Melia Benidorm

Stayed for 10 nights with 4 adults and 2 children in July, was worried from reviews I had seen before travel, some were validated but not all, hotel looks lovely on arrival, reception, pool areas and overall very nice, check in was amazing and we were happy to get our room earlier than expected. The room was OK for what we needed but could be brushed up in places for a 4* but a busy hotel of this size I understand renovations are probably hard to do with benidorm being a year round destination. Had no problems with the in room mini bar service, used a few things and we only got charged for what we used. Expected the room to be cleaned a little more , our sheets didn't get changed until day 8 but it didn't dampen our holiday and we clean as we go as people so we were ok with it, would have liked our glasses to be replaced with clean ones as they didn't get replaced our whole stay but again wasn't a major issue. We stayed on B&B & it was hit & miss for breakfast, some days the hot items were ok, other days it was cold , the pancakes were delicious 😋 really enjoyed these & the variety of fruit, breads, cold meats, yoghurt and juices are fantastic, you would always find something to set you up for the day, as we normally pay the same for self cater catering or room only the breakfast for us was a bonus, the entertainment team are fantastic, our kids were little older but everything they did during the day was so good and evening entertainment was really good considering some places I have been,they work really hard and have energy in abundance. All the staff were really nice and I couldn't fault them ,although I would say an explanation of pool rules on arrival would be helpful for guests as we didnt know you were not allowed a small soft ball in the pool, the lifeguard told us we could not use it, we were ok with this but we then witnessed other people with bigger balls in the pool and the same lifeguard said nothing to them so we felt a bit miffed. Don't mind following rules as long as they are consistent for all guests.The lifts at certain times can be a pain but if you read any review of a hotel in Benidorm this will be unanimous, All in all, we had a brilliant 10 days and we would definitely return to the Melia again, if you want to have a good time and you are not on a four in a bed level you will have a brilliant time.

Hotel room was nice, cleaners missed a couple things a few times like towels and toilet paper had to call reception for them, we dont mind that too much not a big issue, pool was very nice and always sunbeds free around the pool area, location is good bit of a walk from the beach but we dont mind that. Some staff in the bar had no english, the food at the bar was very poorly ran, consistently was being given the wrong orders and told i didn’t order things when i could clearly show i had ordered it, the food also changed from day to day even though i was ordering the same things, things were resolved each time in the end but it was a consistent hassle which wasn’t needed. Some of the staff at the inside bar were incredibly rude and my girlfriend got gestured at to hurry up when ordering drinks and was left in shock at the pure rudeness of somebody to do that never mind a hotel bar staff member, he apologised after when it was made clear that was a problem but doesn’t make up for it. Couple of other small incidents with them but that was the takeaway one for us. Got charged to my card after we left with no information why and got no reply from the hotel after multiple attempts to reach out and question the reason for the charge? Without these issues the location and hotel are fine but being charged and ignored by the hotel really takes away from what would have been a better review

The higher reviews seem to be from people who had upgraded to Level.

Attractive looking hotel but lots of areas need attention. Reception and poolside is beautiful, but it’s a shame about tatty/dirty sofas in the lobby areas and bird poo on sun loungers! The rooms are also very old and dated (not what you expect in a 4 star) but this may depend on the “level” you have booked. Anyway, our room was 1655 and we had a swollen and mouldy doorframe in the bathroom, water running from the bath into the room. Also a nice chewing gum in my bedside lamp and stains in my bedsheet - lovely! We were a family of 3 and were only given 1 chair for the balcony, took 4 days to rectify. Our soap dispensers were also almost empty in the bathroom.

I would say that majority of staff are lovely here. However, there are some hotel politics between staff and guests, returning guests, whether you booked the upgrade and if you are Spanish.

I was threatened with violence by a Spanish man (who was there with a big group) however, staff plus a manager (name was possibly Emma) were unbothered. Anyway, we continually saw staff (cleaners, lifeguards and entertainment) frequently visiting this man’s groups sun loungers, making conversation/sitting with them etc. We never saw this kind of interaction with any other guests? We also frequently saw entertainment team interacting with only their children and even bringing in goods from the shop to them at the poolside. A lifeguard also sat with his back towards the pool chatting with them. The same lifeguard was also being given drinks from the bar by this family, which we also found strange. I just have to wonder who they were! However, they were Level customers so…

Although majority of the staff were lovely (especially the cleaners and canteen) there were a few minority who leave a very bad taste in your mouth. It seemed that once many Spanish guests left, we were then included by the animation team. Just a note to say (we aren’t English ourselves and we are bilingual) and we appreciate we are visitors in the country and that Spain has its own beautiful language and people. However, nobody should be above any guest regardless of background. One day my son and partner went to join their activity and they only allowed the Spanish guests to partake and acted as though they weren’t there. It was embarrassing! This is only one example but there were other instances of this. I have a health condition which affects my circulation and I had been standing at reception (1 guest in front of me) for 20 minutes and I started feeling faint. The response from the receptionist was “not my problem”, thankfully this was on our last day. By then I’d become accustomed to where we stood in the pecking order at this hotel.

The food we enjoyed and plenty of it, though I’m glad we weren’t all inclusive as there’s not difference between lunch and dinner. But the canteen (it resembles a school canteen) is absolute carnage and it’s never a relaxing sit down meal. However, if you upgrade it’s a very different experience, you have a restaurant set up and table service.

It’s a shame that they pour so much attention into customers at this hotel who have upgraded and disregard those who haven’t. I would say this was the hotels biggest flaw. Oh and also the fact that they allow queues of people to line up for 9 to reserve sun beds with brolly’s… whilst they’re out all day. They do say they have a no sun bed reservations policy but they only implement when suited. I was also disappointed by the staffs lack of regard toward an older couple who clearly had mobility needs. However, guests were quick to help them during their stay, despite the hotels lack of heart. Again, going back to who you are I suppose!

Shoutout to Selena who works at guest experience in the reception area. She is genuinely caring and thoughtful of guests. Muchas Gracias Selena.

If you are looking for a hotel that’s a little out of the crowd with lots of activities for children/adults around the pool, this place is a good shout. Lidl is also just over the road and you can keep things cool in the fridge in the room, we found this very handy.

Would also highly recommend Bamboo Chinese up the road €20 all you can eat gorgeous Chinese food and this includes drink. Ps don’t get a mojito from the bar unless you like bog water and plant leaves! Would have rated this hotel a 4 if not for the politics and unfriendliness.