Hotel Oloffson

If one is interested in "glitz", the Oloffson is not your place. It is very full of history (read Graham Greene's The Comedians, set here during Duvalier years). The place and rooms are unique, clean, certainly functional and with fascinating grounds.

The atmosphere is enchanting. The rooms are large and comfortable with nice showers. The food is well prepared and very reasonably priced - and the view from the dining room is calming. The Hotel Oloffson is a historic property with much charm but not as much upkeep. While the facilities are well maintained, they are a bit stodgy and parts of the grounds are still in disrepair. Air conditioning is not available during the day. WiFi works well in the common areas but doesn’t reach the rooms. And of course nothing beats the famous Rhum Punch -especially when you can enjoy it on a night that RAM is playing!

We stayed at the Oloffson based purely on the history of the place. It's a stately old property (classic "gingerbread house") that we enjoyed staying at for a couple of days mid-trip around Haiti. Our room was quiet (not in the main house) and very large. We had good hot water, a huge fan and aircon (though the electricity went out intermittently) and slept comfortably, despite the absence of proper curtains on the windows (just lace). Hotel staff was very friendly and accommodating (they let us leave our rental car and some luggage with them for 3 days while we visited Can Haitien) and were always very pleasant and helpful. Breakfast was just some bread with jam/ peanut butter/ butter and coffee but there were a few other items you could purchase (fruit etc...). We didn't get the chance to enjoy a drink at the bar or eat in the restaurant but it was a lovely space. Don't miss the RAM concerts on Thuesdays (they were not playing the week we were there but we caught them at a different location on another night).

If one is interested in glitz, the Oloffson is not your place. It is very full of history (read Graham Greenes The Comedians, set here during Duvalier years). The place and rooms are unique, clean, certainly functional and with fascinating grounds.