We went to Dunas in November, booked a couple of weeks before and got a good deal with a free child place with First Choice.
The transfer was a bit of a long wait which we were told was unusual, and we were last to be dropped off, but it was good to see all the other hotels en route - be careful where you pick! Our hotel seemed like one of the better ones.
Check in was fine, we were given a pool room, had to ask for a cot for our two year old and got very funny look from the maid who bought it but hey. The room wasnt great, the worst thing was it really stank of damp, the smell was so bad I kept waking up and was worried about my son staying in there. No hot water either. My bed was bad, springs had gone! First thing the next morning i went to reception and they offered me a change of room straight away - made me wonder if they are used to people asking to move? The other room was on a higher level with no walkway above it - it was a bit smaller but didnt smell, what a relief! Nicer bathroom, beds were fine. The good thing about the rooms is they have a seperate seating area with TV etc.
In November we found the pools were too cold, the kids pool was heated but tiny. We were very lucky with the weather, it was very hot. Met some people who said our side of the hotel was the better side.
We booked to go on the Swimming with Sealions experience via the internet before we left UK, its not the one at Aqualand, its run by a lovely lady called Tina - she has a pool in the mountains with two friendly sealions - we were taken there by Charlie who was brilliant, really funny guy- they even had a childseat for us, and under4's were free. Everyone gets in the pool with the sealions and they do tricks - like pull you round on a bodyboard - which they did with our two year old - the only thing was you couldnt actually swim with them which was a disappointment. We were asked not to use our own waterproof camera - you can buy photos of yourself but they seemed pricey. It cost 80 euros, was a good experience.
The food was reasonable - nothing amazing apart from the prawns, there was some Chinese food one night, and Italian another. Great selection of fruit, loads of cakes in the morning, icecream in evening. Service for drinks in the restaurant was bit poor, the staff outside seemed too busy and a bit grumpy at times. There were cats around but we didnt mind that, they are cared for by a charity. We were told we could only use the one restaurant by reception and the rep - there is an a la carte restarant on site but it is privately run.
Our son loved the mini-disco which was at half 8 nearly every night, he had great fun once he had worked out how to do the dances. There is a small playground there too with swings, slide, etc
There was a good shop at the other end of the site for drink, food, water etc.
By the way make sure you zip up your empty suitcases, we didnt and had two massive cockroaches running around in them when we came to pack, they were fast! Just chucked them outside.
The dunes are a good fifteen minutes walk away down an easy path by the hotel, loads of shops in Meloneras and restaurants by the beach - the Chinese buffet was good value - there are lovely more expensive ones further up the promenade.
After a couple of days we wanted to hire a car as the hotel felt a bit isolated, there wasnt much nearby, but we couldnt get one - the rep didnt have any available, nor did the company at the hotel - they said it was because they were changing the fleet but I heard hire companies have smaller fleets due to the recession. We should have booked it before we left home.
My partner tried to go kitesurfing but we couldnt find anywhere to do it, again should have booked it from home.
We all had a good time and i would consider going back, only thing is I would be worried about getting a dodgy room again, and would make sure we got a car. Some of the hotels in Meloneras looked lovely!!
- Dunas Suite Hotel
- Dunas Suite Hotel Maspalomas
- Hotel Dunas
- Dunas Hotel
