"From the outside this hotel may look ideal and tranquil however façades can be deceiving.
During our weeklong stay at this resort we faced issue after issue and constant false promises and lies from both the staff and the management. We were made out to be liars despite the conversations we had with senior staff members at the hotel, which is completely unacceptable. There is no way this hotel should be advertised as five stars.
Number one food availability- as an all-inclusive resort there is an expectation that food that is advertised will be available at all times however throughout our stay this was not the case. Travelling with an autistic child, we were extremely mindful of food options before we travelled. Basic items like Ice Cream and chicken nuggets consistently ran out throughout our stay. One night we went to one of the al a carte restaurants and my child ordered the first and chips served with tartar source, only to be served fish fingers and potato stars! Whilst this doesn’t seem like a major issue to many we specifically stayed at this resort due to the menu options that were suitable for our autistic child and to not have these available caused distress.
Number two cleanliness and general upkeep. The cleanliness of this resort is not what I expect from a five star establishment. Used towels that had been left on the floor in the bathroom as requested were taken and not replaced. When we raised this with the hotel we were told this was due to a towel shortage at the resort. Having then asked the receptionist how she expects us to get dried as there was no longer any towels (dirty or clean in our room), they miraculously turned up at our room 45 minutes later with towels. For a new resort the overall cleanliness and cleaning standards are subpar, from marks on windows, communal areas dirty (including toilets, and bins not being emptied daily in rooms. There were never any clean towels in the gym or water, I flagged this 2 days in a row to reception and nothing was done about it. During our stay there were 12 power outages, 6 of which happened in the middle of the night, turning all the lights on in the room and waking everyone up. This was never acknowledged by the hotel, again all of the above makes it fall below standard.
Number 3 staff behaviour. We have stayed in many 5* resorts over the years and the service here could not hold a candle to the others. Staff at the fast food station were short and unfriendly, reception staff treated any interaction as an inconvenience. Staff walking around the resort on mobile phones not acknowledging you as you walked by. Little things like this make a hotel 5* and in this department the resort is truly lacking. However, by far the biggest staffing issue is Guest Services and particularly their manager Angela, who I will go into more detail about in the next part of my review. She made promises to resolve issues while we were at the hotel and then total radio silence once we returned home.
4- Pool issue. This is by far the biggest issue we faced and to be honest I would have let the other issues slide if it wasn’t for this and the subsequent poor service we received as a result. In a nut shell the pools at the hotel stain your clothing (see pictures)!! As a result we have had over £350 worth of clothing ruined. On the first day this occurred I took my items of clothing over to guest relations who acknowledged that this is a common issue with their pools and offered to have them washed free of charge. When my clothing came back the next day it was still stained. I flagged this directly with the tour operator and that is when I received a phone call from Angela, Guest Relations manager. She informed me that this is a common issue and they do not know what is causing it. She said it mainly affects children’s clothing (which to me isn’t a surprise as they are usually in the pool all day) and that they are testing the pool 3 times a day and have hired specialist pool servicing teams to investigate the issue. She offered me a free massage as a good will gesture which I refused as this does not make up for the ruined clothing. She then asked for me to send over pictures of my clothing and itemised costing to see what she could do. A few days later and after me chasing she got back to me and said after speaking to her general manager I needed to raise the issue directly with the tour operator. Whilst frustrated I did that, only to receive an email from the tour operator saying they wouldn’t help as the hotel said that there was not an issue with the pool and that the issue was a probably a result of suncream or sweat causing staining. I have been on many holidays over the years and I am insulted in the insinuation that I am a) incapable of using suncream correctly or b) that my family are dirty. I was absolutely disgusted that I was made out to be a liar and that Angela has said one thing to me directly and then another to the tour operator. If there is no issue with the pool then why are they being tested 3 times a day and why have the hotel hired specialist pool servicing teams to look at the pool if this isn’t an issue? Angela specifically told me this was an issue the resort had that they were trying to fix, however to the tour operator they denied all knowledge. I wasted days of my holiday going back and forth with the hotel and operator, collating pictures and receipts of the damaged items, which I was told was not an admission of guilt but to help investigate, again if that is the case why ask me for receipts? I again flagged the issue directly with Angela who said she was waiting for her manager to get back to her, however they would offer us a 2 nights free stay at any resort due to the inconvenience, which was all lip service as we never received this in writing. I have been home 4 days now and have emailed the resort 4 times asking for a formal response, only to be ignored. For someone in a position of management I am appalled by the service we received from Angela.
This hotel is ok taking your money, however will not help you and will make you out to be a liar. I would never ever stay at an Ella Resort again in my life and would not recommend a this hotel to my worst enemy.
I will be making a formal complaint to the hotel corporation and to the tour operator.
1 star is far too generous for this place."
