The property was originally a Carrera Club Hotel, a small chain of hotels branching out from the traditional Hotel Carrera in Santiago. I stayed at this same hotel back in 2003 when it was Carrera, and to be honest didn’t see many changes as a Radisson during my recent stay.

The building inherited from the Carrera is awkwardly designed, with a small lobby and bar/restaurant that flow over into each other. The hotel boasts the slowest elevator, taking forever to reach the top floor (4th floor). It has a tiny business center with 2 PCs, a printer and room to hook up one laptop.

However, don’t be fooled by the pictures on Radisson’s website. The pictures shown for the dining room and lobby are actually of the Radisson Santiago and Radisson Ciudad Empresarial respectively.

The rooms I stayed in was comfortable and clean, with a king size bed, cable tv, minibar and bulky AC system. The advertised coffee maker and complimentary water bottle weren’t in the room. I’m not sure of the ratio of rooms facing the ocean against rooms facing the parking lot, but if you’ve traveled all the way to Iquique, make sure you get an oceanview room.

Breakfast was a decent buffet, with scrambled eggs, assortment of breads, fruits, hams and cheeses. They had a “light” corner with healthy alternatives.

Perhaps the hotel’s main problem is its location. It’s quite far from the downtown area and the ZOFRI. There’s nothing nearby within walking distance, so either rent a car or be prepared to use cabs a lot.

Overall, it’s a good hotel; however it didn’t meet my expectations of a Radisson property as I noticed no real improvements over the hotel from when it was Carrera Club.