How was the hotel?

How was the hotel?
 

What was the hotel like?
How was the hotel?

Is there a difference?

It depends on the context. "How was the hotel?" means that somebody stayed there, and you ask about their experience there. The first one means exactly the same in that context, but could have a wider application: e.g. I once stayed there, but can't remember its name. - Describe it.

In most cases, they mean the same thing.

How was (your stay at) the hotel? - That is what you ask after someone has stayed there. There is an assumption usually for the words in parentheses.

What was the hotel like? - Usually means the same thing. However, it could be more generic. For instance, when you visit Las Vegas, seeing the hotels is part of the attraction of the city. In this case, someone could ask "What was the Bellagio like? (Bellagio is a specific hotel)

Hope this helps.

I thought The second one was more colloquial.

Possibly, yes. At least you would not say that the first was more colloquial.