Occidental Grand Hotel

WOW!!! We have just returned from our 2 week stay at the Occidental Grand Hotel in Fuerteventura and we are thrilled!!!
The hotel is gorgeous, well maintained, and very clean. The staff are very friendly and helpful, nothing is too much trouble.
The food was excellent, and I have to say I am stunned at the people who critisise the choice available because they must be blind.
The choice of food availabe was excellent all fabulously fresh and seriously well presented!!! My advice to those who didn't like the food is stay at home and eat your egg and chips!
Would reccomend the hotel to friends and family alike, and am looking into staying at the Occidental for next years holiday in Mexico as we were so thrilled with our wonderful holiday.

1 reader found this review helpful

Came back yesterday from the Occidental Grand in Jandia and have scored this as 10/10, absolutely fantastic. Ours was a party of 15, a mixture of adults and children, the rooms are spacious and kept thoroughly clean, we are a family of 4, and our room was well big enough for all of us. Food is superb could not fault this at all, if you want english food like burgers, chips , beans, saus etc its all there for you and if you want spanish food or a more continental meal its all catered for. I was slightly worried before going after reading several reviews on the food, but how wrong they were it is really really good. Too much choice to describe whats on offer, but Breakfast , lunch and dinner very good, expect to put on 5 stone..!!! Pools are all really clean and child friendly, seperate kids club area if needed , temp of pool is a bit cool but no problem once you are in and swimming. Pool Bar is fantastic at dinner with BBQ every day, sardines, ribs, sausages, burgers(proper burgers!) paella, loads of different choices on baguettes, chips, salads, ice cream, yoghurts, pastries, as much beer, wine, sangria, spirits as you can drink when ever you want, or if you want you can go to buffet restaurant and explode..!! Choice of food at all meal times is brilliant. No queuing at bars at any time day or night time, entertainment is ok, nothing brilliant but can easily pass an hour at night watching it, didnt see too much cos we were with kids and played next to theatre building in the plaza bar at evenings amusing ourselves, but plenty to do for kids in the evening if you want to take them to disco at 8pm and games follow, usually stuff. Only went on the beach once because the wind wqas really strong on the day we chose to go and the sand was flying everywhere, but very clean and would be ok on a less windy day. Played football and volleyball on alternate days and tennis every day, footy and volleyball organised by staff and we kicked the Germans ar$e every day!! Good fun.! Overall you will not be disapointed with this hotel, all 15 of us would go again tomorrow, for the food and drink alone!!!

