Reviews of Sa Mirada Apartments, Arenal DEn Castell, Menorca

unfortunately due to xl airways...

Overall Rating:

7/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Sep 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Miss Maria Matthews

Comments:

unfortunately due to xl airways going bust. We had to book a really quick holiday, and thats how we ended up in menorca! neither me or my partner were overly exited but actually had a really lovely week! apartments were clean kitchen and bathroom small! gutted that there was no tv but probably a good thing as we explored the island a bit better food was expensive but always lovely!! smithys is good for food, also we ate a lot at the cocktail bar, the irish bar is good for entertainment australian bar massively expensive!! beach was gorgeous and very clean!!! overall was a lovely holiday and nice friendly staff at the hotel! would definetly go back.

No problems at all, the bathroom...

Overall Rating:

8/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Mr S Mccann

Comments:

No problems at all, the bathroom is a bit small but I'm 6'2 and didn't have any trouble with it. It is hilly but we had a 1yr old in a buggy and I enjoyed the walks down to the beach etc. The only warning is if you have a ground floor apt don't leave clothes out at night to dry, I had 3 t-shirts nicked but apparently this is not a common thing, just my luck. Overall I would stay there again and next time for 2 weeks as a week was not long enough.

just came back from a one week...

Overall Rating:

8/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Sep 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mrs J Rushen

Comments:

just came back from a one week stay at sa mirada with my two daughters. had a great holiday , weather was fantastic and the beach was well worth the walk. apartments were clean and quite adequate. swimming pool was brilliant for children and very clean.best places to eat were goodbridge cafe and smithys but did have to reserve seats day before. air conditioning was free and essential.did have a problem with ants in the apartment CRAWLING ACROSS THE BED but let reception know and they gave us insect spray ,which we fumigated the rooms with and killed all them for the whole week.very hot at night and if you kept the windows open and the shutters shut we were woken up every night by the dustman in their diesel lorry chugging up the road and empting all the bins along the road. for children and adults dont miss a trip to 'Somni'

which is a horse show and absoulutely fantastic and well worth the money.for evening entertainment visit isla paraiso hotel which had parrot shows and chinese acrobats among other acts which were very good. would not recommend this place for disabled , or people with babies or young children as its very hilly and steps everywhere.not suitable for single sex holidays as no nightlife and most bars shut at 12.brilliant for families with children over about 5. would visit this resort again.

Our room was clean and...

Overall Rating:

7/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Mr Adam Day

Comments:

Our room was clean and comfortable.The rep was very helpful and friendly as were the staff on reception. The view from the pool was outstanding although the food from the pool bar was poor and red wine served cold?!

Breakfast at Sa Mirada was revolting but the food at the sister hotel isla paraso was brilliant!

We stayed for a week with 2 small children and found it a perfect place for families no rowdy teenagers and no noisy nightclubs.

The beach was a 15 min walk away although could be accessed by steps (if you dont have buggy). There are steps all over the resort but there are slopes too it just takes a little forward planning of your route.

The shops bars and cafes were all really good but must mention Waikiki and the Good bridge cafe.Dont bother reserving a table at Smithys as the food was cold late and not what it said on the menu.

Goody Goody is the bar with huge bouncy castle a bit pricey at 3.50 euros for 2 hours but they will be a lovely quite 2 hours while your kids run riot you can enjoy great snacks and drinks with a beautiful view.

Overall good holiday would def go again.

After reading most of the...

Overall Rating:

8/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Mrs T Boddy

Comments:

After reading most of the comments before we went to the Sa Mirada we were completely dreading walking into the apartment for the first time but were pleasantly surprised.



This was our first family holiday abroad with our girls, 7 and 5 and we loved every minute of it.



The room was clean, including the fridge and kitchen area, it smelt very clean and fresh, the beds were firm but thats not a bad thing and certainly didn't hinder any sleep, could have been much worse and the linen seemed very fresh!!

