Flamboyant Hotel

We have just returned from 2 weeks at the Flamboyant and had an excellent time there. Don't normally go for all-inclusive as they tend to be in the middler of nowhere. But the Flamboyant was in Playa del Agua, which is Margarita's main resort. We are a couple aged 39 and 33. Resort - if you come out of the hotel and cross the road, there is the beach. The hotel has a beach bar with free drinks and sun loungers. No food there though - that is all served at the hotel. There are lots of beach sellers with hats, sunglasses, carvings, pearls, bikinis etc. They don't really hassle you though and don't forget to barter with them. The beach is proper sand, but be careful in the sea. It is very rough with an under current. There are quite a few shops, small resturants and a market very near to the hotel. We ate at the restaurant next door to the Flamboyant beach bar one night. The food was very good and cost only about £7 a head. Hotel - check in was very quick (5 minutes). The rooms were really spacious with double beds and all new furniture. We didn't get any toiletries though, only soap. There is 1 pool which generally wasn't too crowded, except that people reserve sunbeds and then go to the beach! The staff should take the towels off the empty beds. When you 1st arrive you can pay $10 deposit per towel. You get a card which you give in for a fresh towel every day and then get your $10 back at the end of the holiday. Other guests - The hotel is mainly full of South Americans, a few dutch and Germans and there were 7 of us English there. Food - There was plenty of choice and the food was continuously filled up at mealtimes. There is also a restaurant which you can book for 2 nights. The food was much better than we expected. We met people who were staying at the Costa Caribe and they said that their buffet was empty by 6.30pm. Lots of people at our hotel had at least 1 day with a dodgy stomach but nothing too bad. Drinks - There is always at least 1 bar open with free beer, soft drinks, spirits and cocktails. Wine is available at mealtimes, which is till 10pm at night. First Choice rep - Our rep was Julie Hancock and she was excellent. Always there with a friendly smile and couldn't do enough for you. Although, at the reps meeting, she put the fear of God in us about leaving the hotel! There are a few shady characters outside. Just be careful and don't change money on the street, especially in Porlamor. Money - It is best to take US dollars with you ($50 and $100 notes are best). The official rate is 2150 bolivars to the dollar but we could get 3500 from Happy Hills ( a bright orange small agents just to the right of the hotel). They also change dollar travellers cheques but I think you could only get 3050 to the $. Still better than official rate though. Trips out - We went on the 2 day trip to Angel falls with First Choice. It costs 1 million bolivars each, which with the rate we were getting works out at about £160 each. You fly on a 12-seater plane over to the mainland. The 1st day is spent on a river boat looking for birds, monkeys and crocodiles and piranha fishing. You stay in a small camp over-night - in small chalets with en-suite. Most people really enjoyed this day, but we preferred the 2nd day. You fly over Angel Falls and then on to Canaima National Park for lunch and to walk behind El Sapo waterfall. We also went to Juan Griego one night for a meal and to see the sunset. This is a nice little town for shopping and a change of scene. You can arrange with the taxi driver who brings you a time for him to come back for you. We went to Porlamor shopping one night, but I didn't think it was very safe there. There is a huge new shopping centre though, but nothing different from the one's at home. Golf - There is a golf course next to the Hesperia Hotel, The cost was about 180,000 bolivars for a round and a buggy. It is very windy there though so not the best conditions. Worth going though if you are into golf. If you are thinking of going to Margarita, I would recommend this hotel 100%.

My wife and I spent three nights here from 30th March 2007. Reception staff were friendly and helpful and speak English although not perfectly. Rooms were comfortable but the two tiny soaps in the face basin were never replaced and we had to get our own soap and shampoo. Towels were changed every day. From the room telephone I could not make a call to Trinidad whether collect or by credit card or by arranging to pay the reception later. I had to come down to the reception, give the number and it was dialled for me and I had to speak there in the lobby. International calls were charged at US$1 per minute which is expensive for Margarita. In Laguna Mar, another Margarita hotel where we stayed last year, international calls (which could have been made from the room) were just about US 20 cents per minute. For a hotel with so many international guests, rooms should have the facility to make international calls. The hotel is just a few seconds from the beach - just cross the road! It is a beautiful beach but the water looked very rough and we did not venture into the sea. Food in the restaurants was tasty with a reasonable selection, and the a la carte grill where we were allowed to reserve once for dinner, was even better in terms of quality. We had scrumptious grilled fish and medium size shrimp (prawns). Other choices were chicken in wine sauce and meat grill and two others that I can't remember. But you have to book early to get this reservation, we made the reservation the night before at the reception. Apart from this grill there was only one restaurant and food there was always late, by about 15-20 minutes and it is not pleasant to leave what you are doing to go to the restaurant only to have to sit and wait although the bar is there and open and you can have a drink while you wait. Drinks selection is very limited and the persons behind the bar do not seem to know how to mix more than a few drinks. Try the coco loco, which is a drink made with coconut cream, creme de cacao and rum - my mouth waters just to think of it! A taxi to the town cost 30,000 Bs. Most shops in Porlamar change money at 3,000 Bs to the US$1, but a few gave 3,300 and even 3,500. Some persons on the streets called out that they changed money and offered to change for 3,700 Bs per US$, but we were warned not to change money on the street so we just shook our heads. We were warned that if some of these characters think you have US$ to change, they will have someone follow you and grab your handbag or wallet, so it's best not to even stop and show interest in their offers to change. We enjoyed our stay here immensely and recommend it.

