ALEGRIA Maripins

"The hotel in general was pleasant. Clean and airy. However this hotel has never seen a 4* Food was disgusting and we have been to our fair share of all inclusives, I have always stood by when it comes to dining there is something for everyone… here there is not! The hot food was cold, some of it looked as though it had been there for days waiting for people to eat it! Salads were dry and desserts all tasted the same! Don’t get me started on the beans 🤮 one night we were even refused entry to additional seating because it was for staff despite there being no tables in the restaurant and only one member of staff sat with about 10 empty tables around him! Moving onto the bar… during the day all inclusive clients could drink from plastic glasses, however our drinks were served in disposable cups on an evening, when we challenged this we were very rudely informed only paying customers could have proper cups! All inclusive was only available from 11am - 11pm and this included soft drinks, hot drinks and water - after your breakfast you had to pay for all drinks which quite frankly on an all inclusive I find appalling I personally do not drink and have never been refused soft drinks or water on an all inclusive! Cleaning staff were lovely! Rest of it wasn’t worth a visit!"

"this hotel is a perfect example of all that is wrong with the star rating system of hotels. being rated as a 4 star we expected certain basic things such as a room that we could turn around in, a kettle to make a drink or even a phone so that we could contact reception in case of an emergency. we were on the 7th floor so you can imagine if someone on there own was taken ill how the hell can they ask for help? we were then charged 50 euros for the use of a safe for 2 weeks, which is outrageous when most hotels dont charge anything. the bar staff treat nearly all guests as an irritation unless they are spanish, and then they give preference to paying customers, not AI guests. the reception staff are supposed to speak fluent english, which isnt the case as it took me 4 days to get across the fact that our fridge wasnt working. and now the worst part. the food was frankly appaling. every dish that was cooked was cold or at best luke warm, and the selection was non existent. we have been staying AI in hotels for over 30 years and we understand that food can become a bit samey, but to be served pork and some unknown fish every lunchtime and every evening meal is a bit much, and we were only offered chicken and beef once each week. even on the morning of our departure, when we asked if we could get a tea or coffee ( we checked out at 6-30am) the man on reception just shrugged and said no, the dining room doesnt open until 7-30, great customer service !!! . all in all i wouldnt return to this hotel if it was free, there are some great hotels in places like salou and cambrils further down the same coast, but i am afraid this isnt one of them"

"We’ve just returned home from our stay at Maripins and, on the whole, we had a fantastic time. The rooms were very clean and modern, with comfortable beds, and the food selection was once again really good. The location was ideal too, with plenty to do within walking distance in either direction. We also made use of the local train and travelled into Barcelona for the day, which was incredibly convenient. Unfortunately, there was one major downside to our stay, and sadly it really did affect our overall experience: the night-time bar staff. From our very first evening, we found the attitude of some of the evening bar staff to be rude, dismissive and unnecessarily confrontational. On the night we arrived, we had just missed the all-inclusive drinks cut-off, so we were more than happy to purchase our drinks. My grandparents asked for a cup of tea, which seemed to cause considerable irritation to the bar staff, who had apparently already cashed up. This was at around 23:45, despite the bar remaining open until 01:00. After some difficulty communicating, we eventually managed to order and pay for our drinks. The following evening, the bar was extremely busy. There were six people in our group, so I went to the bar and ordered six drinks — three beers and three orange juices. The bar manager became extremely angry with me, shouting that the hotel policy was “one drink, one person” because the bar was busy and there was a large queue. He continued to tell me that our group could be banned from using the bar if we didn’t follow this policy. I had absolutely no issue with following the hotel’s rules. Although I felt his reaction was completely disproportionate, I accepted what he had said and from that point onwards, every member of our group went individually to the bar to order their own drink. What became particularly frustrating was what happened the following evening. While watching the entertainment, we noticed the same bar staff happily making exceptions to the very policy we had been so firmly instructed to follow. Two women from a hen party were served around 15 cocktails between them, with the bar even providing a tray so they could take the drinks back to their table. A Spanish party of four were also served more than eight drinks at once. Meanwhile, our family group continued to follow the “one drink, one person” rule exactly as we had been instructed. This actually resulted in a much longer queue, because six people from our group were now having to individually queue for their drinks. Rather than simply serving us, the bar staff appeared increasingly irritated by our presence. There were occasions where one of us would be standing at the bar waiting to be served while the member of staff would deliberately leave us waiting, while talking in Spanish to their colleague and looking towards our group. It felt petty and completely unnecessary. What made the whole situation even more disappointing was that our group genuinely caused no problems throughout our stay. We were there as a family, enjoyed ourselves, and even made an effort to help the staff by clearing our own tables and returning cups to the bar during the day. We simply couldn’t understand why we appeared to be treated so differently. It’s a real shame because, aside from this issue, we genuinely enjoyed Maripins. The hotel itself has a lot going for it — the rooms, food and location were all excellent and we would otherwise have had nothing negative to say. Unfortunately, the attitude and inconsistent treatment from some of the evening bar staff left a very sour taste and ultimately overshadowed what should have been a fantastic family holiday. I really hope management takes this feedback seriously, because with a more welcoming and consistent approach from the evening bar team, Maripins has the potential to be a really great hotel."