Gabriel A.
Google
We were robbed inside our own hotel room at HTL 9 de Julio in Buenos Aires during a family stay from December 18 to 23, 2025. On December 22, high-value personal items disappeared, including a MacBook, cash in U.S. dollars, credit and debit cards, a wallet, a backpack, clothing and accessories, as well as a Brazilian passport. The total loss exceeds USD 5,000.
We returned to this hotel because we had stayed there in 2023 and trusted it to be a safe place for our end-of-year holidays. However, on the day of the incident, we left the hotel around 10:30 a.m. and returned at approximately 6:30 p.m. to find the room inexplicably cleaned, despite housekeeping normally being done only upon request. Shortly afterward, we discovered the theft.
We immediately reported the incident to the front desk, but the staff showed a complete lack of preparedness and urgency, limiting their response to remote contact with the hotel’s manager and owner. The police came to the hotel; nevertheless, we were still forced to visit three different police stations before a police report was finally filed, close to midnight.
We requested access to the hotel’s security camera footage but were informed that the recordings were handled by a third-party company and were never made available. As of January 11, 2026, we still have not been granted access to these images.
The following day, we checked out and went directly to the Brazilian Consulate to cancel the stolen passport, returning to Brazil just hours later. At no point did any hotel manager or owner meet us in person. All communication was handled remotely, while our family dealt alone with financial loss, emotional distress, insecurity, and vulnerability in a foreign country.
In addition to the robbery, our stay was already marked by serious issues: a duplicate charge at check-in despite partial prepayment through Booking, unauthorized entry into our room by a staff member, housekeeping and basic supplies provided only upon request, and the frequent presence of live flies in the room.
This was an unacceptable and traumatic experience, reflecting severe failures in security, management, and accountability. No compensation has been offered, and the case remains under investigation by the Argentine police. We do not recommend this hotel. This review is intended as a warning to future guests.