More about Numero Uno Guest House
Great hotel, can't wait to go back!
by TripAdvisor Member MarcoSieber
I stayed at Numero Uno on a business trip in June, 2004 after reading the great reviews on Trip Advisor and I must say I wasn't dissapointed. After learning that there was high speed internet service in every room I decided to give it a try in lieu of the big chain hotels. It was a great stay and I highly recommend it to couples and business travelers alike, however, I think that you will get more out of the experience if you are traveling for pleasure instead of business. You can literally walk right onto the beach from your hotel room. The restaurant is excellent although a bit pricey and it is also right on the sandy beach. It is quiet when you want it to be as the clientelle seem to be mostly american couples out for a peaceful romantic getaway. You feel very safe in the gated community of Ocean Park and it is a convenient location to other parts of PR. Service at the hotel is basic but courteous. Rooms are clean and have above average ammenities for a Bed and Breakfast. I can't wait to go back with my girlfriend! Don't miss the celebrations of "La Noche de San Juan" every June 24th (I think) on the beach.
Best Kept Secret
by A TripAdvisor Member
We traveled around the Island during our stay and stayed in four hotels. Numero uno was the best one. The staff was great and very helpful. Our room was small, but just enough for what we needed to do. Our room was very clean. Being right on the beach was so convenient. We wished we would have spent more then two nights in this hotel. Nice beach. If you are looking for a pool, this is not the place to swim. The pool is the size of a pond. The hotel resturant is sooo expensive, we choose not to eat there. Instead the hotel got us a taxi and we took a short ride down the road for about $10.00 to a great Italian resturant and shopping. This hotel is small but quaint and should not be missed. This hotel was the most memorable of our trip.
Not recommended
by A TripAdvisor Member
This hotel was ok at best. I cannot understand why the reviews rave about it. It is very overpriced for the quality and service. We live in the DC area and don't mind paying high prices for hotels and meals, but this was unbelievable.
The most disappointing part of the hotel was the "pool." It was more of a wading pond and it was dirty. It is really just a decoration for the entrance. The ceiling fans in the restaurant were also caked with dirt.
The beach was mobbed with locals on the weekend and pretty isolated during the weekdays. On any day it was impossible for us to get served with drinks and we had to go into the restaurant, wait, and get them ourselves. Only one day did the staff set up chairs for us and give us towels. We set them up ourselves the other days. That's fine - but I wouldn't describe it as 5 star service.
You need to rent a car. There is nothing decent in walking distance and we didn't want to eat at the hotel every meal. Even with the car we were stopped 2 blocks from the hotel by the police and told it wasn't a safe neighborhood and to be careful of carjackings.
The breakfast consists of coffee, juice, fruit, bread, and the same few pastries every day. Ok, but again, nothing great.
We will not stay here again. If you decide to stay here, at least rent a car and drive to the rain forest. It was amazing and the highlight of the trip.
Terrific place to stay
by A TripAdvisor Member
We highly recommend Numero Uno. We arrived the day after T.S. Jeanne hit, and Numero Uno was one of the few places that had both electricity and water. Service is excellent; Dereck, the manager, couldn't have been more helpful. We felt very much at home. Right on the beach. We took full advantage of the terrace on the second floor with a view of the ocean. The rooms are simply furnished, but extremely comfortable. We know where we'll be staying on our next visit to Puerto Rico.
If you want the beach, Numero Uno is your place.
by A TripAdvisor Member
Take five steps from your hotel door, and you are on a beautiful ocean beach. Numero Uno made our stay. You will be greated by Derek, who will make sure your stay is 110%. This place is small and simple, but you are treated like royalty. It makes a difference. You soon will know the others that are staying in the other rooms. It is safe and clean. Highly recommended.
Paradise on the Beach
by A TripAdvisor Member
Numero Uno was all I had expected from having read reviews. Five steps and you're on a beautiful beach with a glorious view of the ocean. Not a luxurious guest house, but the staff and ambience more than make up for for its simplicity. Food at Pamelas outstanding. Certainly a **** restaurant. I would return and recommend to friends.
