Hotel Casa La Factoria by Faranda Boutique, a member of Radisson Individuals

My boyfriend and I stayed here for five nights in room 201 and it was pretty perfect. The staff, including Roa (waiter) and Christian (front desk) were friendly, warm and helpful. The location is great--right off of Plaza Santo Domingo, which has a few lovely coffee shops and a pharmacy for all of your needs. The open-air pool and spa on the roof was very good (and cheap for a U.S. traveler -- think: $35 for a 60-minute massage). At the Candelaria restaurant, the large daily breakfast spread was plentiful, if not a little carb-heavy, and the Pink Dolphin was a chic bar to grab a good cocktail and serviceable Japanese-Peruvian fare. Christian from reception helped arrange a wonderful day at the Hotel Caribe--a sister hotel in Bocagrande--and its Kala Beach Club. As visiting guests from Casa la Factoria, we were treated like royalty! Our room had a comfortable bed and warm shower with good water pressure. A little desk was good for a few days of WFH. At their main restaurant, Candelaria, the large daily breakfast spread was plentiful, if not a little carb-heavy, and the Pink Dolphin was a chic bar to grab a good cocktail and serviceable Japanese-Peruvian fare. Overall, it felt like a great find at a great price. We would definitely return to this charming hotel in the middle of the walled city of Cartagena.

The only fault in the design is the toilet in the room, which is walled off only about 3/4 up to the ceiling and a door that doesn't lock. When we wanted privacy to use the toilet, we had to run off to the single bathroom on the lobby or rooftop level. It's not accessible, and I'd think staying on the 3rd or 4th floor would get annoying with all of the stairs, especially for elderly or people with any mobility issues. The pool ('jacuzzi') on the roof needs to be skimmed more, due to falling leaves, etc. Same with the cave/grotto on the lobby level. That seems to collect debris & should be cleaned more frequently Read less

A lovely colonial style building with an amazing pool. Spacious rooms, great comfortable beds, warm shower and quiet airconditioning. Very nice breakfast area with a lot of options to choose from. Best location in the old town and walking distance to many nice restaurants. Nice bar -Pink Dolphin- with best cocktails! Quick and not expensive laundry service.

The rooms are very dark with not enough light. Extra lamps with brighter light would be helpful especially next to the bathroom mirror. Bathroom is not separate, but toilet and shower are in the room and separated via dark glass. If you need more privacy, this is not the room for you. Since our room (103) was on the ground floor and next to the pool, we heard the noice from the pool (if you leave your room, you almost step into the pool!). Due to that, the pool is closed between 8.30pm - 8.30am, so for us it was okay.

The location of the hotel is outstanding in the Centro Historico of Cartagena. Everything looked exactly as the photos, we particularly enjoyed the rooftop pool and service. The rooms were comfortable. We arrived early but the staff was very accommodating in letting us use the facilities and storage our luggage while the rooms were getting ready. Breakfast at the restaurant was delicious. Service was perfect, thanks to everyone in the staff that made our stay so wonderful!

Something that we didn’t notice in the photos is that there’s no separate room for the bathroom, each section is in the room with separate doors to access the WC and the shower, and the doors are see through, it took us by surprise but we didn’t mind in the end

The property was beautiful, had a great breakfast, and awesome staff. There was an issue with the AC, and they moved us to a neighboring hotel - their staff took our bags all the way there through the streets of Cartagena! When the AC was working it was amazing, so it was just a fluke!

