Hotel El Paso PortAventura

1 reader found this review helpful

I have just returned from the El Paso with my 2 adult children and my grandchildren which range in age from 5 months to 10 years. We had a fantastic time!
Even though the hotel is vast, I still felt that my grandchildren were safe to go to the restaurant or the snack bars and that is a major factor in a holiday for me.
The hotel is lovely and clean, the staff are really welcoming and nothing seemed to be too much trouble for them.The grounds and the pool area are clean and the food areas are too.
As for the food it was fabulous. There was so much to eat and if you didn't like what was on offer at the dining hall, the snacks at the Maya were fine.
We loved it that much we are going back again in June next year. Roll on 2012!!

1 reader found this review helpful

Just returned from El Paso, our second holiday here the first been in 2007. Upon check in we were given a room with two double beds, unfortunately with two boys aged 13 & 11 this just wasn't going to work so we were given a very large family room on the fith floor after having dragged 4 cases twice to the top floor. The room was very noisy as there was a train line at the front of the hotel and the beds were EXTREMELY uncomfortable like lying on the floor, the pillows were also very hard. The food, hotel & park are all fab, the park did open till 12pm up to the 30th August, we found the best time to go was 5pm when everyone was leaving as you didn't have to wait 2 hours to get on a ride and it was a little cooler. When we went in 07, we had no issues with noise or beds, perhaps because we were put in a room out of the main complex.

4 readers found this review helpful

Read the reviews and was looking forward to going, but a lot of things made this holiday a great disappointment.
1) The length of time it takes to get checked in, we waited 40 mins.
2) The rooms are NOT 4 star, they are basic and smell because the furniture is all wooden, even in the bathroom where it gets wet and stinks like pee!
3) If you get a connecting door in your room like we did the noise from next door can be unbearable. The door is so thin you can hear EVERYTHING.
4) The ground floor rooms have a communal terrace, so there is nowhere to hang your wet towels or swimwear, we dragged the chairs from the room out to hang things on, although you are asked not to.
5) The entertainment is total cack. It is set on a stage which is outside. The mini disco is aimed at French, German and Spanish kids, so mine didn't have a clue what was being said but liked the dancing. After that you have a play (in Spanish) we saw the same one 3 times in 10 days.
6) By far the worst thing is that the park does not open until midnight as stated in the brochure. It is only open until 8pm(until 18th July)which totally ruined the plans we had for lazy pool days and amazing park nights.
Please don't read this and think that I'm being picky, I just expect to get the standard that I paid for. There are good points too,
1) The food is really good, there is always something for everyone and we never experienced the queues that I read about in other reviews.
2) The staff at reception are very helpful with train times etc.
3) You must visit Barcelona, Valencia and Tarragona. All very near and very beautiful.
4) Don't pay 80 euro for a late checkout on your room because you can get a 20 minute slot in a courtesy room for free.
5) The pool is lovely and cleaned every day.
6) The park is fabby! Especially the Tatuki Splash, and the fast track passes were great.
If you are going to this hotel, then I hope my moans turn out to be just that. If not, then at least I tried to warn you.

7 readers found this review helpful

We have just returned from a week staying at the El Paso. Our first impressions were good, our room wasnt ready on arrival but a porter looked after our bags and we were given our cards to access portaventura if we wanted to, but we decided to sit by the pool for a couple of hours. The pool area is lovely, loads of available sun beds, huge pool and a kids pool with a pirate ship in which my kids thought was great.
Our room was in the main building on the 1st floor and although the room was quite small, we had a double bed and bunks in ours, it was very clean and decorated and furnished very well. We had our room cleaned each day.
We were disappointed when we were told we had to choose a time allocation for breakfast each day but all that was available was 8am each morning, a later breakfast time would have been nice. We had read reviews before we went saying about queues at the resturant but we didnt have to queue for any meals. The food wasnt great it was the same tasteless things every day and by the end of the week you never want to see another chip again. On a brighter note the puddings were divine.
The kids disco didnt start until 9 15 in the evenins which we found very late and as it was all in spanish my kids didnt enjoy it anyway but as our room overlooked the entertainment area there was never any hope of an early night.
On our 4th evening there the weather changed and we had quite a lot of rain and there was nothing to do with the kids in the hotel at all when the weather was bad.
We walked in to Salou several times and that is quite a trek from the hotel but it was a nice little town.
The best thing about the hotel is the unlimited access to portaventura and the caribe water park, they are both brilliant fun.
Overall we had a nice holiday the kids loved the parks and the el paso was an attractive clean hotel but we wouldnt return, i think the el paso is better for the spanish.
Also my son is 8 but he is quite short for his age, there isnt an awful lot for small children to go on at Portaventura which he was disappointed about.

