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| Radisson Decapolis Hotel | Michelle ~ Ontario, Canada |
March 2008
Arrival
Arrived after spending 11 days at the DeCameron Resort. Check in was efficent and speedy, well organized.
Rooms
The rooms appeared nice, until you looked closely.......the bathrooms were not really that clean.
Restaurants
You are only entitled to one buffet restuarant. The food was okay, breakfast and lunch were way better than the dinner. We ate other places for dinner.
Bars
They ran out of drinks and it is very unclear to everyone (including the staff) what is included.
Beach and Pools
the pool was nice, but the staff at the pool were not. I saw them recycling towels on more than one occassion, which is unacceptable and gross.
Tours
We took a city tour with a man named Juan and his jeep. We had a fantastic time, I would reccommed this as long as its just you, 2 other people and him. Because the group was so small, it was very personable.
Conclusion
I would go to another hotel if you are going to do the split. I have heard many great things about the Gamboa.
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| Radisson Decapolis Hotel |
Maureen ~ Ottawa Ontario |
February 2006
We spent 4 days here from January 26-30 after 10 days at the Decameron.
This is a great hotel in downtown Panama City and we had a most enjoyable 4 days.
We came from the Decameron on a small bus, about a 2 hour drive, with a tour guide to educate us along the way.
The first thing we saw at the Decapolis was an escalator, heaven after all the stairs at the Decameron. Check in was very quick, the first thing I noticed was the everyone spoke English, the front desk staff, the bartenders, and even the bell boys.
Our room was 1305, 13th floor with a view of the Pacific Ocean. Two double beds with a great down comforter, nice sink and tub and shower. A programmable safety deposit box was included (located in the closet), there was a fridge but charges applied to the contents. I bought drinks at the mall and kept them in the fridge though.
There was a small pool and a whirlpool, lounge chairs and a bar on the 4th floor. Also a spa and gym on this floor. I booked a 50 minute massage on our last day and it was great. The spa is very classy. A swedish 50 minute massage was $50, very reasonable. Food was excellent. Buffet breakfast on the 3rd floor, eggs, bacon, rolls, fruit, a great breakfast.
Lunch and dinner were on the 1st floor, we ordered off the menu, lots of choice and excellent meals, well presented and service was excellent. We loved the spring rolls and the caesar salad with prawns was excellent and the desserts were the best.
We were given bracelets but also had to sign for everything, drinks, meals, as well as give our room number every time we went into the restaurant. They kept telling us that there would be no charges that we were just signing so they knew what we were eating and drinking and they were right there were no additional charges for anything when we checked out.
Seemed to be a bit of confusion with some drinks not being included but overall we could get beer, nice wine, and most mixed drinks. I did get a bloody mary one night and then the next night they told me it wasn't included but not a big deal. I tried again the next night and got one no problem.
We were linked to a large shopping centre and casino, lots of brand name stores, and hardly anyone shopping. There was an internet cafe here that was a good deal, $1 for 1 hour of internet use. It was on the third floor. You could also make calls to Canada here for really reasonable costs.
We went on two tours organized by the Decameron explorer group, we did the half day canal and city tour, it was $45 and reasonable. Great guide who showed us quite a bit in a few hours. We also did the partial panama canal cruise, cost was $96 each and was from 9 - 4, time varies based on how long you have to wait at the locks. This was also a great tour, a bit expensive but something you will probably only do once. It's a long hot day though so be prepared, sunscreen and a hat along with your camera.
All in all a great 4 days and a nice way to end your vacation. You are much closer to the airport for departure than if you stayed at the Decameron. The Nolitours reps on site were great and there was one gentleman, his name was Stephan, who told us he was in charge of all the Decameron people who came to the Decapolis, he was always around and was so helpful, he read menus for us, he made sure we were always with drinks, etc. We wondered when he slept since he seemed to be everywhere.
