Barcelo Ponent Playa

I booked Barceló Ponent Beach Hotel after seeing the photos on Booking.com. I booked a 5 night stay for myself and my wife in a sea view room which, for the 5 nights, was over €2,300.

Upon arriving at the lobby, we were greeted by a very friendly Eva who checked us in. No complaints about this part at all. She was very pleasant.

It all went downhill from here.

We were given wristbands to determine if we were half board or all inclusive. We then walked to our room, with nobody to help with the luggage, for myself and my pregnant wife.

When we entered the corridor, we looked at each other in shock and sadness. The carpets were absolutely filthy. They almost looked muddy there was such heavy staining.

When we got into our room, we immediately noticed that it was very grubby. The walls had stains on them from something that had most likely been thrown at them. There were random stains everywhere on the paintwork. The bedsheets smelled very strongly of bleach. I appreciate nice smelling clean laundry, but this was insufferable. Even small details, like the glass door to the balcony, had most likely not been cleaned properly in a long time.

We then realised we didn't have any hotel information, so I went back to reception to ask about the food times and the WiFi code. A different lady, who seemed more managerial, asked me for my room number and, when she realised that I had the wrong wristband on, she attempted to grab my hand while picking up a pair of scissors to cut the band off. I told her to hold on until she checked why this mistake had been made, as I was still a bit unclear whether I was half board or all inclusive. I said I thought I was only half board as my booking said breakfast and dinner. It was established that I was half board and my wristband was changed.

After this, myself and my wife went down to the pool and it was just pure chaos. There were drinks glasses on the ground around the pool, just so many people, bug queues for the bar, sunbeds everywhere, and it was just very unpleasant to be around, so we went to the beach instead, which is very nice. Access to the beach is right there, which is a positive.

We decided that, as this was the last holiday we were going to have before having our first child, this hotel just wasn't going to be the one. I simply couldn't justify paying the money for what the hotel was offering. We decided to start looking for other hotels locally.

I went back to reception to ask for a manager and a very nice manager, whose name I can't remember, greeted us. He seemed very understanding and surprised to hear our complaints, which I just don't think can be genuine given the uncleanliness of the hotel, but anyway he was really nice. However, it was at this point that he noted that if we were to leave, we had to pay for one night's stay. Under normal circumstances I understand a cancellation fee, but for what I explained to him about the hotel, I really feel we should not have had to pay this amount. An hour in the hotel ended up costing us €445.

We booked a hotel just around the corner in Cala Esmeralda, which we could only get for 3 nights, but it was €35 cheaper per night. It is honestly worlds apart. They are not even remotely comparable and are somehow in the same price bracket, although this new hotel is adults only, which suited us perfectly.

I just wanted to write this review to warn other people to please do your research better than we did before coming. A lot of hotels get bad reviews and I generally think there is always somebody complaining, but on this occasion, please do yourself a favour and look at some of the hotels just around the corner at very similar rates.

It has all worked out fine for us, but we are down €445 which really is a sting when you are going away to a nice place that you hope to enjoy.

The photos online of Barceló Ponent Beach are amazing, but they ABSOLUTELY do not represent what the hotel is actually like. I genuinely feel bad that people are paying these rates when there's a group of hotels around the corner which are much much nicer, more helpful and much better value for hard earned money.

Well done to the photographer.

We stayed here on an all-inclusive basis and had a fantastic holiday.

The rooms were clean, well air-conditioned, and the housekeeping team did an excellent job throughout our stay.

The food was very good, with buffet options comparable to other all-inclusive hotels of a similar standard. The local dishes were a real highlight and far better than the usual pasta, pizza, and chips that you often find.

The drinks were excellent too, with branded spirits included, and the all-inclusive snack bar was a great addition for food between meals.

The entertainment was enjoyable without being over the top, and all the staff were friendly, welcoming, and approachable.

The location is superb, with the beach just a few steps away and plenty of local amenities nearby. There are some lovely cafés, restaurants, and scenic walks in the surrounding area.

Overall, we had a great stay and wouldn’t hesitate to return.