Sol Guadalupe, Palma de Majorca

At the end of July, a friend and I spent a week in the Sol Guadalupe Hotel in Magalluf. To give some context to the review, this is around the 6th or 7th time we have stayed at this hotel so overall I like it although I do have some comments about the food and room cleaning that I will get on to!

*Magalluf*

You will probably have heard of Magalluf, and probably because it is known as a British holiday destination where there is lots of wild partying and bad behaviour. This is of course the case and those wanting a wild time are well catered for. However, it is also a fairly decent holiday destination due to the pretty much guaranteed nice weather and the range of facilities like aqua parks, boat trips, beautiful beaches and easy access to other parts of the island of Majorca. The Hotel Guadalupe is situated in a fairly quiet (by comparison) part of town which is around ten minutes walk from the beach, and about fifteen minutes walk from the main strip where all the clubs are. In the local area there are a wide range of pubs, shops and eateries including all the usual KFC/McDonald/Pizza Hut type places which are usually very busy. There are also several supermarkets (mainly Spar) where you can stock up on drinks, snacks and any toiletries you forgot to pack.

*Sol Guadalupe*

The Hotel is part of the Sol group of hotels of which there are many in Magalluf and across Majorca. The Sol hotels are probably best described as fairly typical 3 star, family type hotels. For those wanting a more high-end hotel experience, the same group have the Melia brand of hotels which are much more expensive and flash. In Magalluf, Sol own several hotels and aparthotels, which are generally well located and have similar decor and layout. This hotel is the highest rated among customers as it seems to stand out in terms of quality. As I said above it is fairly well situated within easy walking distance of the beach and nightlife, but far enough away that you aren't living right in the thick of it.

The hotel reception and public areas have had some investment in recent years and it all looks fairly modern. When you arrive at the hotel, typically your coach from the airport (or taxi) will drop you off at the end of a short driveway into the hotel. It's a short walk to the entrance which is sliding glass doors. Reception is to your left and is brightly lit and staffed 24 hours per day. Behind reception there is a luggage room and a shower room for customer use (perhaps on your last day if you have left your room at 12 noon and don't fly home until evening). The luggage room is secure and has plenty of storage space. There is also a scale (1 euro to use) where you can weigh your luggage to check you comply with the airline on the way home!

Check in is fairly swift. They take a photocopy of your passports on arrival, give you a room card per person (which unlocks the door and activates the electricity) and information about excursions that the hotel can arrange on your behalf. The hotel has 9 floors and four lifts so its usually easy enough to get your luggage up to your room (which you do yourself). Also at reception there is an internet cafe, public phones, a bar, plentiful seating and a stage area where entertainment is provided in the evenings. The restaurant and access to the pool are also in this area and there are public toilets, and a games room. There is a public laundry available somewhere but I cannot comment on it because I didn't use it.

*The rooms*

Hotel rooms look out either on the pool area, or outwards to apartments across the way. It costs extra for a pool view (what a con!) so we almost always end up with an outwards view. The Sol Y Vera apartments opposite are a bit crazy - the pool lies empty all day and at night they are all out on their balconies drinking, shouting abuse at people in our hotel and generally being rowdy. Each room in the hotel has a balcony which is kitted out with a white plastic table and chairs. We use the chairs to dry our beach towels and swimwear and don't tend to sit out due to both the noise and the view!

The rooms have either a double bed or twin beds, and if there are three of you, they will just put an extra bed into a twin room. There is a double wardrobe in the room with a mirrored sliding door. In here is the safe (20 euros per week, collect the key at reception), extra blankets and pillows, and wooden coathangers. Unfortunately they are those typical hotel coathangers that are secured to the rail and only the hangy bit comes down - I find this immensely annoying but it seems to be all but universal these days. There are around 14 hangers in total which may or may not be enough depending how much hanging things you pack. There are also two long shelves where you can put t-shirts etc. Beside each bed is a bedside cabinet which has a drawer and an alcove section. One of these has the room telephone on (it's good value to phone from the room at around 2 euro for 5 minutes). There is a long dressing table with a mirror above it. For some reason, the hotel have chosen this to put the flatscreen television on which takes up a fair amout of space. The TV has a few English channels including sky news and bbc world if you want to keep up with the news, although you can also buy newspapers at reception.

