El Patio Motel Hotel

, Key West, United States
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El Patio Motel Hotel

, Key West
2 star

Rooms: 30

800 Washington Street - Key West - Florida - 33040 - United States Hotel Website | 3052966531
211 Traveller

Reviews - El Patio Motel Hotel

Historical Traveller Reviews of El Patio Motel Hotel

Aging... Unrefined... Perfect!

from Hankshanker
After almost reserving a $200 room at one of the many oh-so-charming B&B's in Key West, El Patio's high season rate of $99 became too much to resist for our weekend getaway. With those savings, it would be as if we were drinking for free! So we took the plunge, packing cans of Lysol and bug spray just in case.

As luck would have it, El Patio had charms of her own. Tucked in a quiet neighborhood a couple blocks off of Duval and a couple blocks from the Atlantic, we had no complaints about the location. Parking was not a problem in the lot out front, and it was free.

I would describe El Patio's style as Classic Tropical Concrete Block Chic. It is obvious from the street that this is not a luxury operation, and it's also obvious that it has been around for a long time. That's original Cuban tile on the floor, from what I hear. Softening the jailhouse feel a bit, the courtyard is bursting with lush vegetation. The large deck over the second floor offers a great view of not-much-really, but it's still a good spot to sunbathe or stargaze. I bet the sunsets are nice up there.

Our sparsely appointed room was, as the clerk described it, on the "quiet side" of the property. This means that our door was facing the back alley, and the loudest thing we would hear would be the wild roosters crowing just outside. The potent smell of bleach greeted us at the door, every single time. The bed was soft and comfy. The room featured a cable TV, a small refrigerator, and one small window, but it was frosted, thus preventing us from enjoying the view of the alley. The bathroom was truly small in the smallest sense. I could be at the toilet, the sink, the shower or the door simply by turning in place. But all the plumbing worked, and the water was hot, and I didn't suffer a concussion in there, so all is well.

Next time I'm in Key West, I may want to stay in fancier digs with fluffier pillows and warm muffins, but if I just need a place to crash after hanging out with all the freaks on Duval, El Patio will do just fine.

GREAT LITTLE KEY WEST HIDEAWAY

from NJ2007
I booked El Patio directly for my first trip to Key West. I wanted something inexpensive and close to the beach. I wasn't looking for a four star property with fine dining and a personal concierge- come on, guys this is Key West! El Patio is a charming little property about 2 or 3 blocks from the beach. It's quiet- but not boring. There's a great roof top deck to watch the sunset- forget the tourist chaos in Mallory Square, a little pool to have an afternoon nap after too many beers at Schooners. You can walk to Duval- but you are on the better side of Duval- away from the tourists hanging out of the bars, you're with the low key, chilled out locals. The real Key West. (or what's left of it) I will go back again and again- I've already referred 4 friends. It's not The Four Seasons, but it's a great place to lay your head at night for a few hours before getting up and doing it all again the next day!

A very bad choice

from ilknur
We were going to stay there for Fantasy Fest, which we booked a suite room with 2 queens bed rooms. Just before we arrive, I learned that I am pregrant and I was suffering very bad morning sicknesses. I talked with the manager to cancel our room. I was in such a bad sickness and vomitting. The manager was a lady, had 2 pregrancies and told me she understood how bad it could get. I talked 3 staff people, 1 manager lady but nobody was helpful to cancel the room. The manager in the end hang-up the phone on me, which I found very rude as a consumer. She was sorry to hear that I was pregrant, instead of telling how exciting it is.

I am a travel writer. I wrote travel articles and I have been traveled a lot in US , Europe and Caribbean. This is the first time I have been treated so bady by a hotel management and completey not willing to help.

I would never advise anbody to choose this place.

a vintage key west gem!

from A TripAdvisor Member
My wife and I recently traveled to Key West and stayed at El Patio Motel. What luck that we stumbled upon this place. When we discovered El Patio's website, we were drawn to the place for two reasons: reasonable prices and the overall, simple, no frills mom & pop uniqueness of it. We were more than pleasantly surprised by the accommodations. I remember visiting Key West when I was much younger, and this place has that true "vintage Key West" feel to it. The motel itself has a bit of an art deco feel to it, with great tile flooring in the rooms (which I found out during my stay is original Cuban tile!) There is a great rooftop deck, and a nice pool as well on the property. We were close to most things in town, so we opted to walk most of the time, but rented bikes on the property just for fun the last couple of days that we were there... I'm so glad that we made the decision not to stay at a chain hotel. This place made our experience much more enjoyable. We also happened to meet some other guests at the pool one day who said that they've been staying at El Patio for the last 15 years!! If you're looking for the mundane experience that you may get at a chain, or if you need lots of bells, whistles, or frills to be happy, this is not the place for you. El Patio is a modest, budget motel (with parking!) that celebrates the Key West of the 50's/60's. BRAVO!

