Beatriz Playa and Spa Hotel

It seems to be a recurring theme in my reviews but we didn't choose to come to this hotel, rather it was booked by family as a present. Before coming, I studied the TripAdvisor reviews and was a bit hesitant as there are a lot of negative reviews. One thing I feel is that UK folk in particular think a 4 star rating reflects the “luxury" of an hotel and find this hotel falls short of that expectation, whereas Europe rates hotels on amenities provided, ie - does it have a safety supervisor at the pool, so by the European rating system this hotel probably does deserve it's 4 star rating.

Arrival: We arrived late at the hotel and were met with a very pleasant and efficient reception staff. The hotel had arranged a late welcome meal but to be honest we were too tired to participate. The Room : We found our room to be nice, clean, spacious and comfortable but a wee bit dated. There is a first level where the bathroom and sleeping area is, then there are two steps down to the lounging / TV area and this brings about the first small criticism I would make. The floor of our room was of a dark wood effect. The steps were of a slightly lighter wood effect with a different grain. The change between the two material's is subtle but was such that it created an optical illusion which caused my wife to almost fall down them (no drink involved before anyone thinks so). It is a small criticism but if it helps anyone that's great. Next…the shower in the bathroom. It is a lovely walk-in shower with an overhead pan and separate hand unit. It provides plenty of hot water to satisfy anyone who loves a long hot shower. The only problem is that the shower tray is not non-slip and could be quite a problem for some more senior guests. Provision of an anti-slip mat might be useful. This hotel has a TV service that shows all the main terrestrial TV UK channels, Film4 and some other channels that have English speaking films etc. There is a mini fridge, but if ours is anything to go by, expect your goods to be kept coolish rather than chilled.

The hotel is quite large and has a lot of facilities and there are a lot of positives but I feel a lot of the criticisms I read also make valid points.

I read a lot about the pool area being dirty with fag ends etc…..this is undoubtedly true and I have two views on this 1: dirt and rubbish left by guests says more about said guests than it does about the hotel 2: on the other hand, I noted that there are no tables or ash trays at the pool area.I don't smoke myself but wonder what I would do with my cigarette buts if I did…fairs fair.

We didn’t have any problems getting sunbeds but did notice that a lot of the beds could benefit from a bit of a clean. The surface you lie on was ok (and you would normally lie on your towel anyway), but the plastic frameworks were quite grubby. Again, probably a minor issue but it does take the look off things. Other than that, we liked the layout and atmosphere at the pool area so its a pity these issues take the edge off things.

Food in the main buffet was typical of food in an hotel buffet…possibly better than some I have visited…not exceptional but not bad either. We didn't use the Chinese or Italian restaurants so can't comment. We did use the Burger bar once for lunch and it was ok.

I was concerned before arrival about noise from aircraft considering how close the hotel is to the airport runway but this was entirely unfounded.

Departure : Our flight home was in the evening so we had asked during check-in if we could arrange a late check-out. We were told that we would have to wait until the morning of leaving to confirm if this would be available. We were advised that, if it were possible,the fee would be €50. I thought this a bit expensive and asked how much extra time this would allow us to stay in the room and was pleasantly surprised when told we could stay until we chose to leave. In that respect I think it's good value for the money if you have a late flight. In, any case, it wasn't possible for us so we had to use the courtesy shower rooms. Unfortunately, these do, I believe deserve criticism. It's a bit like the changing areas of your local sports centre. A communal area (one for men and one for women), each with 4 or so shower cubicles. The showers were good but there is a lack of tables or seating etc, so getting changed is difficult and once showered, you have to step out onto a slippery tiled floor. I wish I had kept my “sliders" handy to stop me nearly going on my neck. All in all, we enjoyed our short stay here. There are a lot of positives but it's a pity the negatives don't seem to be addressed. I have read all the management replies to previous reviews and, to be honest, they follow the same generic pattern as most managerial replies......”your concerns have been passed” etc…..it would be nice if any actual action was taken because some very minor adjustments could greatly improve customer satisfaction.

