We stayed here 4 nights on the first part of our trip to this fascinating country. As country dwellers we found the sights and non-stop sounds of Habana vieja... read more initially somewhat bewildering and this place is right in the middle of it. We won't repeat what others have said about the fabulous staff, welcoming attitude and nice breakfasts as it's all true. As a helpful comment for possibly older travellers there are steep stairs up to the reception and rooms, and the street outside can be noisy at night so earplugs might come in handy. Overall this is a place to experience Havana in the raw. It's safe and so much more authentic than the sterile city centre hotels. PS: They serve cocktails in teapots with a straw!

  Hostal Balcones Muralla is a wonderful and authentic place to stay in Old Havana. My room (‘Maurice & Carlos’) was beautiful and I loved the original tiles and sensitivity executed... read more renovations. The bar is fantastic, full of antiques and looking out onto Muralla and Aguacate. The breakfasts were the best food I had in Cuba. Every day you get bread, jam, coffee, fresh juice, an always beautiful vegetable dish, eggs cooked however you want, and even dessert! What makes this place so good is the owners and the staff who really care about what they do. Before I left for Cuba I was having WhatsApp chats with the owner who was advising me on how money works in Cuba (which is unique), getting to the hotel from the airport (they can arrange a taxi), and things I might want to do while I was there. The staff were all great and were very helpful in arranging transport for me around the country, advising on where to go and when, and even talking with me about the incredible history of Cuba and Havana. I was there over Xmas and New Year and on NYE they cooked a fantastic evening meal which we ate on the rooftop. The hostel is super central. You can easily get to anywhere in the old town by foot. Other sights and venues are a longer walk or a short taxi ride away. I would highly recommend... Hostal Balcones Muralla is a wonderful and authentic place to stay in Old Havana. My room (‘Maurice & Carlos’) was beautiful and I loved the original tiles and sensitivity executed renovations. The bar is fantastic, full of antiques and looking out onto Muralla and Aguacate. The breakfasts were the best food I had in Cuba. Every day you get bread, jam, coffee, fresh juice, an always beautiful vegetable dish, eggs cooked however you want, and even dessert! What makes this place so good is the owners and the staff who really care about what they do. Before I left for Cuba I was having WhatsApp chats with the owner who was advising me on how money works in Cuba (which is unique), getting to the hotel from the airport (they can arrange a taxi), and things I might want to do while I was there. The staff were all great and were very helpful in arranging transport for me around the country, advising on where to go and when, and even talking with me about the incredible history of Cuba and Havana. I was there over Xmas and New Year and on NYE they cooked a fantastic evening meal which we ate on the rooftop. The hostel is super central. You can easily get to anywhere in the old town by foot. Other sights and venues are a longer walk or a short taxi ride away. I would highly recommend and when I go back to Havana I will be staying here again. More

  He stayed 2 nights in this beautyful and lovely renovated hostal - the room was big and charming with absolutly comfortable beds. The main room / lobby was decorated with... read more antique furnitures and had such a heart warming athmosphere.
The next highlight was the breakfast - 4 courses of amazing food: fruit salad, a lovely composition of vegetagles, eggs and a sweet surprise :-) it was delicious ! In the evening we had some drinks on the balcony - the owner Richard makes fantastic drinks - I fell in love with the Pina Colade...

But the best of the hostal was the crew:
Richard & Yoris made us feel welcome and comfortable, recomanded places and bars to go, organized a cardrive in a pink convertible and a taxi to the airport or just had a nice and funny chat with us. Richard showed us his house and the roof top bar (not opened - still in construction...I would really like to come back to see the bar!).

I would love to come back to this fantastic, amazing and lovely hostal.

  Would definitely recommend this hostal! The building is beautiful, breakfast is delicious and best of all the staff are the loveliest of people! We want to thank Sarais and Aramis... read more specifically for being so kind, friendly and helpful to us with all of our questions. They really made our stay here special and are wonderful people!
The owner Richard is really welcoming and lovely and was a huge help so big thanks too!

Our one piece of general advice would be to make sure you bring lots of cash with you to Cuba! The exchange rate at the ATM here is so bad that you’ll end up paying 4x the price for everything!! More