| Product: |
Balcon al Mar Javea Holiday Villa (Javea, Spain) |
| Date: |
06/06/09 (80 review reads) |
| Rating: |
 |
Advantages: Perfect location, child friendly, great outdoor area & pool
Disadvantages: Not very clean on arrival, very expensive for what you get
My husband and I stayed here last year with our two boys and my brother and sister in law and their two kids. It's in the exclusive Balcon al Mar area of Javea on the Costa Blanca, situated halfway between Alicante & Valencia it's about an hours' drive from the airport. Within a 5 minute walk from the villa is a good supermarket with an excellent deli and bakery. Tennis courts, a swimming pool (free to use) and bar with takeaway pizza restaurant are next door. Another 5 minutes up the road are two restaurants which have stunning views of the Cap de la Nao.
ACCOMODATION
It's a very modern contemporary style detached villa on a ¼ acre plot. It's on an exclusive estate of villas so you're not isolated. There are electric gates and an entry phone system for added security, there is parking for 2 cars. I suggest you hire a car to get around in.
The interior has double height ceilings in the open plan lounge and dining area and has a great American style kitchen/ breakfast bar. For the kids (and the husband!) there is a fully equipped games room with pool table, ps2, CD, TV & video player.
The sitting area has a large black leather corner sofa, which comfortably seats 4 adults and 4 kids. There is a large TV with SKY, coffee table and a fireplace.
The dining area has two glass tables put together to offer one long table and seating for 10 people. There are placemats and a table runner on there - all were unfortunately in need of a good clean on our arrival.
The kitchen is very spacious with plenty of work surface space. There is a small under counter fridge, hob, oven and microwave. All crockery and cutlery etc are provided - again, all unfortunately needed a thorough clean. Off the kitchen is a utility room with sink area, dishwasher, fridge freezer, washing machine and ironing board.
There are 4 bedrooms sleeping a maximum of 9 people. The master bedroom is upstairs; it has a double bed, a couple of bedside tables, a chest of drawers and a wardrobe. It has an ensuite wet room decorated with black marble tiles and contemporary fittings. It also has its own private terrace with small table and two chairs perfect for a glass of wine in the evening or to enjoy your morning coffee in peace! There is also a ceiling fan, hairdryer and alarm clock provided.
The other 3 bedrooms are downstairs. One has a double bed with bedside tables, drawers and fitted wardrobes. It has an ensuite shower room and bidet.
The second has 2 single beds with bedside tables, wardrobe and chest of drawers. It has a ceiling fan, hairdryer and alarm clock. This room has patio doors out to the pool area.
The third has a single bed and one bunk bed. This room is tiny so only has a couple of bedside tables and a fitted cupboard. It also has a ceiling fan & alarm clock.
Air conditioning fitted to all bedroom areas and is free from the hours of 7pm to 7am for all peak season bookings.
Next to the second and third bedrooms is a third bathroom (bath & shower).
OUTSIDE:
There is a 10x5m kidney shaped private pool with roman steps to one end - again, perfect for young children. There are floats and inflatable toys provided and a poolside shower area. There are two terraces which overlook the pool and gardens. The BBQ area has a shaded pergola and seating for 10 people. A charcoal BBQ is provided.
The poolside terrace has a table and 4 chairs with a patio umbrella and 10 sun loungers.
The gardens are well kept and there is a lawn area to the side of the villa which is big enough for the kids to kick a football around on.
GENERAL:
Towels are provided, there is a safe under the stairs, the bedrooms are air conditioned and free to use in the peak season, villa has central heating and linen is provided. Take your lap top because there is free wireless broadband.
The villa is non smoking, pets aren't allowed and it's not suitable for wheelchairs.
WOULD I RECOMMEND?
I am glad that we stayed there, it is a wonderful location and I would definitely return to Javea. However I wouldn't return to this particular villa.
I think it's quite overpriced for what you get. It is luxury in the respect that it's situated in an exclusive development, it's got lots of marble in the bathrooms and granite work surfaces in the kitchen etc... however the contents look like it's all been purchased from IKEA - not a bad thing but not 'luxurious' as advertised. The beds aren't king sized, the sheets and towels basic and the kitchen appliances all basic/budget models.
As I mentioned before, when we arrived at the villa it should have been cleaned for us, however we had to spend our first hour there washing all the cutlery/crockery and mopping all the floors which were grubby.
The bedding is changed once a week, however you need to strip all the beds yourself and leave the linen by the front door to be collected. Also we were told the towels would also be changed - when the lady turned up she said they're not so we had to wash all the towels and reuse them.
It's a real shame because if the interior of the villa was luxurious, and they had little finishing touches - like molten brown toiletries in the bathroom, top of the range appliances, perhaps basic things like milk, bread, eggs, tea, coffee and mineral water, washing detergent, dishwasher tablets, BBQ charcoal etc.... maybe even a cleaner provided for peak rate guests - then it would have been worth every penny of the £1650 per week we paid!
I can't fault the outside area & pool - and that is after all what you go for!
PRICE:
From £1000 off peak to £1750 per week peak season
If I was rating the outdoor area and location then this villa would get 5 stars, however the interior and lack of attention to detail lets it down badly so only 3 stars I'm afraid.
Summary: The interior lets down what would otherwise be a perfect holiday villa!
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