I just returned from my trip to San Miguel. I stayed at the Casa de Sierra Nevada, and this hotel is lovely. The rooms surround a beautiful courtyard, each section with its own attendants. Gustavo and Consuelo met our every need with a smile and accomodating service, while Ana kept our room exceptionally clean. The staff is just charming. I celebrated my birthday while there, and these three each brought me flowers and gifts! You will love this hotel--beautiful, clean, and excellent service.

My husband, my son and my brother in law where spending the weekend in San Miguel de Allende so we ended up choosing this Hotel after reading reviews and looking over their website. First of all, cheking in was fine until we were giving our rooms. My brother in law had this upstairs room that had no air condition and only 2 windows you could open. The sun gave this room a closely 97 degrees. The bathroom had a window you could look out and we saw this lady in her jacuzzi, so we decided to close the window...In the other hand, our room which was more than $450dls, was ok. THEN...we went to use the restroom and the toilet didn`t flush, I picked the phone up and the phone was dead, later that night I gave my son a bath and you could tell the bathtub wasn`t at all clean because hair was still in it. I was even afraid to turn the light on the bathroom because our window had an almost transparent curtain. No matter that, the window was in the main hall so anyone passing by could see you. We hated this hotel. People are OK friendly but they do not make you feel right at home. We`ve stayed at Dos Casas Hotel and it is soooo much better. Too Bad it was all booked up until the middle of August!

We just returned from 12 fabulous days at Casa Sierra Nevada in San Miguel de Allende. Our room was lovely and while it was not particularly large it did have sufficient storage space for all our belongings. We were especially delighted that our request for a balcony was honored.

The staff was extremely attentive from Consuelo who kept our room spotless and sparkling to Dali who confirmed our ride and flight reservations to the night clerk who was exceeding helpful and immediately made us feel welcome despite the late hour of our arrival. I especially want to acknowledge Hannah Maldonado who made the greatest contribution to our having such a memorable time. Her manner is impeccable—always gracious and professional. Our memorable dining experience was entirely due to the wonderful recommendations she made, taking extra time to talk with us about the different cuisines and restaurants. Whenever we had a question or required assistance, Hannah was there for us.

We were sorry that the spa was still under construction and look forward to enjoying it on our next visit.

Lastly, I want to acknowledge the excellent food and great service at your restaurant located in the park.

Pilar Manjarrez

Currently staying at the hotel and wanted to make an objective review. The rooms are very nice, if a bit sober and some details in need of repair. The concierge service in the house, led by Gustavo and Consuelo were first class. As a result of the remodel the hotel is undergoing we were advised in advance, when making reservations, that the pool house (Casa Limon) would be closed during our stay but that we would be able to use a pool at a nearby golf club. So far so good.

Upon arriving at the hotel we were greeted to " your room is not ready yet" although after meeting the front desk associate a minute later a room was made available immediately. To our disappointment, the room assigned did not have a terrace. I called the front desk to request one with a terrace and was told that the next day one would be available. Minutes later Gustavo called the front desk and showed us two rooms that were available, one of them with a terrace. We agreed on one and left for lunch. Our belongings were promptly moved to our new room with a beautiful view.

The next day, an unusually rainy day in San Miguel (according to the locals), we felt like breakfast in bed. We called room service but were told that since the restaurant was not close by, we would only be able to order cold items. A inherent lack of planning was evident. In addition, Giselle at the front desk mentioned that we should have received a letter indicating this fact. Given I never received such notice (at reservation time or otherwise) I insisted that they accomodate my request. Giselle spoke to her manager and quickly called back to take my order. Breakfast arrived promptly with Gustavo's apologies for the incident. This set an unpleasant tone for the start of the day.

I asked to speak with the Manager, Mark Rodriguez, but have not heard from him yet. Below is a summary of what my letter to Orient Express will mention.

Front Desk:

DAY Service at the front desk and communication with guests is not up to the Orient Express Hotels standard. No greeting when entering the small "make do" front desk. Dali is the exception to this who was pleasant and offered another guest and me some refreshments. The other young clerks appeared as though they were having coffee and chatting at a gathering instead of being welcoming to guests.

Service in the house: EXCELLENT. Gustavo and Consuelo are superb and make every effort to make guests welcome. Unsolicited coffee and juice at our room prior to breakfast was another nice touch in the mornings.

Another service desk clerk that deserves mention is Octavio. He went out of his way and in an unsolicited manner called the restaurants I had mentioned as possibilties for dinner to insure they were open to make reservations. This is the expectation and previous experience at other Orient Express Hotels.

Management needs to act accordingly and offer full disclosure, and manage expectations while the remodeling of the hotel occurs. Training is lacking on younger clerks and I suspect, or want to believe that the transition from previous ownership is not yet complete. Four Seasons is entering the market and there are plenty of boutique hotels, such as Oasis that are and will be giving this hotel a run for their money (visited and will try on my next visit to San Miguel).

I hope that management takes notice on the small details which can make or break an experience for a guest and are described above.

Alex Mirkin