"First impressions of the hotel was how fresh and clean it looked, this turned out to be the case throughout the whole hotel and outside areas. However our first impression was quickly shattered when we spent about 45 mins checking in despite having completed all our details online beforehand. There were 5 of us staying, each in a seperate room, I had completed passport info for each person as I wanted the arrival process to be as quick as possible due to later arrival. The guy we dealt with insisted that none of the information I had submitted had been saved and we'd have to do it all again. He did somehow, have 1 of the parties names and mine as lead booker. After a long day, this was not what we needed. Once this was completed we checked out our rooms and somehow, as if by magic, each room had a welcome card in it with each of our names in the correct rooms. So they clearly had all of our names, in which case they should have had all of our passport details.
This was a 4 night stay, with 3 full days at the hotel booked as half board but upgraded on arrival to all inclusive, which turned out to be worth it for the drinks alone as the AI drinks are fairly good.
Food - for me personally this was limited in choice as I don't eat fish, veal or pork. The one day they cooked turkey on the grill, I gave up waiting for the chef as he dissapeared for ages. On this same day, there was an empty tray of lasagne, waited for this to be replaced, it never was. This was at 7.45pm, the restaurant is open 6.30pm to 9pm. On the oriental night, apart from the obvious lettuce, tomato, cucumber offerings, all the cold salad items were sushi. The hot dishes consisted of seafood, veal, pork - I don't think I ever saw a chicken dish apart from some egg fried rice that had pieces of chicken. That night I ate the dry egg fried rice, tried the pasta which was cold and filled up on bread & cheese. In general, the food was not replenished quick enough, it was left to go cold (pasta in particular), and they seemed to just generally start tidying up from about 8pm.
Drinks - if you are AI (which I think is the only option for booking this year, although we booked HB last year), you get your own drinks in the restaurant - white, rose, red wine on tap, beer on tap, water & soft drinks on tap. At the pool bar and in the outdoor seating area, there are machines for all of these, but they weren't all working, water always available and soft drinks most of the time. However a fully stocked bar by the pool where you'd get the cocktails (pre mixed from a machine so not particularly strong, but perfectly tasty) and any of the other drinks on the menu served by 1 bar man (so often a queue, especially at lunch time, end of day). Little tip if you like a malibu cocktail - ask for the San Francisco (which is alcohol free) with malibu, very nice.
Pool area - very nice, very spacious. Lifeguards were very friendly and interacting which is something i've never really seen on holiday. Beds were easy to get, no reserving required, no early morning rushing required. We got 5 beds together at the same place all 3 days and they had sun all day round.
Service - felt there was something lacking here, throughout the whole hotel. There was the odd member of staff that made a little effort to interact and were friendly, but some did the bare minimum. For example some would serve a mojito with the mint & lime muddled in the glass, others just poured straight in to glass from machine with no garnish and this was not due to a queue behind, just lazy ways. The reception staff seemed to struggle with communication, they understood english, but there was some sort of language barrier there where simple information about the pool towels was just not explained properly. The evening bar only ever had 1 person serving, usually 2 others out and about collecting & washing glasses, but always just 1 who was in no hurry that would serve, which meant silly bar queues. Got the impression this was a cost cutting tactic, less staff, mean less drinks served on AI. No table service, again I think this is due to AI and not trying to push drinks on guests, at a HB hotel, the staff would be much more attentive as they make money this way. The bar stays open til '12am', although one night we experienced them shut down at 11.50am, doors closed, guys wiping down the bar and absolutely no eye contact! There weren't many people still sitting, they could have just asked if anyone wanted one more drink before they closed.
Entertainment - low key is the best way to describe it. The one show we did watch was fine, but it was lower budget from what i've had in other nearby hotels. Guests seemed to enjoy it, although AI can help you enjoy most things. Don't expect to be entertained all night, it stops at 10.30pm and there's not even any disco/background music after that. The night we stayed for the show, the lights got turned on as soon as they were finished - bit odd. It was very much a feeling of - it's over, now leave. If guests hung around later into the evening there was a bit of a buzz but it can go quiet and flat very quickly. You just have to make the most of it, which is easier when you are a group.
Rooms - these are the highlight for me, I was spoiled as I treated myself and booked a suite, but wow it was amazing. So much space for just me, loved it! I was lucky to have a coffee machine, but my friends rooms had no tea/coffee making facilities at all. My sister had to ask a few times to get a kettle and they didn't leave cups or tea/coffee to go with it when she finally got it. She'd brought her own tea bags, but had to source a cup from the restaurant herself. Being in a suite, I had 2 TV's, but no radio/alarm clock/speaker which most hotels i've stayed at recently tend to have in the rooms. I got radio on the TV, which was fine, but i'd have liked to have had my own music while getting ready. One of the best details of the room was the carafe and glasses that they leave. Each floor has a filter water machine at the lifts and you can fill your carafe up as often as you need, you literally have filtered cold water on tap! I think this is a genius move for a hotel, no plastic waste, no heavy glass bottles and unlimited water so you don't have to get bottles from the supermarket to keep you going all day. Bring your own insulated bottle and you can fill it up for the day while sunbathing and refil down at the pool bar.
So much of the hotel was lovely, it was peaceful, clean, fresh and the food I did eat was generally good quality. But I think the variety of food alone may be the reason i'd just not go back there. Maybe if it was another short trip, it would be a great option, but I wouldn't want to stay any longer."
