My wife and I will be in Ronda for 2 days/nights. We like quiet, non-smoking rooms. We have been looking at Hotel San Gabriel (highly rated on Tripadvisor and Rick's book), Parador de Ronda, and Hotel Don Miguel. The Parador is very expensive unless we book it through Priceline which doesn't even give you the opportunity to request a view, non-smoking, etc. The room description says some rooms with mountain views are available. I assume we would get "left-overs" but not sure. Don Miguel reviews say the views are great but rooms hit or miss. What do you all suggest? How convenient is the Parador or Don Miguel to town? San Gabriel seems to meet all requirements - only downside is it has no view to speak of from what I can discern. Thoughts or recommendations? We will have a car but plan to park it and leave it once we arrive. We will be traveling in mid-April, just before the crowds.
Thanks in advance.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7886 posts
I find TripAdvisor very useful in vetting hotels, and use this (Rick's) site less for that. I feel that it's easy to identify the relatively few "fake" reviews at TA. And the huge volume of reviews makes up for how short some of them are, and for the possiblity of fakes. In 2005 (a long time ago) we had room 219 in the Parador de Ronda, and it was well worth the 155 Euros. The view was spectacular, and we enjoyed the luxury of the room. Parking and breakfast were additional. Without referring to whatever the price is today, I recommend it. But you have to check on TA whether the standards might have slipped. We used our car to go to the Pileta Caves and for a daytrip to Gibraltar, the latter of which I do not recommend. That said, as long as you can afford two dinners (with reservations, no doubt) at cliffside restaurants, it isn't absolutely essential to have a view when you stay in Ronda. I would think that air conditioning is unimportant in April. Referring to open windows, there have been some times when the gorge in Ronda has had odors, but I'm not up on current conditions. If quiet rooms are important, you also don't want a passeggiata (I don't know the Spanish word) street exposure, do you? Spain can be noisy late at night. I won't use Priceline myself, but I'm puzzled why one person would be both looking for special view/luxury and trolling for the lowest price with no control over room choice. I don't mean to sound critical, I just think you need to make clear what your objectives are, in order to get the best advice on an internet forum! Although there are both thoughtful, attentive hotel employees and mindless lifers, the person who checks you in and assigns a room knows what you paid for it, don't they?