I was at the Emporio Hotel over a period of 6 days at the end of February 2006.
The hotel is a great place to stay with spotless interior, polished marble floors, crisp uniformed and friendly staff and clean rooms. The bathrooms had extra heavy towels and excellent amenities such as aromatherapy soaps, shampoo, conditioner and lotion. The food in the restaurant was well above average and the menu diverse.
The most outstanding part of the stay was the information and guest services provided by the Public Relations Department (hotel office staff) and particularly, Sr. Jorge Alvarez. His exceptional customer service has exceeded every other hotel staff I have ever encountered. Aside from his vast knowledge of local sites, he also directed us to places in nearby Jalapa, which in turn were precise in their description. When the post office was closed for a holiday, Sr. Alvarez offered to personally mail our postcards back home from the post office on the next day of business. This hotel is lucky to have such an employee.
The hotel is strategically located along the harbor boulevard, the Malecon, and is just a few blocks from the artesan crafts shops, the zocalo (large plaza) and many historic sites.
I would imagine that there are newer, fancier hotels available in the area, but I don't seek the glamour of such places.
Having been in the hospitality business for over 30 years, I would stay at the Emporio again without hesitation. One very impresssive place, all the way around.

the hotel is better than what we expected. Nice, clean and very well kept. The location is excelent, located near to most of the touristic attraccions the city has to offer.

Hi! My husband and I just returned from a week in Veracruz. We spent 3 nights at the Hotel Emporio downtown and 3 nights at the Camino Real on the beach. The Hotel Emporio is wonderful! Yes, it may be old but that is why we chose it: it has atmosphere and history. We had a kingsize bed as requested, and a view of the street and the original 'White House' (seat of the Mexican government). Great to sit out and watch the world go by in a bustling Mexican city. No complaints about that. We want to see how people live.
On the other side of the Hotel Emporio is the Malecon... an extremely busy and noisy street. Glad we did not have a room on that side. The hotel's restaurant was great and we were very impressed with their overall care and concern for cleanliness and hygiene. This is not something we have seen alot of anywhere in Mexico before. Nice little lounge, too. We swam in the pool .... there are 3 pools, actually and all quite nice. It got a little noisy around 4 in the afternoon when the Mexican families all returned to the hotel... the kids abounded and the music blared for about 2 hours, so we stayed away then.
The Hotel Emporio is ideally situated to walk the fabulous Malecon, shop, and get to the Portales and Zocalo for sightseeing and eating. Mostly we ate out...we wanted it that way and loved the sea food in Veracruz. We were 1/2 block from the most famous Gran Cafe Parroquia and enjoyed Cafe Lechero every single day. Yummmmm! If you're a Canadian like us, you will LOVE, LOVE, LOVE your coffee and Cafe Parroquia has something for you!
We took a cab out to the fort at San Juan de Ulua and paid a tour guide to take us through the ruins. Sooooooooo interesting! Pirates, Spanish conquistadors, slave trade, Spanish inquisition, dungeons, torture chambers, a moat with sharks, etc. We had the cabbie wait for us... honestly this is the best plan. It is NOT easy to get a cab back from the fort. Be warned. Cabs in Veracruz are very cheap, easy to get and we did not have one single one try to rip us off because we were foreign tourists. Excellent! We also took 2 separate tour buses around town: the double-decker at the Cathedral takes you through the colonial/historical city centre. The wooden bus (looks like an old trolley) outside the Hotel Emporio takes you all along the Malecon and up to Boca del Rio before it turns around. Cheap and easy to ride and you can hop off and on at different locations, if you want.
Veracruz is wonderful and so are the people. If you want to stay in the heart of things, the Hotel Emporio is an excellent choice.

I have been, many times, to Hotel Emporio just to chill. The hotel has excellent service, great views, and reasonable rates. Best of all is Emporio's fantastic restaurant - especially the Sea Bass Veracruzana. Easy access to all of Veracruz and many countryside tours. I'm returning in September for another two weeks of relaxation.