Feel free to email me with any questions at Glmckenny@sympatico.ca
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| Radisson Decapolis Hotel |
Al and Karen ~ Calgary |
August 2005
My husband and I just returned from 2 weeks at the Royal Decameron and
Decapolis in Panama. When we transferred hotels for our four nights in
Panama City. We weren’t expecting anything quite as luxurious as the
Decapolis. I don’t think they have a lot of dealings with all-inclusive
guests because it was quite difficult to understand what was included and
what was not. The staff at the Decameron as a whole spoke a lot more English
which really surprised me.
The rooms at this hotel are very beautiful with frosted glass walls around
the bathroom. We were on the 27th floor with a view of the Pacific. The pool was pretty small but the hot tub was a welcome place when we came
back from our outings. It was actually hot, the first time I’ve seen a “hot”
hot tub in the south.
The pool bar was great. It was the only bar you could
get served at wearing shorts. The difficulty was in knowing what was
included with the all-inclusive. We could have house brands of liquor but no
liqueurs. I could have a pina colada but not a mango colada, very confusing.
Although they would tell you if you ordered something that wasn’t included. The restaurant was really awesome. The presentation of the food was
definitely 5+ stars. The brochure said continental breakfast but you could
also get eggs, omelettes, pancakes etc off of the menu. The lunch menu had
four choices and a salad and sandwich bar. The dessert tray was incredible.
We just cut tiny pieces and tried everything. The dinner menu had quite a
lot to choose from. There were about 20 appetizers. The Caesar salad with
tempura prawns was to die for. In fact the last night, I had that for a main
course and had another appetizer. The confusing thing about the dinner menu
was that the told us the lobster, duck and piglet was not included in the
all-inclusive , but the next night we were told we could have duck and the
night after my husband had piglet with no charge. Hopefully they will get
more used to having an all-inclusive crowd and get these things worked out. We did not take any planned excursions because the tour company is the same
as at the Decameron and they charge you the same prices even though you are
now close to the places. We just did our own thing. We took a cab to the
Panama Canal and paid $8.00 to go on the tour. We took a cab from the hotel
to the Caledonia bus station and then took a red devil bus for 60 cents to
the Gamboa. We walked in the rain forest and around the resort at the
Gamboa,
Had a Gamboa beer, their own brew for $1.00 and went for a ride on the
monkey boats for $20.00. The World of Vacations rep at the hotel will try to
talk you out of going on the buses because she says it is in a not so safe
area, but at no time did we ever see anything going on or feel unsafe. We
even went to the Saturday market in that part of town. We went to the Park
Metropolitan which is the city rain forest. They give you a trail map that
you can follow. We walked around the trails for about 2 ½ hours and saw lots
of birds, bugs, butterflies and lemurs. The lookout from the top of the
canopy is outstanding. You can see all of Panama City and the canal. This
only cost a donation of $2.00. You can also rent a guide if you are so
inclined. I don’t know how much that would be though. We didn’t see any
toucans unfortunately, maybe with a guide we would have. We also walked
around the ruins of old Panama City until stopped by a huge rain storm. When
it rains, it REALLY RAINS. The water was up to the doors of the cab and they
don’t slow down for a bit of rain. It was really hairy. Apart from that, we
went to a few malls, much to my husband’s disgust. The best mall where the
locals do a lot of shopping is Albrook mall, cab ride from the hotel. There
is a store called el Costo, kind of like Winners. I got my daughter some
body glove and bebe tops for $2.99. On the weekend they also have
entertainment at the malls. There is a mall right beside the hotel with a
lot of designer stores. There is also a place on the third floor, don’t
remember its name but you can see computers and little rooms in it. From
there you can call Canada for 20cents a minute. The other mall is called the
multiplaza pacific and you can walk there if you want in about 20 minutes. I
found being in the city for a few days really interesting and I would do it
again.
This is a really outstanding hotel.
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~ Reviews posted on this page — 3
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