Tximista

First, I will confess that I took a taxi from the Camino to the hotel, and back again the next morning. No problem getting a taxi at either end, and upon arriving in Estella I was at one of my, "I am not going to walk even one more step today" points. As the pictures posted by others here show, most of the building is really almost modernist, although it's actually 100+ years old, and it sits on a rushing river with a lovely deck and then garden. After a very hot day (late August heat wave) walking from Puente La Reina, seeing and hearing the river was cooling. The young woman at the desk was friendly and enthusiastic and I was quickly on my way up the elevator to my room, which was actually three octagonal grain storage bins linked together into a quirky sort of suite. And there were cool water and crisp apples waiting in the small refrigerator under the expansive desk. I enjoyed both while I used the wifi to check into my office, where it was six hours earlier. The dining room is on the lowest level, and it feels like a basement, which is unfortunate because it could instead easily focus on the outdoor terrace and gardens--and have outdoor dining, too. Or the dining room could be in the interesting space on the main floor, where the bar/lounge is now. The chef does a great job, and so does the server, and the prices are reasonable. Most of the tables were filled. As usual, I was the last person at breakfast, but there was still a good selection of food. The manager called me a taxi to take me back to the Camino with no problems.

The room layout was great. Location to central plazas was close enough. The staff were wonderful and very helpful. We were walking the camino and knew that this hotel was not "on the camino" when we booked it.

We were very unamused at having to schlepp over 2k out of town to the Hotel Tximista having already spent over 5 hours on the Camino path that day. We were equally unimpressed at having to reverse the same course the following morning to rejoin the Camino. However, we got there eventually. A sign at the desk said it would be difficult if not impossible to get a taxi from there so we immediately reconciled ourselves to the prospect of staying in the hotel for dinner as neither of us could face the prospect of a 4km round trip trek back into town to eat. The room was comfortable and functional, the twin beds serviceable, fitting in with the soulless atmosphere of the place. No real complaints though. The bar was deserted save for a large Asian group of walkers having a pep talk and briefing for the following day. Dinner was, at best, edible, breakfast uninspiring but adequate. We won’t be back this way but, if we were, Tximista wouldn’t be on the ‘must visit’ list. A solid ‘meh’ from me.