Ponce De Leon Hotel

About The Hotel

Ponce De Leon Hotel is a 3-star historic downtown property at 95 Central Ave in downtown St. Petersburg. Rated 3.2 across 954 reviews with 3.4 cleanliness, 3.0 rooms, 4.6 location, 3.5 service, 3.2 sleep quality; value 3.5. Amenities include bar/lounge, restaurant, 24-hour front desk, non-smoking hotel, paid public parking nearby and free WiFi. A 4-star recent guest wrote ‘The price is right, the location is great — this hotel has a lot of potential, needs updating. Great location, could use some updating. Room appeared clean. Small room and bathroom, but also it’s an old building so that’s to be expected. If they got the right decorator in here, this hotel would be absolutely adorable.’ Significant candid recent flags include: ‘Morgan is the worst!!! All he cared is playing video s while working. Did nothing while working. And made feel like talking was a chore’ (1-star staff complaint). ‘The location is great in downtown St. Peterberg. The staff is unprofessional and unresponsive. The maids start talking and blasting music at 9am when cleaning rooms. The elevator has ac water leaking. There was a cockroa[ch]’ (1-star). ‘Place was disgusting receptionist said we were getting their best room 601 the tonic smell permeated the entire hotel and the mold bleach smell was unbearable’ (1-star). Book only for value-first walkable-downtown visitors accepting the property’s condition — the 4.6 location subrating is the only strength.

What Guests Are Saying

“Great location, could use some updating. Room appeared clean. Small room and bathroom, but also it’s an old building so that’s to be expected. If they got the right decorator in here, this hotel would be absolutely adorable. I would keep the green tile in the bathroom, it’s very “Florida”color palette. Lots of potential. Check in was as good as it needed to be. The price is right.” — Kelly C., 4 stars

“The elevator was out of order. Phone didn’t work. And there was no hot water. The bed was comfortable and the room was clean” — John O., 3 stars

“The location of this hotel is very good and the view from 6th floor, where my room(s) were - did have a great view of the pier/bay. This is the ONLY positive comments I can provide. My 1st room (6th Fl) had holes in the wall, the hallway had an odd smell after exiting the elevator. Luckily I checked the heat (as I visited during a cold spell) upon entering & found it did not work. I called the front desk, they came & checked and confirmed no heat; therefore, moved me into a ‘larger’ room across the hall. The heat DID work in this room. Again, another room that was in need of major renovations/updating. The bathroom sink was to the right upon entering the room, not in the bathroom with the toilet and tub/shower. Walls paper thin as you could hear the neighbors quite well! The room furniture mismatched & looked like it was obtained from an old 2nd hand shop. I noted that several unoccupied rooms on the floor were left ‘open’ & unlocked. Thankfully, my stay was only one night. I would not recommend this property.” — Michele M., 2 stars

Pros & Cons

Pros:

• 4.6 location subrating - Walkable downtown Central Avenue
• Walking-distance to Dali Museum, Chihuly Collection, Vinoy Park and the St. Pete Pier
• 24-hour front desk + bar/lounge + restaurant on site
• Value nightly rate ($79-$110)
• A 4-star repeat guest sees ‘a lot of potential’ if updated

Cons:

• CANDID: 3.2 rating with rooms 3.0 very weak
• CANDID: 1-star ‘cockroach’ + ‘mold bleach smell was unbearable’ + ‘elevator ac water leaking’
• CANDID: Unprofessional/unresponsive staff - ‘Morgan is the worst!!! All he cared is playing video s while working’
• CANDID: Maids ‘start talking and blasting music at 9am when cleaning rooms’
• No in-room jacuzzi advertised

The Location

95 Central Ave, St. Petersburg, FL 33701 — Walkable downtown Central Avenue near the Dali Museum, Chihuly Collection and Vinoy Park. You can find more details or book your stay on TripAdvisor.