Yes the bathroom was small, but hey how much time to you actually spend in there!! It served its purpose. There were a few ants, but thats Menorca!! They are everywhere!! I noticed the maids had tins of ant spray, so must spray the rooms when they cleaned them.



We arrived on the Friday and had clean beds and towels on the following, Tuesday, Saturday and again on the Tuesday, what more can you ask, stay in this country self catering and you have the same bed linen for 2 weeks so we were very happy with the service.



Sa Mirada was at the back of the resort, but certainly not out of it, it had lovely views from the pool area and our apartment and was just pleasantly away enough to avoid any noise from neighbouring apartments with entertainment on. We had entertainment a couple of times each week which was enough, if we wanted to see anything we walked to the Isla Paraiso, the sister hotel which was about 5 mins stroll, certainly not down a big hill!!! James Brown was absolutely FAB!! so if you see a poster for him, go for it, even our 2 kids were clapping along, but there were a few dodgy acts including a threesome singing english songs (or lets say killing them), amused us nevertheless and the kids disco which was held at the Isla Paraiso was a bit unfair as the reps were talking to our kids in german first and there seemed no sign of any germans around.



The beach was a pleasant stroll too, we certainly didn't find it a major hike or problem to get to and from especially if you walk round and don't use the steps, there were 2 or three different ways to get to it. But like most we spent most of it round the pool which was very clean, always plentyful beds and good atmosphere.



Eating wasn't over cheap, but we didn't think it was anything more than what you would pay for here, certainly the snacks at Sa Mirada were very reasonable, a cheese toastie for 2 euros or a hamburger with egg, bacon, salad and cheese with chips for 4 euros!! The drinks weren't unreasonable either.



The only problem was it was mainly chips with everything!! and they were generally deep fried!! The kids meals were all very similar, fish fingers/beefburger/chicken nuggets/spaghetti bolognaise and CHIPS!!! but were quite reasonable ranging from 3 euros upto about 4.50 euros. But the deserts were well received and all reasonable.



Our fave place to eat was the Good Bridge Cafe, the kids loved the waiters who were very friendly. But we were glad to get back to a good Sunday lunch.



Breakfast at the Sa Mirada was good if you got down there early!! It was 5.50 euros for adults, 3 euros for kids and free for under 6's. and you could eat and drink as much as you liked. Leave it till late on, then i guess it will be cold and dried up.



The staff were all very friendly and the Thomas Cook rep, Lesley couldn't do anymore to help if she tried. Was always around if you needed her, but not pushy in any way to try and get you to book the trips.



Our fave place to eat was the Good Bridge Cafe, the kids loved the waiters who were very friendly.



We hired a car before we went through auto-europe which was very reasonable, we had to walk to the Aguamarina Hotel at the other side of the resort to pick it up, but was only about 20 mins walk, plenty of places to stop for a drink en route! Well worth doing to see the rest of the island, our favourite place on the island was Fornells, the next resort along the North Coast, after that Cuitadella, certainly worth a visit.



Oh yeah of course, the sun it shone EVERDAY!! what else do we go for!!!



All in all a great first family holiday in the sun and we would return again for sure one day, too many places to try first though.

Just came back from a lovely...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

Room Only

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Mrs J Wotherspoon

Comments:

Just came back from a lovely relaxing holiday at Sa Mirada.

The reception staff were very helpful and all staff spoke fantastic english. The rooms were a fair size although the bathroom wasnt exactly huge but it was fine. The kitchen area again wasnt huge but we didnt use it so there was no problem there! The fridge freezer was a good size and was very cold so we always had frozen water!. the balcony area was small and the way the apartments are built meant we were directly facing another apartment so they werent private at all, I think only a few apartments would have a private outlook, but then being small you didnt spend much time on them anyway. The room was very clean. We had a very few ants but nothing the ant spray left in the room didnt deal with.

The pool was a good size, nice a deep with a sectioned off shallow area for little ones, again the area was very clean. there were generally plenty of sun beds if you got down to the pool by about 10ish, but as always there were people who put towels down and didnt appear till gone midday - and its all English so cant blame anyone else this time.

