“A rare gem amongst the ordinary.”

Upon a suggestion from my youngest (37 yo) son that it was about time that we took a holiday together, we set about finding somewhere not too expensive and at the same time not too cheap. He, hiis wife and two kids (age 9 and 10) hadn't been abroad for a long time and needed a break from their li... more

Upon a suggestion from my youngest (37 yo) son that it was about time that we took a holiday together, we set about finding somewhere not too expensive and at the same time not too cheap. He, hiis wife and two kids (age 9 and 10) hadn't been abroad for a long time and needed a break from their life of rush and sleep! On the other hand, I and my girlfriend live a life of holiday already (retired, and at home, that is) so no pressure on my side. We settled on the Hotel Comodoro (hereafter HC), near Magaluf on Majorca. I was a bit concerned about the proximity to the renowned madhouse, but I needn't have worried: the hotel is NOT close to the insanity and is in fact 10 yds from a beautiful big sandy beach. It has 88 bedrooms, all with balcony and unrestricted sea view, so no looking out over rooftops and skyscrapers. Fabulous. We booked with Jet2 and flew from BHX which was a bloody nightmare. Birmingham airport is always a pain to use at best but this time? What chaos. BIG signage to say "We're working to make your journey easier" which is total eyewash because they seem to do all they can to cock it up. Apparently, they're installing new scanners to comply with a government edict, so on this bank holiday weekend they marshal ten thousand travellers like cattle in the longest queue you can imagine to push them through just FOUR out of eight available security checkpoints. The normal security area has about 24 or more lanes, so you can tell what it was like. Anyway, this is a review of the hotel, so rant over. Suffice to say the flight took off 30 mins late, meaning that we eventually got to our hotel by midnight local time. We 6 were the only guests dropped off at HC, meaning that check-in was quick. And courteous. The desk clerk did what he needed and then offered us a glass of cava to ease our fatigue. A long day topped off nicely. Our room (211) is right next to the lift and upon entering we were impressed with the cleanliness. Absolutely flippin'spotless .. not a single mark anywhere on glass, etc.. Readers of my other reviews will know that I'm VERY picky about such things, having run a 5 star, Gold award B&B in the UK. Big twin beds pushed together .. we would have preferred a double, but none available. Quite comfy. Everything you might need in there, and a big picture window overlooking the beach. Ahhh....a good sleep was had. Our tenure was breakfast only and the large, open and airy dining room was, a delight. With a MASSIVE range of treats on offer, from cooked to pastries and everything in between. Good, ground coffee, fresh bread, blah blah. It's easier to say that there was too much from which to choose! After gorging on that, we sauntered over to he pool area to find a not very large pool which is beautifully crystal clean. Tended by a lifeguard who obviously does his cleaning duties with aplomb. The water chemistry was tested twice a day while we were there. Lots of sunbeds, towels available for a 10 euro returnable deposit. All as clean and tidy as already described, quite peaceful. A glass door leads out of the corner of the pool area, to give access to the 20 paces needed for the kids to get to the equally-clean sandy beach. It's worth noting that sea tide in the Med is almost non-existent at 150mm .. 6 inches! So, after a day lounging in the pool area, it became time to eat in the evening, and we chose to try out the hotel restaurant. No booking needed, just announce one's arrival to the waiter so that the 20 euros per person can be added to your room bill so as to gain access to the wide range of grub at the buffet. Top quality, claimed my carnivore family. I have a very restricted diet but my needs were met without fuss by the extremely friendly and affable waiter. 10 out of 10 there, then. We had a minor problem that night in that some employee had left the pool-side music playing overnight .. a right pain which caused lost sleep. I thought it was in the next-door property but it transpired that it was not. However, the manageress was genuinely apologetic and promised that heads would roll! In summary, I would wholeheartedly recommend this hotel: clean, stylish, friendly, not too expensive, close to the beach, great for children, etc.. Nothing to dislike about it at all. Well done! (And that's a rare accolade from The Skeptic...)

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