The feeling upon walking into Cabinas al Mar hotel in Mazatlan is familiar--like people live here.  The maternal-like service from the concierge and maids is comforting. Mexican folk paintings hang on the walls. Half spiral stair cases with victorian columnades twist upward from floor to floor. The hallways are open and breazy. It is an old tenement building overlooking the sea, on the half way point of that section of Malecon between Playa Camaron beach and Ice Box hill | El Cerro de la Neveria.

The clean, 3-room, 400-square- foot cabinas are funky and retro with a 60’s lingerie color-scheme. A mirror’s white frame, vanity counter and white faux headboards trim nude walls and curtains. . .and why not a sea foam green bathroom?  An old bunson burner, mini-fridge, sink and dining counter compose the kitchenette. Rose print bed spreads could be a grandmother’s sunday dress. In fact, much in these four-bed rooms is vintage. Newly tiled beach-front baconies and bathrooms are the hotel’s most recent renovations.

Although a little shaby, this hotel’s character shines through. Of the modest and econimical hotels on the Malecon, Cabinas al Mar is one of the most home-styled, authentic and comfortable.