Del Clos

We were very disappointed by various this hotel: The hotel images of newly refurbished rooms did not match the reality. Some rooms have been renovated but a large portion are in the old part of the hotel, with outdated and poor facilities - ours on the 4th floor had a strong drain smell, awful creaky beds, tatty damaged furniture, poor temperature management and a shower half hanging off the wall! We spoke to the area manager about this but he said head office tell him which room to put guests in and that we had booked a “non refurbished room”. We know there was no step in the booking process whatsoever that allowed us to choose between a refurbished and non refurbished room (with corresponding costs ) so we felt unfairly penalised here- paying a steep price for very poor rooms. On arrival we queued for 3 hours to get our ski equipment via the allocated shop (Nordic Sports). The set up for hire was very poorly managed by the Neilson rep who laughed off the situation while doing nothing to manage it properly. This experience was so far from the expected management of this process and a far cry from much cheaper branded holidays we have experienced. The ski shop was no where near equipped to deal with the 100s of customers. Our youngest son has ADHD and after two hours couldn’t cope with the queue and chaotic environment anymore. So we stayed with our eldest son to get kitted out and my husband and younger son had to return the next day to queue again! The shop was unapologetic and rude. Given the delay we also missed the hotel briefing, with staff oblivious to the fact many of the guests were still stuck in a queue to get equipment! Be aware of the quality of equipment too- My son’s helmet came apart after two days, revealing that it had been taped together under the plastic exterior , this was an upsetting discovery, again no apology offered by the shop/Neilson. The hotel description on the website mentions plenty of games to keep the children entertained. What isn’t mentioned is that aside from the pool table these are kept in a dark cold garage with poor lighting, next to a parked car. None of the machines worked properly and were clearly uncared for and not maintained. Our children were really disappointed by this- we traded the decision to have a hotel without a pool for this and it fell far far short of expectations / the hotel description. There were plenty of friendly hotel staff , however they seemed to spend a lot of time acting as if it’s them on holiday, rather than being focussed on guest comfort and meeting guest needs - On one day the terrace was open for afternoon tea which was lovely , but a large group of staff were together playing music and messing around as if was for them on holiday not us, drinking and laughing/taking photos together . Of course staff are allowed downtime and fun , but this felt very unprofessional and disrespectful. The holiday experience overall falls far short of what the Neilson brand pertains to offer.We have paid considerably more than we usually pay for our annual ski trip and it fell short of all those past, significantly cheaper trips. .

e had a lovely stay at the Hotel Del Clos and I can say for certain that we will be back. We travelled mid March with our 2 kids, 10mths and 6yrs. The 10mth old was booked into the crèche whilst the 6yr old was booked into Snow Busters and ski lessons, both were in all day 9am-5pm. Kids club - I was really anxious about leaving the kids, but I needn’t have worried, all staff in the kids club were amazing. The kids club rooms are all together but the differing ages are split into different rooms. There is a separate room in the baby room with cots that is also dark for naps etc. They have buggies (out n about) in the baby room as they get out regularly. We were kept updated regularly through a WhatsApp group chat, and had really clear information on collection at the end of the day. Snow Busters was so much fun. My daughter is quite shy and nervous but she loved it. They have a timetable of activities for the week. If we ever picked her up early to go for a ski together she made us take her back so she could do the activities with the other kids! You leave their skis and boots on arrival day with kids club. They then take them to ski lockers at the top of the gondola. This means they don’t have to walk there in their boots and carry everything which is a massive help! They then stayed there all week. The staff stay around the area whilst the children are having lessons. The instructors have their contact number and so if any child is upset they call the Neilson staff who can come and collect them. This is more of use for the younger kids but I found it good to know that there are friendly faces nearby. My daughter’s lesson only had 2 children in it. We met up with them one day and the instructor was so lovely. She moved up a group and had a British instructor and they seemed to keep the Neilson kids club kids together in lessons so they really got to know each other during the week. Baby room - there is a 24hr baby room to use. It has bottle warmers, sink, microwave etc for everyone to use whilst you’er there. You need to supply your own nappies and wipes, but there are spares there if you run out. Bedroom - we had a family room which had a double bed (two twins together so a super king size bed) , a separate area with bunk beds and the wardrobe and a bathroom. In photos and descriptions on the Neilson website it said the 2 areas could be split by a curtain but ours had a door so created 2 rooms which was great for when the kids went to bed before us. We seemed to be on a floor with other families around us so Neilson clearly think about where they place people. Couples and adults were no where to be seen on our floor! We had an older style room, it looks like they are slowly renovating the rooms, we poked our head into a new style room and it was lovely. Ours was absolutely fine for us. Food - the food was extensive and really good. Breakfast was porridge, full cooked breakfast, croissants, hams and cheeses etc. Afternoon tea was at 4.30pm daily in the bar, which consisted of cakes, biscuits, bread, tea and coffee. Dinner was a full buffet with plenty of choice. Allergens were clearly marked. The service was amazing, staff were walking around constantly making sure you were ok and clearing empty plates. There was high tea at 5 for the kids which you had to pre book by putting the kids’ names down on a form at reception by 12.30 each day. Then the main dinner was at 7. Hotel - the whole hotel is Neilson guests only, so you see familiar faces from the plane through to the transfer and hotel. The staff again are all lovely. The manager of the hotel is very visible and very conscious to ensure everyone receives good service. We saw him regularly eating dinner from the buffet and was often on and around reception to help with any questions. It looked like he had a great relationship with the Neilson staff. We had a lovely week and, budget allowing, we will be back next year.

