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Costa de Almeria Smaller Resorts (A-Z) Adra - Costa Almeria Mirador de Adra - Adra Operator and Date: Fleetway Travel - September 2005 Opinion submitted in Oct 2005 by : Pauline & John - Essex (47 & 42): Resort Rating: Poor Accommodation Rating: Poor My/Our Holiday Review: We booked last minute for what we believed was a 4 Star hotel. Sorry to say it wasn't up to standard and at a push, would barely give it a 3 star rating. Though the hotel staff were efficient and friendly the hotel itself is very, very dated and in much need of updating. The pool was dirty and the paving and plant pots around it cracked and broken. Dangerous to elderly and children. Food was a worry - food that was meant to be hot was barely lukewarm and that on the salad bar was kept cool by two electric fans! Unbelievable. Rooms were of reasonable size and clean, but again in need of some tlc - especially the bathroom with dirty and cracked tiling. As for the resort, well there wasn't one. The Hotel is a 10 minute stroll from what can only be called a very small, Spanish village which is NOT in any way geared up for any form of tourism. We found one chinese restaurant, the rest appeared to be tapas bars. There was an internet cafe and everything else can only be classed as "local shops" for the residents of the village, which all closed between 1.00 and 5.30 p.m. No night life to speak of, unless you want to sit in a tapas bar with the locals. The beach was something else. Described as "long and wide" it was indeed. However, it's shingle not sand, full of litter and broken glass and if you're really unfortunate you come across dog excrement too! Went for a walk on it once, that was enough. NOT a place to return to and not one to recommend to even your worst enemy. Avoid. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Aguadulce - Costa Almeria Hotel Portomagno - Aguadulce Operator and Date: April 2005 Opinion submitted in Mar 2006 by : Glenn Burton 49,49,13 Resort Rating: Average Accommodation Rating: Very Good My/Our Holiday Review: This was last year but my conscience wont allow other unsuspecting Brits to suffer. First the hotel. Probably the best situated we have experienced-every room has a sea view -you could hear the waves. Decor and layout is what youd expect really :marble and gilt metal with a very nice bar and patio area. Good lifts. Four pools - yes 4 which were freezing cold but some of us did brave it and enjoyed. Nice gardens with a couple of benches as well. Theres a fitness club and indoor pool but a fee for the former. The rooms were ok with a Moorish style. Food was good but not memorable but as usual was not piping hot which didnt bother us really. All in all the place is excellent. As a resort Aguadulce has nothing apart from several bars round the harbour and nothing at all on the promenade. The young Brits we met expecting the all night scene had lost the will to live. Nearby -Alimerimar (ha,ha) Almeria, Roquetas -oh I wont waste space describing them. So what went wrong you ask? well if you get ashamed of young Brits with union jack shorts on then stay here my friend when Spaniards are 'in residence' ever been looked on like vermin? had your seat stolen when visiting the bar? oh and get on the local bus and get treated to verbal and physical abuse -yes trust me. Honestly I have never been as glad to see fellow Brits in my life and had the pleasure of meeting several brilliant people that week. Finally have you ever been on holiday and had all remaining UK guests wave you off on the bus? we did and it was all down to the collective 'experience' that was dished out by our friends the Spanish. For Gods sake go to Salou or Lloret instead where civilisation exists. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Almerimar - Costa Almeria Sol Almerimar Apartments - Almerimar Operator and Date: Independent - Jan 2004 Opinion submitted in Jan 2004 by : David Russell 74,76 Resort Rating: Excellent Accommodation Rating: Excellent My/Our Holiday Review: We first visited Almerimar in Mar 03 and liked it so much we bought an apartment there. We booked Sol Almerimar for my parents to stay whilst visiting in in January. They were delighted with the accomodation. All 2 beds overlook the marina, well worth the extra over one beds which have poor views. They are spotlessly clean, bedding etc changed daily. We did feel that a little minor refurbishment was needed in some minor areas(rusty fridge door, some flaking paint etc) but certainly not worth complaining about, particularly at the price. The rooftop pool and terrace was not in use out of season but looked fabulous. Out of season book directly and it's only 17 GBP per night. In season it can be cheaper to book with Bancotel at around 35GBP per night. Mytravelite flights to Almeria (35 mins) from Birmingham can be found for 40GBP return or BA from Gatwick at around 120GBP. Alicante or Malaga are a 2.5 hour drive but offer easyjet flights. Almerimar is a purpose built, quite stylish and beautifully maintained marina town. There is much expansion on