Estival Park Salou, Platja de la Pineda

~~Platja de la Pineda~~
Platja de la Pineda is a very small town located on the outskirts of Salou. It has a small amount of shops and stalls dotted around with a vast amount of golden sandy beach and a water park.

It's location is great being in a family friendly area that is close to Tarragona and Salou that are bigger resorts. Big family fun at Fortaventura can be had at about a 15-20 minute bus ride away and Barcelona is ...
...The airport that you normally fly into is Reus which is about a 20 minute coach journey away and while the airport is small it's quick to get through and very helpful e.g. they sort out car hire, transfers and even accommodation if required.

~~Estival Park~~
The hotel is large ranging over 3 smaller hotels each having their own outdoor pools. They offer a broad range of offers from bed and breakfast, half board, full board and ... more

~~Platja de la Pineda~~
Platja de la Pineda is a very small town located on the outskirts of Salou. It has a small amount of shops and stalls dotted around with a vast amount of golden sandy beach and a water park.

It's location is great being in a family friendly area that is close to Tarragona and Salou that are bigger resorts. Big family fun at Fortaventura can be had at about a 15-20 minute bus ride away and Barcelona is about 45 minutes to an hour away.

The airport that you normally fly into is Reus which is about a 20 minute coach journey away and while the airport is small it's quick to get through and very helpful e.g. they sort out car hire, transfers and even accommodation if required.

~~Estival Park~~
The hotel is large ranging over 3 smaller hotels each having their own outdoor pools. They offer a broad range of offers from bed and breakfast, half board, full board and all inclusive.

I have stayed at this hotel twice, once for two weeks and another time for a week. I cannot recommend this place enough it was fantasic. We stayed all inclusive offering three meals a day and unlimited snacks and ice cream as well as water and "local" drinks.

There is so much on offer to do jsut in the hotel complex that in actual fact you could just stay there and not leave.

It's extremely family friendly with a fantastic kids club that keep them entertained for hours and there are "kids pools" and games every morning and afternoon. However, there are areas where it's more "adult only" so if your wanting a quieter time then it accomodates for this as well.

~~The rooms~~
We had a 2 twin rooms and a double room. They are pretty basic but there's so much to do that this is fine. They are clean with the sheets being changed daily, the rooms are PROPERLY CLEANED you actually can see that it has been cleaned which is always positive.
The bathroom has a shower over the bath that is nice and powerful but easy on the sunburn.

You have either a view of the road which isn't very exciting but not to be complained at or the pool which are obviously more expensive and they all have their own balconies that are covered for anyone that wants to do a bit of "quiet sunbathing".

Each room has a TV and mini bar in it. The beds are comfortable and there is plenty of room in the wardrobe for 2.

~~Facilities~~
There are amazing facilities on offer here. There are 3 outdoor swimming pools that are freshwater which means not too salty. There is a small indoor pool that is a bit cool but is laned off for any one that wants a more "serious swim".
The most wonderful thing that is on offer is the fantastic jacuzzi. It has 4 different areas with jets that really work your "bigger areas" and I actually lost 5lb in the 2 week holiday that I had and I'm sure part of that was due to this. There is also a steam room and 2 saunas as well.

There is a medium size gym with quite a few bits of equipment on offer e.g. treadmill, cross trainer, bikes and different weight machines. There are also classes on offer like aerobics and pilates style exercises and personal trainers on offer if you require it.

They also offer a wide range of beauty therapy treatments and hairdressing for which I haven't actually used but have heard they are very good.

There are tennis courts, football pitches, badminton and squash areas as well and bikes on offer for anyone that wants to hire them. All courts offer balls and racquets at a small price if required.

There are three different restuarants that all offer a huge range of food catering to all tastes and needs. For once there was a large range for vegetarians which was great and as a buffet style you can go up as many times as you like.
There was also snacks such as burgers and chips during the afternoon and ice creams which for hungry children is great.

~~Location~~
The hotel is situated approx 800m away from the beach all of this apart from the road you are walking within the hotel complex so it is quite safe for families to wander to.

The beaches are very family friendly and are gorgeous golden sands. They offer a wide range of watersports that are quite reasonably priced but are not associated with the hotel. The sunbeds and parasols were in 2006 approx 8 euros and if you have more than one you can barter for a cheaper price.

It is less than a quater of a mile away from one of many water parks that has a huge amount on offer great for all ages.

The hotel offers fantastic trips to different areas: Barcelona where you can go to the football ground and see the sites (I recommend going to see the lights and fountains at night), Fortaventura the theme park and water park, trips into the bigger towns such as Salou and Tarragona and there is a monestry that is situated about an hours drive away that is quite famous but not really for children.

~~Overall~~
As you can see from my review I cannot recommend this place enough. I had a fantastic time and with so much on offer I didn't want to leave the complex.

The staff are really friendly and helpful with all of them speaking excellent English and they are really happy if you try a bit of Spanish.

The facilities are clean and of excellent standard with a huge range of food on offer that caters to all needs.

It is a bit pricey at about £740 for a week per person but you can get great offers online and for bigger groups. If you want a fun packed family holiday this is the place for you.
 

...less