Bryan Swain - Huntingdon Cambs My wife and I have just returned from a 2 week all inclusive holiday at the Hotel Le Flamboyant. We were accompanied by my brother and his wife. TRAVEL. We travelled with First Choice and had a Premier Gold upgrade. This was excellent value and far superior to the likes of Thompson's etc. The book-in at Gatwick was speedy and the courtersy etc by the air stewards was excellent both ways. Recommended. THE AIRPORT. The airport at Margarita was ok and the baggage did not take long to come off the aircraft. Body searches took place on arrival - this is apparently standard and is aimed at drugs and guns! Departure was pretty slick and once again searches took place and some bags were searched after you went through into the departure lounge (they tannoyed for people). There were duty free shops that took either Bolivars of Dollars. HOTEL RECEPTION. The Hotel Reception took about 10 minutes from arrival to being in the room (some people in other hotels took as long as 4 hours!). The Reception also issued safety deposit box details and took a deposit for the towel tickets. The towel deposit was $10 for each ticket - they stapled your money to their copy of the receipt and returned the same money when you handed the ticket back. You could also book taxis through reception - they were cheap. ROOM. The Room was pretty standard with two double beds. It was a bit dusty when we arrived, but throughout our stay the maids kept it clean and tidy. We did not see any creatures in the room. We did, however, feel that there was not enough storage room so we hung anything we could on coat hangers in the wardrobe. The only disturbances (other than noisy people) came from a disco on the main road and the dogs that somtimes barked at night. POOL/BEACH. There were ample beach beds and umberellas at the pool and the beach. One word of caution regarding the beach. The sea is rough and dangerous because of undercurrents etc. During our stay a person died and we saw some being rescued. The solution is to only venture a few yards into the sea. There are the usual vendors on the beach, but they take no for an answer. BARS. There are a number of bars , including one on the beach, and we rarely had to queue for a drink. The beer is Polar Beer and is not on tap. As for spirits be careful since they drown the mixer with the spirit. A G&T is usually 80% Gin! There is no wine served at the bars, but you can serve yourself to wine at both lunch and dinner. STAFF. Generally pleasant and helpful. There was the odd miserable person. ENTERTAINMENT. There were a number of evening shows that were reasonable. The animation team was very poor. I will say no more. FOOD. The food was perfectly edible but was pretty mundane and sometimes strange! The only real complaint was over the number of flies that land on the serving trays and are everywhere in the dining areas. There are no electocute type of fly killers. My wife had an upset stomach for the whole holiday - good old Imodium helped her through. On the subject of medicines there is a Pharmacy nearby. EXTERNAL. Once you exit the Hotel you are on the main beach road. Here you will realise that this is a third world country. There are dogs roaming about - although they don't bother you. They seem to dump rubbish everwhere. That said we usually went for a stroll along the road every morning and returned along what is an excellent beach. MONEY. We took dollars and exchanged them in the Internet Cafe located to the right of the hotel on the opposite side of the road near the market. The official rate is substantialy below the rate you get from unauthorised exchanges. TRIPS. There are a large number of trips you can go on. We did the Island Tour and found it to be excellent value and a good way to see the Island. Some people went over to the mainland, but although generally very pleased, they were disappointed that Angel Falls was really only a trickle of water. Locally taxis are very cheap and reliable - they will take you and return later to pick you up (you don't pay until the collect you) HOLIDAY OVERALL. We are seasoned all-inclusive holiday makers and would say the we were satisfied with the holiday and that the holiday represented good value for money. The hotel was small and catered for most tastes. Although we had a good time we would not return as the world is too large and there is still a lot to see.

HOTEL; friendly, clean, safe, good location, good food, average 60 years, scandinavians, germans, britts. MAGARITA; frendly lots montains, lots beaches, hot BONUS; cheap taxis, great restaurants, great stores, latest fashions, all this at half the price we pay in canada SUGGESTIONS; suns screen, american or euros, travel lite and buy what you need their, use cash. smile and be polite remenber your on holydays.