The snack bar at the pool was as good and as cheap as anywhere.

We had one breakfast at sa mirada which was ok, but the kids didnt eat anything so we ended up getting bread and croissants much cheaper from the spar!

The area is definatly for tourists - only 2 or 3 small supermarkets, not overly cheap but they did for our needs.

The beach is beautiful - warm water plenty of room. Buy a parasol for 9euro and leave it at the end of your hol - much cheaper then paying for one to hire on the beach. the only problem was jellyfish on certain days - some days there were none (dont know if it was tides or time of year). They did sting my son but not bad to stop him playing or going back in the sea.

restaurants to go to - Smithy's, Sa Gavina (lovely staff and even nicer homemade puddings), Bridge cafe, ones on the beach next to the paella bar (cant remember name). The Irish pub was a nice bar and good entertainment. The meals for 2 adults and 2 kids were about 50 -60euro - not the cheapest but good quality.

All in all a good quiet family holiday that we got at a bargain price

We had a wonderful holiday in...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Jul 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Miss H Townsend

Comments:

We had a wonderful holiday in Menorca staying at The Sa Mirada Apartments. Myself, Partner and 4 year old daughter. The Aprtments were clean and well maintained. The location was good with wonderful views of the sea. The staff we all very helpful and pleasent. The only let down was the maid service was only once in a seven day stay.



The beach was nice and easy to get to. Arenal is a little hilly but not so you would notice when taking a stroll to the beach or out for an evening meal. The sister apartments offered entertainment for both adults and children and was only a short walk away from the Sa Mirada.



Local resturants are all nice, but as with all spanish resorts now a little expensive. But this did not spoil our stay in anyway.



This is the second time we have stayed at the Sa Mirada and we would be happy to go again next year.

We just came back from our...

Overall Rating:

1/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Jul 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Mrs R  Ioannou

Comments:

We just came back from our holiday in Sa Mirada, we spent 2 weeks there and never go back there again. As soon as we walked in we were disappointed- the fridge was filthy with fungus inside and was leaking for a few days, the rooms are tiny and smelly, the kitchen is not very good for self caterig, no microwave just a small oven(microwave size), there was no space for your own food no TV(we were told it would be included). We couldn't sleep in there at all, very uncomfortable beds covered with smelly covers, old blankets and sheets, very noisy at night...

The only good thing was the air con and the weather and the beach - quite a walk, very tiring...

The whole place is a rip off, if you want anything extra, like a radio or TV you have to rent it out, Supermarkets are very expensive

TC offerd us a different hotel but wanted extra 700euros, it was far from the beach anyway.We couldn't afford it because food cost us a fortune. Sa Mirada should not have 3 stars, I would give it 1 star

Our rep was trying to help, she kept coming over and asking us how we were, she helped with renting a radio out 14 euros a week, but I'm not going back there again and not booking any more hols with TC

We have just come back from sa...

Overall Rating:

2/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Jul 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Mr S Andrews

Comments:

We have just come back from sa mirada, and were a bit disappointed. We are a family of 5 (2 adults, 2 kids, 1 toddler). We enjoyed our stay but...



The beach is "round the corner", but its down a huge hill, and about 200 steps, not good for a pushchair. The beach was nice, but you were just dreading taking the kids back up to the apartments. The whole resort is set up high from the coast. Not exactly our idea of "overlooks the beach" as told by our thomas cook travel agent.



The apartment was clean and OK, except the bathroom, it was mouldy, the bath was old and grubby, the shower trickled out, and didnt drain away, so your feet were covered in the days grime by the time you got out.



The maid only comes once a week, for five of us!! That is not what we are used to and managed to get more towels from reception but they didnt really want to give us them.



The entertainment was rubbish or not there at all! But they did have one excellent show with dancers while we were there. We were told to use the other sister hotels entertainment around the corner, and yes you guessed it, at the bottom of a big hill!!



The pool is very nice tho, and the staff were always friendly, we had a breakfast one morning and didnt make that mistake again! Cold and not to our taste, not worth the money. We ate out every other time, smiffys around the corner did nice food.



