Stunning location and beautiful hotel. Excellent service and food - the restaurant is superb, one of the best places I’ve eaten while living in Argentina for over four years. The staff is wonderful and knowledgeable of the area. Common areas are beautiful and the tiny bar is a dream. Has access to the lake and is very near the mirtle reserve. A very special place.
I realized just a few days back that I didn't write a review about this place. After such an amazing experience, I think not leaving one is not respecting the great attention we received during our stay. We spent 5 nights there in February of this year. It's not the first time that I stayed there, and it won't be the last. As always, the attention from the staff is perfect and they worry about every detail. The food cannot be described as nothing else than amazing and the effort made by the kitchen regarding some allergies from my +1 make it even better. The hotel is a calm and beautiful place with some of the most amazing views of the region on the lake. Spending hours in the Spa with those views was incredibly relaxing and if that' wasn't enough, the great massages were a perfect add-on. Spending a few days there helped us disconnect and recharge our batteries. Peaceful is the word that best describes the place and its surroundings. Thank you to Nacho and his whole team! We'll be back! Very soon, I hope.…
We first went to Las Balsas some 20 years ago and had not returned for about 10 years. What used to be a charming little place with excellent service in a wonderful spot on the Nahuel Huapi lake is unfortunately, no longer so. And for the following reasons we would not rate it as a Relais & Chateaux: . As our 20 years old daughter and a friend sat at a table outside as indicated by reception while we were doing the check-in, who turned out be the General Manager badly mistreated them, probably thinking that they were 2 girls who managed their way in from the nearby beach. Upon our complaint to reception he would not even show up to apologize and when my wife eventually saw him and asked him for an explanation he said he was busy and would see her the next morning, which of couse he never did. Nor did he appear a single time during our 4 days stay to ask whether we were having a pleasant time! We read that his background is not in the hotel industry and unfortunately it shows badly! A pity as the rest of the staff is nice but obviously not led by example, . What used to be a private beach and pier is now a very busy spot on any nice summer day with kids screaming the whole afternoon. Most rooms overlook that public beach(see attached picture). On a wonderful summer day, forget about enjoying a peaceful drink in the garden, . The food at the restaurant is ok but nothing special. In addition only one of the 4 main courses is changed everyday (none of the 4 starters and desserts) and if you are staying several days on a half board basis you’ll most likely regret the limited choice. As a matter of fact I just checked their website and the menu is still exactly the same as a month ago, . Our room was quite small with an aging bathroom (as most from what I could see from the reviews) and internet speed has been very slow during all of our 4 days in the hotel. In summary, the mix of bad management, noisy beach, very average restaurant and ordinary room contributed to a disappointing stay and we shall not return unless some major changes occur.…
Right outside the interesting little “Swiss” village of Villa de Angostura in Argentina is a lovely small hotel with rooms looking over the lake. The staff is excellent, the food is innovative and the surroundings are gorgeous. All is in a National park: lots of trekking, mountain biking, boating...
Magnificent construction surrounded by a pristine garden with amazing lake views . Breakfast is à la carte & very limited in variety. The access to this boutique is extremely unpleasant due to hundreds of potholes on the dirt Road leading to it. Some staff bring the place to life & work really hard to please the customers. Ignacio is a gem & extremely professional . One must have airs & graces to feel at home in this environment that offers gorgeous looking dishes focusing on appearance rather than content (although a few alternatives were kindly offered to us .) Lake view Gym : small & well equipped. Room : spacious but No air con nor fan which seems an aberration in the 21st century . Private access to a small beach . It has its charm thanks to the stunning views of the lake & kind staff but I would rather stay at El Casco art hotel for its food & location . Would I have chosen such a place ? No is the only answer but it would suit those who look for a posh hotel in a very remote area. Villa la angostura is a day trip from Bariloche rather than a 3 night stay .…
We stayed here for two nights on a trip through the lake region. Over our trip we stayed at several excellent hotels, but Las Balsas was our favorite. We had a large corner room on the second floor which was spacious and comfortable, but also full of charm. The view of the lake is quite the thing to wake up to in the mornings! The food is quite good. Breakfast is made to order and dinner showcases the best of local ingredients. Service was excellent, too. A very special place in a special part of the world.
