Porto Azzurro Holiday Complex Hotel

3 readers found this review helpful

I paid for a self catering apartment but when I entered our room it was a basic studio room. No kettle, no fridge, no oven hobs etc. When i went back to reception to explain i had been given the wrong room the receptionist simply said that there ere no self catering apartments left and that i would have to check with reception every day to see if one had become available! No apologies and sure enough none became available in the whole week we stayed. After two days of asking the receptionist how they expected me and my partner to prepare any meals they offered us a half board voucher for the remainder of our stay but still no apology!
The Hotel was quite dirty, missing tiles, cracked walls and had a rather disgusting smell hanging around every afternoon similar to rotten fish.
Maid service was daily which was good, always seating around the pool but thats it i'm afraid!
Malts itself is an amazing country so do visit here but just don't stay at this hotel!

3 readers found this review helpful

This was our first time in this part of Malta and it is so peaceful. The hotel is outwith the busy area of St. Pauls Bay, a 5 min bus ride or a 20 minute walk.
We found the hotel very clean and the staff very friendly and helpful.
While the lifts were small they worked and were clean. The shop was a bit overpriced but there is another shop just a two minute walk up the road where you can buy all you need for your stay. We were on a half board basis and found the food excellent, lots of choice and plenty of it. There was a bit of a lack of communication between staff when it came to room numbers and board basis, but it was sorted out by the very helpful receptionist.
The indoor pool area could do with modernising but the outdoor pool area is lovely, very clean and tidy. The hotel is in the process of being upgraded.
We enjoyed the hotel and the people of Malta so much that we have booked to return next year.

1 reader found this review helpful

I went on holiday with 5 of my family and i loved this place!
It's very friendly , my family know the people who work there which made it better.
People around the pool were very nice and i don't know why anyone wouldn't like this place!
It's not anything overly special but it was very good for us , we thought the rooms were really good , big enough for all 6 of us!
We are deffinatlely going there again , hopefully soon.

1 reader found this review helpful

Like many of the reviews I read before I traveled it gives 3stars one must be for having an indoorpool one for an outdoorpool and the other can only be for the weather.
I know people say you get what you pay for but this was like staying at pontins in the 1970s you can not fault the staff their at all they did go out of the way to help even if you did after wait 8 days to get a tv which it said in the brochure was in the room along with an iron which you had to leave a deposit for then return it when you have finished and best of all my tin opener broke on day1 which they will send a new one to my room I am now at home in Manchester and I am still waiting for it. The food was ok and cheap with big portions. You can not knock Malta the people was so nice and polite and it is a very nice place I always thought is was for the older generation I am 38 and loved Malta and was surprissed at how many young people was their, but to people interested in Malta definatley give it a go but maybe at an hotel with more than 3stars.

Having just spent a week at the Porto Azzurro Hotel, I can honestly say it does not deserve the title of 3*. But because my holiday was relatively cheap you do pay for what you get. The room was adequate but looking a bit tired. The food was reasonable but could have been better. It was interesting to see what we had for breakfast from the buffet and what people got when they paid for it, because the hotel also had a restaurant for paying guests. The facilities were ok and the little shop attached to the hotel was a little pricey. Nice indoor pool but jaccuzzi was freezing cold. Never got to see the outdoor pool because we had terrible weather that week. Saw the cleaner once that week and had towels changed once. The most enjoyable aspect of the holiday was the sight seeing. There is so much history with regards to the Knights of St John. As you leave the hotel go down the hill and across the road is the bus stop. Taking you to Valletta or Buggibba. A good idea is to get the 1/3/5 day passes if you are doing a lot of travelling. Buses are very frequent and an experience, especially on Maltese roads. If you want a delicious meal, then go up the hill in Xemxija and at the top are two restaurants which are family run. One a Chinese and the other Greek. Enjoy....

My husband and i stayed here for two weeks and i can honestly say this is the worst hotel we have stayed in. The write up we saw was a luxery hotel with comfortable rooms but that is not what we had, the bedspread was ripped, the curtains were hanging off, the hot plates didnt work properly and the bedside lampshades were stained. We were supposed to have a room with a balcony all we had was a shear drop looking onto a derelict building. We cannot complain though about the food in the restaurant or bar it was very good and the staff were friendly. This hotel is ok if you want cheap accomodation and stay out of it as much as possible. Malta itself is a lovely place to visit and i would go again but not to this hotel. I contacted the people i booked the hotel through along with photos but they didnt bother to reply.

