Illa Experience Hotel

We booked this and one other Quito hotel for my wife’s special, ‘big birthday’ trip to Galapagos based on more than 40 Hotels.com 10/10 reviews. However, whilst the staff were all very pleasant and helpful, the hotel fell some way below what we, as fairly experienced international and third world travellers, consider to be quite reasonable expectations. It is located in a side street at the very edge of the ‘safe’ historic old town, to the point where locally-based lunchtime hotel diners stopped us at the entrance door and strongly cautioned us against turning right for fear of being mugged in broad daylight. Our room was on the hotel’s first level, being several meters below street level with obscured and permanently curtained windows and no view whatsoever. Our room’s coffee machine was missing, and our beverage supplies comprised 2 teabags with no milk or creamer. There was no hot water to the bathroom until 6am, (which presented a serious problem for our early flight out), ridiculously small bathrobes, and a poor selection of toiletries. The shower was interestingly designed with a lightly obscured glass side wall that became completely transparent when wet, and faced directly onto the bedroom area, thereby allowing me to recline on the bed and watch my wife showering, or vice versa. The wine list was unrealistically expensive, the mini bar demanded $6 for a small bottle of still water, and the dinner menu was unexciting. The lobby is dark and uninspiring, and what the

Great location, friendly staff, clean room

Beautifully designed property in a great location. Service was excellent. An oasis in the city

El hotel es bonito, las instalaciones están bien pero el gimnasio y la piscina estaban en reparaciones. El personal es atento, quizá un poco desorganizado. No indicaron que a las 17h30 había una experiencia con sombreros de paja toquilla, la cual nunca se dio... en compensación nos dieron un chocolate que estuvo bien. A las 20h30 tocaron la puerta de la habitación para ofrecernos un tratamiento o refresh facial no recuerdo bien. Si me hubieran avisado antes me preparaba pero cuando me avisaron estaba ya recostada en pijama por lo que lo rechace. Hubiera sido bonito saberlo con anticipación. En el desayuno se termino el pan y no nos toco pan... A pesar de haber conseguido una buena tarifa para la habitación me parece que la relación precio calidad no es adecuada, es muy costoso para que lo que es, no tienen estacionamiento y nos toco cargar las maletas hasta el mas cercano y pagar por nuestra cuenta, al menos eso se debería ofrecer a los huespedes.

Overall very nice

Illa Experience Hotel is an absolutely beautiful property with both historic and modern elements. Our room (a second floor suite with views of the charming street) was incredibly spacious and well appointed. Indeed, the entire hotel was renovated with thoughtful details. The service was off the charts... seriously - the kindest, most helpful staff ever. They went out of their way to make our stay a pampered one - from accommodating a late check out to sourcing needed medicine in Quito. And the view from the second floor bar of the hills and the Angel of Quito was breathtaking. What a treat!

The hotel was quite an experience the best service I ever had! Located in the old city very antique with new world amenities. The staff is great and the food is amazing this is truly an experience. Please let the resort arrange your driver Giovanny is the best. Love love this hotel.

Beautiful property!! Amazing touches throughout the hotel. We were upgraded with our Expedia VIP to a lovely suite. Hotel staff is so gracious and accommodating.

Buena ubicación y el personal hace el hotek

The property itself is very nice, but the old town area is not safe at night and the hotel should do better to make sure their guests can enter it whenever they want to come back from outside. We left for dinner and came back to the hotel at 9pm. There was nobody at the front desk to let us in for whatever reason and we were not given a front door fob or key. We rang the doorbell for 20 minutes, we tried to knock, call the front desk, etc. to be let in. BUT NOBODY LET US IN. We are patient people except for the fact that old town Quito is UNSAFE AT NIGHT TIME for tourists. There are people who heckle you and who loiter outside the hotel at night, leaving us feeling very unsafe because we looked like tourists and were unable to get into our hotel. We thankfully went to an open place next door and they called the front desk persons cell phone who let us in after 40 minutes. The front desk person said they were cleaning the jacuzzi and did not hear the ring. However, for any hotel excluding that this is luxury, making their guests feel unsafe is especially unacceptable. I highly recommend either getting backup staff, giving guests a key fob for the front door when they check in, getting a louder doorbell, etc. not having someone at front desk at night is not acceptable. We did not feel safe outside at night in Quito and there should be a way to enter a hotel you pay to stay in. Please resolve for future.

Lovely stay, very helpful staff.

Ecuadorian Luxury, World-Class Hospitality For our first trip to Quito, we wanted to stay somewhere very special. That meant eschewing the modern chain hotels in the suburbs in favour of someplace unique in the historic district. I narrowed the list to three places within a few blocks of one another, but the boutique size of ILLA Experience Hotel and Spa, and the glowing reviews here that lauded the staff for their exceptionally personal service, won me over. I can’t imagine having made a better choice. This is one of the best hotels we have experienced anywhere in the world. The outstanding service began well prior to our arrival. So many emails and WhatsApp messages were exchanged between the front desk staff and me as we worked out dinner reservations, airport transfers, potential tours, and one very special request. Since it was to be our first time ever not being at home for December 24th and 25th, I asked if it would be possible for me to pay to have a real Christmas tree put up in our room. It was an instant and enthusiastic “Yes!” from ILLA, and over the subsequent few weeks they sent me photos of the type of tree available, and potential ornaments and nativity sets. Eventually, together, we settled on a selection of typical ornaments, simple white lights, and a large cluster of red Ecuadorian roses at the top. The price was very reasonable as well. The next generous gesture came when we landed at 6AM on Christmas Eve day. The hotel had someone

We chose Illa Experience as our base in Ecuador and are so glad we did! We just completed our first stay (out of three) and are already looking forward to returning. It feels like a safe space in the beautiful old town of Quito with the most attentive staff. Really feels like home away from home!

Endroit magnifique ! Le service est extraordinaire! Le personnel à la réception et à la restauration prend vraiment bien soin de nous ! Endroit très sécuritaire ! Un merci spécial à David pour l’aide à l’organisation de nos différentes visites

Excellent boutique hotel with warm conscientious staff and luxurious rooms.

Great hotel, great experience. Lives up to its reputation.

Excellent staff and food experience amazing

Great Staff! Friendly and unique.

Great room and common areas. Great location. The highlight of the hotel experience was any meal with Juan Carlos, the chef. Very few tables, and people from all over Quito come for his delicious, hand-crafted meals that he prepares where you may watch. What TLC! Excellent staff like Juan David, Christian, Francisco and Vincent.

The property was gorgeous. The staff impeccable. The food could have been served with more speed but was nonetheless delicious.