Casa De La Luz/ Casa De Huespedes in Veracruz

Loved Casa de la Luz

Meredith (Ipswich, MA, USA)
Review submitted: January 25, 2011   Date of arrival: February 1, 2010

Our week at Casa de la Luz was one of the highlights of our six weeks driving through Mexico. A couple that we met on a walk had referred us to "An American who owns a guest house". We dropped in and found that Bill Pandorf's delightful apartment was vacant. On our first day Bill took us on a walking tour of Tlacotalpan, the most charming village we visited on our trip. Although we were offered the opportunity for sight seeing and adventures, we preferred to sit on the porch reading and enjoying the lush green courtyard garden below. We took daily walks, ate wonderful food at restaurants Bill recommended and had a fabulous time. We would happily have stayed another week but, unfortunately the apartment and rooms were already rented.
The apartment itself is comfortable with colorful wall hangings and decor. The blue-green floor made me feel like I was stepping into the sea when I wakened in the morning. The kitchen was small but equipped for preparing simple meals. Everywhere we turned were little touches that made the space welcoming
Throughout our stay the owner could not have been more accommodating. He is also an accomplished photographer. We bought postcards at a shop in the village and discovered that the photos on them were his.
We would love to return to Casa de la Luz and recommend it to anyone who wants to get away from the usual "tourist bubble" hotels where, once in the door, you could be in any country in the world.

Recommended for: adventure seekers, age 55+, sight seeing, romantic getaway

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Helpful votes: 4 / 4

I have stayed here numerous times.

Palmspringsben (Palm Springs, CA)
Review submitted: January 21, 2011   Date of arrival: September 1, 2010

This place is magical. The rooms are clustered around an exquisite courtyard with lush tropical landscaping. I rented the entire place and loved every minute of it. The walls are covered with fantastic artworks from all over Mexico. fresh flowers from the garden abound during the blooming season. The owner accommodated all the requirements of a large active family. He even let us use his kayaks and found a guide to take us to the lagoon which is an experience of a life time. He also arranged horseback tours of areas that are difficult to walk to. He was very helpful with telling us where to eat and the local Veracruz seafood is no less than wonderful. The upstairs apartment was an ideal place for the five kids and both of the suites downstairs have there own complete bath and are very private. The owner even shared his amazing coffee from Oaxaca and pastries from the local bakery which were still hot from the oven. The locals are very friendly and were especially interested in my two Scottish Terriers - they had never seen any dogs like that before. The owner even found a pet sitter/walker to help take care of them when we wanted to take a day trip to the local beach which is as beautiful as any in Hawaii, isolated, and uncrowded.

This place is not for the typical spoiled middle classic demanding American tourist who expect to be waited on hand and foot and have more demands than courtesy. The Mexican culture is very, very polite and many Americans don't get it and are considered extremely rude. It is good to learn the basics of the language before you get there so you will be able to at least say please and thank you.

I have stayed here twice a year for the last four years and it gets better and better every time. I recommend it to those who do not want the typical vacation experience. It is not your typical box of cheerios vacation.

I have always made my arrangements directly through the owner and am not familiar with this site but am happy to be able to offer a review.

Recommended for: adventure seekers, age 55+, families with young children, people with disabilities, families with teenagers, pet-friendly, sight seeing, romantic getaway

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Helpful votes: 1 / 1

Family vacation

Lashina (Seguin, TX USA)
Review submitted: January 15, 2011   Date of arrival: December 26, 2010

We sent a detailed description of the people who would be staying at this place and the owner should have been more honest and indicated that his house was not the best place for us. What he calls an apartment is only a one room studio where the beds and the small dining room are next to each other. There is no privacy, no walls, no courtains and no room for more than two people. The stairs are very narrow and not good for people with disabilities.
We do not recommend this property for practically any of the people listed below, except for adventure seekers.

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Helpful votes: 1 / 2