Riu Hotel Luca Costa Lago

Warning all British, this is not a hotel you would want to stay in. Rooms very basic, food not to be eaten. There was pork balls, chicken balls, veal balls, potato balls etc etc. The meat was undercooked very raw in the middle resulting in all the family (2 adults and 2 children)being very poorly. After that we only ever had chips. In the day there is bread, meat, cheese and cakes and thats it. Entertainment was disgusting in the ten days we were there. one night was parrot show and one night of bingo in six languages and one night of some kind of pretend flamingo dancing. They call this hotel all inclusive well the beer is like water, only very small plastic cups so one mouthful and its gone, so unless you have got ten hands you will spend all day getting up to get drinks. There is absolutely nothing for the children to do all day long, no balls or anything allowed in the pool. If you have got a late flight be prepared because you are not allowed to keep youre room on and they have no courtesy rooms so if you have got young children this as you can imagine is a bit of a nightmare. You must be crazy to stay here! John Newcastle Staffs

Hotel not a four star as advertised. Hotel very clean Rooms have lounge area aswell as bedroom but basic. We arrived on sat night 28th April 2007 We had arranged transfer with agent but did not turn up for us. After trying to telephoned transfer company without any success and 1 hour at the airport we had to get a taxi to hotel. Luckily hotel only 3miles from airport we had to pay 20euros. we were offered a cold buffet on arrival as evening meal had finished. We were all inclusive There is only one restaurant breakfast between 7.30am-10am lunch 1-3 and evening meal 6.30pm or 8pm meals basic and restaurant layout very unorganised eg, plates and cutlery not in serving area. alot of congestion. Meals were basic ;they did improve as week went on but repeated. One meal was small pieces of pork When I cut into it meat was rare in the middle !!!!. The drinks were self service too. in restaurant /pool area. There was snacks on a cold plate in pool bar with cheese,meats and cake between 12-6pm. There was no daytime enterainment There is a ping pong table and pool table. Night entertainment not every night. and sometimes only 1/2hour shows eg parrot show/reptile show. Not many british guests staying at hotel More popular with German/Spanish guests Would not return to this hotel

Two females of differing ages[me and my mum aged 60 and 37]stayed here at the beginning of january.At this time of year it is absolutely fantastic but i presume it would be a different story at the height of the season. As the hotel was quite empty we had the pool area and terrace etc to ourselves,so plenty of spaces for seating.Our room was clean and a nice view on the third floor.Food lovely and so was the drink. I have nothing to complain about,only praise!but like i said that is because we went out of season,i would not consider going at any other time,the pool and surrounding area would be too small for the size of the hotel. Outside of the hotel quite a lot of amenities were closed but this was fine as we just wanted a cheap quiet break.Weather was very hot[bonus],beach lovely and clean but on the streets there was a lot of dog mess[disgusting]. If you are a smoker going at this time of year can be hard work,as it was too cold to sit outside and have a puff,there is a smoke room attatched to the bar/entertainment room but it is more like a works smoke room and everybody just talked about smoking!

We only stayed here by misfortune as the Hotel Riu Playa where we originally booked bumped a party of 36 of us to Coata Lago (their sister Hotel ) at very short notice and no amount of protest would help. Most of us were given BASEMENT rooms and we spent all week protesting at the treatment we had been given until SOME of us were moved to better rooms,. There was apparently another large party who were also 'moved' without their consent Reception staff at Costa Lago were also unhelpful and the food was like a canteen with very little choice for evening meals and reminded us of school dinners. One tip is to INSIST on good quality rooms at Costa Lago ( the suites on floors 3 and 4 are very good) and also make sure you are ungraded to all inclusive In fairness the pool area is very good ( except the swimming pool is unheated) but there is a VERY limited buffet in the pool bar. If you use the Internet , the connection is very cheap (1 Euro for 12 minites or 2 Euros for 33 minutes) with a good Broadband Connection The Hotel Shop surprisingly has some decent goods at fair prices and the Lady in the Shop is very helpful Overall this is not a 4 star Hotel

