Hotel Avila, Caracas

Advantages: Avila Mountain, Gastronomy, Latin Flavor
Disadvantages: Crime, Unsafe.

...I’ve been reading some opinions on Caracas. Since I was born there, I hope you can find my opinion a little bit helpful. You have to analyse Caracas by traveling and experiencing the city. You'll find a very hidden beauty. When you arrive to Simon Bolivar Airport and take the highway to Caracas, you’ll see an enormous belt of shanty towns (poor districts). At first, it seems to be shocking and depressing. Once in the city, you discover that Caracas is located in a wonderful place: the skirts of Avila Mountain, a beautiful national park that separates Caracas from Caribbean Sea. A sunny day, at dusk , you’ll find delightful the green and blue shades of the mountain. It is essential for you to take the cableway that leads to the top of the mountain (Humboldt Station 9000 ft. above sea level) . Now, watch the landscape: on one hand... Read review

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Advantages: cheap, beautiful, diverse
Disadvantages: can be dangerous, english is not widely spoken

...Venezuela has to be the most amazingly diverse country i have ever been to, and worry not, it is not the only place i have been. It ranges from the Andes in the West to the Gran Sabana and then onto the dense Jungle in the east. It has the world's tallest waterfall: Angel Falls, (discovered by Jimmy Angel), beautiful Carribean Coast, unique tribal communities and bustling oil rich cities. As i did with my trip lets start where most people do -Caracas. This is a city of to halves, extreme poverty and extreme wealth due to the oil, but the first thing that hit me was the incredible prices. I mean a 3 course meal for £2.50 and people were ripping you off if they were selling fags for 90p. This meant that a daily budget was tiny and in fact hotel rooms in other towns were less than £4.00 a night, so a budget of less than £15 is fine... Read review

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Advantages: Good weather all year round, good exchange rate for the USD or GBP
Disadvantages: Locals generally don't speak anything other than Spanish, rather high crime rate

...I just read an excellent review by xadoc, and everything you pretty much need to know is there. I just have a few extra bits to fill in which I think would be helpful. The city has an excellent tube system, called the Metro, which is cheap and convenient. It is extremely handy for getting around and best of all, you can't get too lost as you are bound to find a station before long and you can get back to your hotel/get to your destination without too much trouble. If you are going shopping, Caracas is well known for leather goods, Nike, Reebok, Adidas stuff, clothes and GOLD. Fantastic quality 14 and 18 karat gold from the "joyerias" or jewellery shops. The gold is usually priced for you there and then as it is calculated based on the rate of exchange so of course it varies. Lovely quality gold, no 9K rubbish which is ridiculous... Read review

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