We paid £1300 for a weeks stay and feel we were ripped off by thomas cook. We wont be using them again.



Oh, the weather was excellent though!!

beautiful resort,sa mirada pool...

Overall Rating:

7/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Jun 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

drewjulie

Photos:

Comments:

beautiful resort,sa mirada pool bar staff were great,didnt see much of room cleaners in 2wk but i stole my own towels 1 time ha.a fair few resteraunts dotted around and el piratas at coves noves seemed the best to us along with sunday dinner at smithys;that is out of the ones we tried,the beach was lovely but a bit of a hike up hill back to sa mirada esp mid afternoon in that heat,you can stop off on route thou at isla parisla for drink and bar snack.overall it seems a dear resost and with 2 kids i wont go back.all there seemed to be were mini spar supermarkets,the irish pub and some entertainer singin elvis songs all over.met some very nice people and most had the same views on everything,thomas cook wwere ok for us thou a flight had been delayed 24hrs on sun in mid of our hol so a few people was not happy and the stanstead flight was delayed which was due out the same time as us 19.10 to man sun 30/7/08 from mahon hope they wasnt stuck there too long.

We stayed for 2 weeks staying at...

Overall Rating:

8/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

May 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Ms E Savage

Comments:

We stayed for 2 weeks staying at the Sa Mirada in Menorca (last week in May/first week in June). The accommodation was clean and well maintained.

Franchesca on reception was very efficient and nothing was too much trouble for her.

We booked through Thomas Cook who were very poor, they didn't provide a rep for either coach journey to or from the airport and the welcome meeting was a total shambles it was held at the sister hotel Isla Paraiso, the large room was packed and we couldn't hear a thing, despite being made aware of this, the reps (Amy & Lesley) continued with their presentation with only half the room able to hear them! We never saw them again! They don’t even post departure details in reception they put a note on your door the day before departure!

Needless to say we didn't book any tours through them but booked direct with Sa Mirada which were a lot cheaper and the driver Antonio was lovely. He was a very good source of local knowledge and was very good with the children.

The entertainment between the Sa Mirada and Isla Paraiso was surprisingly good, we found something to do most evening.

The Isla Paraiso also runs children’s clubs through the day and a “crazy kids disco” each evening run by clowns which our daughter (age 4) loved. The Isla Paraiso seems to consist of both German and English guests but we only met English at Sa Mirada.

The weather was pretty poor out of 14 days we only had 3 hot days the remainder were windy, rainy or dull and wasn't isn't much to do at the resort in those conditions.

The soft play room under the pool was always closed.

We had a hire car for the 2nd week so were able to travel to various beaches, and found some lovely beaches and coves.

We did find eating out expensive, it cost between thirty and fifty euros an evening for two adults and one child – One criticism is that virtually all the children’s meals seem to consist of chips and no veg!

We recommend eating at the Hong Kong Restaurant and the Red Bar (on the sea front). The staff at the Sa Gavina were superb with young children but we only had lunch there.

The buffet breakfast at Sa Mirada was basic, under 5’s eat free but we preferred to eat at the Romani restaurant.

Have just spent 1 week at the Sa...

Overall Rating:

4/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Jun 2008

Tour Operator:

Thomas Cook

Submitted By:

Ms S Davis

Comments:

Have just spent 1 week at the Sa Mirada. The apartment was clean, spacious and included a kettle and full size fridge. Unfortunatley, we found that comments made in previous reviews were very true - the location of the apartments is not good for anyone with mobility difficulties or having to use pushchairs, unless you're mega fit.

The water was often cold by 5pm onwards and eating out cost a fortune. We are a family of 4, with 2 girls under 8 and our average evening meals were costing over 50 Euros. A pint of milk from the Spar shop was over £2 and most other necessities were equally over-priced. With only 2 supermarkerts they can charge what they like. The sunbeds and parasols on the beach were also costly at 17 Euros a day. The beach was lovely but if the weather is not brilliant, there's not much for kids to do without digging deep in the wallet for rides on carts or air hockey games. The resort is very limited in activities too so we hired a car (very reasonable thankfully) and went exploring other resorts. We found Cala Bosch at the other end of the Island which had a lot more going for it. The food was also half the price of our resort !!!