1 reader found this review helpful

I have been to this hotel and resort twice already, so knew pretty much what to expect! Not a lot has changed the hotel is still cleaned from morning till night, its spotless-there is always someone on reception and they are helpful, the rep was contactable at all times.
The food buffet does have a good variety - basic but expectedly so, still plenty of choice - lots for kids, breakfast buffet leaves nothing uncovered literally something for everyone! Only downside is there can be queue's to be seated but go down pretty quick!
The Rooms are really nice and clean enough space for all and most have good views and are as quite as can be expected.
The theme park was as fab as ever, and also spotlessly clean - the shows are a must! Quite expensive for food / drinks though, would recommend gooing into Salou to buy your own from a supermarket-saves you a lot!
The downside was this time the waterpark wasnt open though - a massive disappointment as its very good, ots doesnt open till the 23rd May apparently - we wernt made aware of this which was a bit annoying but never the less, still enough to keep amused.
The Beach is lovely and Salou provides a nice walk with bars and shops!!
Excellent for families - we will be back (when water park is open though)

3 readers found this review helpful

We had high expectations for this holiday and we were not disappointed! Had a brilliant 1 week stay at the El Paso and will be returning next year.
I can't understand why this is the cheapest of the 3 hotels on site as it is situated in an excellent location, 5 mins walk from the park; even quicker if you catch the land train and off the beaten track unlike the Caribe Hotel surrounded by main roads.
Staff spoke excellent English (felt guilty that we as a nation don't speak more languages but I tried to speak the basics ) and were very helpful throughout our stay. The room was basic but cleaned daily with fresh towels provided. The buffet food was excellent with a great range. Try the coconut mousse, it is the business!
Worth doing this package simply for all the perks which alone would have cost £300+. We all got 2 fast track passes to the top 8 rides (which was good as our kids are 7 and 2 and couldn't do the big rides so we went Dragon Khan crazy!!), unlimited theme park entry, 1 day pass to the Caribe Water Park and access to the Beach Club.
Few elements at the Water Park that were a bit of a con. Loungers cost 4 euros to hire but there are deckchairs that are free. Big rubber rings cost 6 euros + 3 euros deposit and double rings cost 9 euros + 3 euros deposit. We were under the impression you needed a ring to do the big slides but this is not the case. Don't leave your rings unattended, they will be stolen though probably returned at some point as you need your receipt to claim your deposit back!
Beach Club is fantastic and the perfect opportunity for our kids to have a day at the beach and then unwind later in the pools. We just waited outside the hotel and sure enough a land train or small coach comes to collect you - simple.
Food and drink in the park is pretty pricey, average snack meal costs 9 euros with ice cream starting at 1.80euro. If you go before 1st Sept, stay to watch the amazing firework and light show in Mediterranea at 11.45pm!
Only gripes were that the kids entertainment started in the hotel at 9.15pm, bit late for little ones and that without wanting to generalise the Spanish tourists were incredibly rude, obviously never heard of queuing!

just returned after reading mostly possitive reports on the el paso. we were not disapointed. kids age 10 and 12 had a wonderful time. deffinatly worth going half board, as food was good and eating out can work out expensive. went first week in sept and would chhoose the same week again, as hotel was quieter, park did close at 8 tho, but to compensate, water park is free after sept 1st all in all had a great time.