The final thing is a fridge but again this costs extra (20 euros per week). We invest in this because it means we can stock up on drinks (soft and alcohol) from the local shops to save us paying hotel bar prices. To give this context, you can buy a can of coke or similar for between 35 and 90 cents in spar, and yet it is 1 euro 85 for a soft drink at the hotel. Over the week, you can imagine this might stack up, so although we buy hotel drinks with dinner, during the day we take down drinks from our fridge to drink by the pool. Likewise, you can buy a bottle of spirits reasonably cheaply and enjoy a wee nightcap in the comfort of your room.

The bathrooms are kitted out with toilet, sink, bidet and a shower which is over the bath. There is a shower screen to protect the floor, and a hairdryer provided. Some complementary bits like shower gel and a shower cap are also provided. The water temperature has the tendency to fluctuate depending on whether others on your floor are showering at the same time but this can be controlled via the mixer tap.

The maids come to the room every day to make the beds, clean up and change the towels. I was a bit disappointed this year with the service as they quite often didn't come til gone 4pm, they didn't seem to be sweeping up very thoroughly and they didn't change the beds all week. I felt our floor was a bit grubby all week so I thought this could have been done more thoroughly. On one occasion they didn't leave us any towels so we had to contact reception to chase this up.

*The pool*

The pool area has three pools: an indoor pool where activities take place (water polo, keep fit), a children's pool with small slides, and a large pool. They are absolutely freezing to get into but quite nice once you are in. The main pool has a jacuzzi in the middle which is nice to sit in. The daytime activities all centre around this area and you are approached throughout the day to see whether you want to join in with games. The pool has two lifeguards on duty who keep a sharp eye on procedings and make sure everyone is safe.

The majority of the area is covered in sunbeds but there is also seating areas under cover, and an area where lunch is served which is also under cover. The pool officially opens at 8.30am but this tends to be when everyone runs out, puts beach towels all over the sunbeds and then runs back indoors to appear again later. We had to do this too because otherwise there was no chance of a sunbed. Officially this is not allowed but the staff don't seem to care. The area closes after 6pm and the pool is roped off for safety. There is a pool bar which is opened all day and sells hot and cold drinks, ice creams and snacky bits like crisps.

*The food*

We tend to go half board so we get breakfast (8 - 10.30am) and dinner (6.30pm - 10pm) included. The restaurant is large and buffet style. There are different sections offering different types of food. At breakfast there are hot and cold drinks available from machines, croissants, donuts, cheeses, fresh fruits, yoghurts and the usual hot fry-up type options. There is plenty to choose from and you can eat as much as you like. At dinner, you have to buy drinks from the waiting staff. There is often a long queue for dinner (particularly post 8pm). This again is split into sections with a salad area with cold meats, a fresh bread section, dessert section, fresh fruits, roast meats, main meals and fast food type stuff. I find the choice at dinner to be quite limited as every night there is pizza, burgers, chips etc which gets quite boring. They serve a lot of veal and pork which I don't think they cook very well, and generally speaking the choices are too samey. The fresh breads and cheeses are very good and often I had salad type dinners and fruit. You can buy lunch by the pool but I didn't use this service so can't comment.

*Entertainment*

There is nightly entertainment in the hotel that starts early for the younger kids and goes on til late. This is held in the downstairs stage area near the bar. There is bar service to your seats. There were various shows put in like High School Musical and what I saw of it, looked like pretty decent fun. It certainly had a good following and most seats were filled every night.

*Checkout*

Checkout of the hotel is at 12 noon and is as swift as check-in. They check that you have no money owing on your room and that is you. Reception are happy to help you book taxis etc, and any coaches to the airport pick you back up where you were dropped off.

*Overall*

This hotel is fairly decent and has many good facilities and plus points. The best thing is that you are left alone to just do your own thing, you can join in as much or as little as you want to. The main areas are kept immaculate and are very nice to sit in and the rooms are good. The room service and food could be better but its reasonable enough for a week in the sun. The hotel is done by Thomas Cook, Easyjet and other holiday companies and you can book directly on the sol website.

I'm not sure I will be returning again next year as I think I could be doing with a change but if you want a decent base to explore Magalluf and the surrounding area, you won't go far wrong here.

Thank you for reading my review which may appear on other review sites.