We have just arrived home after a weeks stay here as an all inclusive couple. This was our first time here and had read some awful reviews so weren’t sure what to expect but we went with an open mind.

Location; The hotel is in a fantastic location within Matagorda. 10 mins from the airport which was ideal for us. The noise from the planes landing was not an issue and we actually enjoyed watching them come into the airport. The beach is directly across the road and there’s a shopping centre 5 mins walk away. A further 15 mins walk along the beach front there is plenty more shops/restaurants. We personally recommend pizzeria italica & Hong Kong island for some incredible food!

Hotel: The hotel is massive, it will take you a few days to get use to where you’re going. There’s a small array of shops located on the ground floor of the hotel where you can buy essentials (vapes, drinks, towels, souvenirs etc) there is a burger joint that opens at lunch time if you’re AI you can choose from beef/chicken burger, hot dog, toastie, chips, it’s a decent meal for lunch. There is also a pizza & Chinese restaurant you have to book in advance we didn’t eat at either so can’t comment. The main buffet restaurant had a huge selection for breakfast, usual cooked breakfast items, pancakes, bread & pastries, cheeses, cold meats & yoghurts. Lunch options had pasta & sauces, salads, pizzas, meat cooked on the grill to order etc, we didn’t eat dinner at the hotel as we had planned to eat out every night but we nipped in once and it was roughly the same as lunch just maybe a couple different dishes. Personally I would hate this hence why we pre planned dinner out. I work as a chef and know how difficult it is cooking for large numbers of people so I can imagine what it’s like cooking for hundreds a day, thousands a week whilst sticking to a budget. It’s definitely not the worst buffet I’ve been too. What let it down for me was the constant lack of juice from the machine as it either kept breaking or wasn’t being refilled which led to having to drink lukewarm warm water from the built in taps.

Pool/amenities; The pool area is a good size, 1 heated pool and 1 cold pool. We never had a problem getting sunbeds, sometimes we didn’t go out to the pool until after midday and there was plenty available. The pool bar had a great selection it clearly indicates on the menu what you can have as AI this includes cocktails, beer, rum, vodka, gin, whiskey. The cocktails are from a machine and are lovely but have very little alcohol in them. We opted for vodka slushies as the free pour measures were lethal! You have to pay €1 deposit per cup but this is standard anywhere you go and anyone that moans about this are probably the people that just throw their rubbish on the ground and expect someone else to clean it up. The animation team are out and about the pool area doing activities throughout the day including bingo, aqua gym, yoga the only thing that lets the pool down is the cracked concrete around the cold pool, if it’s not addressed soon it could become quite sharp and dangerous. The evening entertainment was okay, kids disco is first then main entertainment which can be anything from karaoke to abba tributes to acrobats, the queue can get quite long here and there but that’s just life when everyone wants a drink. Entertainment stops at 11pm

We had a ground floor room and didn’t encounter any cockroaches like previous reviews stated. our room was clean and spacious enough for us, It was cleaned when we needed it to be. The bedding was not however changed it was just remade on the bed. We had a mini fridge and air con both worked fine. All rooms from what we could see have their own terrace.

We didn’t encounter any rude staff but if we did we wouldn’t take it personal these people work long shifts in incredible heat and hospitality is a hard gig to work in. We requested a taxi twice from reception which was called for us and arrived promptly. We visited puerto del carmen which was a lovely day out and cost roughly €10 we also visited rancho texas which was again roughly €10 it was a great day out zoo and water park in one, definitely worth the visit!

Your holiday is what you make it. The hotel is exactly what you’d expect for the star rating and the price. I just think certain people like to moan or believe they are above everyone else. There’s a 5 star hotel 2 doors down that may suit these kind of clientele more as I couldn’t imagine anything worse than coming on a well deserved holiday and finding things to moan about. We had a great time and wouldn’t hesitate to return to the hotel. The area of Matagorda also seems to be extremely LGBT friendly as we encountered no problems being an obvious lesbian couple which is also very comforting to experience an enjoy :) Thanks Beatrix!