Bahia Principe Explore Fantasia

Actually sat waiting for our pick up from the hotel and thought I'd write my review. This is our 6th visit to the hotel so we obviously love it. The food is a variety and definitely something for everyone and so happy to see they have brought the adult only section back to the buffet restaurant. We chose the Ladon steakhouse for our 2 visits as over the years it has definitely proven to be our favourite. The cleanliness of the hotel is amazing and the staff are faultless in every area. I only have 2 criticisms of this hotel..... 1) If you put your 'do not disturb' sign on the door because you don't want cleaners in that day then why do they just ignore it and enter your room anyway and when they've finished they take the sign off your door and put it inside you room again. We should have the personal choice of having nobody enter the room on days we choose. 2) Don't advertise a adult only pool unless you are going to have someone there to turn children away, we had numerous children in the pool because irresponsible parents just couldn't help themselves and ignored signs and the barman wasn't interested when we spoke to him. If children are allowed to enter the pool then there has to be a lifeguard. The signs definitely need to be bigger and the rules to be enforced.

Pros - [ ] Short transfer time - [ ] Great big rooms, the all inclusive band also being your key was so helpful - [ ] Hotel lovely and modern. Castle looks beautiful lit up at night - [ ] Pools massive and slides and splash pad great - [ ] Entertainment team brilliant. Really hard working. Something going on all day long for kids. - [ ] So much choice at breakfast - [ ] À la carte restaurants were nice - [ ] Bar staff very good, particularly in sports bar - [ ] Hotel well maintained by all the cleaning staff. - [ ] Liked that you could help yourself to drinks including beer sangria cokes juices in day - [ ] The dreams McDonald’s type bar very handy although service slow as such a big hotel Cons - [ ] Check in slow, not enough staff on reception for such a big hotel. Should offer a welcome drink when you arrive. It’s a nice touch that most nice hotels do. - [ ] Only get to see two shows a week (unless you paid for an extra one) although there was other music and bingo etc on offer. - [ ] Not enough lifts for such a big hotel where so many people have prams or mobility issues. Real pain having to get up and down to pools. - [ ] Hotel not close to anything. A gift shop opposite and that’s it really - [ ] Lunch and dinner very samey and got a bit boring. - [ ] Had an issue. Boyfriend told reception it was my 40th birthday. They said we would get cava, a cake and banner in room. We only got a banner. Slightly disappointing but never mind. He then paid £30 for a cake to be delivered that night at dinner. It never came so we went to reception to ask for a refund. The guy at reception said he couldn’t refund it and had to ask the manager who then had to get finance to approve it. He was apologetic. He said we could also have a free cake on the last night to make up for the disappointment. Went back next night to reception as still had no refund. They said it would come.Went back a third night as still no refund. Was starting to get really annoyed at the inconvenience. Finally got a refund on 4th night of asking. Then we went to check out.. and they tried to charge us 30 euros for the free cake that we had on last night. Just really poor customer service and annoyed us. Seems ridiculous that it couldn’t be and wasn’t rectified immediately in the first place. Reception should have the power to do that straight away instead of making customers come back and forth, spoiling their evenings. Overall would still recommend it for families and would return, just maybe needs better management at reception.

We've just returned from a family stay at Bahía Príncipe Fantasia in Golf del Sur. Overall it was a good holiday, but for a 5-star resort at the price we paid, it fell short in a lot of small ways that added up. The positives: Our room was lovely, and the maids did a great job keeping it spotless throughout our stay. The food was decent for an all-inclusive buffet, and the steak restaurant was a highlight where we found the service was excellent. The entertainment was very good, and the app was genuinely useful for finding your way around and checking what was on. Travelling with a baby, we appreciated the baby changing facilities and the fresh water machines on each floor are a great idea too. The hotel is close to the airport, but don't let that put you off; the plane noise really isn't bad at all, infact we enjoyed watching the planes land from our balcony. A special mention for the English-sounding gentleman on reception, who was extremely helpful whenever we needed anything. Where it fell short: The issue isn't really the facilities themselves, it's the way the place is run. There was no help with our luggage on arrival (which you'd expect free of charge in a 5* hotel), and nobody showed us around or explained where anything was. We only found things like the sports courts by chance. For a resort this size, a quick orientation would make a big difference - having said that there are maps but I just felt nothing was really explained to us. For somewhere marketed as child-friendly, there aren't many ramps or lifts between the main pool and the kids pool (which are on different levels). We couldn't find a way from the main pool to the kids' pool without having to carry the pram down steps or go a massive detour to take a lift. Service in the restaurants was inconsistent. Staff often seemed overrun in the outdoor areas, and getting a clean glass at breakfast, lunch or dinner was a constant struggle. Every table we sat at in the outdoor seating area of the main buffet wobbled, and we had dirty plates at the fast-food-style restaurant. It's also worth knowing that "all inclusive" doesn't include everything. Better WiFi, the coffee shop, and the games room/arcade all cost extra, only two theatre shows are free, and the spa and sauna are chargeable, again at other 5* all inclusives we have been to, this has all been included. Overall: We had a good time, but it felt more like a 4-star hotel than a 5-star in terms of the service. The standards simply aren't where they should be for the price, and we left a bit disappointed. With better organisation and attention to detail, this could easily be a great resort.

After a few days can already tell we’ll be booking to come back! Sooo much for kids & facilities/activities are brilliant!

Amazing! Staff incredible. Loved every moment