The definition for “hotelier” is simply a person or company that owns or manages a hotel. Yet the somehow more elegant word kept coming to mind during my stay at La Hotel Mansion del Sol in Guadalajara. The old hotel, with its upholstered parlor and small study in the front, speaks of a time before hotel chains existed, a time when you felt cared-for by hotels.

When I’m in Guadalajara, I always find myself staying in Zapopan, a suburb of the greater Guadalajara metropolitan area (Guadalara has 8 million people) and home to many wealthy residents. The area has wide leafy boulevards, the toniest shopping mall in Guadalajara (Andares) and lots of sushi restaurants. 

After nine years of increasingly annoying and exhausting plane travel, I’ve become a big fan of Mexico’s luxury buses (especially when traveling with lots of luggage). Another big reason to love Zapopan is that it has its own luxury bus station hosting all the luxury lines - ETN, Primera Plus, Turistar, TapPlus and OMEX VPT. Zapopan is a perfect spot to spend a relaxing night and break up a long bus trip through Mexico.

La Hotel Mansion del Sol is on the corner of a street in a residential area one block off a main road. It’s quite old. In The Land of Ceramic Tile, you start craving wood and rugs. The hotel is heavy with red wood banisters, floors and walls. The entryway into the hotel is as dark and soothing as a cave in a thunderstorm. My heartbeat went down 10 beats the moment I walked in.

I peeked at several rooms while I was there and each appeared unique. I got lucky and scored an enormous rooms for $63 (tax included). Its bed and seating areas contained real furniture, heavy porcelain lamps, tufted Persian rugs and stepped down to a bath room (not a bathroom, a bath room). One look and I was wondering how to stay a week (or maybe forever like these celebrities who lived in hotels).

As I rose from a late dinner and delicious margarita in the dining room looking out over a lushly tended garden and lawn, a few friends dropped by. We chatted in the salon until a staff member thoughtfully suggested we might try the tables outside by the garden, as the weather was perfect (Guadalajara boasts springtime weather most the year). 

It was hard to concentrate on our conversation however, because I kept fantasizing about the bath I was going to take in my room’s real bathtub (it had armrests!), something I hadn’t done in years and suddenly realized I missed. 

Budget travel can be full of surprises that aren’t so pleasant. The surprise of being in the embrace of a professional hotelier like Mansion del Sol can be what keeps you going amidst unpredictable AirBnB experiences and anxiety-provoking cab rides in a foreign country. 

Heading back to the room, I saw staff who were clearly there to look after you, the traveler who needs a little love. After my bath, I turned on the big television screen and fell asleep to a cable station that just showed a crackling fire in a fireplace in a loop. 

Check out time at La Mansion del Sol is an indulgent 12:00 am, giving you ample time to be served their free full breakfast by the garden. As the coffee arrived without having to ask,  I enjoyed a Mexican omelet and fresh fruit and listened to guests at the next table talking about how lovely their stay had been as well. I still had time to walk around the neighborhood and stretch my legs before a 6 hour bus ride. 

Hotel chains in the $150 a night and under range have become as personal as a vending machine. It’s common to check in at night after a long flight and find the entire hotel has been left in the hands of a single, often inexperienced or indifferent employee at the front desk. It’s then up to you to figure it all out, usually hunched over your phone. The overriding feeling is one of the hotels operating for their convenience rather than yours. That they’d rather not know you’re there at all. Did I tell you the hotel had room service?)

La Hotel Mansion del Sol boasts a rating of “Superb” on Booking.com, a rating you rarely see (I couldn’t find any when I checked hotels in a dozen cities).

I let my friends in Guadalajara know that when I visited them, this is where they’d find me.

About the author:

Kerry Baker is the author of books for people considering expat life, whether full time or a “mini life”.

If Only I Had a Place is the absolute guide to renting in Mexico - far different than you’d think. Don’t be fooled by realtors.

The Mexico Solution: Saving you money, sanity, and quality of life through part-time life in Mexico tells you how to set up for part-time life and the cultural surprises you will encounter along the way.

Her most recent work, The Lazy Expat: Healthy Recipes That Translate in Mexico is a cookbook for travelers, snowbirds and expats. In Mexico, you must cook to maintain a healthy diet. This book shows you how.