El Patio is a nice motel

from dee961
We had an enjoyable stay at this motel. We arrived very early and couldn't check in, but the front desk employee said she would do her best to get our room ready so we could check in. We waited about 2 hours, but she had the maid get our room done so we could check in earlier than check in time.
The room was clean, but I didn't like the tile floor. It made our feet black and I didn't like the feel of the tile so I couldn't walk barefoot.
The grounds are pretty and the pool was very clean. No problem sleeping because the motel was quiet at night. One thing it is an old motel.
It is an inexpensive motel for the KeyWest area. If you want luxury, then you have to pay a higher price at a better hotel.

Good value/location

from A TripAdvisor Member
We stayed in February with no reservations and found it very accomodating. Just enough off Duval to be quiet, but close enough to walk to everything.

Didn't try out the pool.

Would definately stay here again - a good value for the $.

Fine place, might want closer to Duval Street area

from A TripAdvisor Member
Our room was adequate, The floor tile is old, but everything was clean and worked, and I think a nice retro look is an accurate description. The pool area and gardens are pretty; the service was helpful, and this was for an inexpensive price. I will say that it is a healthy hike to Mallory Square and the party area of Duval Street--wear walking shoes if you hoof it, but it is close to snorkeling beaches and Southernmost point. It is also quiet and they let you park on the far side's grass, so there is plenty of parking. If I go to Key West again though I might pay a little more to be close to the Duval St action, as that is where the excitement is and it is not that loud at night or difficult to park for not much more money.

ll be staying elsewhere!!

from A TripAdvisor Member
We stayed one night there recently and agreed we wouldn't return. This place has not been updated in years--could use a lot of help. I would definitely spend a little extra for better quality. Not a total dump, but not far off the mark.

Terrible service !!!

from A TripAdvisor Member
Really pricey for the quality. We flew fron El Salvador and drove from West Palm Beach to the Keys ...over four hours. When we got to the "El Patio" Motel, there were no public restrooms. We were not able to go into our room (for unknown reasons) for an hour. We walked the streets of the Keys looking for a public restroom. We finally had to sneak in to a restaurant to use their facilities. To say the least , it was a disastrous way to start our vacation. The room was way too expensive and run down.
I will not return!

Great retro-feeling

from betula
We liked the motel (we like small motels reminding us of the 50:es) and the possibility to walk to Duval Street and Mallory Square (OK, it takes some time, but it is worth it).

Small, well-kept pool-area and parking close to the rooms is also good.

We did not like the front staff, we are not from US or UK and to us it seems like they did not understand or bothered to understand that we have some difficulties expressing ourselves the same way an englishspeaking person would have done. In our opinion they were pretty close to be rude... It is very interesting to read that the member from Dover, NH, had the same experience...

The rooms had a lovely 50-ish feeling, but the floor (linoleum) could have been cleaner (our feet soon went a bit black and sticky...).

Would we return? Yes, comparing the price, this is good value for money providing the front staff change their attitude just a little bit...

Top Local Tips for Key West

getting around You can rent a bike at the Motel. I recommend for you to rent one and leave your car parked. Key West is very small and you can get everywhere on the bike. It is fun and a good execise at the same time.

Great boating trips While in Key West we took two trips with Fury cruises. One was a sunset cruise with a band, appetizers and drinks. The other was a day long trip with breakfast, lunch, snorkeling, parasailing, seado's, kayaking, inflatable rock climbing wall and a water trampoline. They took great care of us and had a wonderful time! I would recommend these guys to anyone!

Boating Trip We took a sunset cruise and also a snorkeling and parasailing cruise with seado's, kayaks, etc. with Fury boating. They were excellent people with excellent boats. They took wonderful care of us and saw to it that we had a great time. The band on the sunset cruise was awesome and all the food we were served on both trips was very good. I would recommend them to anyone who is going to Key West!

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