We had a fantastic view from our room which was on the top floor, unfortunately this was the only good thing you could say about it really. The hotel in general was very shabby, the bathroom and furniture in our room were well past their best. We had a broken light outside our room with very sharp glass edges throughout the whole of our week long stay.

On the day we arrived at the hotel the main large pool was shut and when this was queried, we were advised for maintenance. This did not open at all during our stay. We were disappointed, but there were still two smaller pools, although these were a considerable distance away. Half way through our holiday the hotel shut yet another pool, infact the only one with any shade. We were again told there were maintenance issues and it seemed to be irrelevant to the hotel staff that the hotel was full. During the whole of our holiday we did not see anyone working on any of the pools.

The restaurant staff did not speak English and the hot food on the buffet was at best luke warm for both breakfast and dinner. The Spanish food was not identifiable and was not appetising. Most of it was swimming in grease. We ate out at a local restaurant every evening because we decided it was spoiling our holiday having to go to the hotel restaurant every evening.

The hotel was in a very nice area and the beach was lovely, although we would not recommed this hotel and certainly do not think that it merits its 4 star rating.

My husband and I visited the hotel for a 5 night break over Easter, booked with lastminute. Having read the reviews on this site (after booking and paying for the holiday!) it was with some trepidation that we went.

However we were pleasantly surprised. We would describe it perhaps as 'tired' or 'shabby' and it could probably do with a coat of paint but we liked its location and the numerous steps (108 from beach level to our room!) kept us fit. It was true that there were no other Brits there and some of the hotel staff couldn't speak English but we didn't find this to be a problem.

Our room was spotlessly clean and having a fridge and icebox was a great bonus. We also overlooked the pools which seemed very clean and inviting but unfortunately the weather was a little chilly for us to venture in.

The food was fairly typical Spanish hotel buffet-style but not too bad. We liked the idea of a bottle of red wine and water included with dinner.

If I had a complaint it was that the bar was uninviting with no character and there was noisy entertainment on every night we were there. It was great for the kids but we just wanted a quiet drink without games or flamenco shows.

On the whole we enjoyed the break and may return one day.

The hotel is situated in the up market area of Elveria, 10km outside of Marbella. This is perfect if you have a car, but is hard to travel anywhere for sightseeing without using public transport. The hotel is mainly geared up to self catering, which results in very large, comfortable apartments if you stay half board. Many of the apartments are privately owned and therefor have the best views, although the room I stayed in was ground floor, with a terrace and overlooked the main swimming pool and was very peacefull. Anyone with walking difficulties should avoid the hotel as you have to use steps, with the occassional lift, to get anywhere around the site.
There was a poor choice of food compared to other hotels in Marbella of a four star rating, which was never marked to describe what it was. Both at Breakfast and Evening Meal times the food was at best luke warm, unless you were fortunate to choose food that was just brought from the kitchens. There was no lounge area to sit in and the bar doubles up as a cafeteria, with hard chairs only. The entertainment was reasonable, but lacked atmosphere on nights when only a few people attended. The hotel appears to cater for coach parties staying for 2/3 days only and this was the only time when there was any life but resulted in too much pressure on the staff in the dining room. We saw no people from the UK during our first week and only about six the second week and their comments were mainly about the location being too far from Marbella centre. Although rated 4* by the Spanish authorities I would not give a rating above 3* and cannot ever see a mainline agent including the hotel in a UK brochure.

This hotel is very big and the rooms are more like apartments as they are joined together but you have to be outside to get into your room. Inside the rooms are very nice and clean, and you have your own stove and fridge for cooking. The buffet was quite good, but not a very big choice. This hotel backs on to a beach, which is very golden and clean and is also not overcrowded. There are 3 averagely sized swimming pools which are clean but as they are outside you would have to go to this hotel in the Summer to get the full benefit from them. Again, the entetainment would have been good but as we went out of season there weren't enough people for it. It is about a 5 minute walk to get to a bus stop and shops. Most of the staff are friendly. But I would only recommend this hotel to anyone if they are going in the Summer.