2 readers found this review helpful

Returned from 1 week holiday. 2 adults and 2 children aged 7yrs. Had a fab time. Hotel lovely and our room was great. Double bed and bunk beds and was very clean. Bathroom was airy and quite large and we all had our own free toiletries bag. Pool was lovely and spacious but we had to face the usual - towels put over sun loungers the night before so it was a hit or miss whether you could actually get a sun bed if you went down to the pool after 11 am.
Meals were not too good. Breakfast was not worth the bother as the food was cold by the time you queued and got to your table. Evening dinner was okay but they did put on wonderful salads.
All in all, we would definately go back to PortAventura but fancy trying one of the other hotels within the complex.

1 reader found this review helpful

We have just returned from a weeks holiday on a bed and breakfast basis staying at the El Paso, weather was very hot and overall we did have a very good time.
Hotel and Room
Hotel and Room - Overall the Hotel was very nice, it was clean and the staff very friendly. The room was clean and tidy but as mentioned in quite a few reviews I found the noise level very high. You could hear everything in the next room mainly because of the adjoining doors! We also had people above us and you could hear them walk, talk and go to the loo. The extractor fans in the loos were also very load. There was also a lot of noise in the corridors with talking and doors banging. I had to use ear plugs and could still hear most of the noise. For this reason and this reason only I would not return to this hotel.
Food
We went on a bed and breakfast basis and wish we had gone half board as the food within Port Aventurer in general is expensive. A meal for 2 adults and 2 young children was around 60 euros plus drinks for the evening and around 40 euros for lunch. Total this up over a week and it's a lot. The actual standard of food was good and we soon found it a good idea to fill a bag each day with buns and fruit from the breakfast and save them for lunch or a snack later in the day. We also found that getting to breakfast by 8.30 each morning meant that we avoided the main rush of people.
Entertainment
Didn't really see any as it started very late and our 2 childen of 5 and 6 were in bed. The could do with something early for young children as 9.30 is too late.
The Parks - the theme part itself is great, if you love the big rides there are plenty. There are also plenty of rides for younger children. There are lots of shops (all selling much the same thing) and lots of places to get fast food. Again prices are quite high but this is probably the same as theme parks in the UK.
THE BEST BIT - The Beach Club - this was great, it was an exclusive club set on the side of a cliff overlooking the beach. 7 lovely swimming pools but nothing like your normal water park. This was lovely, quiet, with a spa feel to it. You don't need to take towles they give you lovely large soft towles, there are plenty of sun loungers.
We liked this because I don't think many people knew about it, so it was quiet. There are several infinity pools which made you feel that you could fall over the edge of the cliff, waterfalls, soft music, sand the lot. The best bit was the very last pool, set out like a lagoon with its sandy bottom and beach it didn't feel like a pool. Shady palm trees finished it off. If you wanted to you could take the 2 minute walk down the real beach which was lovely.
The beach club really made our holiday.
Overall we enjoyed our holiday but the noisy rooms really put us off so I would not go there again which is a shame because the whole package was very nice.
If you have already booked your holiday, don't panic, El Paso was very nice but just remember to take ear plugs and visit the beach club!

I think we must have gone to a different hotel from some of the other reviewers because we had a lovely time! The room was huge with a double bed and a bunk bed. Complimentary bathroom pack for our children ( ages 7 & 5). Rooms cleaned every day & polite staff. We thought before we arrived that the guests staying in the El Paso wouldn't be able to use the beach club, but we could and it was fantastic! The buffet was excellent and had a good selection, especially with fussy children who only wanted the desserts.
In reply to the reviewer who complained about the rain, what do you expect in May, it's not Lanzarote!
Because of the poor exchange rate, we were really glad to go half board as we didn't spend much money while we were there apart from toys and gifts.
The only disappointment was that the water jets weren't working on the Pirate Galleon and apparently won't be for the rest of the season.
All in all though, a brilliant holiday and would definately go back.