The location was great-just walk down the stairs to the beach, or walk out through the parking garage, and about two blocks to a grocery store. The views were AMAZING. The pools were big and really clean. There were two TVs and a full-size refrigerator, dishes, pots and pans, and bath towels. We couldn’t hear neighbors. We loved the deck.

It’s difficult to think of anything negative, but some kitchen amenities such as dish soap, dish towels, salt, pepper, and cooking oil would have made our wonderful stay even better.

The view is amazing, and was the big selling point for this condo. Normally, I would say who cares about the view - go out and explore the city. But in Santa Marta, the laid back atmosphere and the very hot weather may have you staring out at the beachgoers from your balcony more than you thought you would. The building has two private pools, both of which are large, clean, and offer equally great views. The building also has a private stairway directly to the public beach (El Rodadero), which made it feel like a resort. Other than the beach, the building is also pretty well situated to get to the commercial areas with restaurants and shopping. However, if you're more interested in restaurants, shopping, and nightlife than beach time, then downtown Santa Marta might be better for you. We didn't interact with the owner in person, but the woman that we met to get the keys from was very nice. Our arrival flight was delayed until the evening, and she was kind enough to meet us pretty late to ensure that we got settled in.

We were told that guests are only given two towels. That doesn't work so well with a beach rental, where of course you'll be dirtying towels at the beach. As the listing notes, laundry is available at an additional cost - around USD $5 per load. That's more than what a laundromat in the US charges. We ended up having to buy our own towels for use at the pools and beach since that was cheaper than doing multiple washes. I don't understand the policy of providing so few towels to guests and I really think it should be changed. The condo only has a single air conditioning unit, which sits in the downstairs bedroom. It wasn't a problem for us, since the upstairs has a near-constant breeze in the evenings. However, it did mean that we didn't shower until right before bed since we didn't want to just get sweaty again while looking out over the beach. One big issue that the listing does not mention is that there is no hot water. That seems to be common in Santa Marta, but in my opinion it's something that the listing should mention. The water was not freezing, but it certain was cold and did not make for comfortable showers. I think this would be problematic for those with kids.

Everything. The view is one of the best i have experienced in all my travels Orlando is a great host