Casa de la Abuela is a popular hotel, café & gift shop in the heart of Suchitoto, El Salvador – find out how this historic mansion has been converted into one of the city’s most loved places.
Location, location, location…. Casa de la Abuela holds the best spot in town, right next to Iglesia San Lucia.
Look out for the bright yellow building to the right of the church, you can’t miss it!
Casa de la Abuela was one of our favourite places to stay in our 1 month trip in El Salvador.
This historic mansion has been in the owner Jose’s family for 100 years, hence the name Casa de la Abuela, which means Grandmother’s House in English.
It used to be the family home but then stood largely abandoned for many decades, including during the Civil War.
Over the past 10-15 years, the property has been completely restored & renovated, with care & love.
It first started as a gift shop in 2008, then an adjoining café opened several years later. 2 hotel rooms were added last year, with more in the works.
Let us here at DIY Travel HQ show you around!
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Hotel Room at Casa de la Abuela
On arrival at Casa de la Abuela, we were warmly welcomed by the owner Jose.
He showed us around the property & introduced us to the young, friendly staff.
Celia showed us to our room & before we even entered, it was love at first sight… see the feature image!
Inside, the room was equally impressive & very spacious.
There was a huge king bed, with a blue-painted wooden headboard & side table.
In one corner, there was a new LED television & in another, a beautiful dresser with drawers & a mirror.
On top of the dresser, there was a Black & Decker coffee maker, with a packet of house-roasted Arabica coffee.
We really appreciated these personal touches to the room.
Along with the coffee, we were also provided with both face & body towels, etched with the Casa de la Abuela insignia.
There were even Snickers chocolates left on the bed for us!
At the moment, Casa de la Abuela offers just 2 guest rooms, with a shared bathroom (which was clean & functional).
More rooms & private bathrooms are currently in the works, which will surely be designed in an equally unique & sophisticated style .
Coffee Shop at Casa de la Abuela
The café at Casa de la Abuela is a wonderful place to have a drink or enjoy a meal.
Certified baristas served the best coffee in Suchitoto, using 100% SHG Arabica beans, grown under shade & harvested from the best coffee growing regions in El Salvador.
We recommend trying their Drip Coffee, but French Press, Espresso & Cappuccino are also offered, amongst many other styles.
There’s also a full beverage menu to choose from, with alcoholic & non-alcoholic drinks.
Casa de la Abuela also serves an wide selection of light meals such as sandwiches, salads & pastas.
The food is well-prepared with excellent presentation & service.
The café is well-staffed with young, attentive workers, who never fail to have a smile on their face & bring one to yours.
Enjoy eating or drinking in the café inside or in one of the outdoor areas.
Alfresco seating is offered on the cobbled-stone streets under sun umbrellas, or you can relax in the garden courtyard.
Gift Shop at Casa de la Abuela
Before it became a café & petit hotel, Casa de la Abuela was a gift shop.
It opened in 2008, as a project of Sustainable Tourism, to provide a commercial outlet to local craftsman & artists.
Today, the gift shop remains a special part of Casa de la Abuela.
From textiles from San Sebastian to ceramics from Guatajiaguara, it is stocked only with the highest quality artisan handicrafts from all across El Salvador.
Pick up a souvenir to take home with you or simply browse around, there’s sure to be plenty of interesting & colourful designs to catch your eye!
Common Areas at Casa de la Abuela
As a guest of the hotel, you can enjoy 4 different spaces at Casa de la Abuela.
There are chairs, sofas & lounges to read & relax in, and casual dining tables to enjoy a snack or work on your laptop.
The décor throughout these spaces are absolutely charming & intriguing.
We loved the paintings & old newspaper clippings in wooden frames, flower & plant arrangements, clay pottery pieces and restored furnishings.
These 4 common areas each have a character & style of their own, but they all surround a beautiful garden courtyard.
This is such a fantastic place to catch some sunlight, with a view of Iglesia Santa Lucia in the sky.
From the warm & cozy atmosphere to the antique trinkets & decorations, staying at Casa de la Abuela really does make you feel like you’re at your grandmother’s home, in the best way possible! 🙂
Other Features of Casa de la Abuela
- Wifi – strong & fast internet connection
- Pupusa making workshop – learn to make El Salvador’s national dish! (extra charge)
- Tours & guides – tours around Suchitoto & El Salvador can be easily arranged with certified, bilingual guides
- Transfers – transfers from Suchitoto to San Salvador, Airport & Copan Ruins (Honduras) are offered
Things to See & Do in Suchitoto
Suchitoto is the cultural capital of El Salvador – plan your visit over a weekend & you’ll be likely to experience some kind of food or arts festival.
