Club Palia Maria Eugenia

Nothing the wrote home about

Overall this is a decent hotel however it’s nothing special. It was very clean, the rooms were kept very well and the communal areas were always clean and tidy. The room was a great size for two people. Lots of space to move around, the bed was massive and pretty comfortable. The aircon was good and there was a ceiling fan too. The bathroom was good, very clean. Shower had great pressure and shampoo was provided. I probably recommend bringing your own though. We really enjoyed using the balcony, although we didn’t have a pool side view it was nice to be able to sit outside in the evenings with a little privacy.

The staff are friendly and fairly helpful, there was always someone milling around the pool side to ask questions. The entertainment staff were very engaging and enthusiastic. I’d argue maybe too enthusiastic. We were a little shocked by the sheer amount of activities and entertainment being provided. I guess if you’re into that kind of thing or travelling with children it would be fun and entertaining. A lot of people seemed to enjoy throwing beanbags into a hole or partaking in a choreographed dance. However, travelling as a couple looking to chill out and relax on the sun loungers we found the constant dancing and games a little annoying.

The Wi-Fi was honestly crap. We struggled to connect and when connected it wasn’t much better than having no WiFi. On the positive side it was a nice opportunity for a digital detox. But if you’re relying on the WiFi in any shape or form - don’t.

The pool was great, it was pretty cold and very deep but great for swimming and mucking about. The lifeguards were there from morning until evening. The slides were good but only for 16 years or younger. There was the option of an adults only pool but that looked a bit naff and was a little walk from the bar area. There was always plenty of sun loungers - not sure whether this was due to the time of year. But we never struggled to get a space no matter what time of day. There was also plenty of umbrellas and tables readily available by the loungers.

If you aren’t a fan of the pool it’s only a 5 minute walk to a nice sandy beach. We enjoyed the ease of popping to the beach for a couple of hours and still being within very close proximity to the hotel.

Where do I start with the food… whilst this is advertised as an all inclusive the flavours certainly weren’t included. If you’re a fan of oil, salt and pork you’re in for a treat. The food was subpar at best, there was always plenty to choose from but nothing on your plate stood out as well cooked or deliciously flavoured. We found that a lot of the food was the same everyday. For example, the pork advertised as “show cooking” on the Mexican night would then be tomorrow’s dry pork in the sweet and sour dish on Asian night. This is not an issue, it good to know they’re not creating tons of food waste, but when it’s a bit dry freshly cooked you can imagine it’s not great day 2. After a couple of days the buffet novelty truly wears off and we were ready to eat elsewhere.

I would not recommend this all inclusive if you have a food allergies as there is a lot of cross contamination and nothing is particularly well signposted. What you could think is a chicken nugget might randomly be deep fried mystery meat.

There’s beer, wine and soft drinks available pretty much everywhere you go. Cocktails were available at the bar, HOWEVER - most of the cocktails were rank. They tasted like cleaning products and we struggled to even finish them they were that poor. Steer clear of the “blue lagoon”. We never had to queue long for drinks and the bar staff were quick. I can’t seem to find any real reason you would need to go ‘premium’ apart from the fact the bar stayed open until midnight rather than 11pm.

There are snacks provided at the bar and they’re pretty good to be fair. Burgers/hot dogs and chips etc. crepes in the afternoon. Can’t complain about that at all.

Entertainment was provided nightly starting at around 9pm. I would say most of the crowd were drawn in by the fact that it was the only location you could get a drink from. The entertainment itself was very cheese and pretty rubbish. If it wasn’t the same 4 people who’d spent all day providing pool side entertainment, it was some singer harping on at you for an hour and a bit.

So it’s not awful but it’s not great. I wouldn’t come back in a hurry but I enjoyed my time here.

Excellent staff clean rooms service excellent