TUI BLUE Flamingo Beach

We have just returned from our family holiday at The Flamingo, and we had a fantastic time! The biggest reason for that was undoubtedly the entertainment team. They really made us feel welcome, went above and beyond to make everyone feel included, and played a huge part in making our holiday so memorable. A special mention has to go to Sunne, the team leader, who was absolutely exceptional. She brought so much energy, enthusiasm and personality to every event she hosted. You really noticed when Sunne was around – she has a fantastic presence and is a real credit to the team. Danny and Eric were also brilliant! Always happy, friendly and full of fun. They always made time for a chat, a laugh and a bit of banter, and really helped create such a lovely atmosphere throughout our stay. Lauren was fantastic too – a brilliant singer and a wonderful member of the entertainment team. Amelia was also great and helped make our holiday that extra bit special. Honestly, the whole entertainment team deserves a huge thank you. They are a real asset to The Flamingo and made such a difference to our family holiday. This was our second visit to The Flamingo, and the location of the resort is fantastic. Our room was just 80 steps from the beautiful sandy beach and 100 steps from the pool – you really couldn’t ask for much better! Of course, there are a few little things that could be improved, such as toilet door locks not always working and occasionally running short of cutlery when things get busy. The food was a bit of a mixed bag, with some good options and some not quite so good, but overall it was fair. That said, we felt it was really good value for money, and we would definitely consider returning. Thank you to Sunne, Danny, Eric, Lauren, Amelia and the entire entertainment team for making our family holiday such a memorable one. You really are the heart of The Flamingo!

This was our 3rd time at the hotel & although we had enjoyed ourselves on previous visits this time we really feel like the hotel needs a full renovation. The toilets around the pool areas were filthy, leaking & in a very poor state. There were no staff during the day to collect glasses or do a general clean up of plates & glasses or spills on the floor around the pool areas. The staff looked miserable & uninterested in all areas. Again the rooms could do with a make over and freshen up. They are a good size but again could do with a good freshen up. Location is great which is what we liked. Won’t be going back until these issues are resolved

So Lanzarote Rio Playa blanca (TUI) The deposit for towels and cups and buy water i was 35 euros down. The staff bar staff are so rude. Booked an experience and had to walk to the next hotel for pick up, was there 30mins early and was told that I will have to wait for the next bus, so we waited and buses turned up and we asked is this bus was for us, after about 6 buses I believe that our bus was not coming. 1 hour later I was told you will not get you money back and you can have a tui voucher to spend on another holiday. What the hell. We was going home the next day and I was down with another 80 euros. Done with this Tui you are no good and the hotel is no way a 4 star more like 1.

Flamingo Beach is well located. It's about a 15-minute walk into town. Where there are plenty of restaurants and shops. There is also the ferry port, which you can take to Fuerteventura. It takes approximately 25 minutes to get there. This was our second visit despite feeling (last year) that the rooms and certain areas of the complex were tired and in need of some attention. We thought that maybe TUI would invest in bringing the place up to a good standard (so as to continue bringing in lots of guests and preventing bad reviews). Sadly, this wasn't the case. We felt that the rooms and other things had just gotten worse! Last year we arrived late in the evening and were offered a cold buffet. We were pleasantly surprised by the amount of choice we had, but this year (arriving late again) it was very poor. There was only cheese, ham, a few rolls and some old salad. My husband went across to the bar and got a beer and a lemonade, only to be told by the security that he couldn't take them into the dining hall and that he had to have water!!! (despite the cups being plastic) The food last year, although not all of it to our liking (we are quite fussy), we managed to find something each day to eat, and for the most part it was fresh. (IE: the salad and fruit) This year we really struggled to find anything nice on quite a few days. They often ran out of things and (due to staff shortages, we think) very often there would be no plates, bowls or cutlery available. We would have to go and find someone to go and get new ones! And many times the salad and fruit would look as though it was past its best. Our room was very tired; the sofas were quite stained, the mirror was cracked, and instead of replacing it, they just stuck another smaller piece of mirror over part of the crack to try and disguise it. There was more silicone holding in our shower screen than you would use to seal 3 baths, the shower screen was filthy, and the kettle leaked (we did get it replaced) The cleaners this year were not as good as last year; they seemed to cut a lot of corners. We did speak to reception about it, and afterwards it seemed to improve a bit. The toilets at the poolside, both men's and ladies', need a lot of attention. Locks were broken. One toilet in both the men's and women's was out of order (and they were last year too??) And they constantly smell like the sewers. Also, the drains by the pool smelt like the sewers too. That was until a company came and cleaned them out, about a week before we were due to come home. The staff were all lovely, from the Receptionists, Guest Relations, Entertainment Team, most of the hospitality team and the lifeguards. Everyone helped make our holiday. The Entertainment team were all lovely. They really made us feel welcome and it was good fun playing the games with them each day. We would especially like to thank Sanne and Erik who we felt like we had good banter with. They really helped make our holiday. We definitely won't be returning (unless things drastically improve), but thank you for the memories, Flamingo Beach.

Mobility: I booked this hotel because it is supposed to be accessible. If this hotel is accessible, Scotland is a tropical Island! There are steep hills and ramps everywhere. And our room had eight steps to get into. No fun on an electric wheelchair. My wheelchair was damaged the very first evening when I was forced to drag me suitcase down a very steep hill. Food and Restaurant: The restaurant has all the appeal of a service station. The walls are bare and every noise is amplified which didn't make a nice atmosphere. The food was so bad that despite having All-Inclusive I ate there only three times. There were some nice salads, but the main dishes were barely warm. Not impressed. The Bar: I never visited the bar because of the lighting in the room. It was bathed in a neon blue light which gave me a headache. The Staff: Some of the staff was friendly, but the people working at reception were unhelpful and arrogant. On arrival the Rezeptionist almost shouted at me when I explained that the room was unsuitable due to the steps leading to the room. The Room: The room was nicely designed with plenty of space. The kitchenette was suitable to prepare a small meal. But the were a lot of flies, cockroaches and ants. The only upside to the hotel was the view from our terrace which was gorgeous. My Fazit: I WILL NOT BE BACK!!!! And if you or someone in your group has mobility issues I recommend you don't book this hotel.