Hotel Barcelos

Relatively few English reviews here for places in Campos do Jordao, so i thought I'd add one. I stayed for one night in early August on a weekend away from Sao Paulo. The pluses and minuses: + Location is right in the middle of the action. It's a five-minute walk from the center of nightlife, the teleferico and the train station. I walked there from the main bus station in about 20 minutes. + Desk staff provided good service even without any English spoken by them (or Portuguese by me). Used left luggage twice with no problems and all inquiries were met with a warm smile. + Breakfast was solid for a modest hotel. Large spread of fruits, pastries, juices and cereals. The breakfast room is on the top floor and, like the entire place, resplendent in pine paneling. + Room was nice enough with good bedding, tons of storage and a well-stocked minibar with extremely reasonable prices. - Location is right in the middle of the action. So if you want to enjoy some mountain air, sit on your patio and enjoy a relaxing time. This isn't the place. The balconies either overlook a large parking lot of look onto the street. - It's loud. Not a lot of soundproofing inside or out. Lots of footsteps, doors closing, etc. inside as well as cars and dogs barking outside. Didn't bother me for one night, but would get tiresome on a longer stay. - It's old. Even though it was very clean and the room was in excellent condition, be ready for a place that hasn't been updated since the late 70s. All in all, not a bad stay but if I had it to do over again, I would have chosen somewhere a little further out from town that had a more peaceful environment. Campos do Jordao (at the least Capivari area) is compact and completely walkable, so another 1km out you could have a different environment without sacrificing much in terms of convenience. Note that the hotel location is actually one small block SW of where Google Maps shows it. It directly faces a small square that has trees and benches.