One weird thing was that the toilet room (separate from the shower and sink) was see through glass so if you’re with someone in the room, they could see you on the toilet. I think if you really want a pool, this might not be the best place because it’s in the lobby/breakfast area. There’s a hot tub on the roof though too.

this is a beautiful, well located property in old Cartagena. staff was excellent and very helpful. breakfast was excellent, varied and staff also excellent. there is a restaurant and bar, pool on the main floor and jacuzzi/loungers on the rooftop. Note: shower and toilet are in separate areas (love this); but are grey glass stalls within the room. sink is in the room. we liked this setup but be aware. the king superior room was huge and spotlessly clean.

unfortunately, our first room had a strong mildew smell that was initially covered by air freshener on check in. not uncommon given the high degree of moisture and age of the building; staff was really accommodating and moved us to another room for the remainder of our stay, but walking by a couple of other rooms whose doors were ajar there was mildew as well. if you are really sensitive consider carefully. it’s a beautiful hotel and we loved it otherwise, but would be reluctant to book again for this reason. also note this property does not have an elevator.

Outstanding hotel in a fantastic location. Due to a countrywide transportation strike, we unexpectedly had to leave our last location and drive through the night to arrive at 4:30 am and we were so well taken care of by the staff. The beds were AMAZINGLY comfortable, unanimously voted best ever by everyone in my family. The hotel and the rooms are in a restored factory (hence the name) and it's boutique and unique feel was superb, especially the pool that was somewhere between hot tub temperature and a warm pool. We loved it. The location was great because while it is in the centro historico with easy access to everything yet down a quieter street so it is not too noisy at night. Finally I cannot say enough about the staff, from the restaurant to the front desk, they helped us with everything and made our stay pleasant. Don't hesitate!

NOTHING.

The hotel it self is gorgeous and the location is amazing. We told the hotel staff we were not happy with the room we got because of the light and bathroom issues and they changed us to much more comfortable room with plenty or natural light. After this, our experience was great and the hotel truly did an effort to make our stay special and comfortable. The hotel also has alliances with other hotels so you can easily go to their restaurants or swimming pools.

We first got a room which was really small and had barely no light. Had an oversize TV blocking a very narrow window so we had to use our phones for light! The concept of the hotel is colonial style but the fact that the TV was blocking the only light was a downside. Also the door from the shower didn't close properly and the toilet was straight next to the bed without a proper door so there was zero privacy.

The location was great - very central to everything in the City Center and we could walk everywhere. We felt very safe, even at night. The staff was very attentive and the Bell Staff were especially helpful and friendly. The breakfast was "ok" but not great. However it was convenient as most restaurants didn't open for breakfast until 9am in the city. Our room was small but the air conditioning worked well and it was very clean. It was on the 4th floor and there is no elevator so that was a workout every day :) Overall a charming boutique hotel.

The breakfast could have had more selection and the fact that there is no elevator is something to consider but makes sense in this historic location.

Beautiful building, we enjoyed the pool, massages and jacuzzi facilities. Lovely plentiful breakfast provided. Location excellent, beds very comfortable.

The bedrooms are very dark. Would have liked a waste paper basket. Also found the ‘in-room’ toilet and shower is very intimate for sharing guests! We ended up not being able to pay for a massage on checkout due to a lack of paper record, which left us the headache of having to sort the payment out after departure. Staff were attentive but could have been more on the ball.

Everything about our stay was fantastic, the hotel facilities were beautiful, and the staff's quality of service was superb. Everyone was enthusiastic, helpful, warm - we enjoyed all of our interactions with the staff. We specially enjoyed the rooftop which has tanning beds, a spa and a jacuzzi. It was a great spot to watch the sunset and enjoy some cocktails from the hotel's bar. They also had great spa services - they offered them at a sister hotel a few blocks away and it was phenomenal. The room was simple, but comfortable. We specially enjoyed the hotel's location as its close to a square with a convenience store, coffee shop and a quick access to stores and restaurants, yet far enough that we didn't get bothered at night by the sounds of crowds or traffic.

We had only one issue with our stay, which we understand is complicated to solve but still hope we can offer to the hotel as an area for improvement - we live in the tropics and know how pesky mosquitoes can be and how hard they can be to manage, specially in open spaces. It was rather difficult for us to enjoy the restaurant due to the mosquitoes. The staff was apologetic and gracefully offered us insect repellent. PS: the hotel staff is a treasure!