3 readers found this review helpful

I am going to give a 'Guide' to the Occidental Grand. But first i will run through.
First Choice..... Late flight by 2 hours, wasnt too bad, there seemed to be a lot of delayed flights at the airport at that time.
got to Fuerteventura, pretty easy to get to the bus, only had to walk straight out of baggage claim & then guided a little walk down to the coaches.
got on the coach, the hotel is about 1 hour & 15 minutes away.
Got there, check in took a while but that was because we were the last in the queue.
(By the way, if you go on first choice premier flight, the 'get your bags on first' seems to work so you can miss the queues but doesnt on collection on the other side (either way, inbound or outbound).
Got to the room, asked for a sea view when booking the holiday, thats exactly what we got. Room was really airy & spacious... Ask for the sea rooms in building 18, even the rep chris said we had a really nice room.
The only problem we had was that in the middle of the night i got up, the tap seemed to not work properly & brown then milky water came out. Went away after a while so was ok, dont drink that water anyway as they should tell you, only get it from the water points.
The maids do a really good job of cleaning the rooms everyday so we left them a tip when we left.
Anyways, once we got to our room & dropped our stuff of we were allowed to the buffet restaurant.... even at 1am (when we finished checking in & due to the late flight) which i was really pleased about as i was proper hungry.
I have to admit, food was only 'warm' but you have to consider that the restaurant shuts at 10 for normal guests so this was 3 hours left. Believe me this was the only time it was warm. DO NOT LISTEN TO THESE RUBBISH REVIEWS ABOUT THIS PLACE, they are being very picky about the smallest things.
I say this becuase the buffet restaurant was really good. Both me & my girlfriend thought it was the best fo the 3 we tried by far.
They have alot to choose from, I love my food so i didnt know what to choose, paella was probably most favoured by me over the whole week.
3 buffets, breakfast, lunch & dinner,
Breakfast, classic full english, pastries, cereals, allsorts so i cant see anyone complain about that.
Lunch, all different salads, fish dishes, meat dishes, desserts, too much over the week to really remember, i didnt get bored, lets put it that way.
Similar lunch to Dinner, dinner has a bit more to chose from.
Maybe the reason i liked it so much was because i am the sort of person that goes to a different country to eat different food, so am in my element. Never see the point of getting mcdonalds when you can get a nice paella.
One of the best thing i liked was the 'on tap' drinks.
white, rose & red wine, the rose has a spicy flavour & i liked it, red was good, didnt have the white as i dont really anyways. The all inclusive beer, tropical, is not too bad considering you can have is all day. is pleasant but us not carlsberg or budweiser.
we tried the mexican & the italian a la carte restaurants, no trouble booking a the reception during the designated hours.
Honest truth, buffet is alot better than both.
Mexican is good for a change but limited menus, is alot quieter that the buffet restaurant & get bottled wine (which i guess is the same as the on tap one anyway as its house wine).
Italian was the same, Pizza was nice though, but then you can get pizza in the buffet which is really nice too.
Anyways, away from the food, the pool.
The pool is massive. It can be cold but then you have to realise that when its really windy its going to be cold. In the clear blue sky with no wind it was really nice.
What i think the reason for the no heated pool though is, as you will see, the hotel appears to have an environmentally friendly theme about it where they dont waste water & have electric cards by the room doors that turns the whole room off, so you think of the energy to heat a pool that size & you wont moan.
The beach in right next to the hotel, you have to go ddown some steps but mind the large pebbles, i cut my foot twice. Beaches are amazing, turquoise sea, so nice,.
Watch out when its really windy like our fist day because the sand can actually come at you so fast that it feels like you are being shot by tiny bullets & really hurts. It made us turn back.
That was only once though & that was apparently a really really windy day.
Walking up the beach to wards Jandia (yan-dee-a) & you can see the tiny chipmunks which like apples (thats what we found out) they come up to you & eat off your hands).
On thing with walking down there.....watch out for the exhibitioning nudies. They love to point there bits at a crowd, I dnt have a problem with it but when theres a guy who sees you, he stands up with his book (the sun had gone in too so know he wasnt looking to tan that bit) & starts reading, all the while following your direction as you as you walk past. Get used to it but it can be a bit much. Male genatalia flinging around as they play football.
Jandia is about 1 hour 30 minutes walk, or apparently 4 minutes by bus which is just outside the hotel. (We dont mind walking)
Morro Jable which is a little on from Jandia does really nice seafood.
DO NOT BUY electronics from any place in jandia, which you should probably be told but just letting you know. Apparently its fake stuff & alot of people ahve been ripped off by these guys.
We did 3 day trips,
Lazy days on the Catamaran, Oasis Park Safari & Lanzarote excursion.
The catamaran was really good. You go down to morro jable port, get on this catamaran, which is pretty big & we didnt have many with our group. You get to sit in these trampoline hamocks & just ly there, wit all inclusive drinks from the bar. They take you out for about an hour then you stop off somewhere in the sea for a break.
They get the jet ski out which was fun (you only get to go on the back while some guys drives it but i havent been on one so was still cool), you can go snorkelling or as we did, swimming out in the sea. they do say 'fishing' but i got fooled, its not fishing, the have crablines, some people did catch little fish (i think one was a wrasse of some sort) but if you want to do proper fishing do the deep sea fishing which is alot more though.
then you get some lunch which was the fuerteventura classic, salted potatoes with the mojo sauce....... I LOVED THAT STUFF, have it so much & really nice with bread.
I like hot food though..... but it wasnt that hot.
After din dins they take you back for another hour or so then you get back to the port & go back home. Do recommend that.
Oasis park,
Did the camel ride which is wierd, pretty cool though, was pretty much hanging off a cliff face by this camel, 5 foot from the floor on normal ground.
The park is pretty mad, got loads of mad animals, my girlfriend loves animals so loved it, i was pretty impressed, especially by the birds of prey which flew an inch by my head. I liked them as a child. Again, lunch was included which was a buffet with paella, pasta, battered fish, meatballs, salads. That paella was the best i had on this trip though.
Lanzarote was really interested inspite of the 5:30am pick up. Its a tour on a coach through the volcanic part of lanzarote, through lava fields & stuff. At first we went to the highest peak on the island which is again pretty mad as you are in a coach with only a wall that is a few feet high between you & the cliff face, its worst going down but i like that sort of stuff. Then we went to a volcanic tunnel that resembles something you would have seen in the film the goonies or tomb raider. Its pretty impressive.
then you go for lunch, which was 7 euros, again, buffet, similar to the oasis park one.
Then we went to the national park which is miles of lava fields & volcanos & craters, but first you go to the devils restaurant which is built on the summit of a volcano & they cook food from the heat of the volcano like a barbeque. They do little demonstrations, one where they put a bush in this little hole & it catches alight properly. The gezers good to, made everyone jump.
You cant describe the lava fields on the park, they are mental.
Lastly you go to the wine making place & sample a little bit of wine, the dry white was nice.
then you make you way home.
Im getting tired of typing but have covered alot.
as a whole, this place doesnt deserve anything less than a 7. Its no ways a 5, its not bad.
We liked it & didnt wat to come home.

