Top 10 Xeque Mate Hotels

The hotel is awesome, it is the best hotel in the area, the swimming pool is beautiful, the beach is outside, the room is comfortable and clean, very high-end, the breakfast is a little less

We got an ocean view room with a hammock hanging by the big window to enjoy the beach view, watch the surfers and even the birds ….and many more. Compared to other hotels in the neighbourhood and in copacabana, Hotel Arpoador has real direct access to the beach (Ipanema)…just go through the restaurant and exit at the patio to the beach directly. All beaches in Brazil belongs to the public so in order to serve hotel guests better, this hotel has staff at the beach just outside their building, organising lounge chairs and sun umbrellas, only for hotel guests. First you go to the hotel reception to get towels and tickets for the lounge chairs etc. Once you show up on the beach with the tickets, the staff would quickly arrange everything for you. If you want to stay after their work hours (till 5pm), it is still ok, you just bring back the chairs and umbrellas to the patio. There’s always guard at the patio entrance. The breakfast included are wonderful (also have vegan options)….just wake up to the sound of the waves and enjoy your breakfast watching the morning mist among the mountains. If you do get up early, walk/run towards copacabana to watch the sunrise or do your morning yogas there (also a bunch of yoggies in the evening in the park area near the beach at the bottom of the fortress hill, around 6pm i think), or simply go up to the hotel roof top at 8:30am for free yoga classes. Free bike rental for two hours too. (Nice and easy bike lanes along the beaches) You can also go to the lagoon nearby, just go inland from the beach. Then enjoy a sip on the rooftop bar to watch the sunset. We had dinner also in the same restaurant (the only one) and it was ok (convenient on the first night after 5 hours drive from Paraty). Tried the other restaurants along the beach the next night (5 minutes walk, near Hotel Fasano), much nicer there. Staff are friendly and polite and answers a lot of our travel questions. We had a happy stay here.

I have stayed at this property for 3 nights. I was meant to stay for 6 but I have decided to change plans. Overall I found my stay disappointing. Pre-arrival: good communication through WhatsApp and Booking.com On arrival: not a good experience - duplicate preauthorisation from my card for the 6 nights plus extra. The terminal did not produce a receipt and the receptionist insisted I have to put the card through again, although I have shown her an instant message received from the bank saying the transaction went through. At that point, I have been traveling for 18 hrs therefore I couldn’t spend more time arguing about it. I was reassured it was not a duplicate payment/preauthorisation and if any mistake, this will be sorted in the morning with “finance team”. Next day, I have tried to sort this with various reception staff to no avail. They simply denied there is an issue and refused to discuss the matter further. At one point, I was standing in front of the reception being ignored. I have contacted the bank in the UK and they sent me a confirmation that finally led them to cancel one of the duplicate payments. I have wasted an entire day of my holiday on this. Reception staff - with some exceptions- are very cold and distant, even arrogant. Very rare you see someone smile and make you feel welcome. No apology was offered to me for the mixup with the payment and the very unprofessional way this was dealt with. Staff enters the room way too much. Morning and evening service is expected, however “room service” knocked my door at 8-9pm every evening. If the door is not locked, they enter the room. I would advise to have the “do not disturb” sign on at all times, should you want some rest. Breakfast - not included. Even to use the coffee machine in the room, you have to pay for the capsules. It’s not about money, it just leaves a bad impression I think. The room - nice, good facilities, nice bed, shower and the beach view lovely from the large terrace. Panoramic view of Copacabana, as long as the room is on a higher floor. The pool/beach - haven’t used the pool but the beach is service is very good, friendly and helpful staff and comfortable sun beds. In conclusion, I won’t be returning. I have been to Rio many times and there are much better places to stay in various areas. Although Emiliano looks nice, they are a far cry from what I experienced in other hotels in terms of hospitality and adjusting to individual needs and expectations. I didn’t feel treated like a valued customer and I felt quite uncomfortable throughout my stay.

I stayed on Fasano Rio after staying in past in São Paulo and Belo Horizonte . Location is great and hotel as tipical Fasano . Dinner at Gerobis always good. Breakfast surprisingly Mediocre. Service and employees always very nice and responsive

Being an ambassador level with Marriott tells you I travel a lot. We stayed at the JW for five days and loved the location, right in the middle of Copacabana beach. The hotel does need a little updating but the staff and lounge more than made up for it. The one person who really made our trip was Thais Silva from guest relations. She was on top of everything, if something was not right, she made it right. Not only did she go above and beyond but she really cared. Thanks again for making our stay in Rio a truly memorable one.

The hotel is quite beautiful, which means I am quite satisfied with it. Especially when there are performances in the evening, it feels lively and has a vacation-like atmosphere. According to the standards of Golden Diamond, I think it is still a bit not good enough. For example, the breakfast restaurant is simple in decoration. The food is scattered and scattered, like a guest house