Medium sized hotel in the relatively quiet winter resort of El Tarter in Andorra. The hotel is warm and welcoming. The refurbished rooms are very comfortable with pleasant alpine themed decoration, plenty of space and excellent modern bathrooms with a nice big shower. There's a pleasant bar with friendly (Neilson branded) staff and regular drinks offers. there's also quite a large lounge to chill in. One very slight negative is that the bar is not quite big enough for some of the events Neilson put on as they are very popular. However, it's no problem to spill over into the very comfortable lounge if necessary. The staff are all lovely and can't do enough for you. They are dressed in Neilson branded casual wear which takes a bit of getting used to but overall makes the experience more relaxed. Because they all seem to be Neilson staff they are happy to help out with any of the aspects of your holiday whether it's to do with the accommodation or the various Ski/Snowboard services Neilson offer which makes everything so simple! A programme of ski guiding is offered by Neilson which is a free service and runs each day during the week at different levels according to your skill/confidence level. On each guide there is a Neilson expert and a Grandvalira guide/instructor so you really are in good hands! Grandvalira is an enormous ski area so it's well worth trying this service out. The food is really good and plentiful. Watch out for the roast pork and the roast lamb! Amazing! There are always plenty of plant based options and tea/coffee/water etc is offered freely with meals with choices of dairy milk, soya, oat etc - just help yourself. As well and breakfast and dinner they offer afternoon tea in the bar which consists of cakes/cookies and fresh bread and preserves etc, tea coffee squash - again help yourself! For the kids there is a kids club nursery and all the children in the hotel seemed to be very happy! They even offer a separate high tea for the kids. All these extra meals etc are included so fill your boots! The hotel is about 350m from the nearest chair lift and there are lockers available in a hire shop right by the lift which makes life easier as the short climb back to the hotel after at the end of the day can be tough. The lockers are €8 per day at the hire shop. At the Gondola lockers are €23 per day. If you want to use the Gondola it's a bit further but you can ski/snowboard from the Chair to the Gondola if you need to. There are plenty of other hire shops. Neilson did arrange a locker for my party in the hire shop but there was a problem initially. But with some determination, James, our Neilson rep, did resolve this for us and we got a very nice apology for the hiccup. So all good - these problems happen and what matters is how it is resolved - in this case perfectly. I've skied in Andorra Grandvalira many times normally staying n Soldeu in most of the top hotels there. I think this has been the very best place I have stayed. Neilson have put together a complete package that works so well. El Tarter has enough to make it a pleasant resort with a few bars and restaurants. I'll definitely come back to this very hotel with Neilson if I can. They really have put together an excellent package. Thank you Neilson!