I don't usually leave reviews but it seems a shame that people who have enjoyed their holiday seldom do and only dissapointed people do.
I stayed at the Occidental Grand from 23rd to 30th april with my wife and we thought it was great.
The whole place is immaculate, from the rooms to reception, the grounds and the restuarants. The food is excellent and varied, the choice of alternative restuarants is great and a real bonus.
The staff are very helpful and friendly.
I have to agree with another reviewer that the entertainment was poor but that for us wasn't an issue.
One minor point, the lobby bar closes at 10pm, which was a shame as the music in the plaza bar, although very good, made conversation difficult and to be able to be peaceful in the lobby bar would have been good.
The grounds and open circulation areas are spacious and well lit at night and very nice to have a walk in the evening.
The island can be windy so be prepared for occasional strong winds in the evening.
The only reason for a 9 not a 10 is the entertainment, apart from that we couldn't fault it, we liked it so much we are returning in October with our children.

We stayed from 2nd - 16th April with my children aged 13 and 10.
After reading all the negative reviews, we went with an open mind, having got a good price with First Choice.
Transfer/Check-in
The transfer was about an hour and we had no other drop-offs. Check-in was quick and efficient. I had emailed ahead a request for Block 11 or 12 on the top floor with a pool or ocean view (based on advice received from this site). We didn’t get this, but our room was fine overlooking the Mini Club pool. The Reception staff were extremely helpful, and I don’t doubt that had we asked, we could have moved.
Room
We were all in one room which was very spacious and kept very clean by the maids. We had 2 large single beds and 2 camp beds in the room and still had plenty of room to move about. I have to say the camp beds had seen better days though.
The safe in the room was free and it played up a couple of times and was fixed within 10 minutes. Our patio door was also not closing properly – we reported it one evening and by the time we were back in the room, was fixed, so no complaints there.
Food & Drink
We thought the buffet food was very good - a lot of choice. We ate in the Italian and Mexican restaurant once, but didn't think it was anything special. We decided to skip the Chinese as we thought the buffet was better.
We ate in the buffet during the day, although there were pastries, bagettes, hot dogs, chips and hamburgers around the pool, as well as salad if that’s what you liked. Strange thing though – they cook the burgers, wait for them to go cold and then serve them at lunchtime. You have to heat them up again under the grill!
We never queued for a drink at all and the staff in the restaurants were quick to clear the plates away, when finished. As others have said, the crockery could do with being replaced – some plates were dirty or chipped, but probably due to a poor quality dishwasher! We just looked for another plate.
Entertainment
We just went to relax, but my kids had a wonderful time. I never saw my 10 year old during the day much, as he was off with the many friends he’d made doing shooting, basketball, water polo etc., We sat in the Plaza Bar in the evenings, so didn’t see any shows, but the kids enjoyed them.
Pool
All the pools were good – very quiet around the unheated ones, which was nice and relaxing. We generally sat by the Pool Bar as that is where the kids tend to hang out as that pool is heated.
Oasis Park
We went to Oasis Park as we were told this was a good day out, and indeed it was. The buffet there was good too and I believe they are getting more animals arriving for the summer.
Summary
We had a great time and were glad we hadn’t listened to the poor reviews. There were a few things we felt they could improve on, but nothing that would stop us returning for the right price.

