"I’m writing this as the holiday progresses so it will be in Chronological order instead of a “Pros & Cons” style.
On arrival after a late flight, we were directed to the transfer coach and collected our suitcases in quick time. Getting to the hotel took about 40mins (we were the third stop).
Reception is vast. Really is a sight when you first enter. There is clear effort made here to make a first impression and it works. It so great to look at and take it all in. The piano bar looked gorgeous too.
Checking in was a little slow but we put this down to it being the evening and less staff needed etc. we were given a glass of fizz while we were being processed. Then directed to our room. We didn’t need the golf cart as we were in 6051 which is in the same main building a short walk from reception.
Room first impressions were great. The lighting was nice. There is plenty of storage and the decor looked relatively modern too. The balcony was big with a table and chairs and two sunbeds.
Now this is where we began to have issues: we were all inclusive and at a 5* rated hotel (official hotel rating), (rated 4.5* on Jet2 and 4*+ by TUI) so we expected certain things that we’ve had in other 5* rated resorts (TUI resorts) and sadly, this place just doesn’t live up to it. The fridge is empty, we asked for cans/bottles of pop and were told that we couldn’t have these unless we called room service. We did this as we were tired and this cost €56 which included a €15 charge just for the delivery. I appreciate that room service is chargeable, that’s not the issue, the issue is that at a 5* resort there is nowhere to go to get a non alcoholic drink to take to your room.
On the first day I went to the shops on site in the plaza but none of them sold drinks, I then tried the boutique near reception and bought 4 small bottles of sprite which cost €9.60! We later found a local shop about 5 mins walk away and so bought a few 2ltr bottles of sprite to take back to the room.
There is also a sofa bed at the end of the bed and when we looked closer at this, it was very stained and rusty, so definitely not something you’d expect at a 5* place. The bathroom was large and had shampoo, shower gel, conditioner, toothbrushes, a comb, razor etc. so this is a nice touch. However you can see marks on the walls where they should have been re plastered but instead have been painted over. There are also spots of mold on the ceiling in the cornices over the shower as there is no real ventilation. The shower was quite difficult to figure out too at first. Once I worked out that it was the cold water tap position I managed to get it on but this was after several minutes.
There is no iron or ironing board so you need to request this by calling down to reception. We did this on our first day and it was brought up within an hour or so. The iron is actually pretty decent.
There is la hairdryer in the bathroom but we never used this so can’t comment on if it’s good or not.
There are sockets at each side of the bed. One has a UK socket and EU one and also USB ports. The other is just an EU one so you will likely need at least one EU adaptor.
We went for lunch in the buffet on day one and I have to say that this is another let down. The few more times we went at lunch, there was plenty of options but the food was tepid. There is a large salad area, charcuterie space, and grilled meats and fish too as well as standard pasta dishes and fries. There were far too few staff and this left tables that had been used still dirty, leaving other guests including us, to not be able to sit and eat. We gave up in the end as the staff could not get things done quick enough to allow families to sit down as there simply was not enough of them. When we decided to leave, we still hadn’t even been acknowledged by any staff, and some families with children were walking around trying to find somewhere to sit.
In the evening, we tried the buffet again and while we did find something tasty (pork loin and the fresh hake) the rest of the choices were bland in terms of sides to create an actual meal. I asked if there was any more ciabatta and was told no despite there being a tray of bread at the back covered up. I was offered a seeded brown roll (which I don’t like).
On the second day we went to find a pool towel as we’d not been given one at check-in and they aren’t provided in the rooms. Once we found the service desk at the pool we noticed that again, there was no staff there. We waited around 10 mins and nobody came, other people were also waiting to exchange towels. So on day two we were still unable to use the pool facilities.
We then went to Mike’s coffee shop, and when I walked inside I was told that it was table service so I went back to the table and saw that there were many unclean tables around. Stacked up glasses and cups, coffee spills etc. Again, there was minimal staff working so we waited quite a while for our coffee. After this we went to the snack bar La Choza and again, this was so unclean, food all over the floor, strange pale looking “hot dogs”, dry burgers which tasted like perfume, dry chicken nuggets, soggy fries, and there was a huge queue at the bar due to lack of staff (again). So by 4pm on day two we’d still not had anything to eat that day. La Choza does have fresh cut fruit and packaged sandwiches which are a nice touch.
We did go to speak with TUI rep about the experience we were having so far and then they also advised us to speak with guest relations about this too. When waiting for guest relations, there was a large queue of people who were also wanting to raise issues. When I raised mine, people in the queue were also agreeing with my concerns. The lady at Guest relations Soukania Derea was fabulous (5* service!) but there was an ever growing queue of disgruntled guests and to us, seemed a lot to handle for one person although she remained professional and empathetic to every person there. We continued to see Soukania throughout our stay and she really is an asset to the hotel. She is fabulous at her job.
The grounds look immaculate and there are always staff attending to these, but in all bars & restaurants etc there is just not enough staff to tend to the queues of waiting people. The resort is quite large, and so you’d expect that it would be staffed appropriately but we found that this was not the case at all.
