Any suggestions for hotels in Santiago?

I also posted a message for Buenos Aires so thought I would try the other end of our cruise as well - Santiago.

I am leaving on the Celebrity Infiniti cruise from Buenos Aries to Valparaiso in January.

I will be staying in Santiago for a few days at the end of the trip and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on where to stay in Santiago?

The boat gets into Valparaiso very early on Sunday so thinking of taking it easy there for a day and then going to Santiago for the next four days. I was thinking at staying at the Ibis in Valparaiso as it look nice, has good reviews and is cheap.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as this is my first cruise and first time to South America.

Thanks,

Darren

Do you want cheap of good?

This one is good...very good.

We have stayed twice at the Radisson Plaza Santiago in Providencia and were very impressed each time. You can see my review here http://*******.com/ohf543u

Sorry, the URL won't post correctly Here is the review on Trip Advisor:

Five Star Customer Service, but Not A Five Star Price Tag”

5 of 5 stars Reviewed April 2, 2014

In selecting a hotel in any city, different people have different needs and priorities. But I think we can all agree that customer service is very important. That is where the Radisson Plaza Santiago excels. There might be a tendency to view a large international chain hotel as a cookie cutter copy of all the others. That is certainly not true of this particular property. At every level of hotel staff, from General Manager, Camilo Navas, to Juan in The Brick restaurant and Jose in the front lobby, they all seem to be genuinely interested in your welfare and are dedicated to making sure your stay is as enjoyable as possible. Although they are in the hospitality business, there is nothing insincere about their willingness to help you in any way possible. It’s not painted on – it’s genuine. I have never been compelled to write similar sentiments about any other hotel before, but the Radisson Plaza Santiago is such a refreshing standout. If five-star customer service without a five-star price tag is important to you, this may be the place for you.

As an added bonus, the location of the hotel is opposite the Costanera Center, South America's largest shopping mall.

El Bosque San Sebastian was nice and not pricey.

We (and many other cruise passengers) have been happy to stay at the Hotel Orly in the Providencia District of Santiago. A nice but non-ostentatious small hotel, not pricey, good breakfast, safe area with many restaurants and easy subway access. For more details, see paragraph 3 in my post #4 at

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2069637

John

I also posted a message for Buenos Aires so thought I would try the other end of our cruise as well - Santiago.

 

I am leaving on the Celebrity Infiniti cruise from Buenos Aries to Valparaiso in January.

 

I will be staying in Santiago for a few days at the end of the trip and was wondering if anyone had any suggestions on where to stay in Santiago?

 

The boat gets into Valparaiso very early on Sunday so thinking of taking it easy there for a day and then going to Santiago for the next four days. I was thinking at staying at the Ibis in Valparaiso as it look nice, has good reviews and is cheap.

 

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated as this is my first cruise and first time to South America.

 

Thanks,

 

Darren

We stayed at the IBIS in Valpariso...it is right across the street from where the ships dock but unfortunately upon disembarkation they take you in shuttle buses to the port gate/immigration which is about a mile or two away from where you dock...from there you can take a taxi back to the IBIS for $10 which is a rip but it's a port mafia of sorts....The IBIS is a fantastic location right next to the train station and in the center of town. It is a relatively new IBIS and the people were very nice and helpful...We booked online direct with IBIS and paid only $53 including two breakfast buffets/free wifi/ etc....it is not the Four Seasons but it is certainly clean and functional for a short stay ...great showers and flat screen tv.

We stayed one night in Valpariso and then took a taxi from the IBIS to the bus station where buses leave every 20 mins to Santiago...taxi was $5 and about ten minutes away...very easy bus station with lots of nice modern a/c buses....trip to Santiago was less than two hours....from Santiago bus station we took a taxi...$10...to the IBIS Santiago...this is also relatively new hote and twin room with breakfast/wifi/etc etc was $73 booked direct online. Staff very helpful and once again a near perfect location.

To get from IBIS to the Santiago airport taxis are very expensive quoting $100-200 usd....you can take a taxi from IBIS to catch the airport bus ...get them to mark it on a map for you at the hotel...it's about 15 min taxi ride...the airport buses leave every 30 minutes, take about 30-40 mins to get to the airport and only cost a couple of dollars...be aware if you have a lot of luggage that you will have to load and unload your luggage onto the bus by yourself as luggage goes into the passenger compartment instead of below...

The Ibis is NOT FOR SNOBS....the rooms are very clean and very basic but certainly have a/c, great showers, flat screen tv, free wifi and comfortable beds...but don't expect the room to be huge...it is bigger than a typical cruise ship room but not a lot.

Overall we found we enjoy the IBIS brand as it is a bargain and we do little more than sleep and shower in the room anyway....

When you book direct online you pay when you get there and in both cases there were no surprises and the bill was exactly as quoted.

We were very glad that we chose to stay one night in valpariso and one night Santiago as they are very very different and both were enjoyable.

We did the same as Dockman but: Once in Valparaiso, we bought the metro card (CLP 1,200-2,000) and some money - you only need one for as many people travelling in your party and took the light rail back to the terminus and walked to the Ibis.

Added more funds and took the metro to Vina del mar and walked around there and went back. Next day, took light rail back to the stop for the cruise terminal and walked to the bus station.

In Santiago, we stayed in the Loreto - a very nice boutique hotel on .. Loreto. Near the garment district and minutes to the funicular up the hill, and very close to centro.

As for getting to SCL. USD 30. Anything more is a rip-off. That's what the car service that the hotel called for us charged.

BTW, Ibis are basic but we found the Valparaiso one roomier and bigger than others I/we've stayed in (Buenos Aires, Melbourne, Bangkok). Very cheap basic toiletries and only 1 towel each but you're paying less than Motel 6 prices (used to be owned by Accor until recently) for much-better accommodation in surprisingly high-cost country.

I spent a week last summer staying at the Loreto, it was hands down one of my best travel decisions ever. It was in the perfect location for what I wanted to see in the area. I'm booked to do Buenos Aires to Santiago in February 2016, there is no question it's where we'll be staying a night or 2 post cruise.

If you're going to be touring independently Grayline does operate in Santiago, I used them to book most of my tours, being solo it was more than worth it to know I was with a U.S. based company with English speaking guides.

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If you're going to be touring independently Grayline does operate in Santiago, I used them to book most of my tours, being solo it was more than worth it to know I was with a U.S. based company with English speaking guides.

Yes, Grayline usually does a good job, but there is nothing like a local (Leo Cuzmar & his associates). Take a look at a few endorsements. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g294305-i2020-k5194022-Leo_Cuzmar_Chile_Guide-Santiago_Santiago_Metropolitan_Region.html