Stayed A/I for 8 days and that was enough. The food was the same every day. Pork, pork and more pork. Travelled with my wife and three young children. The rooms were adequate but kept clean. The pool is very small for the size of the hotel. I only went in once as there were young children who were "dive bombing" and it was very dangerous. You are about a 5 minute walk from the beach. The centre of the town is a car drive away. Parking is horrendous as the hotel only have about 15 carparking spots so it is a case of driving round the one-way system trying to find some where to park. People even park on the roundabouts. Visited the Aquapark which the children thoroughly enjoyed. Get there early then you can sit on the grass under the shade then you will not have to pay for a lounger/shade. As soon you get there go and hire a rubber ring as they go very quickly. If you do not get one it will mean queuing at the rides to get a ring and then queuing again for the actual ride,

After reading reviews on this site about this particular hotel some good advise was given, now I have landed back home I thought I would write my own review. Landing at Malaga airport my boyfriend and I got a taxi to the hotel which cost 15 euro which is alot cheaper than paying transfers so if you don't want to be stuck on a coach then I suggest a taxi. Arriving at Hotel Costa Lago we were greeted by the receptionist staff who gave us our room key and safe key (which was a deposit of 10 euro). As we went All Inclusive we had to wear a band throughout the stay which wasn't a problem. Room: We were on the first floor of the hotel and this is definatley in the 4 star rating. The room was spacious, enterering the room there was a lounge area with a sofa and TV and the bedroom was big too. A lot of draws and wardrobes to put your clothes in. The view from the balcony was excellent, overlooking the pool area which was lovely. The room was very very clean but if you like your pillows high I would suggest asking for another one as there was only one for each person. Pool Area: The pool area was very spacious, there were plenty of sunbeds so you never had to run down to save any. The pool was very large and suitable for children with a constant lifeguard on watch. Food and Drink: The food and drink where not 100%, breakfast was not very appealing with not much choice, and 9 times out of 10 it was always cold which was annoying. Lunch was ok for choice at the beginning of the holiday yet after the 5th day it was gettting tedious, it was the same food every single day and evening meal was the same. You can only have so much pasta and rice. Also, food was not labeled so you didn't know what certain things where so if you do have an allergy to certain foods then this could be tricky. Drinks were available at all times yet the alcoholic drinks where awful. I know that you are in a different country and things taste different but this was beyond a joke. You had a choice of cocktails (which tasted awful) and spirits (which where bearable) the only things that tasted nice where the soft drinks, apart from the non-alcoholic cocktails which tasted worse then the alcoholic ones. I would give the food and drink a 2/3 star rating. Location: The location of this hotel was ok, it is a 2 minute walk from the beach and a 10 minute walk from the train station. The beach is lovely and clean, and plenty of sunloungers which cost around 3 - 4 euro each to hire. The train station is ideal if you want to go out for the day. It cost 1 euro and 20 to get to Malaga centre which was lovely with plenty of shops yet is very very busy. They do have an open top tour bus but was 15 euro each to go on!!! If you are looking for something for both you and the kids to enjoy then aqua land water park is ideal, it costs 6 euro in a taxi from the hotel and is a great day out. A bit on the pricey side of 18 euro each (for adults) but the rides are good. There are 8 in total with a wave machine. The entertaninment / nightlife: The entertainment in the hotel was not very good, a parot show, a keyboard player and flamenco dancers was all that was offered and sundays was a day off so nothing was on in the bar not even music. Depending on what sort of holiday you want I feel the this hotel was more ideal for older people and possibly for other languages. There were a lot of German and French people and only 30 English in the hotel so it was difficult to have a conversation with anyone. Outside the Hotel there where a few restaurants and bars but where very quiet and would appeal to holiday makers looking for a relaxing quiet holiday. My boyfriend and I went to 24 hour square in Benalmadena on a night out which cost 12 euro in a taxi. This place is excellent for people wanting to have a good night out, this may not be ideal for families as it was more for clubbers. Suggestions: If you do go to this hotel it is very quiet so if you want to venture out of the area Torremolinos centre is a bus drive / taxi away which holds markets every week and has other shops to look at. Also if you want to go on a jet ski the nearest one is an hours walk, which seems far but is a nice walk along the beach and you get to see the tourist area of Torremolinos which has gift shops and restaurants. Overall I think that the Hotels cleanliness was to a high standard, the food and drink could of been better and the location is ok for people looking for a quiet holiday.

