Hotel Nacional Guide and Review
Situated in David, Panama, the Hotel Nacional presents itself as a property with a significant history, reportedly almost 80 years old. While its primary type is listed as a casino, user reviews primarily focus on the hotel accommodations and services, revealing a highly polarized guest experience. It appears that a stay at Hotel Nacional can be either a delightful embrace of its historic charm and excellent service, or a deeply frustrating encounter with outdated facilities and maintenance issues.
A Study in Contrasts
The reviews for Hotel Nacional paint a vivid picture of a property that evokes strong opinions, ranging from glowing five-star commendations to scathing one-star condemnations. This suggests that the guest experience is far from uniform, often depending on specific room allocation, recent renovations, or perhaps even individual expectations.
The High Points: Service & Amenities ✨
For many guests, the Hotel Nacional shines in particular areas, earning high praise:
Exceptional Staff:
A recurring theme across positive reviews is the commendation for the hotel's personnel. Guests consistently describe the staff – from receptionists and clerks to kitchen and cleaning teams – as welcoming, friendly, helpful, and providing excellent service. The willingness of staff to offer advice is noted, though speaking Spanish can enhance interaction.
Dining & Recreation:
The hotel boasts three restaurants, including a Pizzeria, which are highlighted for their excellent menu choices, well-presented, and well-cooked food. Beyond dining, the facilities extend to a clean swimming pool with good quality poolside furniture, making it a pleasant spot for relaxation. A gymnasium with basic but sufficient equipment is also available for guests.
Historic Charm & Location:
For some, the hotel's age is a definite asset, praised as a "great historic building." Its central location in David is also frequently cited as a significant advantage, offering convenience for exploring the city.
Comfortable Rooms (When Good):
When the rooms meet expectations, they are described as large, clean, and featuring beds that guests wish they could take home, indicating a high level of comfort.
Areas for Improvement: The Not-So-Nacional Experience 👎
Conversely, a substantial number of reviews detail significant drawbacks and inconsistencies that detract from the overall stay:
Inconsistent Room Quality & Maintenance:
This is perhaps the most critical and frequent complaint. Guests report rooms that are old, run down, and surprisingly filthy. Specific issues include tiny windows facing walls, smelly and very loud air conditioning units, shower heads that are too low, and a lack of hot water. Disturbingly, instances of uncleaned rooms with hair from previous guests on pillows have been reported. Structural details like roof and corner issues also indicate a need for facility upgrades.
Cleanliness & Odor Concerns:
Beyond general filth, a particular and persistent issue mentioned is a bad smell of urine in the lobby bathroom, suggesting a deep-seated odor problem possibly due to the age of the facility.
Value & Pricing Concerns:
Several guests felt that the hotel was significantly overpriced for the quality of the accommodation received. Amounts like $82-$93 were cited as exorbitant for a room described as a "dump" or with numerous deficiencies, suggesting a significant disconnect between price and perceived value.
Customer Service Resolution Gaps:
While the general staff is praised, some guests faced difficulties when trying to resolve issues, such as changing rooms or obtaining refunds for unsatisfactory stays. Reports mention being told that resolutions were not possible or that refunds would take a long time, leading to a sense of unaddressed grievances.
Noise:
Road noise has also been identified as an issue, potentially affecting guests' sleep quality.
Final Thoughts
Hotel Nacional appears to be a property with a strong foundation in its historical architecture and dedicated staff, yet it struggles with significant maintenance and consistency issues. For potential guests, it is crucial to manage expectations. While the staff, dining options, and central location are definite positives, be prepared for the possibility of encountering rooms that are not up to modern standards or require significant attention to cleanliness and functionality. Inquiring about specific room types or recent renovations before booking might be a wise step to ensure a more satisfactory experience at this venerable, yet polarizing, establishment in David, Panama.
This is one of the worst hotels I have stayed at in the over 60 countries I have visited. The place is old and run down and surprisingly filthy. I checked in late and the road noise was also an issue. This place had the nerve to charge me 82 dollars when it should have charged between 20-30 dollars at most. A total dump and a breakfast that a starving street dog would not eat.
A great historic building almost 80 years old. Wonderful place and great service and central location
The Staff were welcoming and friendly, willing to give advice when asked, it does help if you can speak Spanish. The bedroom was large, it was clean, and the bed, I wanted to bring home!Three Restaurants (including the Pizzeria) excellent choice of menu, well presented and well cooked.Great facilities, the swimming pool is kept clean, good quality poolside furniture, just beware if you have small children, the pool goes deep fast from halfway.My wife tells me that the gymnasium has good Basic equipment, but all that you need.I would have no hesitation in recommending this hotel to anyone, and look forward to our next visit.
I have stayed here 3 times before and was great,this time however it's a different story. I paid $93 for a room for just me. When I got to my room it was tucked away in a back corner. There was one tiny window facing a wall, the air conditioning unit was smelly and very loud, the shower head was at the height of my shoulders so I had to crouch down to get my head wet, there was no hot water, there was hair from the previous guest on the pillow, and the door was hard to open and close. I asked to change rooms and they said they couldn't. I asked to leave and get a refund and they said they would try to decrepit my card but it would take a while. I didn't trust it would actually get refunded. I sent an email to see if I could get a resolution and they never responded. In the morning I asked for a solution at the front desk after my freezing crouched shower and was told they couldn't do anything. This was not worth $93 and could have easily kept me as a repeat customer if they would have just changed my room. I'm still waiting on a response to my email but I'm suspecting if I haven't gotten one yet I probably won't get one.
Quality of the employees top 100%. Service Excellent! Receptionist, clerks, Kitchen, cleaning, everyone at the hotelThe hotel is the one that has to be fixed in some structure details such as the roof and corners. The bathroom in the lobby has a bad smell of urine, maybe cause it is old and smell is like glued.