we booked First choice holidays on line for this hotel,and upgraded to premium cabin on the flight.The flight upgrade was well worth it & we would do that again next year.The hotel was very nice.The rooms were clean & a good size with two queen size beds remote control aircon, t.v ,fridge ,hairdryer & electronic safe in the wardrobe all in all very good.The food only o.k they did not do the normal english breakfast no bacon ect. we did have an egg chef who could only cook omelettes she did try to fry eggs but broke one or both every day. Lunch & Dinner were buffet style lots of pasta which was very good, salad,rice ,potatoes no chips or burgers. There is also the Grill were you can go once pos twice per week. This is table service & they have a menu with around 4 or 5 choices again not bad.The pool area is o.k lots of shade.could do with the umbrellas being spread around the pool instead of most of them being over the shaded side. They also have beach club,which is an area on the beach for the flamboyant they have sunbeds & umbrellas for your use.And a bar for drinks only (no snacks )& toilets. The hotel entertainment is o.k finshed at 11pm to be honest after dinner a couple of drinks we were ready for bed anyway. The sea is very rough not safe for children there is a very strong under tow we were not comfortable going in the sea on playe de agua.The beach is very busy lots of people lots of sellers & stray dogs this is not the carribean this is south america! We had a great holiday met some really nice people ,Margarita is different ,the weather is very hot everything is cheap but there are problems as in the roads are terrible the drivers are worse you really can't go out & about at night on your own.If you are looking for different ,want to meet lots of people from all over europe then Margarita is for you.

We stayed at the Les Flamboyant Hotel on the Isle de Margarita. First impression of hotel was very clean, not too big nice size pool and friendly staff. After a couple of days experiencing the food at the hotel we realized it was very repetitive and they did not cater for vegetariens. However the island is very cheap to get around and there are some very nice restaurants, for example El Pacifico which is just left off of the hotel, and a very nice fish restaurant in Mancinello. The beach was very rough and we did not venture onto very often, we did however take an excursion to an island just off of Margarita and this was the true caribbean. Very clear water and white sand. I would deffinatley recommend the island, although the hotel was very nice the food did let it down a bit.

Lovely clean spacious hotel, great staff and decent food, but utterly ruined by an unlawful disco blasting music from across the road until 4 or 5 am every day. Hardly slept at all. Hotel management were doing their best and called the police and even had a piece in the local paper so I hope they will get it sorted.

Hi, Just to say that overall it was a great hotel, the staff were fantastic & the rooms big & clean, food was good enough & the booze flowed freely. Just that, it seemed to me that I was one of the very few who were not smoking constantly. Ashtrays were everywhere. I saw about 10 people who did not smoke from the large group of Europeans who styed there. Actually I do not normally have anything against smokers in general it's up to them what they do, however this was a hard atmsophere to eat in. Maybe I was unlucky and picked a week with a smokers convention ... I don't know.

we visited this hotel in sep 2006 and it was fantastic. The rooms are clean and comfortable and the food was excellent. The whole hotel is spotless and the staff are very friendly and helpful. The beach is directly across the street.Taxis are cheap and there is loads to see and do .If you just want to relax this hotel is the one to do it and was great for kids. More than a 3 star hotel and worth every penny. We will defiantely go back its a shame we did not get to spend all of our holiday there !!

We loved our holiday overall! Best things *Weather - perfect during the day (low 90s) but very hot and humid at night. You need to find somewhere with air con or a fan as the public areas in the hotel dont have any. *Beach -make friends with Louis who will look after your every need. *Waves/sea - good fun playing in the waves. *People - everyone (with the exception of 1 or 2 of the hotel staff) we met was very friendly - try to speak some Spanish for them. *Cheap taxis - if only the taxis were as cheap and drivers as friendly in the UK. Look out for the 50 year old American cars. *Trip to Angel Falls - you might not see it if there is cloud. *Take a wander out the hotel and to the left - there are some lovely restaurants and beach bars along the front on the beach. *75% of the people there are Venezuelan. Others - Columbian, Italian, Polish, German and some brits. *Location of the hotel - right across the road from the beach. *Jump on a bus to Manzanillo for 50c to see a wonderful sunset or to Juan Griego for a gorgeous meal (and huge live lobsters) in La Mama italian restaurant right on the beach (get there at 5pm for a sunset seat). Shop about for your other trips - you can book swimming with dolphins directly with the water park. We used Marcos Tours for our Angel Falls trip and they were one of the best prices. *Dont get up tight about the beach vendors. Say no politely (and then they wont bother you) or try to get to know a few - they are people trying to earn a living for their families. *Unspoilt/no neon signs or lager louts. *Room good size (2 double beds) and kept clean and hotel worthy of 3* rating. *Food was generally good for a 3* buffet all inclusive. BBQ and Mexican nights were the best. *Anna Maria, First Choice rep - super. Really enthusiastic and helpful - just ask her and she will help you. Annoyances *Entertainment - the 'Animacion' team! Entertainment for kids in Venezuelan very early in the morning or late at night. Very loud music and a very empty dancefloor - the music was more for the staff than the guests. Considering we were on an all inclusive basis we felt the need to escape to somewhere else for at least an hour every night. *Room - our room looked onto the pool and was very noisy due to the above. *Pool area - too hot during the day as there was no breeze and the pool was a bit too warm! *Lack of beach bar - if only they had a romantic beach bar to escape to after dinner (they have but it closes at 6pm). Just some low music and bar service. *Bar service and staff - although the hotel has 3 bars only 1 bar was only open at once. Bar staff were not very helpful or friendly. Drinks also served in plastic cups unless you ask for glasses. The Flamboyant is one of the best hotels in Playa el Agua and we would recommend it and the above annoyances did not spoil a fantastic holiday.