GPRO Valparaiso Palace and Spa

"We have just arrived home after 5 nights at the hotel, although there were some positives, it didn’t live up to what we’d expect from a 5-star property. Check-in wasn’t until 3pm, which was fine, although the hotel was bit busy at all. Our room was still being cleaned at 3pm. We asked about upgrading our two rooms to the cinema suites (at our own expense) and were told the hotel was fully booked. However, the hotel’s own website was showing multiple rooms still available, which was confusing. We were also told there were no double or king-size beds in the hotel, only two single beds pushed together, which wasn’t ideal. The beds were extremely uncomfortable as well! The biggest disappointment was that the thermal circuit and saunas in the spa were closed. We booked this hotel through Lastminute.com on the Friday and travelled the following Wednesday. At no point during booking were we informed that the spa would be closed by lasstminute.com and they continued advertising the spa as open, even on the day we arrived and even the on the hotels own website it stated it was closed. When we contacted last minute (within a few hours of booking the holiday) they were a nightmare and it took them until the Monday before we left to come back to us to say they were unaware of the closure. We asked to move to another hotel because we had specifically chosen this one for its spa facilities, but LM told us the hotel refused, saying the spa facilities was only an added bonus and not included and the massages remained available (within absolutely no discount even though the other facilities were closed!). We found this frustrating, especially as our room booking specifically included complimentary access to the spa and the spa was the reason we chose this hotel! On arrival, there are several steps leading to the entrance, and there was no one available to help with luggage, which felt unusual for a 5-star hotel. The room itself was spacious but dated. Amenities were basic, with only shower gel, shampoo and conditioner provided. The shower was inconsistent too – one day the water became so hot it almost scalded my head. The hairdryer only has one extremely hot setting and takes ages to dry your hair, so I’d definitely recommend bringing your own if that’s important to you. The Wi-Fi was also very poor, constantly dropping in and out, so I wouldn’t recommend relying on it if you need a stable internet connection. Room service was disappointing. The sandwiches and chips arrived soggy, and on one occasion our order didn’t arrive. Food is delivered by a robot, which was quite amusing, but unfortunately the quality didn’t match the novelty. On the positive side, the staff throughout the hotel were friendly and welcoming, which is one of the reasons we didn’t make a formal complaint during our stay. The two outdoor pools were lovely and easily the highlight of the hotel. We also booked six massages between the three of us, and every one was excellent. A special thank you to Pamela and the massage team – they were professional, friendly and provided fantastic treatments. The hotel will book taxis for guests, and they arrive knowing your room number, which was very convenient. Just be sure to book them in advance they are much cheaper than Ubers! We did hire a car, but parking anywhere in Palma is a nightmare so it was easier to get a taxi when going out for meals at night. Finally, the hotel is situated on a hill. There is a small shop about a 10-minute walk away, although it doesn’t stay open late. There’s also a small shopping centre nearby, around a 20-30 minute walk or a 10-minute drive. Again, it’s down a hill with many steps. Overall, while the staff and massage team were excellent and the outdoor pools were lovely, the misleading information about the spa (not from the hotel), poor Wi-Fi, dated rooms and disappointing food meant this stay fell well below our expectations of a 5-star hotel. It was more like a 3 possible 4* at a push!"

"Location was the biggest problem on top of a big hill, you needed to get a taxi everywhere 10 mins from old town via taxi which was about 20 euros each way, taxi to the beach 5mins, also the hotel failed to tell us there was anti touristism protest so we went out to the old town where the protest was without knowing and got caught up in it, people tells us to go home, swearing at me and my teenage girls was a scary experience to say the least. We told the hotel about this experience as they should have told us about the protest as we wouldn’t have gone out, we didn’t receive no compensation, the hotel is lovely staff very friendly. Very expensive for food and drinks but I guess that’s to be expected for a 5*"

"There are a lot of good things about this hotel. The location is brilliant, the outside space/pools are amazing and very clean, and the staff cannot do enough for you. The only thing that lets it down are the bedrooms which are in need of refurbishment. The suites have been refurbished and are lovely but the regular rooms need some attention - me and my husband had a suite and our teenage daughters had a regular room. The photos on the hotel website show the refurbished rooms including a walk-in shower and up to date decoration but this is not representative Despite this the housekeeping team is good and the rooms are very clean."