"⭐️⭐️ Gran Hotel Bali, Benidorm – 4 Stars… Apparently Someone Got Carried Away With the Sticker Machine
Where do I begin with the Gran Hotel Bali?
First impressions are actually impressive. You walk through the entrance and think, “Wow, this place is huge!” And it is. Absolutely enormous. Unfortunately, after a few days you start wondering whether half the hotel was designed by someone whose main brief was: “Whatever you do, make sure there’s loads of space… just don’t do anything useful with it.”
There is SO much wasted space here that with a bit of imagination, better management and some investment, this hotel could genuinely be ten times better.
Reception: The Gran Hotel Bali Avoidance Championships 🏆
Check-in was our first introduction to the rather unique concept of customer service here.
There were SIX members of staff at reception. Three appeared to be doing absolutely nothing other than chatting and wandering backwards and forwards. Spanish guests were being served while we stood there apparently wearing Harry Potter’s invisibility cloak.
This became something of a theme.
On our second day, I realised the wrong amount of money had been loaded onto my room card, so back to reception I went.
I stood there for around TEN MINUTES while a receptionist, who had already seen me waiting, continued having a lovely conversation with another member of staff from a different department.
Eventually, the gentleman she was speaking to noticed the look on my face — presumably somewhere between “Are you actually serious?” and “Should I just apply for a job here and serve myself?” — and suddenly I was acknowledged.
Miraculous.
Smiles from staff also appear to be an optional extra. Unless, of course, you're handing over a tip. Then facial muscles previously thought to be dormant suddenly spring into action.
The Elevators: Alton Towers Without the Safety Briefing 🎢
We stayed in the older of the two towers.
The room itself was comfortable enough, but very dated. It felt like we'd accidentally booked a holiday with a complimentary trip back in time.
Then there were the elevators.
Good grief.
They move around so much that every journey feels like the hotel has included a free theme-park attraction with your stay.
Some of the floor displays don't work either, so rather than knowing where you are, you simply wait for the doors to open and discover your destination like some sort of vertical mystery tour.
On one occasion, we got into the lift, pressed floor 11, the doors closed…
…and absolutely nothing happened.
Excellent.
Just me, my friends and an elevator apparently reconsidering its career choices.
Staff told us the smaller elevators can take more than four people. Technically, perhaps. But unless four of those people are garden gnomes, I'd disagree.
With four adults inside, you're already standing close enough to complete strangers that you feel obliged to introduce yourself, exchange Christmas cards and possibly meet each other's parents.
The Pools: Actually Really Good! 😲
Credit where it’s due: the pools were great.
Unfortunately, the waterfall pool — one of the pools we had particularly been looking forward to — was closed during our stay.
Still, the pool areas themselves were one of the hotel's better features.
The Bar: Bring a Book 🍺📖
Bar service was painfully slow.
On our second day we stood waiting for around 15 minutes while Spanish guests who arrived AFTER us were served before us.
Four members of staff repeatedly walked past us.
At one point I genuinely started wondering whether becoming invisible was one of the hotel's complimentary services.
Eventually you start questioning everything.
Am I actually standing at the bar?
Can they see me?
Have I died?
Is this purgatory?
Nope. Just waiting for a drink at the Gran Hotel Bali.
The Buffet: Hot Food Apparently Sold Separately 🍽️
There is plenty of choice at breakfast, lunch and dinner.
Unfortunately, "choice" doesn't necessarily mean "good".
We found the food consistently cold and bland. There might be ten different things on your plate, but somehow they all manage to taste remarkably similar: of very little.
We ended up eating across the road at New York quite a lot because eventually you realise that being all-inclusive doesn't mean you have to keep punishing yourself.
I've seen responses to other negative reviews saying the food meets the hotel's standards.
That may well be true.
The problem might therefore be the standards.
The Pool Café/Ice-Cream Situation 🍦
This one genuinely baffled me.
There's a café/ice-cream area right beside the pool.
Perfect, you'd think.
Except you can't go inside unless you're dry and covered up.
It's… beside… the… pool.
Surely the entire point of having a café/ice-cream area next to a swimming pool is so guests can grab a coffee, drink or ice cream and take it back to their sunlounger?
We saw children wanting ice creams who couldn't simply go in and get one because they'd been swimming.
At a family resort.
Beside the swimming pool.
Someone please make it make sense.
This policy seriously needs reconsidering. Either provide a poolside serving point or allow guests to quickly purchase takeaway items without having to prepare themselves as though they're heading out for dinner.
Other Guests & Queueing: Apparently More of a Suggestion Than a Rule
Our stay also coincided with a Spanish holiday period, so the hotel was extremely busy with domestic tourists.
Obviously I wouldn't judge an entire nationality based on guests at one hotel, but some of the behaviour we personally encountered was unbelievably rude.
People repeatedly pushed ahead of us at coffee stations and bars when we were clearly queueing. Others pushed past without so much as an apology, and we witnessed people openly pointing at and gossiping about other guests.
What made it particularly frustrating was that staff often saw the queue-jumping and simply did nothing about it.
After enough times, you start wondering why you're bothering to queue at all.
Maybe I misunderstood the system.
Perhaps it's less "wait your turn" and more "Hunger Games: Benidorm Edition."
The Biggest Problem: The Attitude
And this is ultimately what lets the hotel down.
A dated room can be renovated.
An elevator can be repaired.
Food can be improved.
Policies can be changed.
But poor customer service completely changes how you feel about a hotel.
Apart from two members of staff who were genuinely pleasant, most of the staff we personally dealt with came across as arrogant, uninterested or simply annoyed that guests expected to be served.
And that's a shame because this hotel has enormous potential.
The building is impressive. The pools are good. The rooms, although dated, are comfortable. There's an incredible amount of space.
With better management, warmer customer service, improved food, modernisation and a rethink of some frankly bizarre policies, this place could be fantastic.
⭐ Final Verdict
I've read several negative TripAdvisor reviews mentioning the staff and food, and I've also noticed hotel responses strongly defending both.
Well, our experience certainly wasn't imaginary.
We waited.
We were ignored.
We watched other guests arriving after us being served first.
We ate cold, bland food.
We experienced temperamental elevators.
We encountered dated rooms.
And somewhere during all of this, the fourth star apparently escaped and is currently hiding in one of the enormous unused spaces downstairs.
For us, this absolutely did not feel like a four-star experience.
I've already emailed Jet2 with a complaint regarding our stay and, unfortunately, the Gran Hotel Bali will firmly be on our "avoid in future" list.
The saddest thing?
It genuinely could be a brilliant hotel.
The potential is enormous.
Unfortunately, so is the reception queue."