We were sat next to a couple on another table outside the piano lounge who were eating a sandwich that they’d seemingly brought up from the buffet wrapped in a H10 napkin, and a member of staff came over to tell them that they were not allowed to eat it. We found this shocking given that they’re guests of a resort and were eating food from the resort in a bar AT the resort which, quite frankly, isn’t cheap to stay at either. The random rules about things like that, or taking a drink with you from a bar to somewhere else, just didn’t create a seamless guest experience of what a 5* resort should be offering. We paid over £2k for a week AI for the two of us and didn’t feel that it was value for money given our previous 5* TUI resort breaks.
On day three we tried the buffet again in the evening, and again sadly , there was nowhere to sit. We walked around about 4 or 5 times and the empty tables were dirty, and so there were no free, clean tables. My partner made a sandwich to try and find a alternative seating area, and a member of staff practically jumped him and screamed at him for our room number and shaking his finger at him like a child causing a huge scene and embarrassment while shouting “removing food is forbidden from this place. Take a seat and eat your lunch”. Which I would have done had there been somewhere to sit.
We spoke again with guest relations about this staff attitude. We were dealt with by Darío Temprano who, again, was absolutely brilliant. (5* service!). He remained in contact with us via email too to make sure that there were no other issues that needed addressing.
By day 4 there did seem to be more staff in the buffet than previous nights but they were too busy “policing” ridiculous rules rather than clean and clear tables for people to actually sit down to eat.
The entertainment has also been a bit of let down. The disco bar smells of damp / mold. It’s a tiny room like a social club and there is no ambience there at all. No stage lighting as such, and very dated chairs that are sunken and uncomfortable. The “Latino party” was just Latin / Spanish music being played in a room with no ambience until the disco closed. There are works being completed on the actual disco lounge so this was clearly a “make do” room but it really wasn’t a nice place to sit and enjoy. Maybe when the real disco lounge opens it will be much better as that space is large and looks like a proper club environment under the scaffolding and tarpaulin covers.
I should add here that there seems to be loads for children. There was always something going on for the kids from pool party things, to parades (we were there at Halloween), pumpkin painting etc. all the kids we could see seemed to be having a great time so I assume as a parent, this this would be something to consider. We did have a couple of rounds of mini golf which we enjoyed (when half cut).
There is a glass fronted lift that faces out to take in the incredible views, but this is cracked significantly and being held together with cellotape (not even joking). The lifts are all very slow. You will wait ages for one if you need to use them.
Every single member of the grounds maintenance and housekeeping teams have been lovely. Very pleasant and polite. Always working solidly. The reception staff seem a bit short at times but this very much depends on who is working that day. But as above, Guest relations have been wonderful. The majority of the staffing issues are caused by the Food & Beverage teams. While most of the F&B staff are very lovely, there is not enough of them. They are trying hard to keep up with the turn around of tables but simply can’t manage. Then to add in the ones who are like mini dictators, just takes the shine off the guest experience.
We ate at Sakura and personally I enjoyed some of the food but my partner only enjoyed the spring rolls (delicious). The beef rice was dry and beef was tiny cubes. The red Thai curry was poor. The sauce was watery and flavourless. It was made with chicken thighs so possibly a slow cooker. The sauce definitely didn’t taste like any red curry I’ve ever had before. The staff were excellent. Very attentive and friendly.
We also ate a few times at Volcan a la carte (privilege dining) and enjoyed it here. The menu has a wide variety of options with added daily specials. The staff are all wonderful but the service is a little slow. I tried the pressed pork and this was so good! My partner had the fish of the day and this was moist and very tasty too. The starters were split really, the salmon tartare was great but my partner sent his first one back (octopus) as it was bouncy. Octopus needs to be low and slow, or hard and fast to stay tender (and rested properly) but this wasn’t cooked well at all. You literally couldn’t chew it. He sent it back and switched it for the garlic prawns and they were fantastic!
Another evening we went there, I had mushrooms to start which were delicious. Very savoury, garlicky and moreish and my partner had the prawns again. For mains, he had the sirloin which was cooked very well, and the truffle jus was delicious. I had the Atlantic salmon and sadly this was overdone and dry. You could see all the protein had leeched out of it.
We booked the “Dinner show” but left within minutes of the starters arriving and the show starting. Can’t comment on the overall show but the beginning of it was poor. The starter was enough to be a “no” from us. It was a fruit salad with melon and mango, with lettuce, tomatoes and a mint mayo dressing. Very odd. Instead, we left and tried the buffet again and I should say that this was great. I had possibly the nicest creamy mushroom pasta dish in years with a chicken breast on the side. My partner had a make shift roast dinner too which he enjoyed.
We always review as honestly as we can from our own personal experiences as you can see in our other reviews and so try to keep it balanced.
There are many people who love it here, and return year after year. The “fan page” on Facebook is evidence of this. To each their own. Regrettably we are not in that crowd and given the cost of a week being over £2100 for the two of us it certainly isn’t worth the money compared to what we have experienced elsewhere for a very similar price, so while we appreciate that there is ongoing improvement works, and that the staff really do try to stay on top of it all, we won’t return."