If you are looking for an intimate, elegant environment with a team well prepared to make you feel comfortable, the name is Las Balsas. Ignacio, Paula, Mathias, Val and the others know very well how to do this. The view of the lake with the mountains in the background and the peaceful environment will conquer you. It will not be so easy to leave this little paradise on earth.
We stayed here for three nights and would’ve happily stayed longer. The staff were standout, going beyond expectations to make our stay as pleasant and memorable as possible. We stayed in the corner suite which was perfect, overlooking the lake house and gardens. Decorated in colonial style, the room was kept immaculately clean throughout our stay. The restaurant offers a small choice of high quality meals that should cater for everyone - we didn’t venture out once and consider ourselves foodies so that should say everything. The service was again excellent. The spa is the perfect compliment to the lake districts sometimes temperate climate and the hotel is only a £4 taxi from the centre of Villa Angostura! We would recommend this to anyone and would love to visit again in the future. Thanks to all the staff for making our stay so wonderful.…
My wife and I have chosen Las Balsas due to its unique location, exclusivity and for being part of the Relais & Chateau network. The hotel is located in an extraordinary place, lakefront, offering privacy and wonderful views, good food, with a nice and really kind team. We stayed in their best category room - a corner suite, which is nicely spacious. But what called our attention was the overall room maintenance. One of the sinks was cracked, the toilet lid was without one rubber backing, the taps were hard to open and close and finally, only a very, but very small, old and uncomfortable couch was available in the room. We asked them to exchange the couch and they provided an even older and more uncomfortable armchair. But the most amazing and completely unusual situation we have never heard about was that the hotel run fully, I mean, fully out of water. They did not warn us about that... we discovered by ourselves when trying to take a shower. Asking them what was happening, they said they were experiencing a problem with the hotel pump and that the water flow would be reestablished within a couple of hours. A whole night passed and in the morning, after more than twelve hours, not even a drop of water was available in the whole property! After staying for seven nights, we decided to leave the hotel two nights earlier, as no concrete position regarding the water return was provided more than twelve hours without it. They agreed to reimburse this two nights not used, but then came the worst. When we booked the hotel, the reservation was charged and confirmed in US dollars. But when we checked out, they reimbursed the original amount in full - but in Argentinian Pesos, which represented a loss of more than 25% in USD! Fine that they recharged for the seven used nights in Argentinian Pesos, too. But believe or not, they charged at a higher per night rate than the value per night they reimbursed, although both transactions happened on the same day. Two actions that are unacceptable to me! Once the reservation confirmation was in USD, they should have reimbursed the value in USD. And they should have used the same per night rate either for the reimbursement as for the recharge. I have emailed them more than once disagreeing with the method they used to reimburse me, but the last email sent more than a week ago was not even answered. I was literally ignored. I can not understand how a hotel with such maintenance and conservation issues, aggravated by the water absence, and the not so fair reimbursement policy still keeps the Relais & Chateau category. Relais & Chateau should better review their properties. I definitely do not recommend this hotel.…
My wife and I stayed in Las Balsas for 5 nights at the beginning of February This is a beautiful hotel in a spectacular position. The room was superb, one of the nicest we have ever stayed in . Above all though I have to compliment the quality of the staff who without exception smiled and tried their utmost to deliver anything and everything you needed The only issue is with the food. One of our reasons for picking Las Balsas was that it’s Relais and Chateau and in most places in the world we have stayed that means great food. For the 5 days we were there the menu didn’t change for dinner or lunch which essentially meant Steak, Trout or veggie with the same preparation. The food is also delivered extraordinarily slowly- even on the nights when the restaurant was virtually empty. On the last 3 nights we went to other local restaurants where the variety of food was significantly wider This is a beautiful hotel and we will come back but I think the lesson is stay for a smaller number of nights…
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