Villas Marinda

This was our first stay at this hotel. After reading the reviews, we upgraded to a Premium Room with a balcony and Balinese bed. Room: The room consisted of a bedroom with twin beds, a separate lounge with a sofa bed, and a bathroom with a shower. The hotel has clearly tried to modernise the rooms by covering many surfaces with beige vinyl, but unfortunately the finish isn’t particularly good in places. There was a small wardrobe in both the bedroom and the lounge, but there were no drawers in either room, so storage space was very limited and became frustrating during our stay. The lighting in the bedroom was also very poor, making it difficult to apply makeup. The twin beds were very comfortable, but the sofa bed in the lounge was extremely uncomfortable and really needs replacing. Because of its condition, the exposed metal frame also became quite hazardous. There was no door for the lounge and the curtains were not blackout, so light entered the room early in the morning. The bathroom was a good size, and the shower was perfectly adequate. Room facilities included a coffee machine, kettle, microwave and fridge. The balcony was huge—more like a rooftop terrace—with a Balinese bed, table and chairs. Unfortunately, it was incredibly hot during our stay, so we didn’t make much use of the space. Food: The restaurant was very good, and tables were cleared quickly. It was the usual buffet-style offering. At breakfast, I missed having made-to-order omelettes, but the gluten-free selection was excellent. My husband has a fish allergy and asked the chef if they could prepare him a fish-free paella. They happily did so, and it was absolutely delicious—there was enough to feed three people. We also ate lunch at the pool bar, which offered a good selection including Caesar salads, fries, hot dogs and fish fingers. The restaurant does get very busy, and at times it was difficult to find a table. Drinks: Avoid the cocktails—they’re made by a machine and are awful. There are water refill stations located around the hotel, which are very useful for topping up water bottles. We mainly drank Fanta Lemon, Coke, water and gin. Pool: We always managed to get a sunbed and umbrella by around 8:00 am, and there were usually plenty available. The only issue arose after one guest complained about not finding a sunbed at 10:00 am. Following this, the hotel started keeping the entire pool area closed until 09:00 am. We were told this was due to a change in the law, but as far as I’m aware, no such law has changed—it seemed to be a reaction to a single complaint, which in our opinion was untrue, there were always spare beds at that time. The pool area could also have been cleaner. At other hotels we’ve visited, the sunbeds and surrounding areas are hosed down each evening, but that didn’t appear to happen here. By the end of our stay, both the sunbeds and the flooring were looking quite grubby. One pool has a shallow end and reaches approximately 1.65metres deep, while the other is over 2 metres deep. There is also a small children’s pool. There are showers to use before entering the pool, but they weren’t working on several occasions during our stay. The pool toilet also needs attention—the door sticks badly and needs sanding so it closes properly. It wasn’t cleaned frequently enough, and the floor became quite unpleasant. The sunbeds are the standard blue plastic type and aren’t particularly comfortable. The hotel could perhaps consider offering upgraded loungers in a premium area—I would happily pay extra for this. Guests: This is an international hotel with guests from many different countries, including Germany, France, Spain and the UK. Just be aware that not everyone shares the same approach to queuing! Entertainment: During our stay, the football World Cup was being shown in the upstairs entertainment area. Although air conditioning units were installed, we were told they had broken down and remained out of action throughout our entire 12-night stay. The room became unbearably hot, and it’s hard to believe they couldn’t have been repaired or replaced sooner. The bar in this room was never opened, meaning you had to keep going downstairs to the outside bar for drinks. Staff: The staff were all lovely, friendly and hardworking. Unfortunately, there simply weren’t enough of them. There was often only one person working at the pool bar, resulting in long queues during busy periods. They all worked incredibly hard, but the hotel would definitely benefit from more staff in most areas, although reception always seemed to be well staffed. Gym: There is no air conditioning at all, just one stand alone fan. One running, step and rowing machine. Weights. One grubby floor mat. Location:
The hotel is in a good location, around a 6-minute walk to the harbour, where you’ll find a good selection of restaurants, bars and shops. The beach is approximately a 12-minute walk away, where sunbeds cost €21 for two beds and an umbrella. The hotel does need updating in several areas, they would be better to upgrade smaller areas well than larger areas poorly Remember this hotel is not 4 star and the above is our opinion only

Excellent, the staff is very friendly, we have spent some very pleasant days.

Just returned after our third consecutive stay at marinda- it is safe to say it now feels like home. The reason we went back is because we have a little one who is coming up for two, not only is there the feel good moments of the previous holidays, but you have to sit back and take stock of finances when arranging a holiday. I see loads of negativity in this group now, when in previous years I haven’t and this all comes down to the expectation of the guest. If you al a carte fine dining, or educational level kids clubs, no sight of a cockroach in what is one of the hottest periods of weather in the islands history- then you either need to adjust your expectation or drop some serious money- like £5,000 plus for 10 days on a different venue. You cannot hold Marinda to 5 star standards when it does not claim to be one. I will caveat this though. The room set up is ideal for us due to our family size and this was a major driver in planning our first trip- it saves you having to get two rooms if you are a family of 4 or 5 if kids are willing to share rooms or sofa beds. However I have had a look at prices for next year on tui website coming in nearer £6000 for 10 days. If that stays the same, I will not be returning as I now have a good feel for where the price point of the hotel sits. That for me is between £2600 to £3250/3500 for 10 nights. When we arrived we had a room that wasn’t in the location we wanted, I asked at reception if we could move and the very next day we were in a prime room- was it a perfect grand designs room- nope. Did I want it to be- nope. The room served a purpose, we slept there and we got ready there. The air con could have been better but it was not a deal breaker. The food was consistent and is there is always a wide selection for the whole period the dining hall is open, regardless whether you go at 7pm or 8.30pm. The dining hall was kept clean. The children’s and evening entertainment was great for our 2 year old, he is now a woogie disciple and has all the merchandise going. The entertainment crew also made him feel wanted and he was known as the baby dancer. This leaves a warm feeling, making me want to return. The onsite shop is now really competitive on pricing and is now cheaper than the town, so always have a look in there before walking to a supermarket. this year we noticed that the hotel has additional umbrellas to be borrowed for the beach and push chairs, loads of other stuff too, so if you need something just ask the front desk on the off chance. The thing that made this holiday for me this year was also the approachability of other guests. We put a post up for our daughter in this group because she wanted to make friends and other parents approached us. Our little boy met his first girlfriend olive and a little girl called Ivy created endless memories splashing her mum and dad, where we all sat for hours in the baby pool. - one comment on this, if your kids aren’t babies and you are at the resort now, if you see babies in the pool, don’t let your 6 year olds treat it as their own private plunge pool- be a parent and get them in the top pool- it really effects the ongoing confidence of babies when they are getting confident in the water to then get splashed or pushed by bigger kids. a holiday is what you make it, I would love to continue to return because you know exactly what you get- all those being overly critical, you get what you pay for, don’t spend ford money and expect a Mercedes experience and then be put out, so go and enjoy what you get for the price. the biggest let down for me this year was flight times. We arrived late at night and we left early in the morning, last year we had the full 10 days, so that is a bit of a shame, but again that is a tui issue not marinda.