Just arrived back from the hotel which we booked after reading the reviews,i was hoping that i would return and give a glowing report as many others have .But the hotel has its good and bad points and so my feelings about the hotel are mixed. The hotel is in a good position handy for easy access to the beach just accross the road, not too far from the harbour a nice ten minute stroll,near the excellent paloma park,close to a decent selection of bars and restaurants and within walking distance of arroya ,albeit an uphill trek. The food in the hotel is good, the breakfasts are excellent and the evening meals were good but nothing special. The first room we were allocated was room 409 and had a sewerage kind of smell to it, we went out for an hour after unpacking and when we came back the smell was much stronger so we reported it to reception and they said someone would be up to investigate, but they never came so we requested another room and were reluctantly given room 202 at the front of the hotel and this was a nice room. but throughout the week in various parts of the hotel we smelled this awful sewer smell which makes me feel they have drainage problems. As others have pointed out before ,this is a hotel very much set up for the 60 and overs and the entertainment is well suited to them and even us 50 year olds felt out of place in this hotel, the drinks are expensive and i think the hotel is about a 3 star rather than a 4 star, so all in all a mixed bag of good and bad, wont be returning and dont really know how the hotel has such high ratings.

Firstly i will say i am 21 and travelled with my mother (52) So this review may or may not help you as it come's from my point of view. With this hotel being what can only be described as a sunny retirement home , i was a little apprehensive on visiting, but from the wonderful review's it received we did not think we would have any problem's.
I will start with the room's..Are they clean? Yes..Comfortable? Not quite..For someone who is used to a soft mattress this bed had a harder one and pillow's are amusing as they are slim and long, but not too bad in sleeping after having a long day out.
T.V's are flat screen and we received alot of english channel's (Not just BBC news) But also Granada and BBC one and a few movie channel's.
Bathroom's are big and the bathtub's are wide..but very small in length (I am 5'7 and struggled lying down properly) Water that come's out of cold tap was BLUE..Everything smelled of bleach, and yes my hairdye came out daily haha.
Restaurant food was always hot and sometimes not labelled properly (Most things came in a sauce so was unsure of it was fish or meat dish)
Now the Restaurant waiter's are something to be desired, Seem's to be a double standard for the whole "Not taking food out of restaurant" As my mother went to take a banana out and she had got stopped for it..Yet you will see MANY MANY MANY people being allowed to come as they go with ANY food they wish too. (I think there was a favouritism with the Spanish?)
MAKE SURE YOU TAKE INSECT BITE REPELLENT. I have been bitten by sleeping in the bed's and was not sure if it was from the bed's OR from mosquitoes.

Best thing at this hotel was the entertainment..Bingo was funny! Flamenco night was wonderful to watch (if you can beat the older folk's to good seat's!) Lol.

Although i would not go back here and do have many more complaint's for this hotel (if you need some thing's explaining i would be happy to explain)

For a quick holiday for winter sun..it was not ideal..but for the older generation..the meddlers..the spanish..and just for people who are not fussy about anything..then the las arenas is for you :)

The Las Arenas is in an excellent location with easy access to the beach, local bars & shops. Good choice of food for breakfast & evening meals. Room was clean, small fridge and balcony. Get an even room number to be on the "Sunny Side" of the hotel, higher the floor the better the view / sun on your balcony (PM)
Pool area good sun trap till about 2pm then the sun is on the other side of the hotel for the rest of the day.
Across the road to the left of the castle is the walkway to the marina (20 mins), check out Palm 5 for a meal / drink. Excellent views .. In the sun !
Will go back again

After a manic 2011 we needed to get away from it all. This was a last minute decision and worth every penny. The hotel was comfortable, clean and warm. The entertainment was good and the drinks reasonable, but in happy hour you get two of everything and the measures for each drink are triple ours. After the first session we learnt to order one lot for two.
Our room was large with balcony and westward facing sea views, great for the afternoon sun especially as we were out most mornings. We noticed a room at the end of the corridor that had an extra section with an extra bed, great for when we want to travel with our single friends, saves single supplement.
Food fantastic, such variety and plenty of it. Loved the veggies with breakfast. peas and shrimps, red and green peppers, courgettes all cooked in oil with seasoning but easy to drain on a napkin, delicious. Evening meals gorgeous too with so much choice.
Bar and restaurant staff very friendly and helpful.
Communal areas inside and out comfortable and relaxing.
We found a bar on the beach walking westward towards I think The Sunny Beach Hotel. We ordered sardinas plancha, delicious. We also had boquerones on small slices of bread with our drinks on the second visit, these are small filleted fish in vinegar, very nice.