Nickay McKenzie W.
Google
My family and I visited Del Valle over New Year’s Eve and stayed a few days into the New Year, fully intending to immerse ourselves in what was marketed as a peaceful “retreat” centered on “organic healing” and “wellness.” Unfortunately, while the property itself is beautiful, our overall experience fell short of those expectations.
To start with the positives: the property, architecture, and rooms are stunning. The hotel is thoughtfully designed, with beautiful and distinctive art throughout that adds real charm and character. The food at both on-site restaurants Fuego and Tiempo was excellent and consistently enjoyable.
Where our experience truly missed the mark, however, was in guest management, communication, and service.
First, the hotel allows very young children, which significantly detracts from the advertised wellness and relaxation experience. During our stay, there were numerous young, unsupervised children screaming, running through shared spaces, disturbing wildlife, drawing on furniture, and using the gym as a playground, often disrupting workouts and meals. Unfortunately, many parents appeared disengaged, making it difficult to enjoy either private or public areas of the property.
Second, hotel communication was inconsistent and lacked proactivity. We were never offered the opportunity to reserve spa services prior to arrival, leaving us scrambling for extremely limited spa availability. And we only learned at booking that the spa amenities (salt room, sauna, cold plunge, pool) could be used for an additional $100 and could not be used free if you booked spa services. We were also informed the night before that complimentary yoga would be held in one location, only to find it moved the following morning without any notice. We had to wander the property to locate the class. Lastly, the hotel advertises an “Activity Center,” yet many of the listed activities were unavailable during our stay, something that should have been clearly communicated at booking.
Lastly, while the staff was polite, the service felt impersonal and lacked warmth. This was especially noticeable when compared to the exceptional hospitality we experienced previously at Hotel La Compañía Casco Antiguo, where the staff was consistently warm, attentive, and welcoming.
We understand the hotel only opened in March, so some growing pains are expected. That said, a few changes could significantly improve the guest experience:
- Consider restricting guest age to 12+ or 18+, or alternatively, create a dedicated kids’ club or children’s area to preserve quiet spaces.
- Add key-card access to the gym and paddle ball courts to prevent children from using these areas as play zones.
- Improve proactive communication regarding available vs. unavailable amenities prior to arrival.
- Expand the gym, which feels disproportionately small given the size of the property.
With better guest management and clearer communication, Del Valle has the potential to truly live up to its promise as a wellness retreat.