the western side but the building work doesn't affect the town or any holiday accomodation. It is very Spanish and British tourists are in a minority but very welcomed everywhere. It's built around the large marina and golf course. The marina makes a nice walk at night and houses around 30 restaurants. Recommend El Cubanita, Sarakawa (Italian), the Chinese near photo centro, the French near Sarakawa or Hemingways. Expect to pay half to 3/4 english prices. There are a few shops including four supermarkets but for serious shopping hop on a bus or drive 5 minutes to Copo, a large modern shopping mall with hypermarket and multi screen (Spanish) cinema. A further five minutes takes you to the sizeable town of El Ejido, we found this a pleasant modern town. Walk for a few minutes East of Almerimar and there is a ten mile stretch of almost deserted beach backed by national park, great for walking or mountain biking. There is also a horse riding stables (follow Hipico signs). The beach is popular with nude sunbathers. The towns beaches are fine too, very clean with showers and toilets in summer. The Hotel Aguamarine and Tropical (the only high rises in Almerimar) are now empty and due for demolition. I'm amazed any holiday operator was still sending people there in 2003, they looked derelict in March. Beyond Almerimar 15 minutes drive (car hire around 10GBP per day from carjet.com) takes you into the mountains with fantastic scenery, whitewashed Andalucian villages and snow capped mountains. Try the back road from Berja through Darrical and Lucienes to Cherin. 2 hours takes you to Granada and there is also a ski resort open until April 1.5 hours from Almerimar. 35 minutes takes you to Almeria, a lovely old Spanish city. One hour takes you to the Cabo De Gata national park. Las Negras and Isletta are well worth a visit and there are many deserted coves, great walking country. The downside of the area is the proliferation of plastic grenhouses. They are not visible from Almerimar or the natural park area but have to be driven through to get anywhere. They stop at the foot of the mountains To sum up - If you want British beer and fish and chips then this isn't the place (thankfully!) If you prefer to mix with the Spanish then it's an ideal base for exploring and Sol Almerimar is probably the best place to stay due to it's location. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Garrucha - Fuentemar Private accomodation in Garrucha - Fuentemar Operator and Date: July - August 2005 Opinion submitted in Aug 2005 by : Steve, Annette & Charlotte McGregor Resort Rating: Excellent Accommodation Rating: Excellent My/Our Holiday Review: Have a property just outside the town of Garrucha, Costa del Almeria about 6 miles north of Mojacar. Flew with Monarch scheduled to Almeria from Manchester - all flights on time and with no delays Place: Very quiet makes for a relaxing holiday, quite a few English seem to stay in the area but predominately a Spanish resort. Very little English spoken so helps to learn some words in Spanish. Beaches very safe with lifeguards present at most times of the day. Garrucha itself is a fishing port so fresh fish is a speciality and is very good. There is a fair bit of property being built in the area so will only get more popular in the coming years. Out and About: A car is a requirement as Garrucha, not being a tourist area, things have to be travelled to - there are good bus services. Market days are good fun - again these are more for serious shopping rather that the fake watch, CD's etc found in the more tourist resorts. Mojacar is down the coast - a short car journey away - so if you need English bars etc they are available although even here they are very low key. Mojacar Pueblo is a must especially at night. Overall: If you want a quiet and relaxing time and enjoy the Spanish way of life then can highly recommend. The cost of living is less than here in the UK and the weather is fantastic. There are things to do but it does require some effort to find them rather that all being in one place. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Vera - Costa Almeria Apartment Jasmine at Vera Natura - Vera playa Operator and Date: Independant July 2006 Opinion submitted in September 2006 by : James Downs Sheffield Resort Rating: Excellent Accommodation Rating: Excellent My/Our Holiday Review: Hi we booked the independant Apartment Jasmine from the internet and flew to Almeria with Monarch which was on time and very nice. The apartment is within the Vera Natura naturist complex at Vera Playa, it was a 2 bedroomed ground floor apartment with lovely garden and terrace with chairs and table. The furnishings were very good with everything you could wish for. On site there are two swimming pools a ver large outdoor and a heat indoor pool, the complex also has direct access to the 2 mile long naturist beach which is lovely with bars and restaurants on the beach where you can eat nude. The gardens on this complex were truly beautiful and it was great to stroll around them in th evening or just sit on the terrace with a nice glass of plonk. There are mnay bars and restaurants around the complex but you must be dressed to go in most of them. This is the ideal place if you want a nice relaxing holiday in beautiful surroundings. