Iberostar Las Dalias Hotel

We had a great time and here are a few tips for future guests.
ARRIVAL - When we arrived we were told we’d asked for a second floor room overlooking the pool - we hadn’t! But I was quite happy with the sound of it. We were then told we were downstairs?? What they don’t explain on arrival is that reception is actually on the THIRD floor even though your coach has just pulled up outside the hotel door! They don’t tell you about the fridge or safe hire on arrival. We hired a fridge for 22 euros for the 2 weeks which came full of soft drinks so it is well worth it as we stocked up with our own after. The safe is 12 euros per week plus a 5 euro deposit.
THE ROOM - We were in Room 225, which I was quite disappointed with when I saw it. It was quite small to fit in three beds. The extra bed had been put in with a foul brown blanket as the cover. The walls had dirty marks on them as did the bed covers ( looked like nail varnish on them.)The wardrobe was a nightmare if you like to take plenty of clothes on holiday with you. We always take our own hangers but you couldn’t just hang your clothes up on them as the rail has ten little metal circles that you have to hook the hangers through so everything was squashed up together. I was very disappointed as we’d stayed in an Iberostar 4* hotel in Tunisia 2 years ago which was beautiful and I had been expecting the same standard.
Three days after we arrived we got talking to two Scottish ladies who’d decided they didn’t like their room straightaway, it was 820 and they asked to be moved immediately. They were put in Room 828 which had an absolutely fantastic view right out to sea. I really, really wish I’d asked to move before we unpacked and got settled.
TOP TIP - If you don’t like your room on arrival, ask to be moved straight away as reception are very helpful.
Also, concerning the room, we had NINE cockroaches in the room in the first week. The first appeared crawling in the bathroom sink after the third day. I went up to reception who opened a cupboard full of cockroach sprays and gave me one. When I came back to the room one fell just past my head from the air vent just by the door. So from then on we were spraying the room every time we left to go to the pool and before we went to dinner of an evening. Of the nine we found four were alive and five were found dead under the beds, the spray was obviously working! I was on my second can by the time we left. The people next door to us in Room 226 had also had about ten cockroaches in their room in their two weeks. Strangely enough, after the first week we never saw anymore in the room and other British people we spoke to didn’t see any in their rooms but they were all on higher floors. We also saw cockroaches in our corridor, by the pool, in the reception bar and also in the ladies' toilets! The cockroaches and the shabbiness of the room were really the only two things that spoilt the holiday.
THE POOL - This hotel has one of the best arrangements for getting beds I have seen. Considering we had to go in the busiest two weeks of the year we got our sunbeds and umbrellas quite easily everyday. The hotel staff clean the pool and surrounding area every morning until about 8:45am and tape is put up around the various entry points to the pool until they have finished. So, nobody can put down their towels until the tapes are down. I would get up at 8.20am, go down at 8.40am, put the towels down then go back to the room to get the children up about 9.30am to go for breakfast. And no there weren’t hordes of people waiting for the tapes to come down so it was really easy to get the beds.
RESTAURANT - The breakfast and evening meals were absolutely delicious with so much choice. We were half-board and actually saw loads of people wrapping up pastries, fruit and making sandwiches to take out for lunch presumably! There is a sign up saying no food to be taken out but no one seemed to be bothered.
ENTERTAINMENT - There are two different areas for the evening entertainment, one is outside where the min-disco is held 8:00pm till 8.30pm and the other is a bar inside. The entertainment is very good with some good professional acts on but it doesn’t start till 10pm and is then finished about 10:50 - 11.00pm.The area outside does not have a raised stage area nor enough seats for everyone as lots of people would sit on the pool steps to watch it. You have to get your seats by 9:00pm inside and out to ensure you have a good view which means sitting around for an hour listening to some boring singer on a keyboard outside and nothing going on in the club inside. Saying that, my daughter, aged 10, loved the entertainment and would dash out of the dining room to ensure we had good seats. My son, aged 12, was not really into the entertainment but was quite happy playing pool and table-tennis with other lads of his age.
We took our own table-tennis bats set and left it by accident in the reception bar one night. Despite it having my son’s name on the cover it was never returned, so we lost our bats and balls. Also two pairs of my son’s sunglasses and my daughter’s goggles were never handed in, although she did get her handbag back that was left in the bar. So, take care of your possessions!
HAIR BRAIDING - If you have a young daughter she will see lots of other young girls with their hair plaited back at the front or even all over. This is done by the black, colourfully dressed ladies who stand by the beach. They will ask you for 30 euros to get it done. I paid 10 for the front half to be done, don’t pay anymore. I did have to take her back on the last day as quite a few of the tiny elastic bands they use had snapped so make sure you come away with quite a few extra bands. We had all her plaits redone on the last day, for another 10 euros and it is still all perfectly in place one week later. I think it is the luck of the draw how good the lady is that you actually get to do it. They will try and ask for another 5 euros when they finish for doing such a good job but don’t budge on your agreed price.
HAIRDRYERS - I had presumed there would be a hairdryer in the room as it’s a 4* hotel but there weren’t. When I went to reception to ask if I could hire one they have a cupboard full behind reception and will just give you one at no charge or deposit.
All in all we had a great holiday. This hotel just needs a paint job to brighten and freshen it up. Whilst we were there was actually quite a bit of painting going on so I think they realise they have lets parts of it run down a bit. It is in the Direct brochure next year as an all-inclusive so I if you get a decent room and the catering standard remains as high as it was you should have a good holiday.

Excellent variety of food for all ages, clean polite and friendly, staff couldn’t do enough for you. Hotel is out of this world. We arrived on a late flight in the early hours of morning and they put us out a buffet supper for when we got there.
An ideal holiday hotel will use again and look forward to it very soon. 10/10

The hotel was very clean and the staff were so friendly. The accommodation although basic was very good and comfy though if you had 4 in your party you might be a little cramped.
The food was very good and in the full fortnight that we spent there we did not have much of the same food. The evening meal had at least 20 different dishes to choose from and it was all very nice.
The hotel entertainment was superb and I cannot fault the entertainment team at all. They are all friendly and not pushy and are really good with both children and adults. I would well recommend this hotel to anybody.
The aqua park seemed a bit dated when we got there but the dolphin show was the best I have ever seen and was well worth the visit just for this. The jungle park that is advertised was excellent and we found it better than Loro Park and a lot closer and cheaper. It is not often that you have eagles and buzzards’ flying around you and it is such an amazing sight.
The medieval night again was excellent and though quite expensive was worth every penny and the Drifters brought back lots of memories.
When travelling around use the local Titsa bus. These are really cheap if you by a Bono card and are so easy to use. It only cost us 12 euros return for 3 of us to get to mount Tiede compared to 50 euros on an excursion. I can also recommend the Royal Delfin boat trip for 4 1/2 hours. The sight of dolphins and whales was awesome but beware if you get seasick do not go to the underwater viewing as it will hit you so quick. When buying excursion tickets shop around. There are plenty of touts who can be annoying but you can get some good bargains better than buying from the reps.

The staff were very friendly, the location was brilliant, the food was great. The accommodation was good and the rooms were cleaned once a day.
The entertainment was hilarious and even though the staff were making fools of themselves they kept their customers entertained.
They gave you at least two hours between the beginning of meals and the end, so you could go down early or later. The rep was nice and the visits to things out side of the hotel was great fun for my friends, our parents and myself.
There was a shopping centre just across the road, complete with a supermarket. The beaches were just down the road and the prices for holiday prezzies are great; really cheap.
Anyone looking for a great time and a good laugh should go to Iberostar Las Dalias
I would recommend it and I will be sure to go back