"We stayed at Valamar Lacroma expecting a comfortable 4-star experience, but left feeling that the hotel is far more focused on appearances than getting the basics right.
Our problems started on arrival. We reached the hotel at around 9:30pm on the scheduled Jet2 transfer. As the hotel knows when these transfers arrive, we were surprised that no provision had been made for guests arriving after dinner service ended at 9pm. We had paid for half board, yet effectively lost an entire evening meal. Even a simple selection of sandwiches or snacks would have been appreciated, and is something we’ve experienced at many other hotels.
The check-in itself was cold and uninformative. We were given no map, no explanation of the facilities, no information about restaurants, and no guidance on where anything was located.
Our original “superior” room was a long walk from reception and was simply not clean enough. There were stains around the toilet, dirt in corners and behind fittings, and furniture that was heavily scuffed and water-damaged. The furnishings throughout felt lightweight and cheap rather than premium, more caravan than superior.
When we raised our concerns, my wife had to be far more persistent than she should have needed to be. The first member of staff we dealt with repeatedly suggested we “come back tomorrow” to discuss moving rooms, despite the fact that the room was dirty and not fit for the standard we had paid for. What struck us was how quickly this suggestion came. Rather than expressing surprise or apologising that the room had fallen below standard, the immediate response was simply to offer a different room the following day, which left us wondering how often similar complaints are received.
The situation then became increasingly frustrating. The staff member appeared to struggle with the computer system, repeatedly texting and calling colleagues for assistance while we waited. At one point, before our issue had been resolved, he stopped dealing with us altogether in order to assist another guest checking in.
Eventually, a more senior member of staff stepped in. Within minutes she understood the problem, took ownership of it and upgraded us to a V Level room. We were grateful for her help and professionalism, but it was difficult not to feel that the situation could have been resolved much earlier had it been handled that way from the outset.
The V Level room was certainly an improvement and closer to what we had expected from the superior room we originally booked. It had a better location and a lovely sea view. However, it still fell short of what we’d expect from a hotel presenting itself as a premium 4-star resort.
The balcony was dirty, the glass hadn’t been cleaned properly, and sections of grout were missing. Most baffling of all were the large metal bars running across the front of the balcony, creating a distinctly prison-like feel and partially blocking what should have been one of the room’s best features. What made this even stranger was that the hotel uses glass panels along the internal corridors overlooking reception. Given the spectacular sea views, it seems completely backwards that glass was used inside the building while guests looking out over the Adriatic are staring through metal bars.
The bathroom also showed signs of poor maintenance, with dirty or mouldy grout around the shower, staining around the toilet hinges, an ageing toilet seat that needed replacing, and dirt collecting behind door stops and in corners.
Attention to detail was consistently lacking. We found drinks left in the minibar from previous guests, including a half-finished bottle of orange juice and another opened bottle. Reception arranged for somebody to remove them, but only one bottle was taken away and the half-finished orange juice remained. Milk was never replenished after the first night, there were no wine or champagne glasses despite a wine fridge containing several bottles, and no bottle opener was provided.
The room move itself became another farce. The bed for our son hadn’t been made up and, after a lengthy and awkward attempt by a member of staff to work out how it operated, we were eventually handed bedding and left to make it ourselves. We assumed housekeeping would make it up the next day, but it remained untouched for the rest of our stay. Having to make your own bed in a 4-star hotel after already raising cleanliness concerns felt ridiculous.
Security and practicality were also questionable. The room doors had no internal latch or thumb-turn lock, meaning younger children could easily open them and wander into the corridor. We later discovered other guests had raised similar concerns in previous reviews. Anyone could also access the accommodation floors and lifts without a room key, something that wasn’t the case at the neighbouring Valamar President hotel, whose facilities we also used.
Service was inconsistent throughout the stay. Julio, one of the chefs, was excellent: friendly, engaging and clearly passionate about his work. Jonalyn in the restaurant was equally wonderful and was always welcoming, polite and smiling. Unfortunately, some reception staff left a very different impression. On one occasion I was interrupted before I had even finished asking a question about our V Level late checkout entitlement and was abruptly told we would need to leave by 10am because the hotel was busy. Only after explaining that late checkout was included with our booking did the conversation continue.
The food itself was generally well prepared, but many menu choices felt unnecessarily niche. Pizza was available most evenings, yet toppings regularly included combinations such as seafood, mussels and shrimp, while simple crowd-pleasers such as a margherita were absent. Other dishes included squid ink risotto, rice flavoured with cloves and star anise, and carrots in Dijon mustard. There is nothing wrong with offering adventurous options, but it was surprising how often straightforward alternatives were missing.
What made this even stranger was that the hotel is heavily marketed by Jet2 as family friendly, yet there was no children’s buffet section at all. For many children, the only reliable option was chips, which disappeared almost as soon as they were replenished. Parents were often left requesting plain pasta from the chefs, creating queues and extra work for staff. A simple pasta station with tomato sauce, pesto and other basic options would have made far more sense.
There were positives. The bed was enormous and comfortable, the views are beautiful, and some members of staff genuinely cared about providing a good experience. However, throughout the stay we repeatedly found ourselves noticing that money had been spent on appearances while the basics had been overlooked.
Leaf-pattern wallpaper, a coffee machine and a V Level badge do not make a room luxurious when cleanliness, maintenance and service fall below expectations. For us, Valamar Lacroma was ultimately a 2-star experience hiding behind a 4-star rating."