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hotel Mexico - Vera Operator and Date: Independent Travel - March 2005 Opinion submitted in Mar 2005 by : Rod Wood - Aberdeen Resort Rating: Average Accommodation Rating: Below Average My/Our Holiday Review: We have just returned from spending 4 nights at the Hotel Mexico in Vera, Costa Almeria. This hotel offers the out of season holiday maker absolutley nothing. There was so little life within the hotel during the day and night. The bar area was very smokey even with the few people using it. The evening meals had to be taken in a restaurant outwith the main hotel which meant going outside in the pouring rain and cold and believe me it was not worth it. The meals were terrible. The two waiters on duty in the restaurant have a lot to learn about food hygiene. Smoking behind the bar and not washing their hands whilst handling food and cutlery etc. If they don't get a tip they will remember you the next night!! They were also very noisy, shouting at each other regularly. Breakfast was taken within the main hotel -that too was pretty awful - depending who was on duty! One morning we had to set our own breakfast table as there was no staff around. Cooked food was not kept hot and had been cooked much earlier. There was a lot of building work going on outside opposite the bedrooms with very noisy equipment being used. It starts early too!! Not a lot we can recommend about this hotel, the rooms were average but noisy air conditioning. Ther is very little in the area by way of choice for other eating out places, one needs to take a taxi or a bus. The road is too dangerous to walk along as it is very busy and has no pavement in areas. Recommend anyone staying in the area considers the Mojacar Playa area as it is not to far away and ther is much better choice. --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Unnamed Resort - Costa Almeria Vera Playa Club Operator and Date: Peng - September 2005 Opinion submitted in Oct 2005 by : Mandy & Alan (42,54) Resort Rating: Very Good Accommodation Rating: Very Good My/Our Holiday Review: First time I've been on a naturist holiday (hubby is old hand at it), so took a little while to get used to seeing naked people wandering round the hotel, but soon settled in. Room lovely, not the biggest I've ever stayed in, but nice and clean, big bed (well,2 pushed together actually), safe deposit, tv (sadly lacking in English channels - except Sky news). Nice balcony. Lovely bathroom with THE biggest round bath! Took a while to fill but lounging in it made me feel like a movie star! Food splendid. Tip - DO pay the extra (£15 pppn) and upgrade to all-inclusive. Well worth it. Could have anything you want except champagne, single malts and expensive brandy. But rest of drinks are branded - Baileys, Malibu, Smirnoff etc. Also get an extensive wine menu with both lunch and dinner - worked our way down the white wine list and enjoyed them all. Also as much coffee and water as you like. Show cooking outside was great - fresh fish/steak etc cooked to order - ask for some of the "green stuff" (olive oil and garlic I think) to finish cooking your fish in! Yum! Pool area was nice - but we found a nice quiet spot on the sun terrace (kiddy-free!) and staked our claim there for the week. Weather was glorious! Enough to do if you wanted - animation team hard at work entertaining, we played mini-golf (nude!) and went for long walks up the beach. Hotel has bikes you can borrow, and we took a morning ride to Garrucha, which was very nice, watching the fishermen. Would definately go back - especially on a Peng special week when all-inclusive is the same price as half board! :) --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Hotel Vera Playa Beach Operator and Date: Peng - July 2005 Opinion submitted in Aug 2005 by : Pete & Joanne Resort Rating: Very Good Accommodation Rating: Excellent My/Our Holiday Review: The Hotel Vera Playa Beach is in a very quiet location and is a great place to relax and unwind. It has a wonderful pool area with a couple of water slides and is right next to the beach. The food is very good, but the menu tends to be very simular every day, so it's nice to try one of the handfull of bars/resturants out side of the hotel now and again. The staff are very friendly, but they speak limited English, so it helps if you can speak a bit of Spanish. The rooms are well set out with air-con, TV and safe,and either look out onto the pool area or the sea. There is building work going on on one side but we did not hear or see much activity during our stay. There are a number of activities arrangedduring the day and evening entertainment which is mainly in place to keep the kids occupied. The hotel operates as naturist between 8am and 8pm. The only area where clothes are required is the resturant between these times.
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