At the southernmost point of Europe this hotel should be among the best.

The hotel is in the fairy-look buildings at a good location. We can park our car in the courtyard. Our bungalow (not sea-view), well, better say a room, is more or less fine. The only problem was that I felt the bed sheets were moist, maybe due to the climate.

The restaurant for breakfast is in an open pavilion, facing the ocean. The beach is nice and long. It seemed that many people came here for lunch or dinner.

Next time we would try surfing if we go back.

Great beach location and lots of facilities, can feel like a little bit of paradise on a sunny day - especially if you are into wind surfing/kite surfing or have a family beach holiday in mind and can handle serious wind. I enjoyed staying here for five days but there are several problems that could screw your holiday about if you dont know. Firstly I stayed in one of their 'especial' two room cabins in the grounds which was excellent - but I had to complain to get one of these because the standard single room chalet I was allotted was very grotty, very basic and to be avoided - if you are booking be sure you are clear about what chalet you want - this could ruin your holiday if you get one of their duff chalets.
The rest of the hotel is pleasantly boho/tatty but there are problems - for a start, none of the machines in the gym work - not one ! so the treadmill, and two cycle machines are broken and I would say have no chance of being fixed - I got a 'manyanish' response when I reported the problem, the pool is more of a plunge pool (with a deep end) you couldnt exercise in there properly - but you could have a refreshing dip and its fine for kids. The grounds are kept well and it was all very pretty when I was there (in the Spring). The breakfast is OK, and you can keep on coming back (its a buffet style) - didnt try the restaurant other than that. I'd recommend this for families as well as couples and friends - its relaxed and in a beautiful place - but of you want something more refined where everything works and youre worried about getting a duff chalet - then best stay elsewhere. Tarifa is not really walkable on a regular basis - its about 3 miles down the beach - so you need transport.

We stayed just one night at Dos Mares at the start of a driving trip in Southern Spain, so maybe didn't get a real feel for it.

However, on leaving the hotel, we vowed to return. It's a particularly picturesque hotel, sitting on a little hill overlooking a sandy beach. There are stables, tennis courts, a gym, swimming pools, outdoor bar, and lots more, but being January we didn't get the full use.

We had a little bungalow which was just perfect for a couple. It was clean and comfortable and the shower was decent. Our only little problems were that they could have heated our room for our arrival as it was close to zero both in and out of the room when we arrived late at night. The other thing was that it wasn't a double bed, but 2 singles pushed together which is always a bit tricky and I kept falling through the middle in the night!

As I say, we arrived late at night and due to a mix-up with the time (forgot to change our watches) we ended up eating at around 10.30. This wasn't a problem for the friendly staff and we ate in the bar restaurant. The meal was perfectly nice - a lovely duck confit and some bacon, egg and chips (very welcome for those who live in Morocco!)

If you're not put off by the price, I'd definitely recommend Dos Mares. There isn't much around the area other than other hotels, but if you're heading here to relax, why leave the grounds of this hotel!?

great for a short stop over, prizes rather high , great for sky diving and some frsh winds...