Las Balsas Relais & Chateaux

An incredibly beautiful spot with probably the most beautiful rooms we have ever stayed in. We upgraded to the villas which are more expensive, but well worth the expense. The food is outstanding, both breakfast and dinner although the menu is rather small and does not change from day to day. I would like to give this place the highest marks, and certainly from the standpoint of beauty those marks would be well deserved. However there were several drawbacks. First, when we checked in, the sommelier introduced herself and told us that because she would not be there during dinner, she would be happy to take us to the wine cellar and allow us to pick some wines for the two nights we would be dining there with out friends. We like wine so we jumped at the opportunity. Down in the cellar, she showed us several bottles and we chose 5 bottles to drink over several days. Because we had already been traveling in country for 10 days and had not seen anything too obscene in terms of price on the wine lists, we didn't ask for prices. The first night we had the restaurant open a Sauvignon Blanc, a Rose and a Malbec. We were shocked when the check came to find that the Sauvignon Blanc was $550 per bottle, which is about 8 times what I expected and about 8 times the price of the other Sauvignon Blancs on the list. While I will say again that we never asked the prices, I was shocked that the sommelier had not given any indication that she was suggesting wines that were prices way above normal levels. My other criticism would be that everything, and I mean everything, is a la carte. Water bottles which we requested to take on hikes and which most luxury hotels provide in your room for free, were given out at $5 per bottle. Things like boat rides or sailing on the lake were also marked up very significantly. We were with a group that doesn't mind spending money, but everyone was raising their eyebrows. Still, if you go for the incredible beauty, the excellent food and the massages, you will not be disappointed!

We stayed 4 nights at Las Balsas and there’s no denying it’s in an amazing location with wonderful views! Other positives are the lovely spa, the delicious food, the charming communal areas, and the friendly staff. Although, on the whole, we had a great stay, unfortunately it didn't quite live up to the high expectations we had, given the cost and the Relais & Chateaux label. For example, our room was tiny, with very little storage space for clothes and nowhere to store our bags. The walls were completely bare so it felt a little sparse (especially compared to the rest of the property, which had a cosy decor). The bathroom felt a little worn, particularly around all its wooden features. We also found it a little uncomfortable that the bed was directly against the wall without any kind of headboard. Also, we were woken up during the night by a kind of scratching noise (it sounded like there was a mouse trapped in the roof area) - which was an intermittent issue for the rest of our stay. The reception staff arranged for a maintenance person to look into it but apparently nothing was found so nothing was done to fix it. After dinner one night it was mentioned that we could move to a different room but we weren't minded to pack and move at 10pm so we declined on the basis we'd see how we got on that night. Although we reminded the staff a few times about the ongoing problem, there continued to be no resolution and no further offer to move room and generally, frankly, they didn't seem bothered. We would have expected a bit more of a sense of urgency in trying to resolve the issue and more proactivity to make our stay more comfortable. It's really not ideal when you can't get a good night's sleep. The food at the restaurant was generally excellent although it would have been nice if there could have been specials on offer or different menus for some of the evenings. It seemed a little unusual in a restaurant of this quality for the menu to be the same every day during the 4 days we were there. It would also be nice to see a wider variety of wines available by the glass. Additionally, although we were on a full board rate and there was no problem to arrange a lunchbox for one of the days, we were rather underwhelmed by what we were given: we didn't think a wrap, a banana and a small bag of granola each was really on point for this kind of property (especially compared to the 3 course lunch you could have on site). It was nice to have soft drinks available in the mini bar in the room but it was odd there were no glasses to drink them from (until they were delivered during the turndown each evening) and they were all in plastic bottles, which seemed incongruous with the approach other properties are taking to single-use plastic (and actually our picnic basket included 2 refillable water bottles so it's odd they are inconsistent with this). Equally, it was nice to have an espresso machine in the room but only offering 2 capsules per day seem

The hotel is in an amazing lakeside location. We received a lovely welcome on arriving and then had a wonderful stay. The room was lovely, all the staff were extremely friendly and helpful, spa was great and the food in the restaurant was exceptional. Our only regret was that we had not booked to stay there longer. It was very difficult to leave. I would highly recommend the hotel and cannot wait to stay there again. Do not stay anywhere else if you are in the area.

I never leave reviews, but it is necessary to warn families to NOT stay here. It was very unfortunate experience we had as a family on break. This is not a place to go with kids. Our children were verbally attacked by the Manager of the hotel, who after waiting for some sort of apology, as I would have accepted a simple sorry for that outburst as we all have our moments, he proceeded in insulting and hurling hurtful comments about our family. I have never had that type of exchange with anyone. All the beauty and the great things I would have said about many of the staff and the lovely restaurant was ruined as we left with the worst possible feeling of feeling disrespected and mistreated. No one deserves to be treated that way. There is a way to speak to people, with respect, even if the message that needed to be relayed is one that two people don't agree, but screaming at kids and insulting an entire family for no reason other than he felt he could is uncalled for. I can only imagine how he treats his staff or other guests who have stayed there with children. In fact, after telling everyone I know of our unfortunate experience, others told me that they too had heard similar things. If you have kids, don't stay there because it is not a hotel that is kid friendly nor family friendly. On another note, we had many issues with the billing, as what we agreed to online on Relais & Châteaux website in which we booked, was completely different from what was charged to our card by the hotel. While the customer human resource tried her best to help, it still was never fixed, and it ended up being completely different than what we had agreed to pay. I have contacted Relais & Châteaux in an effort to explain all of this, so it does not happen to any other child or family again in a place they put their respected and reputable name on.