1 reader found this review helpful

When i booked my holiday i was told that the hotel would cater for my needs and when i arrived there they did not help me out one bit.
I suffer from celiac diesase witch is a eating disorder and i had to come home 3 days in to the holiday so i did not like the place at all.
I tryed speaking to the rep Andy but he was no use to anyone all he was intrested in was getting people to spend money on trips and stuff.
i would just like to register this incase someone in my case has the same illness not to fall for them telling you that they will cater for you as they dont.
And its not them its wasting the money it us that are lossing out

My partner, son (3) and myself thoroughly enjoyed our stay here.
The weather was fabulous and the hotel was great.
The staff were helpful when we asked them; this included giving us bottles of milk for our little one aswell as plasters by the pool from the lifeguard!
The food was varied enough for one week, and we had no problems at all with it. The quality was good and there was plenty of everything including fruit and salads.
The evening entertainment for the children was good and away from the hotel which meant holidaymakers without children weren't too bothered by it.
The beach was a little too far away, but there was enough around the hotel to stay by the pools.
All in all, for what we paid we could not have asked for more. I feel the people complaining on this site are asking for far too much for what they paid.
Anyone heading out there - we are jealous! You'll have a great time.

After reading the reviews we were not looking forward to this holiday but decided to go with an open mind!!
When we arrived the staff were very helpfull we asked to be close to all amenities due to my disability and they made sure we were...
The grounds are amazing with the most spectacular views we have ever seen and every where is kept clean and tidy...
The rooms are very spacious and comfortable and very clean, towels changed regular, and as for the bed dont worry girls if you have a barny with the hubby there is still bags of room to sleep with out having to be near each other haha...
The food is hot and tasty with great choice thats if you are willing to try different foods but if your a burger and chips type of person don't worry they have these in the pool bar along with other foods, ie rolls, salad bbq ( just be carefull though as sometimes the meat is not cooked properly so just check it first, especially the burgers and hot dogs...
My husband sepecially liked the help yourself bar in the pool bar and buffet resturant larger on tap when ever you want it just help yourself..
Our only complaint is the entertainment... dont know if it is just that we were out of season but the entertaiment (well lack of it ) that lets this place down there is not much to do during the day and the evening in the plaza bar they have a singer that sings the same songs night after night... so this is our reason for only 8/10 just because of the entertainment, they did have a good group in the theatre but they were only on for an hour and you had to keep going outside to the plaza bar for the drinks.
Apart from that we had a brill holiday that was relaxing had loads to eat and drink and nice but windy weather what more can you ask for...
Therefore ignore the bad reviews just go with an open mind enjoy yourself after all a holiday is what you make it.....

Our first impressions of this hotel were good, we were checked in and the hotel delivered our luggage to our rooms. Rooms are spacious and airy. The only downside really was there were no tea/coffee facilities in our room.
The grounds are lovely and really well kept, everything was very clean.
To be honest our only downside really was the food, in the buffet lounge by the end of our week the food was very repetative and mainly catered for German guests.
The club for the children was excellent and our kids loved it.
The pools are lovely but its a shame that only one is heated, there is 2 childrens pool but too cold to use.
Its a shame that its really catered and geared towards the german guests and they are so rude, we encountered some very rude people who assumed we cant talk german - we can!
On a couple of days we got a taxi down to Jandia town - it was only about 5 Euros but dont expect the taxi drivers to be welcoming - they too are rude. Beware of some of the local traders selling counterfeit electronic goods - we were duped into buying what we thought was an Apple Ipod Nano only to discover it was not real - took it back and after many threats he did change it for us! So beware they enjoy their pressure sales - but stand your ground and barter. They dont like you to leave without something!
Over all we really enjoyed it and our rep Craig was excellent! :-)

