24 Hours at The Artisan DC, Bogota
As one of Bogota's latest additions to the five star market, we were quite excited to stay at The Artisan DC. After an amazing stay at the B.O.G Hotel and the W Bogota, we had very high expectations towards the service and check-in efficiency. We found out that these two hotels remained an exception. As one would expect you simply need time and patience with the front desk staff in South America, so at The Artisan DC. In general we found the complete appeal of the hotel very attractive and the cool design was not really fitting to the old-school check-in process (they used hard files for the booking and therefore the process of finding a reservation took slightly longer).
Once we were through the check-in we went to our rooms which were located on the 6th and 8th floors in the first tower. We were staying in a Metropolitan Double Room with two vast queen beds and a very spacious room layout. While the one on the 6th floor was more spacious, the one on the 8th floor had a better view. We really loved the accessories inside the room such as the vintage telephone, the cool toiletries or the handmade blankets and carpet. In general the bathroom was very spacious and had lots of storage room. There was a walk-in shower, a toilet and a bath sink - they could have added a bath tub inside this spacious bathroom ;).
After a very heavenly sleep in the amazing beds, we were ready to explore the breakfast. Once we had a seat in the restaurant, a server arrived and asked us for our egg orders and coffee. Compared to our recent hotel stays in Bogota, the breakfast buffet was quite limited. They had a station to make waffles on your own, a microwave, a small selection of ham and cheese, very limited choice of bread, two jams and a lame choice of muesli. The fruit selection was very nice but we were shoked that they did not refill the buffet at all during our breakfast time (from 9 am until 10 am). We really appreciated the friendliness of the server tough and their explanation of the products was really nice as well.
They also have a small but sufficient gym which is situated on the top floor. We had the feeling that it is still not finished yet, as there was one third of the room without any light. Being situated in Zona G, the Gastronomic heart of Bogota, there are plenty of amazing restaurants in the area around the hotel. Also the hotel's own japanese restaurant looked iviting and was super busy. We would definitely stay in this area rather than in Usaquen or La Candelaria. It is a very safe and upscale neighborhood.
When we checked-out we unfortunately had to experience some troubles with our bill. There were still checks of the guests who stayed in our room on the 8th floor before. It looked like they consumed things even though they already left the room but checked out after we were checking-in. Although that it was obvious on the bills that the signature and guest names are not equal to ours, the PR Manager sent me an email to tell that the signatures would look the same and they would need to investigate the case. For me this was a little bit unpleasant - how can we have a transfer from the airport to the hotel when we were droven to the Artisan DC by the W Bogota and paid there already for this transfer? And how can we have a bar check timed a few minutes before we were even left the W Bogota? It is very important to consider, that The Artisan DC is still brand new and therefore can have some beginner's problems which will definitel disappear in the next years. The management by Marriott will be doing a better job and I am sure the way of handling such inconvenient situations will be a different one at our next stay.
We were guests of OXO Hotels and The Artisan DC Hotel for Editorial Purposes. Our stay has been arranged by Communication Alternativa, however as you can read, this review has not been influenced.