Best Place to Stay in P.R.
by TripAdvisor Member grayson-nyc
This is the only place I ever stay in Puerto Rico! It is lovely and the staff is friendly and helpful. Perfect for those who don't want to feel like a tourist since it is very "neighborhood". It is directly on the beach which is a huge plus for me. They provide towels,umbrellas, and lounge chairs. Pamela's restaurant is amazing. You can have dinner right on the beach with your feet in the sand. Pinky's is a great place for lunch and they delivery to the beach. The most amazing Veggie burgers! I get so comfortable here that I actually have to force myself to leave the guesthouse. I feel like a local since I go here every year for my birthday for one or two weeks at a time. The pool is very small, but who needs one with the ocean right at your feet.
Not What we Expected
by A TripAdvisor Member
We have eaten at Pamela's every time we go to San Juan over the years and for our last two trips we would stay at Numero Uno. I must tell you that we loved it the first time we stayed here. But this last trip was not what we had expected and as a result, this was our first trip to San Juan in ages when we did not eat at Pamela's.
The Hotel staff was great and the housekeeping staff was as attentive to their work as a housekeeper at the Ritz. Unfortunately the beach staff and restraurant staff was lazy or non-existant during the day. When I had to go into Pamela's to get myself a drink during the afternoon it was as if I was bothering them.
Whatever you do, don't ask for multiple beach towels. We ended up buying a dozen cheap beach towels at one of the dollar stores in the near-by working class shopping district and paying the girl from housekeeping to wash them for us (we gave them to her when we left). The poor day-time service on the beach and at the restraunte left us with zero motivation to stick around for dinner. There are way to many good places to eat with great service in the Isle Verde & the Condado Area.
The room was simple and dated. The place is safe and most of your fellow travelers are quiet, low key and mind their own business. Make other plans for lunch if you are staying at the beach during the day. We would stop at the bakery for a cuban sandwich on our way home from the local gym if we were staying on the beach. The food is great, plentiful and CHEAP! Want to go somewhere, no problem, the desk staff will help you find it and get you there.
Something was wrong here and I hope they fix it!
For the money, should be better
by A TripAdvisor Member
What you are paying for with Numero Uno is the convenience of a very nice beach and/or beach view. If you are willing to pay a premium for that, then this is the place. The ocean view rooms are small, but there is a very nice common area and large porch which make up for the small room size. However, if you want a dramatic, well decorated room, a nice pool, good water pressure, or a location near lots of clubs or restaurants, go to Condado. The rooms at Numero Uno are very uninspired--white walls and floors, uninteresting rattan and wood furniture, not even a Caribbean theme, same mass-produced pictures and ceiling fans (and guess what, those aren't even a Caribbean theme). Someone with very little imagination decorated these rooms...there should be some color, yellow, blue, orange, etc. with a plam tree and a beach scenery pictures and a palm-shaped fan, so much potential and they couldn't do better than white floors and walls? The service is very good and friendly, but hold on to your hats when you look at the cost of Pamela's! It's excellent, but you don't want to pay those prices for lunch and dinner too often. Since there's only a couple of places within walking distance and cab fare to Condado is $10-12 each way, it would cost about as much to go to a more casual, and maybe just as good restaurant, but why spend an extra $20 each time you go to dinner...if you stay in Condado so many great restaurants are within walking distance. I also feel for the money you should get down pillows or cotton sheets, but that wasn't the case either. They need to spend a little money and upgrade the room decor and bed linens, fix the water pressure, offer more casual dining, and if they can't do these things, they should charge less money.
Location, Location, Location
by TripAdvisor Member AndrewCA
Numero Uno is a great little Guest House on the beach. It is "reasonably" inexpensive and the staff is extremely helpful and friendly. Pamela's restaurant serves good food ... all be it a little pricey.
If you are looking for a relaxing beach house location with friendly staff this is the place. If you looking for 5 Star accommadation this is NOT the place.
The rooms are clean and spacious however they are a little dated and in need of some upgrades. If you are the relaxed easy going beach person go here ... if not stay somewhere else 'coz you won't be happy.
The hotel has "free" internet .. which wasn't working when I was there. The pool is not that big and is more for decoration than actual use.
I would stay again .....
Sign in with Facebook