WOW this hotel was excellent. Great value for money. The hotel is VERY clean and friendly, well staffed. We stayed for 11 nights and wish we had booked longer. Food was excellent quality but as with most All Inc was slightly repetative. Our only recommendation for this hotel would be to provide a better "snack bar" providing ice creams and chips burgers etc. this is mainly because our kids were a bit annoyed at having to venture into the restaurant (you have to be clothed ie no bikinis, swim costumes) at lunch time when they missed valuable pool time!!!. The kids pools is about 43cm deep, ideal so your older toddler can paddle with pool side supervision. The Pool area is contained within the U shaped hotel building and fenced in at the rear by the tennis court (this also provides a Cut Thru to get to the beach, shops etc). NOTE: the slush puppie type drink at the bar contains Alcohol so best not give it to the kids as some people were!. We had a wide range of nationalities staying with an increasing number of British arriving daily. Kids Club is 10am to 1 pm and is situated next to the pool, also evenings from 8.30 to 9pm- this is mainly dancing. Adult entertainment starts at 10pm for about 1 hour, we recommend "The Twilight Girls Show" which was very funny. The bar gets very busy and seats are at a premium best to get in before 9 pm. Meals times are 8am to 10.30, 1.30 to 3.30 and 7 to 10.15pm. Snack bar closes at 6.15pm. but is not open during restaurant hours. Taxis are available to the left of the hotel at the bottom of the road and the bus stop is directly opposite. Torremolinos centre is about a 40 min walk away, which we didnt particularly like due to the same ole same ole. The beach is a bit gritty and dusty but worth a visit. Shops around the hotel are very few, with the Mercado on the corner being the friendliest. Would go again.

Hotel was clean and bright. No complaints with our accomadation. the food was pretty boring though but then I find that alot of the hotels on the continent offer the same type of food. The pool area and grounds were well kept .We found the hotel a bit out of the way and next time I would prefer to be nearer the action!!! Transport on the local buses and trains were really cheap . A lot of Germans staying at the hotel ,infact we hardly heard an English speaking person at all !Would recommend the hotel to anyone looking for a clean,good value break with not too much night life around>!

We were due to stay in the sister hotel (rui bel playa) but were changed last minute and so were obviously concerned. No need though. The second we walked through the doors we entered a clean, bright reception filled with smilling receptionists who couldnt do enough to help us. We stayed on an all inclusive basis and were amazed at the variety of food and drink avalible for all ages. Food and drinks were of excetional standards. All staff were friendly, polite and efficient. Our room was large, bright and very clean. Entertainment in the evening was wonderful. The area was clean and the spainish people were friendly. Weather was perfect (hot but not too hot!). My one concern was that there were an awful lot of germans in the hotel. So lots of beach towels on the loungers (lucky there were plenty for everyone anyway!) and you needed to be on the starter blocks sometimes at meal times!! Torremolinos centre is a 5min bus ride away (bus stop opposite hotel). Lots of shops, was quite quiet at night (during late may). Benelmadena and fengarola appeared better for night life (although the internet seemed to think that torremolinos was best for this) but also were only a short bus/train ride away. The hotel is 2 minutes walk from the beach and if youre as lucky as us you'll get a sea view! Our holiday was so perfect that my now fiancee proposed on the sea front! Overall such a fantastic holiday. We would definatley go back.

Hotel fine, food good, fairly close to the sea, quiet part of Torremolinos. Long walk to centre (which can be lively) but that's what we wanted. Area still being built but this did not affect us. Local train station La Colina (near Macdonalds) Cheap easy transport between malaga and benalmadena. Just about walkable with cases, stops at airport.Not as friendly as Belplaya sister hotel which we stayed in last time.There were more Germans in the hotel than any other nationality so the kids club was all in German and the sun beds all had towels on by 7.30am.Absolutly fine holiday, would return.P.S. the tourist leaflets and brochures are on the 1st floor.