"We came as a family of four, 7 nights all inclusive. Two adults, a 17 year old (classed as an adult by both Jet2 and the hotel) and a 13 year old. Me and my wife had our very first holiday together in Santa Ponsa 20 years ago, so when looking at options it was very appealing to come back as a family.
We don't holiday abroad every year, preferring to mix it up with breaks in the UK, however when we do I tend to pick something that is of quite a high standard and for 10 or 14 nights. We stayed in a 5 star luxury resort in Greece in 2023 which will probably never be beaten for us, though we didn't come here expecting anything of the standard. We were after a lower cost all inclusive break in a more urban area than we have been used to holidaying in. This definitely won on that count!
I originally booked a standard suite, however a few months ago upon realising we could be overlooking the road, I contacted reception via email to see if we could get a decent sea view. Their response was quick and they confirmed Superior Suites had a partial sea view and I was welcome to upgrade via Jet2, confirm once done, and they would do their best for me. The upgrade cost on the Jet2 website was about £500. Steep, but a decent balcony view is important to me so I upgraded. Oddly, it repeatedly failed to upgrade online, so I contacted Jet2 via WhatsApp, they sorted it manually for me and it was actually only about £300 (which I did not argue with!), they also waived the £50 amendment fee as I'd struggled to upgrade online. I'll come back to the room shortly.
We finally got to the hotel about 4 hours after landing. The welcome we had on arrival was fantastic. Our room was not ready, but we were given access to the luggage storage room and advised to go and enjoy lunch and told to return at 3pm. We were also told that even though my daughter is 17 and we had paid an adult price, she still had to have a child wristband and could not have alcohol. This was totally fine, but did cause a minor annoyance later in the week.
We eventually got to our room at about 3:30pm as there was some confusion around whether it had been cleaned or not. Not a problem, but did mean hanging around in reception for 30 mins. We were allocated 046, which is on the 4th floor of the smaller block. I'd guess it's the original hotel building and the larger block was a later addition. I immediately went to check the balcony view and was very very happy! We were only two rooms from the end of the block and had a lovely view facing out to the rocky beach below and the bay ahead. Yes, partial, also a large tree blocking some of the view, but it was still great for us. It only seemed to get the sun in the morning or late in the day, but again, that was fine for us.
The only difference between a standard suite and a superior suite is location in the hotel, the rooms are basically the same. A main room with an additional bedroom to one side. We separated the beds into twins and the kids shared that room. My wife and I shared the sofa bed in the main room. The sofa bed was not comfortable at all and we slept very badly all week, however we accepted it for what it was and the kids were happy with their beds, which was the main thing. We were very glad to climb back into our own bed last night! There was a walk in wardrobe/dressing area, with a shelves, drawers, hanging space and a safe. We found this room very useful, especially for quickly getting changed in private. The bathroom was fine, though the toilet seat did keep lifting off, easy enough to pop back on, but slightly annoying. The only other superior suite difference is 6 cans of assorted soft drinks and a bottle of water in the mini fridge. I had hoped this would be restocked daily considering the extra price for the room, but it was not. Maybe you had to ask, but I suspect it's all you got. No big deal as quick enough to get drinks downstairs and bring back up if needed. We also had 2x robes and 2x pairs of slippers, though one robe was removed by cleaners one day and not replaced. We weren't that bothered to be honest, but it should probably have been replaced. Overall, sofa bed comfort aside, the room was fine for us and the view was great.
On our return, we did learn that you could ask reception for a mattress topper for the sofa bed. We really wish this was either included as standard or clearly offered as an option. We'd have gladly used one.
I was worried that the pool would be too small, overcrowded and there would be sunbed wars. I was pleasantly surprised though. Yes, the pool area is smaller than anywhere we've been before, but we never had a problem getting a sunbed. Most people start reserving them from about 07:00, but you could still walk down at 10ish and grab one, some days even later. There was one incident mid way through the week where a family challenged another for reserving beds. There are signs saying it's prohibited, and this seemed to be the cause of anger from the family with the grievance. It's not nice to see people having a go at each other when everyone is in the same position and did seem unnecessary. I had read reviews of antisocial behaviour but this was as close to it as we saw.
The pool itself was cold, but did seem to get warmer as the week progressed. We went form about 26 degrees on arrival to 30 by the end of our stay. It was very refreshing to jump in and cool off. A little crowded, but was fine. You are allowed to throw small balls, but no inflatables allowed at all.
We approached reception part way through the week to see if it was possible for my 17 year old daughter to join my wife on the roof terrace. This is adults only, and seeing as though my daughter was classed as an adult by both Jet2 and the hotel, we thought it would be ok. We were very politely told it would not be allowed as she had to be 18. I think this is a massive shame. I fully understand children not being allowed up there, but this just seemed daft and totally contradictory to the fact she was classed as an adult by them.
The restaurant - reviews in advance were very critical of the food temp and the quality. Our first impressions were decent, but they quickly developed into feeling it was average at best with many options very repetitive. Some days the quality was not great. I'm not being a snob (cos I am not one!) and happily eat hotel buffet food the world over, but it was bang average and sometimes worse. The food was never piping hot, but that's par for the course in any buffet. You could always grab a hot plate, which helped. There was one evening where my son had an emergency run to the toilet about 30 minutes after eating. We ate the same thing, and about 15 mins later I felt the same. Neither my wife or daughter ate the same thing as us and they were fine. It never developed past that, though my son was frightened of using the buffet from that point onwards. As a result of the differing food quality, for the first time ever on an all inclusive holiday, we chose to dine out on several occasions. We really enjoyed the 'Royal Garden', a Mediterranean restaurant about a 5 minute walk from the hotel. We enjoyed the few other places we tried too.
The bars - The outside Pool Bar was open from 11:00 > 18:00 daily. The indoor 'Jordi's Bar' from 17:00 > 00:00. I really enjoyed sitting on the terrace overlooking the bay with a drink from the pool bar. It seemed to be a hidden gem, as never ever a problem to get a seat there. The All Inclusive beer was San Miguel and cocktails were pre-made and dispensed from a machine. You could pay for other drinks options. We were happy with the AI options, though it was was a shame the cocktails were pre made.
Service at the pool bar was superb on the first couple of days. An older gentleman served on these days and he was very friendly, instigating conversation and on one occasion he asked 'how do you feel to be in paradise!?'. A very nice and good humoured man. Sadly, for the remainder of our stay the pool bar was manned by a very unhappy and rude younger man. I tried to be friendly but he was incredibly dismissive and just beckoned the next person forward. He could speak English, especially to younger people and women but seemed standoffish to almost everyone else. I get that he probably had a hard job, but we had paid to be there and there was no need to be so rude. It's not like we were going to the bar constantly or that we were drunk either, we went just a handful of times across an afternoon.
The guys on the inside bar (including the older gentleman mentioned earlier) were fantastic. So friendly on every single interaction.
We walked into the main Santa Ponsa strip on several days. Spent a couple of days on the beach. Sunbeds were 10.5 euros each and handily you can pay by card. I took my son on a boat trip too, which was excellent. We also spent a day at the Western Water Park, which is about 5km away. Reception kindly ordered us a taxi, which pulled up as we exited the lift onto the street! Excellent timing! This cost 13.5 euros each way. We also had the same driver on the return trip, who once again pulled up just as were walking out. We had a good laugh with him about how prompt he was for us (we didn't even order him for the return trip!).
I've called out a few negatives, but despite those, we still had a great time and enjoyed our stay. This is definitely not a 4 star hotel, firmly 3 star in my opinion. I base this on the uncomfortable bed, the food and some of the service received."
