Hotel Caribe

We arrived at the hotel at 9pm and after a long que at reception due to shortage of staff as there was only 3 people in front of me I still question for 30 mins. We where given rooms as I had booked 3 rooms. The cards we were given didn’t work for the correct rooms but eventually we figured it out ourselves. The room I had been assigned was not even cleaned from the previous people and at this stage is 9.30 or later. When I called reception to look for a manager I was told there will be a cleaner up as soon as possible. I waited another 20 mins and called again to look for a manger and was told there is no manager there. We went to the pool the next day and was told we are not allowed to use the rubber ring in the pool as it was to big, I couldn’t believe it I was shocked the staff are so rude and the place is a rip off. I am still here but am going m look for a refund and move I wouldn’t advise anyone to book this place, I would advise anyone considering this place to avoid it like the plague

I’m going to get the negatives out of the way as there are a few but despite these we did actually have a lovely family holiday. I just hope this prepares others so they know what and not what to expect! We upgraded to Club San Juan at a cost. We were hoping for a blissful, quiet and private part of the hotel. I wouldn’t say it’s private as its opposite the main building of the hotel shielded by palms trees so you get all the noise at night. It is not quiet at all. The walls and floors are thin. None of the people staying in the Club San Juan block have any respect for other guests. We have been surrounded by extremely loud and noisy families who don’t care what time of night it is. They slam doors (including the staff) at 11pm and the kids yell and scream outside in the private pool until stupid o’clock. I understand the Spanish keep their children up a lot later than us Brits as that’s just the culture but our child is two years old so we have been in bed from 9pm. The worst night we have had is our last night when we needed to be up at 5am to leave for our flight home. So big thanks to those who stayed the same time and made it hell for us. There are no coffee or tea facilities in the room. No iron either. The Cleaning is inconsistent every day such as not enough towels replaced, floors not cleaned as you get sand everywhere (which can’t be helped.) We didn’t use the whirlpool bath as when I filled it and turned it on, the water was full of brown bits floating about. The bath robes aren’t worth using as they’re rough as can be. You only get two small complimentary bottles of water on arrival despite forking out over €800 extra to stay in this part of the hotel. We thought dinner was served in the exclusive restaurant but it’s not, only breakfast and evening nibbles. Our luggage couldn’t be collected the morning we left as we needed to be in the lobby by 6.30am and the receptionist told us that no one would be around to come and get them. We have three suitcases, two rucksacks, a buggy and a two year old. So she suggested we get them picked up the evening before and they’d store them for us. I asked what the latest time would be for this and she said 1am!! So, what she was telling me is that they do have staff to collect our bags up until 1am but no one is around at 6.30am. (?) Breakfast is pleasant as it’s a small and exclusive area. I just spent the time glaring at all the other families trying to work or who had been making the noises all night, every night. Don’t ask for a soft boiled egg. You will just be given an uncooked one. Have the Churros. They’re great! The hotel is absolutely full of school kids. We have had coach loads of them up all week. They are everywhere, in the lobby, the pools, the dining area, outside - everywhere! They’re noisy, loud, manic and disrespectful which really ruins the atmosphere of hotel if I’m honest but it’s clearly how they’re making money so it won’t ever stop. Despite the negatives, believe it or not we have had a very pleasant holiday. We have express passes staying at Club San Juan which means we could go on the big rides in Portaventura Park throughout our stay and skip the queues. This was super with a small child as it meant either my husband or I could go on them without having to wait around ages with our child. There is a little train that takes you to the park every 15 minutes but it actually takes less time to walk there but this is great for the kids and if you’ve been on your feet all day! There’s also a train that takes you into Salou which cost us €6 each and we spent the day on the beach for a change of scene. A bit touristy and full of Brits but it was okay. The Wellness centre with sauna, jacuzzi and indoor pool were included in our stay but we didn’t get a chance to use them. The food in the main buffet is fine. There is enough choice and most of it is really quite tasty. You’d have to be REALLY fussy to not like any of it! We can’t speak for the other restaurants in the hotel as sadly they were either shut most of the time or when we did reserve LaPiazza, a note was put through our door to say we could no longer dine there and moved us to the other restaurant! This wasn’t suitable for our two year old at all so we didn’t bother going and went to the buffet instead. Then we noticed it was because they put the school kids in there that evening! Cheers for that. The snack shack bit at the sandy pool is awful. Awful food that’s microwaved in plastic trays and the lady couldn’t understand a word we were saying which was really quite bad! Don’t eat there!! The pools are clean and fresh. Lifeguards are very hit and miss. Some are stricter than others as we often saw families with inflatables at times and then other times they were being whistled at. They’re also not very professional as there were two who kept smooching around the pools throughout our stay whilst they’re meant to be watching the pool! We were fortunate not to have any issues with them personally as we were well prepared before we went and knew the rules of what we weren’t allowed to have in the water eg. Floats and sunglasses. I purchased a hat for our child which has a toggle under the chin and it’s designed to get wet. I knew they wouldn’t mind this as it couldn’t fall off. There was no way I was letting our fair haired child swim in the blazing sun without a hat. This was also allowed in the water park (which is definitely worth a visit!!) Well what can I say to conclude this review? It really is a great family holiday as the parks are incredible, the food isn’t bad, the pools and grounds are beautiful and the majority of the staff are pleasant (especially the waiting staff who are extremely friendly.) It’s just the people who stay here who let it down. Very rude and disrespectful. Badly behaved children as well tearing about all over the place. The problem with Portaventura is that it’s for the locals really. Not holidaymakers. We would come back though. Maybe we will try one of the other hotels one year and request a top floor room so we can stomp about like a heard of elephants instead ;-) Get lots of sleep before you arrive as you won’t get much staying here!