Blaumar Hotel

Stayed here for 4 days in early May. Used hotel as a base for Port Aventura, so really just as a place to eat and sleep rather than as a hotel to spend time at. We brought our 3 children, aged 10, 7 and 5. We stayed in the building next to the hotel which contains the family rooms. Paid 675 euro (booked in Jan) for half board for the 4 nights which I considered to be an excellent bargain - 170 euro per night for 5 including breakfast and evening meal. Family rooms contained a double bedroom (2 beds pushed together) plus a large living area. Living room contained corner unit sofa which doubled as beds for 2 of the kids. 3rd bed was a pullout bed from underneath the sofa. Good blackout blinds in the room so the kids didn't wake up too early. There wasn't too much noise in the evenings so no trouble getting to sleep. Rooms were cleaned daily. There was air conditioning in both the bedroom and lounge area but we didn't need to use it as wasn't too warm. There is also a balcony with rack for drying swimsuits and towels. Food was excellent. Large buffet for both breakfast and dinner. Definitely something there for everybody although my wife is vegetarian so she had little to choose from (but wouldn't have been any different elsewhere). We arrived at different times and buffet seemed to be always topped up so no need to rush to get there first thing. We had one day of bad weather and the kids club was great to keep them occupied in the morning. There is also a games room with pool tables, air hockey, etc and also a room with various computer games open in the evening and seemed to be free of charge. Pool was cold and wasn't conducive to spending lots of time in it. It is also quite deep. There is also a kids pool but it is a bit out of sight from the other pool.

David Murray, Galway, Ireland
Family with Children 11 and Under

Have just returned from a week staying at the blau mar. I would not say there was anything terrible about the place, however if I had the choice again I would have stayed somewhere else. Good Points; Nice public areas, pool, spa area ( jacuzzi, sauna and turkish bath and gym). I was very impressed by the cleanliness. I was in our room one day when the maid came and she was very thourough. They also replenished our towels nearly every day. It had a great location right across from the beach and noise was a minimum. It was in the nicest part of salou, some areas were really built up and not so nice. Bad ponits; The food....ok I know when you go abroad you should expect to eat differently, which I love doing, but it was not great. If you are one to enjoy good food then you will be disappointed. Also 95% of the guests were european so we really kept ourselves to ourselves. I like meeting different people on hoilday however this was impossible as there were no english speaking guests. I hunted hotels in the beginning for ones with a spa. There was a price list of treatments on the reception desk however when I asked to book a massage I was told 'no'. That was it no explanation or advice. I was so disapointed as I really wanted a massage to relax. I would not say the rooms were 4 star. They were nice and clean and well equipted just not 4 star.

Jilly, Scotland
Young Couple (18-35)

Food excellent, in fact amazing, lovely clean dining room, absolutely spotless. Staff very helpful and friendly and very good looking(males that is).
Rooms also very clean, faultless ours overlooked the sea with a lovely balcony. Pool area also very clean even although the pool was too cold to go into.

Only thing that was rotten was the coffee, but it was also rotten everywhere else i went , so not the hotels fault.

Kids loved the disco plus the sangria was also lovely

Lorraine Wrisberg, Hamilton Scotland
Family with Children 11 and Under

Although I couldn't fault the cleanliness of the hotel or the helpfulness of reception staff, I didn't rate this hotel anywhere near other 4 star hotels I have stayed in.
We were in the Annexe building, and to be honest the whole building could do with a complete rennovation. The walls are so thin you can hear everything in neighbouring rooms, and people clunking around the corridors and on the stairs. The amount of storage for a family of four was also a complete joke.
Breakfast was chaos, and choice very limited, and food cold.
Although there were enough sunbeds, and the pool was clean and a good temperature, the sunbathing area was extremely small and crushed. Also, I didn't find it relaxing - just looking out into a concrete jungle of other hotels, most of which looked ready for demolition.
Finally, there were very few other British families around, so my kids found it hard to make friends due to the language barrier, especially as the entertainment officers also rarely spoke in English.
My adivce is if you are to stay here, don't plan to spend much time in or around the hotel.

Lorraine Kneebone, Edinburgh/Scotland
Family with Children 11 and Under

We had a fantastic three days at the Blau Mar thanks to the great people at Alpharooms and and the wonderful staff at this Hotel. We are frequent travellers and decided to take a long weekend break to celebrate our wedding anniversary. We had to wait a bit to check in due to an early arrival on Ryanair (taxis from Reus-Salou take 15 mins and cost 29 Euros), however when we did check into our room (3401) it was certainly worth the wait. Our 'room' actually had a hallway (always good sign!), two bedrooms, a spacious living area, a separate kitchen and a large balcony directly overlooking the sea. It was impeccably clean and well maintained. We have stayed at many 5* hotels and although the Blau Mar is a 4* we would rank the accomodation as one of the best we have ever had the pleasure of staying in. We received an excellent deal with alpharooms and felt the hotel description was very accurate. There was evening entertainment at the Hotel(we saw jiggly dancers swooning to samba beats and a man eating fire) and there is a bus stop very close by that will take travellers to Port Aventura for 1.20 euros every half an hour. The weather, although it was April enabled us to break into our shorts, and take the two minute stroll over to the sea. The staff at the hotel seemed to appreciate our broken Spanish and wrote us a lovely note wishing us all the best for our anniversary (plus half a bottle of complimetary cava to seal the deal). We will certainly be returning, but for now, next stop-Cuba....On the downside we had a bit of fun on Ryanair returning from Reus, when after a two hour delay they decided due to fog not to land at Stanstead but at Birmingham and then told us to make our own way back to Stanstead (at 2am)...because they would not be providing transport...bless them....

Laura Hodson, nottingham
Young Couple (18-35)

Very nice hotel located right by the beach but at the slightly quieter end of Salou, towards the marina.  Still within easy walking distance of the centre and the main area for bars, clubs and restaurants.  Buses to/from airport, Cambrils, Cap Salou, Barcelona, Tarragona, Port Aventura all pass by outside.  The railway station is 10 mins walk.  The staff are friendly, helpful and multi-lingual.  The rooms are 'apartment'style, ie. a large bedroom with kingsize bed, sliding doors to living & kitchen area (fridge, sink, electric hob, utensils etc.)  The sofa converts to two single beds.  Good sized bathroom with shower over bath.  Large balcony with table and chairs.  Everything very clean and well-maintained.  Public areas well designed and attractive.  Good sized pool, not heated so a bit painful if you go early in the season but the kids don't seem to mind!  Restaurant serves standard buffet food - not cordon bleu but it's OK.  Breakfast is buffet style and plentiful, wide selection, both hot and cold.  I'd advise choosing B & B and eating out in the evenings as there are many restuarants nearby but half board is good value.  Large bar, offers some entertainment in high season.  Games rooms for kids.  Internet access in lobby with computer games etc.  The hotel also has very good adapted rooms for wheelchair users, we stayed in one and it was one of the best I've experienced in a tourist style hotel.  The whole building is accessible with ramps.  Ideal for families seeking good standard accommodation, near all amenities, right by the lovely beach and transport links - it's especially if you need wheelchair accessible accommodation.

Dawn P, London
Family with teenagers 12+

Hotel was very clean and spacious. The reception staff were very polite and helpful in sorting out taxis and directions to various attractions. The food was excellent - with a wide variety of choice and plenty to go round. Very highly recommended!

Martyn Ward, Ipswich/England
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