Our criteria for choosing this hotel were based on price, service and a desire to avoid the hordes of drunken british hen and stag parties that plague the streets of benidorm. Overall we were happy with what we got, below is some details of the different areas.
Location:
Location is good, the walk to the beach is pretty much a straight line and takes only 10 minutes at a leisurely pace or 5 if you move brisquely. There are plenty of shops / bars / hustle & bustle to keep you entertained en-route so the walk will not seem long. There is a taxi rank about a block away which is really good for getting around. Taxi's are pretty cheap there, we never spent more than 12 euros in a taxi and that was to go on a long journey, average taxi cost across town would be about 5 euros.
To jouney to the old town we found the nicest route to be to walk down to the beach and then walk along it. It's about a 20-30 minute walk to get right into the old town. If you have the time then again it is a very pleasant walk, failing that the taxis will get you in there in no time for a few euros.
Hotel Facilities / Check-in
The hotel for the large part is in a pretty good state of decor (or at least the bits we saw were). The staff were somewhat helpful depending on who you spoke to but they were always polite. Check-in was smooth and prompt. The public areas were all kept clean and were well maintained. The majority of organised activities are aimed towards an older crowd or families with younger children. Bingo was a prominent feature in the evening. :D There were also some younger crowds staying at the hotel but they were not causing any particular noise or problem. The hotel has a big games room downstairs which also contains internet access priced at 1 euro per 20 minutes.
The pools looked clean enough to swim in although the outdoor one could be a bit cold (guess that's just seasonal though)
The Room
The room itself was very very basic consisting of 2 single beds pushed together, a nice big wardrobe with full length mirrors, a medium / small table with a telly on it and a decent size bathroom. There room was a good size, no difficulty moving around and there was even a small balcony with a couple of seets and a little plastic table. Very basic, but clean and sufficient for our needs. If you are one of these people that goes on holiday to stay in the hotel room most of the day you may find better rooms but for people like us who went out in the morning, maybe popped back once or twice during the day and the lastly at night to sleep, then this room is fine. The rooms has very little noise protection so if there is something creating a lot of noise you will hear it. But generally noise levels were kept well within acceptable standards. Importantly at night time it was usually pretty quiet.
The Food
We only really ate breakfast here which was obviously catered specifically to a british market. The selection is quite good ranging from cereal, fresh fuit, pastries to traditional english breakfast with ommeletes and such made on request, the quality is certainly edible but not gourmet by any means. On the whole we enjoyed our breakfasts each morning so no complaints here. Did not try lunch / dinner here, unless you have gone full board I would suggest going to the beach for dinner / lunch. Much wider selection to choose from.
Overall:
Generally, you get what you pay for in life and this hotel by most accounts was pretty cheap so do not expect the Hilton or the Ritz. They have obviously worked very hard to try make the most of this hotel for the price we pay and it shows. In terms of quality it's all pretty basic but I think its better to have "well maintained" basic than "poorly maintained" quality.
If you are looking for somewhere on a budget and want to avoid the hordes of obnoxious stag and hen parties, consider this place. It's good, it's clean and serves it's purpose. It probably wont make your whole holiday in iteself but then again in Benidorm it shouldn't, get out the hotel and go do something!
