We recently stayed at Placita Vieja Hotel, located right in the heart of Santa Marta’s Parque de los Novios, and we absolutely loved our experience. I went with my girlfriend, and from the moment we arrived, we felt welcomed and cared for. The location couldn’t be better — peaceful and quiet inside, yet just steps away from the vibrant atmosphere of the park. The hotel itself has a calm, intimate vibe that made it perfect for a relaxing getaway. The staff were truly outstanding: highly professional, friendly, and always ready to help with anything we needed. Special thanks to Miriam, who went out of her way to make sure our breakfast was exactly to our taste every morning, and to Fernando, the administrator, who is not only a great professional but also a wonderful conversationalist. If you’re visiting Santa Marta and want a place that combines perfect location, comfort, and exceptional service, Placita Vieja is an excellent choice.

We loved everything

Location is great. The stuff was very friendly. Bigger room with balcony was very nice.

It is definitely not 5* hotel. I have no idea how it got this rating - it is a normal tiny B&B with the pool on the roof. It is a bit worn out - but very cute and if it would be a little bit more taken care of, it would be an awesome escape in the middle of Santa Marta. I don’t recommend the standard rooms. Some of the rooms had either no window or windows facing the pool like 1:1 - so no privacy. But I know there are awesome rooms also cause we were a bigger group of people and the bigger room was very nice with a nice balkony. The breakfast was nothing special, but it was ok. We had a weird hole in the floor - like ex closet or ex fireplace right next to the whirlpool 😂

I really enjoyed staying here. The staff are wonderful, the location is perfect. Great WiFi, nice breakfast, beautiful building, comfortable, quiet room.

Again, I loved this place and would recommend it; however, they may wish to consider two things: Easy: Have coffee/water available at all times - either charge per cup or add a small amount to the room rate. It is a pain to go searching for a seat in a cafe every time you want a coffee, especially when it’s raining (or provide a kettle in the room). Harder: As soon as economically viable, replace the wash basin water sensor system in the rooms - it delivers only cold water, requiring much flapping of hands… there is a reason hotels around the world use taps - and provide hot water. This is not just about sanitary handwashing and effective shaving, it’s about not starting the day feeling grumpy about an otherwise excellent, lovely hotel.

We stayed at the Placita Vieja Hotel for six nights and enjoyed both the hotel and Santa Marta. What did we like about PVH? 1. Location: in the heart of the entertainment district and two blocks from the Malecón de Bastidas. Plenty of solid dining options nearby--we heartily recommend Donde Chucho Gourmet, Restaurante LaMart, and Ouzo--and more bars than I could count. It was a short walk to a number of attractions. 2. The staff is friendly and with a boost Google Translate, helpful. We loved the woman who cooked our breakfasts and tidied our room. It's my habit to tip housekeepers on a daily basis; I was happy to so at PVH. 3. Speaking of breakfasts--they're very good. Wonderful fruit to start, as much coffee as we could drink, eggs to order and some Colombian specialties: arepas with eggs and cayeye. 4.. Our room--a "junior suite"--was comfortable with a fine air conditioner, ceiling fan and balcony. We could barely hear the noise from the plaza on which the hotel sits. That said, PVH isn't a luxury hotel as I would define one. 5.. We arrived by rental car from Cartagena on a Saturday night--not something I would do again--and were able to find a secured lot within a couple of blocks of PVH.

I was mildly annoyed with paying 50,000 COP to replace a plastic key card, the same card a four or five star property would replace without charging. That said, it was only ten bucks.

We had a wonderful stay and didn't want to leave. Placita Vieja is an oasis in the middle of Santa Marta. The staff were friendly, helpful, and really made us feel special. Breakfast was delicious and made fresh each morning. They linked us to a tour company for excursions to Minca for bird watching, coffee, and cocoa farm tours. The room was modern, comfortable, and clean. We loved having a full, cozy comforters on the bed. We did not avail ourselves of the full spa experience, but we enjoyed the roof top pool. The location is excellent in the middle of everything. The hotel is close to great restaurants, shops, and bars..but we didn't have any noise from the street at night. It's only a short walk to the malecón. You will not regret booking here!

The location of the hotel is great, big rooms and nice swimming pool. However, the best this hotel has is the people working there: they are incredible nice and helpful. They will even make your breakfast every time you have to leave earlier for a hike to Tayrona or other excursions. It is possible to book a massage and I highly recommend to ask for Yasmin, she is absolutely amazing!!! I would like to say a special thank you to the whole team and above all to Eliana for being so friendly and made me feel like family!

Super friendly staff and owner. The owner helped us organize a boat trip to a secluded beach and even drove us to the port. Overall, the customer service was simply outstanding: We were brought food and cocktails to the pool, had huge customized breakfasts and a lot of personal attention during our stay. The rooms are tastefully decorated. The rooftop swimming pool (with a Turkish steam bath) can rival those of 5 star hotels. Location: in the heart of the old city.

Incredible location right on the main square, but the quieter side. We had no trouble sleeping despite being less than a minute walk from the brilliant nightlife. The property is beautiful - modern and stylish but in keeping with the age and location of the property. Rooftop pool is a godsend in the heat and though it looks small, it was super quiet up there, never more than a couple of other people, if any, so plenty big enough. The staff were just such wonderful people. The two girls at reception are so sweet and kind. One ran after us in the street worried we were going to miss breakfast, one gave us the most kind compliments. We felt very looked after and cared about as their guests. Breakfast is freshly cooked and lovely - fruits and eggs cooked as you wish. It feels safe walking home in the evening as you’re always in a busy and well lit part of town. Loved it!

The bathroom door of our room should be changed - it was a twin room for friends and had a glass bathroom door which means you can see each other on the toilet! Some frosting on the glass at least would be a big improvement!

Beautiful Boutique hotel Super location Staff so helpful Beds and room very comfortable Right in main square but not too noisy. Beautiful fish restaurant next door that the staff in hotel kindly organised for lunch from restaurant to be brought to us at the pool. Would also recommend Ouzo restaurant 2 minute walk from hotel. Really nice breakfast and hot shower! Would definitely recommend this hotel

The hotel was very attractive, in a great location for exploring the city and with incredibly helpful staff with regard to trips to places around and outside the city, and with restaurant recommendations. Everything was comfortable and worked well. The breakfast was very good and fresh. The hotel was surprisingly quiet and tranquil in spite of being near a nightlife area.

The only thing I didn't like would be impossible to do anything about. Having never been to Santa Marta before I did want to explore the city and the hotel is in the perfect location for that. However, my friend who I was with loves spending the day at the beach and the beaches that are easily accessible from the city center are mostly pretty dirty and crowded. Not anywhere you would particularly want to swim or even spend a lot of time on the sand. The really nice beaches are almost all a long ways away - the best of them in Tayrona National Park. We went for the day to Playa Cristal, which was great, but it is nearly four hours (round trip) of travel by car and then boat. The hotel is great at arranging such excursions