During my most recent visit to Mexico City, my partner Angel and I stayed at Room Mate Valentina, a boutique-style hotel in the heart of the bustling Zona Rosa district. The biggest city in Mexico, as well as one of the biggest cities in the world, Mexico City offers a lot of surprising activities and experiences, as well as lots of hotel options at every price point. Here’s a review of our experience at Room Mate Valentina, which combines modern style with value prices — as well as one of my all-time favorite hotel amenities: free breakfast until 12 noon.
THE STYLE: Room Mate Hotels is a Spain-based company that specializes in relatively small, boutique-style hotels with contemporary decor. Each of their hotel properties has the first name of a person (not anyone famous, just a name designed to give the property personality). Such is the case with their Mexico City hotel, the Room Mate Valentina. Contemporary and clean, Room Mate Valentina’s decor uses lots of white, a few splashes of color and whimsical design elements (I loved the giant fake white cactus in the lobby). Room rates are especially reasonable for Mexico City; we found rooms here for as little as $80, double (use the booking engine at the top right of this page, where it says “Save Big on Your Trip,” to compare the best hotel rates on 10 of the top travel sites). The Room Mate Valentina’s central location in Mexico City’s popular Zona Rosa, less than a block from Paseo de la Reforma, is another selling point.
THE GUEST ROOM: We stayed in Room 805, which was a Deluxe Room, one step above the standard Executive Room. The Deluxe Rooms are relatively large, measuring 452 square feet, with a sitting area and corner windows (there was even a view of the very top of the Angel de Independencia statue in the distance). Every one of the guest rooms at Room Mate Valentina has an attention-getting design element; in our room, it was a group of geometric shapes extending up the wall from the bed, onto the ceiling. Another group of these shapes extended into the glass wall that separated the sleeping area from the sink in the bathroom. If you woke up in the middle of the night a bit confused, you’d be forgiven for thinking you might be in a very comfortable space station.
Guest room amenities at this Mexico City hotel include a flat-screen, wall-mounted TV, a work desk and an empty mini-fridge that’s great for storing snacks and drinks (the hotel also provides a list of items you can buy from reception to stock the fridge, if you like). The bathroom was rather large and featured its own corridor, with a sink area, water closet (with bidet) and shower. The bathroom was stocked with Room Mate-branded bath amenities (lotion, shampoo, conditioner and bubble bath, although our room didn’t have a tub). Free WiFi was not always reliable, but most of the time it worked.
HOTEL FEATURES: This Mexico City hotel does one thing that I wish every hotel would consider: They offer a free continental breakfast in the lobby until 12 noon every day. No more worrying about waking up unnecessarily early on vacation or on a business trip; nearly every day, we enjoyed the yogurts, fruit juices, fresh fruit, cereals and one hot item — one day it was molletes (warm bread with cheese), another day it was chilaquiles. There is no restaurant on site, but a menu from a restaurant next-door makes it easy to arrange room-service style deliveries, and many restaurants are within walking distance.
The hotel’s location is perfect for travelers looking to be in the middle of the city, as well as the middle of Mexico City’s gay nightlife. The Paseo de la Reforma is half a block away, and multiple gay bars are on the same block. The front desk staff was helpful about providing directions for getting to other parts of the city, including tourist attractions.
BEST FOR: Budget-minded leisure travelers who want a centrally located hotel with a touch of contemporary hipness in the Zona Rosa. Gay travelers interested in nightlife will also appreciate the location in the heart of Mexico City’s gayest neighborhood.
MORE MEXICO TRAVEL TIPS:
• How to Celebrate Day of the Dead in Mexico City
• New Hotels, Restaurants, Tours & “Tax Back” Make Mexico City More Alluring
• City of Surprises: 5 Unexpected Things to do in Mexico City