Hotel Reserva Monarca

I stayed there 2 nights for the trip to Salento. We have the room with balcony looking down Salento in the middle of the mountain. The place is so peaceful. In the morning, I can see the sun rise behind the mountain over the valley with birds chirping and rooster crowing, from my room. The staffs are nice and very helpful. They make breakfast everyday with fresh fruit, juice, coffee and hot chocolate. They don't server lunch or dinner but there are restaurants outside the hotel in walking distance. We always headed out after breakfast and had early dinner at Salento before we drove back hotel.

The view is breathtaking!! It was why I chose the hotel and it did not disappoint. The rooms are simple, but very clean and comfortable. Custom cooked breakfast every morning - no buffet. You can walk to one restaurant and one bar/cafe, so the only downside to this hotel is that you need a car or rely on taxi/ubers to get around. It was never a problem to get a ride, just need to plan for it. Location is about 7-8 miles from Salento.

I really enjoyed the whole service. The lady at the desk was super nice and so was the chef and all the other staff. They let us pick the room and we recieved one with a view outside to the mountains, You can choose from two types of rooms either one with two beds or one with a queen size. It did not look like many people stay here so you kind of call the shots here on what you want. The food is amazing and they have a deck where you can sit and have food brought to you. They clean your room for you. They have a church on one of the floors and on the same floor you can recieve a massage and there is a hot tub and a sauna. There is also lots of parking out front but come with a large vehical because you have to drive on a dirt road to get here and through some holes so if you get stuck good luck getting out. The only thing that I was concerned about was where did the staff go at night? Their cars were not there and there was no one in sight. They told us to come in before a specific time so maybe that was why but isnt that dangerous?

Here's what you need to know about this place. The views are absolutely stunning. Unparalleled and you cannot get them anywhere else. It is clean and well-maintained, safe and serene. It's a very cool experience- it was clearly a house and has been turned into a hotel. We stayed on the first floor and it had a little shared patio that looked out on the valley. All rooms have a great view, but I wish we would've booked the second floor where there is a private patio. You MUST rent a car- we almost didn't and if you don't, it will be a real pain to get to and from the hotel to do anything- it is not near anything (and this was not made clear to us beforehand). Breakfast is included, but it is very minimal. There are no other meals offered, so you will have to get yourself into town to get something. The staff was kind, but not super helpful. The hot tub and steam room and sauna are so-so. The hot tub was quite dirty when we went. We wanted to get in after our hike, in the early afternoon, but it was never communicated to us that there is no hot water during the day, so it was a luke-warm bath (not super enjoyable). The sauna was nice enough. This place has some serious potential, but the effort just isn't quite there. If they offered drinks or dinner it would be so nice and if there was more communication that would help- about renting a car, getting to town, hiking the valley, etc... (I can't imagine what we would've done if we didn't have our own car). Overall, I would say it's an incredibly affordable place to stay, just make sure you have your own means of getting in and out. Although I didn't give it 5 stars, I would still recommend it as a place to stay for anyone coming to the Cocora Valley. This hotel could easily be a 5 star hotel with some improvements.