Trip To Cardiac Hill Hotel. (Hotel Spa Benalmadena Palace (Benalmadena, Spain))

Member Name: OhLala-17

Product:	Hotel Spa Benalmadena Palace (Benalmadena, Spain)
Date:	14/05/09 (67 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Lovely Hotel, Lots On Site!

Disadvantages: Cardiac Hill!

I have been to this hotel twice now, the first time in 2004 and then again in 2005, we booked it as part of a package holiday and it was a great holiday.
This review is mainly based on 2004's trip.


We arrived in Malaga airport to be greeted by the gorgeous bright gray sky's and heavy rain! Was I asleep when they told us we had to turn around and go back to England?
Keeping hopeful for sun we traveled the 20 minutes by coach to our Hotel in Benalmadena.
First thoughts were great, the hotel had white walls and terracotta roof tiles, a good Spanish theme. And what made it better was the fact the hotel was set back off the main road unlike some of the other hotels we had seen on the way.

On entering the hotel we came into the lobby area, it was spacious with lots of natural light. It had a good sized seating area with sofas and chairs, also patio doors going out onto a large balcony with looked out onto the pool area.
We checked in and the receptionist was very kind, our room was on the top floor as it was a studio apartment.
We walked down the spotless lobby to the lifts which took us to the top floor, in total I think there were 5 floors.
At the very end of the corridor our room awaited us. We walked in to see an attic room with sloping ceilings, it was nice, cozy and still fairly spacious.

The studio has 1 bedroom and holds a maximum of 3 adults. It is open plan with a small kitchenette, fridge, microwave, electric hob, dishes, cups etc.., dining table & 3 chairs, sofa bed, TV with satellite, phone, fax machine & fire place. I'm really not sure why there is a fire place but it did make the room look cozy.
The bedroom is separate and has everything a normal bedroom has with a double bed and a good sized wardrobe with hanging space, shelves and safe.
In the sitting room area there was glass patio doors which took us out onto our balcony, as we were in the roof our balcony was different compared to the others. It was built into the roof, we still got the same amount of sun although it was more privet!
The bathroom was lovely, all tiled with a bath / shower, B-day, sink & toilet. The whole room was lovely, clean and modern. You could tell it was a new hotel.

We un-packed, had a cup of tea and decided to do a tour of the hotel. We were really impressed, the whole hotel was spotless and well maintained.
Our first stop was to check out the swimming pool as the rain couldn't stop us from that!
The hotel has a large indoor swimming pool, with a jacuzzi at the side. The swimming pool was never that busy but there were often people in the jacuzzi.
When I went into the swimming pool it was warm and a pleasant temperature to swim in.
Near the swimming pool is a steam room & sauna, I used the sauna more as I'm not a fan of steam rooms, but both were a really good size.
Near the swimming pool as you go out of the glass doors, were some rooms still being done. On our 2nd trip in 2005 these had been finished and are spa treatment rooms.

After a few hours at the indoor pool the rain had stopped so we went out to find a local supermarket as we were staying self catering.
As we got out of the hotel we noticed the hill we had to go down! Lets just say a few choice words came out, not so much for going down but coming back up it!
Nevertheless we set off and found a supermarket really quickly, it was about a 4 minute walk away from the hotel. It had everything we needed and was set out a bit like Lidl is.
Now, how to get back up the hill? For me it was easy I just took the big bag of crisps and walked hoping the crisps would take my mind off the hill, which it did until the 2nd half. For my parents slightly different as they had the shopping, but they managed it...just.
We found out the hill has a nickname 'Cardiac Hill' and instead of doing the 2nd half of the hill just go into the hotels carpark and take the lift up to the lobby!
This really was a life saver, although we didn't get told this until the 4th day of the holiday!
As the night drew in, we went down to see what entertainment the hotel has to offer. The entertainment is based in the disco pub. It has many tables and chairs and a large bar.
I can't remember all of the entertainment but there were children's disco's & activities then the adult shows which were okay. There was only about 1 night which was really bad!
When it was bad, we took off and went to the games room which is opposite. It was a large room with many different arcade type games and snooker.

Eating in the hotel we never did as we were self catering, so it worked out better to eat in the local places by the sea front.
The hotel has a restaurant which is called the restaurant palace, it has a buffet of international cuisine. We looked in from the window and it looked lovely.
The hotel also has a snack bar which is by the outdoor swimming pool, and as I've said the Disco bar for drinks and entertainment.

The outdoor swimming pool was really good, a great sized pool with a separate children's paddling pool.
Around the pool were many sun beds which usually got snapped up early in the morning, also a snooker table near the pool side snack bar.
The pool area is set at the back of the hotel. They have set it out well because, this is the side the hotel gets the most sun.

In the day time the hotel staff do some activities in and by the pool, It's a great programme and keeps everyone happy.
The hotel is very family friendly and there is so much to do for children, even toddlers.
They have a great children's play area and kids club.


- Other Hotel Info -
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The hotel has 182 rooms in total, studios and apartments. They all have air con, satellite TV, phones and a balcony.
You get maid service everyday and extra towels and bedding if you need it. Cots are available for toddlers but you have to ask for these.
Check in time is 5 & check out is noon.
The reception desk is open 24 hours and if you want to use the safe in your room you have to organize it via the reception desk.
The hotel offer self catering or half board stays.


- Whats Near By? -
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Golfing, Squash, Tennis, Volleyball, Horse Riding, Fishing
Lovely Beach
Sea Front shops & restaurants
Zoo in Fuengirola <- Recommend.
Sea Life Center
Water Parks
Shopping
Tivoli World (Amusement park) <- Rubbish!
Cable Cars to the top of the mountains the hotel looks over, with a donkey sanctuary on top and other small attractions. <- Recommend.

The hotel offer day trips to places such as Gibraltar & Morocco, Africa.
We did both these trips and they were amazing! I really recommend them.

The hotel is about 20-30 minutes from Malaga, and it between Torremolinos and Fuengirola.
The location of the hotel is fab, it is in walking distance of most things we only got a taxi for the Zoo & Tivoli world.

Out on the streets are people with scratch cards, ignore them!
My dad 'won' a prize, the lady offered us a free taxi to the zoo (as we were going there.) It actually took us to some place where they tried to make us buy a holiday home.
A man took over from the lady and he looked like David Dickinson, after a little while my mum told him he was full of Bull poo and we walked out.
So stay away from them!

- Overall -
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Overall I really enjoyed my stay at this hotel, on both occasions I came here the hotel was very clean. We didn't suffer from any noise at night, but because we had been so busy in the day we slept very well.
There is so much to do here and if it's not on-site there is a lot of things to do outside of the hotel.
The hotel also have brochers which tell you what is near by and the staff helped us out on what was good to do.
It has been a while since I have been here so this is based on 5 years ago!
The only disappointment of the hotel is the horrendous hill.

The Hotel is 4 stars and I would agree that it is a 4 star hotel.
You can find in on Expedia, but we booked our stay here through Frist Choice.
The website of the hotel for further info, pictures and prices is: http://www.benalmadenapalace.com/

I recommened the hotel, and give it 4*'s.

Summary: 4*'s