Stay away from Hostal Lonigo

• While at Hostal Lonigo, two cellular phones were stolen from our hotel room. The phones were seen in the morning before we left and were missing when we returned.
• When the hotel was informed of the theft, they strongly discouraged us from calling the police. A call to the US embassy confirmed that it was imperative to our safety that we should report crimes to the police immediately.
• After having seen our room and every one of our personal items thoroughly inspected after the theft, the hotel staff demanded to re-inspect our room and all of our personal items at 2:00AM. This was the morning of the wedding which we were in San Salvador to attend.
• The hotel staff claimed they had never seen a theft in their three years working there. Yet, the hotel owner didn't consider a theft alarming enough to warrent a visit to his property. According the staff, he was still "on the beach" for days after the theft and until we had left town.
• The following evening, heavy wind storms knocked down trees which took out power to the hotel, and were powerful enough to threaten to break the windows of the second floor rooms. The staff had no backup generator, no flashlights, and only a few candles. No wireless phones were available to call for help if it had been needed. There was also nobody on staff present late that night to arrange for a transfer from rooms that were more in danger to rooms that were less in danger. In addition, whoever was in charge of security was also gone despite that power outages are often taken advantage of by looters.
• Despite the thefts, discouragement from calling the police, 2:00AM inspections, and lack of assistance during the weather emergency, our credit card was billed for the full cost of the room that failed to provide sleep, safety, or security.

Stuart Schechter
Harvard University
http://www.eecs.harvard.edu/~stuart