We stayed here for our honeymoon and we were severely disappointed in the hotel, it didn’t destroy our honeymoon but it didn’t help.
We stayed there for two weeks, within the two weeks our towels were changed three times; our room was barely cleaned three times. We booked a room with a balcony but our room had no balcony, just a door. There was a rooster than crowed from 5am till 7pm every single day, every thirty seconds.
The breakfast was nice but the dinner was absolutely disgusting, most of the time we just sat out in the bar as the food we had already paid for was horrible.
The outdoor pool was rather run down; none of the jacuzzi's in the hotel worked and had green stuff in it. The flies were everywhere but that can’t be helped.
The final straw with the hotel was after we had ordered a bottle of wine, it didn’t come until we had finished our meal and it was horrible, didn’t even drink it, after we had gone to bed early we received a phone call saying we hadn’t paid for our wine. We thought it was to be added on to our room since they asked our room number, so I got out of my bed and paid for it. Two nights later we got a call saying we still hadn’t paid for our wine, I had to go down stairs and explained who I paid and the waitress apologized so I went back to my room - two hours later, another call, telling me we still hadn’t paid for our wine, so I had to go down and explain AGAIN!
No staff communication, very rude staff and the local kids messing with the pool tables.
I wouldn’t recommend this hotel to anyone; they focus more on time share customers.

We were moved to this hotel by the resident time share reps after we told them how dire our hotel in Bugibba was. The accomodation is divided into two - the normal hotel rooms and then two floors of time share apartments. Our room (time share) was of a reasonably high standard, certainly equal to 4*. I have no idea what the normal hotel rooms were like, but given the corridors on those floors were drab and in need of decoration, I was glad we were in the 'posh bit'. Our accomodation comprised of one bedroom, a bathroom with jacuzzi bath. The kitchen was fully equipped with fridge, cooker, microwave and there was a large flat screen TV with DVD player in the lounge area.
The in house store was well stocked, and as it was the only place to shop, prices were as you would expect, a little higher.
The receptionist was very helpful when asked to re-arrange our taxi to the airport (to be collected from our new hotel and not the previous one) - this was done with no fuss.
The food was a little disappointing and the waiting staff/bar staff left a lot to be desired - it was as if they just didn't want to be there. There was one however who worked her socks off and carried the rest of them.
The pool area was nice however the pool bar was a let down which is a shame as with a little effort could have been first class.
The area was fairly pretty but with only a few places to eat and drink in the evening. There is a regular bus service, although to go to the beaches don't leave it too late or all buses are full. Buses in Malta are definitely an experience but cheap. The last bus back from Bugibba is at 10.05 but turns up around 10.30ish!! We caught a taxi a few times which cost approx £12 each time.
We were told that this little resort is destined to have it's own man made beach within the next year or two and this would certainly encourage me to return. Would I return to this hotel - yes, but only to the time share accomodation.
Malta is a lovely island and its residents are friendly, helpful and extremely proud of their history and their 'special relationship' with the British.

If I had read the comments I would never have given this hotel a chance but after staying there found it mostly very different from what others have stated.
Rooms were good for the price. S/C apartments were enough normal rooms don't always have tea/coffee making facilities try the rest of Europe you will find it very similar.
Flies? Its a hot country you try keeping flies at bay.
The restaurant ok the staff are not brilliant but the chef is. The food is excellent at a more than reasonable cost and so is drink.
The beds were made daily and the towels changed daily.
The hotel was clean and the staff always friendly and helpful I guess they treat you as you treat them.
Never found any problem with the lifts they were all clean and well maintained.
The resort is going through a huge makeover floor by floor this includes all areas even the restaurant and if you take a look at the new apartments they are upgraded to an excellent 4 star so if you want a good cheap place to stay for now this is a good choice.
Local area has many restaurants take a look up the road not just nearby - 5mins walk you will find Pizzerias/ greek / chinese as well as bars and normal restaurants.
The negative reviews on here are harmful as the hotel does not deserve this and I'm very fussy but this was not bad.
The reference to Fawlty Towers was way off mark. This is Malta enjoy as is.

I was worried about the holiday I had booked after reading other comments, but was happy with the accommodation at first. If you look deep though you find a hotel that is past its best.
The room was very basic, no coffee making facilities or mini bar that could be used as a fridge, we stayed for 10 days and only had towels changed and room service twice, the towels were only changed on day 5 after I complained. There were quite a few people complaining about various aspects of their rooms.
The breakfast was buffet style and was adequate.
We ate in the restaurant once in the evening, my meal came 5 mins later than the other 3 ordered at the same time and was not what I ordered and was of a very poor standard, I did not eat it and sent it back, all 4 meals were of a very poor standard.
The outdoor pool area was ok, but yet again showed signs of being a little run down, the pool bar is a waste of time and is of poor quality, it could be a little gold mine.
The store that is located in the hotel is great, it is well stocked and the people are friendly and helpful.
The location of the hotel is a problem, there are only a handful of places to eat in Xemxija (pronounced Shim-she-a) and not much else, it does have good bus routes to St Pauls Bay and Bugibba and the rest of Malta but these don’t run too late 9pm ish and do get full, a 35 min walk from Bugibba might not suit all.
If you have already booked this hotel don’t worry too much, don’t expect too much and complain if you are not happy, I wont be going back to the Porto but will go back to Malta.