Occidental Jandia Mar

We have just returned from a week at this hotel and to be honest I’m finding it a difficult one to review but I know I won’t be returning. The hotel itself is good. We had a lovely spacious room with a shower over the bath which was lovely in a nice big clean bathroom also with bidet. Toiletries provided and replaced and clean towels every day if needed. Our double bed was actually 2 singles pushed together with separate bedding on but this wasn’t a problem. Nice sized balcony with 2 chairs, beautiful sea view, tv, fridge and safe (which was 18 Euro’s for the week). Lacking was any tea/coffee making facilities at all and only one bottle of water provided on arrival...any further water had to be paid for...apart from at meal times which I found strange for an all inclusive holiday. We were told we could hire a kettle for 20 Euro’s but there wasn’t one available until the middle of our holiday which didn’t bother me but my husband likes 3 cuppa’s before he leaves Home in the morning so this was an annoyance. The hotel is situated at the top of a very steep hill with the beach at the bottom. I prefer a hotel on the beach but I did know this when I booked so can’t complain. It was only a 10 minute walk but that hill was a bit of a killer on the way back. I am a little on the chubby side and in my late 40’s and my husband is 65 but we managed it without any issues but if you have health or mobility issues you might want to think twice. There is a free bus running there and back from the hotel 3 times a day but only at set times but also plenty of taxis for under 4 Euro’s. The weather wasn’t great while we were there-not too warm and extremely windy and when you’re not able to swim or lay by the pool without a big cardi on there wasn’t too much else going on. We were happy just to read and chill out but I can imagine younger people getting a bit stir crazy. Alcohol wasn’t bad. Bottles of cava to take to your table at breakfast and wine, lager and soft drinks on tap at lunch. Local spirits poured in massive quantities and a few decent cocktails in the menu. You could upgrade to all inclusive plus if you wanted more variety of drinks but we didn’t feel the need. Entertainment was sparse-an hour in the evening then quiet. And now for the main issue we had...the food. Now I understand that this was a cheap holiday and also a massive hotel so catering for that many people can’t be easy but still. Variety not an issue but quality and temperature of the food a big problem. We are not fussy eaters at all but we both had upset stomachs 2/3 days and by 3 days in I couldn’t face anything but bread and cheese. Meat was either undercooked or just completely tasteless. Pasta dishes would have been ok if not lukewarm which they always were. Fruit was either tinned or battered and bruised. Snack bar left rolls and bread out in the sun from 12-6 with flies climbing all over. I wasn’t expecting cordon bleu but this was pretty grim. The food Hall was like a massive noisy, canteen. You just went in, grabbed whatever you could that was edible and you hoped wouldn’t upset your stomach, ate and left. Not a relaxing dining experience and I was never as pleased as when I got to the airport and got a Burger King! (Which would not normally be my food of choice but it just tasted so fresh) The staff here worked so hard and were so friendly. It just seemed as though there weren’t enough of them to keep up with the quantity of guests. Other things to note-there’s a nice small gym free of charge but if you want to use the indoor pool or sauna it’s 10 Euro’s an hour. Also 10 Euro’s deposit for a pool towel with 2 Euro’s to exchange each time for a clean one.

We stayed here for a week from 30/05/18-06/06/18, a family of 8 inc 2 children. We arrived late at night due to a flight delay and after checking in, were given a map to locate our rooms. In the pitch dark, it would have been nice for someone to take us to our rooms, but we eventually found them! Lovely big rooms, even with the put up bed for the children in 2 of the rooms. My only gripe with the location of the rooms was we were on the ground floor and off the terrace was about a 30 foot drop onto the road below, with nothing to stop you going over. With 2 children, you can image we were on edge every time we went out to sit in the terrace as were constantly worried out the kids getting too close to the edge. They really should consider this when allocating rooms when hey know children will be in them. Other than this, rooms were fine, cleaned everyday with fresh towels if wanted. Pool areas are lovely with plenty of sun beds. The larger of the 2 pools was heated which was nice as although it was warm when we were there, the water was cold! Food was ok most nights. They do themed nights and a couple of the nights were not up to standard for a 4* hotel and food was not always that hot. Breakfast was always fine with plenty to choose from, from continental to a cooked breakfast. We didn’t use the restaurant for lunch as Just went to the snack bar, so can’t comment on that. Snack bar was nice, your usual pizza, burgers, chips, pasta, salad etc. Also had an area where you could make your own toasties. Plenty of ice cream for the kiddies! Evening entertainment was again not up to standard for a 4*. The indoor area for evening entertainment was tiny and you were lucky to get a seat. We ended up playing cards either outside near the bar or back in our rooms. Daytime entertainment was ok, your usual aqua fit, ball games, drinking games etc. The hotel is situated on the top of a VERY steep hill. I know other people have said ‘if you can walk, you can do the hill’ but jeeeeezzzz! I wasn’t even going to attempt it. My sister-in-law’s feet were slipping trying to walk up it, it’s that steep. However, reception will order you a taxi to take you down/up which only costs €2.60 each way and it is worth it!! All in all, for what we paid, it was a nice holiday. Hotel was generally ok, just a few improvements would make it fantastic. We would most probably return.

Loved the hotel and staff...great location and food was great and a really good selection of drinks. Had no problem finding sun beds at anytime of the day...didn't have to wait long for drinks. Pools were lovely and some good entertainment..you can see the animation team work really hard! Our room was very clean, staff were very polite. We didn't take our children but are planning to take our kids back there next year as we know they would love it! They have a park and what looked like a great kids club! They even have an area for the children to pick there own meals and little tables and chairs, there also a splash area for them and kids entertainment in the evenings. Hotel is only a short distance from the beach but ypu can get a bus that the hotel provides ...beach is beautiful and theres lovely walks and some great shops and restaurants..Would 100% recommend this hotel.