View from the Room: Hotel Punto MX, Mexico City
I remember this hotel because of Raul, our wonderful breakfast server. Raul treats us as long-lost friends from our first breakfast and each time we come across him subsequently. He speaks in excellent English, serves us efficiently, and is empathetic when we are poorly halfway through (due to heat stroke). I overhear conversations that confirm everyone respects Raul as we do.
All the staff are great, including Serge, the concierges, Priscilla, the reception team, and the accommodating housekeeping folk.
I hope Raul received what I hope is a generous tip (£25 GB) as he isn’t there on our last day. We intended to give it halfway through but the heat stroke weakened us and we never got our act together.
This modern hotel is in the middle of Centro historic district with all the pharmacies and late opening stores. We need to keep the liquid and dry biscuits coming while we recover. We bookmark a few restaurants outside the area as the food options here are at the lower end of the market. However, while ill, I enlist the invaluable service of Uber Eats and before that, we eat in the hotel restaurant a couple of times. There’s only one eating area where breakfast is also served. There is a cafe at the front of the hotel which makes us some frappe drinks to rebuild our strength, although other than a couple of waiting chairs by reception, there isn’t anywhere cool to sit and enjoy those, which is a shame.
When we booked the trip, the forecast was 21-23c and much cooler at night, which we would have coped with - we don’t do heat. However, it is 10 degrees higher than that in reality and even Raul told us he sleep is tricky in this extraordinary heat for early June.
So we were grateful that the aircon struggled though, albeit quite noisily and after a couple of hours, got down to the desired 22c setting. It didn’t go off automatically, so either that keeps us awake or the heat does. It’s too noisy to keep the window open at night and too warm after about 10am.
The aircon through the lobby/restaurant area isn’t as effective but it’s comfortable to eat.
Hot in the City
We pick one of the larger rooms, one of the few with an outside window. Most cleverly, have a frosted interior window to give the illusion of ‘outside’. For 10 nights, I’m glad we pick the window room, even if it does look out to the noisy main street. This is the second time in a row that our room is next to the external hotel sign. Otherwise the view is of ‘real Meixco’ as one of my clients referred to before I left.
We have an ample double wardrobe next to the window rather than in the hallway where I would have put a slimmer version. (Yes, I still automatically mentally re-organise every hotel room I step into). It has a handful of suitable wooden hangers and we had to get a tonne more to hang 10 days of summer clothes for 2 adults. They come made of metal but there are shelves and drawers aplenty, including two deep ones on either bedside.
There is just one desk chair tucked into the long desk space below the wall-hanging TV. This houses a small coffee machine, 2 paper cups and a plastic sachet containing a coffee bag, some sugars etc. There are also a couple of mid-sized paid-for water bottles here although 2 small complimentary ones are delivered daily to the bathroom, hinting that tap water should not be consumed. We duly pop these into the fridge already stocked with complimentary snacks and various drinks and beers. The water stops arriving after a week and never returns even though I mention it. By this time, we’ve learned and are buy at least 2 litres of water from the 7-11 and fill our smaller water bottles with it to fit them in the fridge.
So you have read about a lot of plastic now. Every hotel I arrive at has a note to stop waste and save the planet by not putting towels in for the wash daily. (Who even does that anyway?) However, we know it’s ironic when unnecessary plastic is delivered daily. At the height of our illness (2.5 days out of 10) I count 9 bottles waiting to go out in the trash. Drinking water taps/fountains, china mugs, teaspoons, jars of coffee etc. would go a long way towards environmental goodness.
Spacious, airy and functional bathroom
The Jacuzzi bath works great, although I wouldn’t recommend lying in for long without the jets running as you’ll have red marks on your back.
A glorious, warm separate shower room with a seat which could house towels without getting wet
Only one hook and we could do with 3 or 4
Towel rail over toilet
2 large, 2 small towels and 1 bath mat - all branded and pretty good quality
Excellent flushing toilet despite the talk of loos not coping with loo roll (a bin is provided for that)
A huge shelf under the sink to store absolutely everything
Spare toilet tissue
Tissue box
Cotton buds, emery board and cotton wool in a kit.
Body lotion, shampoo, conditioner, soap bars (no shower gel) and bubble bath which stops being replaced after a couple of days too. A whole bottle is needed anyway as it was watered down and still the bubbles disappear after minutes. Again, bigger bottles are the way to go for environmental purposes.
Power socket
Amenities
2 waffle gowns (I needed my slippers for the many cooling showers)
Safe that we don’t get to work, as is so often the case
Aforementioned water and complimentary drinks and snacks
Sewing kit
Blanket (untouched. But we do find a flat sheet under the duvet by about the 3rd day)
Netflix - found on day 6 (second day of illness - a perfect distraction)
Lots of power sockets although no USBs
A large mirror in the hallway
Ample lighting all easily controlled from the bedside
Refreshments
Coffee machine with new coffee bag kit delivered daily
2 small water bottles (when they arrive)
Excellent buffet breakfast with coffee and breads/pastries served at our table, hot and cold food, yoghurts, fruit, and sugary cereals all self-service. Great omelettes made to order by request. Sadly it’s against management policy to take away so we couldn’t take up a pastry and mint tea on the day we were too ill to participate.
There’s one lift that always seemed to be prompt although stairs are next to it. There’s also some seating on each floor outside the lift although we refer to that area as the hot house. We have no choice but to wait there on our penultimate day for 15 minutes as our only key card fails to let us in the room.
I hear we are liable for any breakages or replacement key cards, which is the sort of anxiety we can do without but it all works out. Staff are generally exceptional if sometimes forgetful and made an effort for us, especially the housekeeping folk.
Tips dished out all around.
June 2023