I stayed at the Occidental Grand Fuerteventura from 5-12th December 07 and travelled with First Choice.
First impressions:
On arrival at the hotel we were greeted by the reception staff who were more than helpful, filling us in on the hotel grounds. As we had arrived at around 9.30pm, they had extended the opening hours of the buffet so warm food was available for us. Our bags were taken to our rooms while we went and ate.
Hotel:
The hotel grounds are spacious and well landscaped. There are numerous pools so they are never full, as well as a dedicated kid’s pool with lifeguard, and adult pool which is nice and quiet. In December, the pools were too cold for me to swim in, but the kids didn’t seem to mind! Sun beds are plentiful around the hotel, but none are found on the beach which is nice. “Cat Café’s” are found around the grounds as a sheltered areas for cats to eat and drink, meaning there are a few nicely healthy looking cats around, but they are shy and don’t really like to be stroked and do not come scavenging for food as they are very contended! Try and remember to check their bowls are full.
Our room was very spacious with a lovely large bathroom as well. Sky TV was available but with very limited English speaking channels. Maid service was daily and never woke us up as in some hotels. My only niggle is that the shower should have been more powerful. As a lady washing my hair, I had to spend longer in there to get it wet!
Food:
There are 5 ‘free’ restaurants for normal all-in guests. Italian, Chinese, Mexican, buffet & pool bar. I have to say, our big let down with this holiday was the food. It seemed to cater for the German guests (who were the majority) in that the food was a little bland. In the buffet, although the choice appears to be huge there is little change in food and little meat provided for non-fish eating guests (usually only 1 choice of other meat a day). I’m not a particularly picky eater, but I didn’t look forward to meal times. One tip I would suggest is to try the Mojo sauce though! It comes in green and red and is famous in the canaries. It is just fab on potatoes! I looked forward to going to the themed restaurants on our stay as I thought these would be a lovely change.
However, I was almost always wrong. All these restaurants are also self-serve, which is not normally the case in themed restaurants of this calibre. It didn’t make for a special evening. The food here too left a lot to be desired. The Chinese was OK, but a very small menu available for main course, although the food was tasty. In the Italian, I don’t think there was a clove of garlic to be seen! Re-heated spaghetti was the main serving… We ate at the Mexican restaurant at the end of our stay and had feedback from other guests to only have the steak, as everything else was just “so-so”. We definitely made the right choice!
This was the best meal of the holiday! We ordered 2 steaks, and these were brought to us as raw cuts of meat (good quality) and were brought a stone straight out of the oven to cook them on, to our own tastes. Fantastic! The pool bar served a few nibbles if anyone missed breakfast, and also did lovely baguettes and cakes thereafter. For me, food can make a holiday, so if this is the case with you, perhaps you should look at another hotel.
Staff:
Like many of the other reviewers, I noticed that the bar staff were quite rude. They didn’t make conversation or speak much at all. Sometimes they would second-guess your order without hearing you speak and generally just looked grumpy. However, if you can ignore this, as we did, then it’s fine. Drinks were kept flowing, although there was usually a good wait at the bar to be served.
Beach:
The beach is lovely. It’s a long narrow strip of soft sand. Take a towel, as there are no sunbeds on offer. However, there are u-shaped rock walls which nudists can chose the bath behind without too many prying eyes. It’s not great for snorkelling as there’s not a lot out there, and the sea at this time of year is cold!
Jandia Town:
Just about 15 mins ride on the bus that stops outside the hotel and costs 1 Euro. You get off when you see the lighthouse and shops. There is a nice stretch of cafes, restaurants, and shops and the bus runs every ½ hour. Electric items are cheap, but be very careful where they shop keepers put the decimal place! Also, make sure you are getting all the added extras you get at home, as they have a habit of leaving these out!
First Choice:
First Choice, as always, were excellent! I have travelled with them many times and never found a fault with them. Due to the ‘calibre’ of hotel we were staying at, and because we flew out of East Midlands, we were automatically upgraded to Premier Class. We have more seat and foot room, free drinks and had priority baggage. We paid a last minute price for the holiday which was very good indeed.
All is all I did enjoy my stay at this hotel although I would class it as 3*+ as food and staff let it down greatly. I am glad we only spent a week, as the food would have driven me crazy much longer!