We took a chance and turned up without a reservation out of season. The place was deserted and we very quickly got R$100 a discount off the room without trying!

The hotel is nice. The rooms are clean but a little basic. Whilst they are away from the restaurant and night club (which was a kids creche when we were there!) the walls are quite thin so you can hear people walking by in the corridor.

The grounds are nice, with a large pool, a big playgound for kids, tennis courts and football pitches and a very nice "Eco walk" around the back of the hotel where you do get to see quite a bit of the wildlife. Breakfast was very nice, being a large buffet with an emphasis on sweet things including cake.

The location is ideal for the bird park which is next door and is much better than it first appears when you walk into it and the Brazillian entrance to the falls which is about a 5 minute walk down the road. However, that is all that there is and if you want to go into Iguacu it's about a 30 minute bus ride (bus picks up right opposite the hotel) or about 15 - 20 minutes in a taxi. There aren't any other bars or restaurants to walk to.

It was deserted as we were out of season but the staff were reasonably friendly and it was very nice and quiet, for the first night it felt like we had the place to ourselves! I can imagine that the place will be packed in high season.

If you do go to Iguacu, make sure that you allow a day to spend on the Argentinian side and that you also go to Puerto de Iguacu. It's a lot smaller, friendlier and cheaper than on the Brazillian town.

After reading the reviews in Trip Advisor I went to the San Martin Hotel with no expectations. I was so wrong.
The hotel is 200-meter away from the Brazilian national park, no shops or restaurants nearby and about 15 minutes from the city of Foz by bus ( which offers good service and the bus stop is just across the street from the hotel)
Following the advise of other guests, we did not stay at the standard room and booked the Junior Suite. ( there are for categories of rooms: standard, superior, superior class and junior suite. both superior class and junior suite are very nice and the superior room is ok as well) The room was spotless, new and modern. Service was quick and efficient, at the reception, pool and restaurant. Breakfast and dinner were buffet, food was fresh and specially for dinner it changed every evening: salads, beef, rice, pasta, and chicken fish or pork, potatoes. Desserts were ok. Love the batido de maracuya! Once a week they offer churrasco for dinner ( barbecue) which was very good.
the pool area is very nice: big pool, big area to sunbathe ( you are given pool towers), lots of shade and a 2.3 km path to exercise. tennis court, football field and playground for kids. In the evenings you can play cards, pool, ping pong or watch a movie.
Next to the hotel you'll find the Birds park which is worth a visit.
My husband and I travelled to Iguazzu thrru an Argentina travel agency, called Ati ,www.ativiajes.com.ar, which owns the hotel and I think you get preferential treatment. They also work with the travel agency desk at the hotel that offers tours in the area. I think that's the weakest point: the guide simply takes you to the falls, etc but does not offer much interisting information.

We had a great relaxing time. totally recomend the place.

This hotel seemed to us to be an old resort that probably used to be a destination in itself, but is now, for most people, just a two-day stopover while visiting the falls. There is a feeling of "faded elegance." The best part is the grounds, which are spacious and well-kept, and include a lovely pool area and beautiful nature walk that takes you down to the Iguassu River. The rooms that once might have been upscale are now clean but basic; they probably haven't been significantly upgraded in ages (if ever). There is new carpet in all the hallways, which was nice, but always people smoking in the lobby.

I think if you don't expect too much from this hotel you won't be disappointed, and will be pleased with the location - it is really nice to be able to walk to the Brazilian falls and to be conveniently close to the airport. We ate two breakfasts and one dinner there, and the buffets were fine for a family with two teenagers.

We picked this hotel due to its location which did not disappoint, however the hotel has beautiful grounds but the interior is all dark giving it a dinghy feeling. We had read previous reviews and seen the photos so we knew what to expect. The bathroom was OK but the bath itself had marks in the bottom of it. Our view out of the room was another building which was only approximately 4 foot away, together with a dripping roof all night. The bedding also looked very dated giving the whole room a dull feel. As we were only here for 2 nights it didn't matter too much however if I was staying longer I would definitely pick another hotel. The staff were OK and there was a tour advisor on hand in reception who was very helpful in craming in our requirements. She arranged for a guide who was very nice and arranged for our passports to be stamped in Argentina (not something always done because of the visitors to the waterfalls in either country). One good thing about the hotel was that it was only 10 minutes from the airport.