Hotel Casa Magnolia Inn Panama

I have been to this place several times before. The rooms are very good, and the staff friendly. The combined hotel and hostel concept makes it a lovely place — but the standard of the private rooms is indeed solid for a three star hotel (though this is technically just two). There are other Casco hotels with similar prices and a bit more fancy. But the great advantage of this one is that it’s quiet — unlike some hotels that have rooftop open till late. The reason I am giving it two stars is that I experienced serious lack of honesty and transparency when I checked in during my last visit. As I arrived, the receptionist said I got an upgrade. I found that suspicious, and something was off. Indeed I was right: I had booked a room on the ground floor (where I stayed before), but those rooms were full and I was being sent to a room on the second floor with no elevator. They helped me with the baggage so that was ok, but I found the lack of honesty really shocking! What a receptionist should do is to say “sorry Sir, we have a problem and we apologise. The room you booked on the ground floor is not available. We have a room on the second floor, it’s even bigger, and we can help you with baggage. Is that ok ? We are so sorry”. And of course any guest would reply sure, ok, no problem. But what the receptionist did, which was to try and make a problem seem an “upgrade”, was seriously distasteful.

We had a very enjoyable stay at this hotel. Staff was very friendly and helpful. Location is very good - close to everything but quiet at night. Room was clean and beds were comfortable. I would definitely stay here again.

This is a great hostal. Well equipped kitchens, plenty of bathrooms and showers large lounge and dining area super friendly staff. They make a real effort to keep everything clean and working. It’s in the heart of the old city and there’s a bus two blocks away.

Vibe is weird. Police hanging around in the common area & staff seems like they'd rather be anywhere but here. Also weird rules, that make you feel like you can't hangout & relax. Kitchen is awesome, location is really good, price is alright & the rooms are fine. We didn't get real beds though, it was just mattresses laid on couch pieces? (everyone else had real beds in the dorm) It was okay to sleep on, but it felt uncaring and was obviously not what we expected to pay for. :/ If you're a solo traveler wanting to connect with people, this place isn't it in my opinion, if you just need a short stay with a great location, it's fine.

This is a great property for travelers who like to meet other travelers as it is a hotel and hostel blended into one. ||As such, it has a large shared living area and dining room with full kitchen.

As far as hostels go, this is pretty decent in my opinion. Easy to book (through Hostel world app) and they have check in until 11pm. Check-in itself was super easy and quick. The rooms don't seem to have blankets or sheets? And the bathrooms have plenty of toilet paper but no towels or paper towels to dry hands. There are trash cans. The sink clogged and won't drain which seems odd, very good location for the area and very easy to walk anywhere! I think the kitchen is well organized and set up, the common area is chill (I've seen cops here just hanging out frequently which is awkward but they are cool) and off of the kitchen are multiple terraces with chairs and tables if you have your own bottles or want to enjoy the breeze and street music. It feels like tile and nice decorations but not the best maintenance, so kind of a mix between hostel and hotel.

The room was of a good standard, location is excellent but really noisy at night. Staff mildly rude and uninterested. Wifi was unreliable all day when I arrived but it got fixed the next day. Noise was unbearable the last two nights and well into the early hours. When I reported the noise the next morning, I was told that they had called the police. The taxi driver told me that it happens all the time. The noise stems from a nearby rooftop and criminal guetto and there is nothing the police can or want to do. All in all, a good place to stay in the casco viejo if you are able to block out the noise which seem to only happen on Friday and weekends.

Let me start with the pro , the hotel is close to a lot of restaurants , public spaces and shopping for souvenir and just if you want to explore the old town. The staff was friendly , You will literally be in the middle of everything. I was there for only one night thank god. The rooms very basic does not look like the pictures online at all. Not enough towels , We had to walk up a lot of steps with our suitcase. So would recommend only if you have just a carry on or small luggage. The front desk guy helped us but it was just a lot. They need an elevator. The hotel needs renovation and attention in main area.