On the weekend we visited, there was a beauty pageant, film festival & municipal fair with amusement rides, games & outdoor nightclub!
Here are some of the main attractions in & around Suchitoto:
- Iglesia Santa Lucia – neoclassical-style church built in 1857
- Museo de Alejandro Cotto – colonial home of the famous Salvodorean writer & film-maker
- Arte en Anil – take an indigo workshop & make your own hand-dyed pieces
- Lago de Suchitlan – cruise on a boat ride & view the diverse birdlife around the lake
- Cascada Los Tercios Salto – hexagonal stone waterfall
- El Cubo – waterfall with twin pools for swimming
Know Before You Go
Address: 1a Av. Norte y 2a Calle Oriente Barrio El Centro, Suchitoto, El Salvador
Price: King room from $50.00
Contact:
- Phone: +503 2335-1632
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: Casa de la Abuela
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*** The Final Word – From the customer service to the décor, you’ll feel the love, care & attention to detail everywhere at Casa de la Abuela, a home away from home in Suchitoto ***
Is it important for you to have a cafe or restaurant in a hotel? Do you usually eat & drink there?
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* Thank you to Casa e la Abuela for hosting us. No compensation was received for this review but our stay was offered on a complimentary basis. As always, all opinions remain our own.
Visited in November 2016
Comments
Such a lovely place!
Old worn out, yet beautiful.
That’s really original… very unique. I love these things!
Love how beautiful it looks, it has character.
Everyrhinf u need in a place!
for the value of money, it is worth it to stay here…
I love hotels like these. Remnants of the past and something which never goes out of beauty even in a new setting. Lovely review.
What a colorful place to stay! So authentic! I love your pictures too!
Out of all the places I have been, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that El Salvador was one of my favourites. Unfortunately however, I never made it to Suchitoto which, clearly, was something of an oversight on my part. I really enjoyed the historical insights during my time there and it certainly looks as though there is plenty of that here. The room looks really quaint while your write-up, as always, was very thorough. Hopefully be able to head back to El Salvador one day and take in all I missed!
I am impressed with the services of Casa Abuela. Most especially when you mentioned that you can make El Salvador’s national dish while staying there. It will complete one’s travel experience if he or she can learn something from the country he or she will be visiting. I will definitely put this down in my list once I visit El Salvador.
Oh wow this looks so quaint! We would love to spend a few days there. Hopefully we will get to visit El Salvador in the near future. It sounds like a very historic place with lots to see and do!
This looks like such a cute little spot! I’d love to stay on my way through El Salvador. While I’m there I’d definitely try and make the pupusa? Whatever that is haha. I just love to try local delicacies.
That looks like a nice little boutique hotel. Cosy rooms and a nice design. I have read so much good about El Salvador lately that it is giving me an itch to get there someday.
This looks like a very fun, lively place and yet romantic as well. I loved that this boutique hotel went out of it’s way to add small finishing touches, that’s a rare occurrence it seems in other hotels. I personally would like to experience the Pupusa making workshop even with the extra charge.
I usually prefer to just go out and explore but with a cafe like this, I’d have to try it!
If you stay at the hotel, you can make your own personal cup anytime you want. However, the cafe is a better bet if you want something special.
This is my kind of hostel if I ever owned one. Love the ambiance. I’m sure most visitors would be happy with a stay here.
The whole property is a one-stop tourist destination. You have your accommodation, cafe with light meals, and souvenirs all under one roof. The surprising thing is how well they flow together. You can tell all the details were thought out in advance.
This hotel looks so perfectly quaint! I love the common areas. It looks so relaxing and like a place I’d love to pop open my laptop and do some writing! The cafe looks awesome as well! We’re always looking for a good cup of coffee!
Casa de la Abuela is a great place to do some blogging, or writing in general. The Wi-Fi is fast and reaches everywhere in the property. I’m sure you can find a variety of coffee that suits your tastes. Plus, you would need one to keep focused on your work. 🙂
The place is truly impressive. The Abuela cafe is what stunned me the most because I usually check out cafes in new places.