Ohtels Cabogata

"A great week’s holiday with the family (2 adults, 2 children (7 and 1 years) from 22-29th August. Lots of positives, was slightly worried before coming out due to few recent negative reviews. Location: quiet location, not a whole lot going on in the area in regard to shops, but there are restaurants and a few local shops which are about a 10-15 minute walk. The local plaza has a few restaurants and a few huts selling toys, gifts, etc. Just enough for what we needed on a relaxing holiday. You can get the 30/31 bus from the main road outside the hotel, and it takes you into Almeria city centre, only €1.05pp, miles cheaper than a taxi (the 31 is a more direct route,25 mins max). Food: we always found something to eat and the main dishes (eg beef stew, were tasty, as sometimes buffet food can be bland. The snack bar for AIl Inc included nuggets, hamburgers, fries, olives, crisps, select ice creams, hotdogs; this was only available outside of lunch hours (10-1pm, 4pm onwards). We upgraded to All inclusive on arrival as it worked out cheaper than doing it through Jet2. Premium spirits aren’t on all inclusive, but does include spirits/drinks like Smirnoff, JB Scotch Whisky, Aperol Spritz, Bacardi, Beefeater Gin, so not too bad really. They do run a token system at the pool bar where you hand your cup in for your token back, but this wasn’t the case most of the time, we just made sure we took our cups back out of courtesy and cleaned up after ourselves. Rooms: we got a junior suite, I think we only booked a double room. Great size, two double beds together. Bathroom with shower cubicle/a shower over a bath, double sink and a separate toilet cubicle. Also had a “living room” which consisted of a sofa come bed/with pull out bed underneath, dressing table and dining table/chairs. Small balcony too. We were in room 1001, ground floor and had bit of a view of the main pool. As it was the side where the entertainment took place, it was slightly noisy when we retired to the room, but it didn’t bother us too much. Staff: all the staff were really polite on our stay and always went out their way to say hello. The bar staff and restaurant staff worked hard and the cleaners cleaned rooms and made the beds everyday. We also spoke to the GM whilst there, who introduced himself; he was polite and approachable. He apologised for the fact it caters more for the Spanish clientele there, but we knew this before coming and it didn’t bother us or put us off as we have been to Almeria before and it’s very much a holiday destination for the Spanish. Pools: both pools were great; the splash park perfect for the kids with the slides (it doesn’t open until 11am and closes for an hour between 2-3pm). Never had an issue getting a sunbed, even when we went out to Almeria and came back at 2.30pm in the afternoon, there were sun beds available. Never a queue to put towels down in the morning so no setting alarms to get up to do it. Entertainment: The kids enjoyed the mini disco but it only lasted about 30 minutes and it started at 9pm. Happy Boy was great and had a brilliant energy. I must say however the entertainment round the pool didn’t start until about 4.30-5pm and this was quite late for us, however the Spanish seemed to stay out until 7/8pm when the pool closed. We didn’t really hang around for the evening entertainment after the disco as we didn’t stay out too late. Overall, I would say we had a great 7 day stay with no issues. If you are looking for a relaxing stay this is the place. Although there isn’t loads going on in the area, it certainly has a chilled vibe about it. Lie loved the fact we didn’t have to set alarms to get up in the morning to put towels down. Nothing was ever a rush. Backs onto a golf course and the views at sunset over the mountains are to die for! Only a few miles from Almeria airport too, so no long transfers. If I had any constructive criticism, it would be that parts of the hotel need updating as some of the lounge chairs near the bar were worn, and the windows to the restaurant either need cleaning or replacing. In addition, it would have been nice of the afternoon entertainment started a little earlier. However, I must say none of this affected our stay whatsoever but would improve the look of the hotel. Thank you Ohtels Cabogata for a wonderful week."

"AVOID THIS HOTEL -this hotel is in middle of nowhere the nearest shop is about a mile away plus the nearest bar and restaurant is the same so be ready to walk a lot plus there is only two bars aswel and they don’t play music so they are boring - there is no shop in the hotel - if your half board the drinks are really expensive in hotel €10 for a JD AND COKE. this place is defo just for the Spanish I think there was only 3 English families here and all rest Spanish - the staff are very rude especially the restaurant manager ISABEL she talks to you bad and is very rude she is not a nice person at all it’s mainly the female staff what are the problem all the male staff at the bar and reception are lovely and very helpful - be aware this hotel caters for Spanish and they seem to hate the British they treat u totally different and most of the staff can’t speak English which causes a big problem every time I had a issue which we had a lot I couldn’t talk to anyone so had to constantly use google translate which is not good surely they should be able to speak other languages especially on reception , we arrived at the hotel and most of the balcony’s have bird nests on them so all the balcony’s are covered in poo all they said was we had to put up with it as they a protected birds and they couldn’t disturb them , the animacion team are really good and make lots of effort and are good at there job it’s mainly the women in reception who are very rude and mardy every person I spoke to said they would never return again , the food is ok to be honest better than I thought but be aware u have to pay for drinks with your meal which is a massive con , the splash park and swimming pool is very good for the kids best part about hotel best rooms are on the front of the hotel facing golf course as it’s quieter plus the splash park is at the front aswel , I would never return to here no way we paid €30 in a taxi to go to Almeria and that was so boring aswel so glad to be home now disaster holiday"

"We stayed here for 12 nights in july and i would absolutely come again! We upgraded our room beforehand to the suite for around £300 and it was definitely worth it! We had a nice balcony with two doors to access it from the living area and the bedroom. We had a separate shower area and bath which was great. We stayed in room 1208 and i couldnt fault it. We were on the front of the building above reception and we could see the childrens pool from our balcony. The air conditioning was brilliant no issues whatever and lots of storage and clothes space. We were able to access itv, bbc, cbbc. We spent time around the large main pool and the childrens pool with the slide and enjoyed both! We never had any issues whatsoever getting sunbed at different times of the day and we also did see a lifeguard removing towels that had been I attended for a while. One thing i will add is the lifeguards might as well not be there. So please do not rely on them to potentially keep your children safe. They are sat on their phones the whole time, with the odd look up if you are lucky. We went all inclusive and enjoyed the food. Really nice salad bar! And different dishes every single meal time. Things were mostly labelled clearly which was good to understand what it was. The staff who work in the restaurant are amazing. Work very hard and efficiently under busy times, very friendly and lovely with my small child. We did not spend much time at the evening entertainment so i feel i cant give a fair comment on that. My child did attend the short mini disco most nights and did enjoy it. She picked up the dances very quickly. We loved the location as well! It took 15 minutes to get from the airport which was a massive win for us! 5 minute walk to the beach front Around 15 minute walk to two small supermarkets which you can get everything you need and a good amount of restaurants (includes a seafood, indian, italian, ice cream shop) Reception staff were so lovely and friendly! I think this hotel would be even better with a small on site shop to grab essentials and a park for children. But other than that i highly recommend this hotel for families"