the ice machine, public restroom, or the main sitting area with books and comfortable furniture. A notice to this effect in the guest rooms would at least forewarn guests that they need to take care of getting ice, etc., during the time that staff is present.
Our stay at Casa Benavides was pleasant, but it could have been even more memorable if these small considerations could have been attended to. We look forward to returning to the Casa on our next visit to Taos to see the improvements that are made.