Hotel Patio Andaluz

Rooms and decor

The hotel has 31 rooms spread around the central courtyard, ranging from Standard and Superior up to Junior Suite and Master Suite. Most rooms open onto a wooden walkway that looks down into the stone courtyard below — a feel you will not find anywhere else in Quito. Inside, the palette runs warm: cream, brown, and deep red, with heavy curtains, dense cotton bedding, local-pattern rugs, and carved wood lamps. Bathrooms use earth-tone tiles, the suites get bathtubs, and the toiletries are good quality. The Junior Suite and Master Suite are especially roomy, with a sofa and a writing desk, and some have tall wood ceilings that open up to centuries-old beams — a good pick for couples wanting space and a romantic mood. The Standard rooms are smaller with lower ceilings, a limit of the old building, but they carry their own charm. Rooms are dead silent thanks to the thick stone walls, and several reviews mention sleeping really well because the nights are genuinely quiet.

Food and amenities

The one restaurant, El Rincón de Cantuña, sits right in the central stone courtyard and serves traditional Ecuadorian food — think locro de papa, a potato soup, and ceviche — alongside international dishes. It runs for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and eating under the arches is the whole point. Free Wi-Fi is available, the concierge helps arrange tours and a ride up Pichincha, and the hotel will call a safe taxi for you. There is no pool or gym here — this is a restored 400-year-old mansion, not a resort.

Location and getting there

Location is the strongest card. The hotel sits on García Moreno, the street locals call Calle de las Siete Cruces (Street of Seven Crosses) for its row of churches. Turn right out the door, walk 150 metres, and you are at Plaza Grande, the presidential square, ringed by the Carondelet palace, Quito Cathedral, and the Archbishop's Palace. Every Monday at 11:00 am there is a changing-of-the-guard ceremony outside the palace, free and worth seeing. Five minutes on is La Compañía de Jesús, its interior almost entirely covered in gold leaf — jaw-dropping. Seven minutes the other way is the San Francisco square and church, the first colonial church in South America. The Museo de la Ciudad, Museo Numismático, and the Mercado Central are all walkable, so you barely need a taxi during the day. From Mariscal Sucre airport (UIO) it is a 45-60 minute drive depending on traffic, and from Mitad del Mundo, the equator line, about 45 minutes.

Things to know before booking

Straight talk to help you decide. Because this is a restored historic building, room size and shape vary a lot — some reviewers were let down booking a Standard and finding it smaller than expected, with a lower ceiling than a new hotel and no window to the outside. If you care about space or worry about feeling boxed in, upgrade to a Junior Suite or Master Suite; it is well worth it. Second, Wi-Fi and mobile signal are weak in some corners because the original thick stone walls block the signal — for an online meeting or urgent work, find a spot near the lobby or central courtyard. Third and most important is old-town safety after dark. By day it is safe and great for walking, with tourist police around Plaza Grande, but after 6 pm the streets go quiet, shops close, and the lighting is dim. Get back to the hotel before dark or take a taxi the concierge calls for you — the hotel keeps a list of trusted drivers — and never walk quiet streets alone at night. One more small thing: Quito sits at 2,850 metres above sea level, so some people feel dizzy the first day from the altitude. Drink plenty of water and rest before you head out.

Our take

After reading through the real reviews and comparing the location against other old-town hotels, Hotel Patio Andaluz lands as the most well-rounded choice for anyone wanting to soak up Centro Histórico in full. A 400-year-old mansion with an arched stone courtyard is an experience the big chains cannot match, the location walks to every key sight, the service feels genuinely warm, and at around $100 a night to start it is a strong deal for what you get. If your trip picture is waking up to breakfast under the old stone arches, touring the gold-leafed La Compañía, then sipping wine in the courtyard at dusk, this nails it. If you expect a big, modern room with a pool and full gym, look elsewhere. Overall we give it 8.8/10 — best for couples, history and culture lovers, and anyone who wants to sleep inside a National Monument in the middle of a World Heritage city.