Sunday, January 29, 2012

Review - Hostel Erupcion, Banos, Ecuador

We stayed three nights at Erupcion Hostel & Restaurant in Baños, Ecuador. Hostel Erupcion is located at the corner of Haflants and Ambato above a Hardware store about 4 blocks from the bus stop. The Hostel is run by a middle-aged Ecuadorian woman who is fantastic and is there for at least some of the day (if not the whole day) in the reception/kitchen area. There were two other regular workers who we talked to at least once the three days we stayed there. The employees speak English about as well as I speak Spanish (not the greatest) but we had no troubles with any of the interpretations of our rudimentary Spanish. We rented a private double for 9.50/person/night which included breakfast, towels, shampoo, and toilet paper (important). The room was small with a full sized bed, a twin bed, and a private bathroom with hot showers. The bed was comfortable but the pillows left something to be desired though, they seemed to be old couch cushions but in the end it was just fine. What really made the stay nice was the breakfast. Breakfast was served from 8-10 everday and included fresh juice, bread rolls, queso, two eggs, instant coffee or hot chocolate, and an amazing balcony deck on which to enjoy the food and the sites of one of Baños´ parks which was across the street from the Hostel. The covered balcony was really nice not just for breakfast but also enjoying a couple of cervezas at night and people watching. The only complaint we had besides the pillows was that since it was in the middle of the "downtown" area it stayed noisy for most of the night but it really didn´t impede our sleep too much.