Overall, the location offered terrific views but only because of being high up so suitable if you enjoy a good level of fitness, ie. no arthritis etc.

My partner and I went in...

Overall Rating:

9/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Sep 2007

Tour Operator:

Direct Holidays

Submitted By:

Mr M Moores

Comments:

My partner and I went in mid-September to avoid the crowds. The accomodation, as already mentioned, is basic, but clean and very liveable. We only used it as a base, as we hired a car, and for our purposes it suited well. The air-con, at times, was a godsend.



I went to Arenal with the thought that it would be too big and touristy. It is obviously a popular resort, but I was pleasantly surprised; it was clean, the bay was gorgeous, and it was quite quiet and peaceful (in September anyway). It obviously caters for families, and I would say in peak season it would be ideal for them. Out of peak season, I would say that it would suit couples as well.



Great apartments and lovely resort.

Our room wasn't cleaned when we...

Overall Rating:

8/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2007

Tour Operator:

Tracel Republic

Submitted By:

Mrs M Henderson

Comments:

Our room wasn't cleaned when we got there so had to wander round for an hour, but when we got back there was an apology note and a bottle of wine, so that made things much better! Francesca on reception was excellent and couldn't apologise enough.



The apartment was small but functional, disappointed we didn't have a sea view - we had a view of the road, but that was okay as we didn't spend much time there. Me, my husband and 15 year old son had a really good holiday overall. We had been to Arenal before (5 years earlier) but stayed in the Aguamarina Hotel on the other side of the bay - far too busy and noisy, the Sa Mirada was much better.



We never had difficulty getting a sunbed by the pool - whatever time of day and this was August! Mind you many people were probably down on the beautiful beach. We loved snorkelling or just swimming, the water is so clean and clear - and very safe for the very young.



Saw 2 of the entertainment shows - Tom Jones (being Welsh we had to see the Spanish version!) and 'Boogie Nights' 70's Disco, we found them both hysterical, maybe we were being a bit cruel - but they were very entertaining!! Saw The 'Four Tops' and The 'Temptations' on other complexes in Arenal and they were really good. The same acts go round the resort so you can always see them somewhere or other.



We found the best places to eat was the Sa Gavina and surprisingly the Sa Marada! In fact I had some of the best steaks I have ever had there! Waiters were brilliant, very friendly and didn't always charge our son for his drinks or ice creams!



Excellent perfume shop in the Romani Centre - by the Sa Gavina restaurant, very helpful English lady there. Bus stops right outside the apartments and goes to Mahon where you can get a bus to anywhere on the island, this was our 12th time in Menorca so we knew where we wanted to go! Also the land train takes you around the resort and on to Sa Macaret nearby, nice little trip - kids will love it. Also one day I walked across the cliffs behind Sa Mirada to Son Parc. A 20 minute stroll. Glad I didn't stay there - too many trees and only one restaurant as far as I could see!



We had booked a car for the 2 weeks but were let down at the last minute, didn't hire one at Arenal as what it would have cost us for the fortnight they wanted for 3 days!! So book in advance.



Altogether we had an excellent holiday, our son made lots of friends and still keeps in touch on MSN! As long as you don't mind a 'compact' kitchen and bathroom I would recommend the Sa Mirada.

Fab apartment, small (perfect...

Overall Rating:

10/10

Board Basis:

Self Catering

Date of Holiday:

Aug 2007

Tour Operator:

Thomson

Submitted By:

Mrs H Donovan

Comments:

Fab apartment, small (perfect for family of 4 or less) but immaculately clean and well stocked. Air conditioned in lounge. Huge pool for size of apartment complex, our kids LOVED it.



The apartments were cleaned and linen changed every 3rd day. Cooker tiny (that's a plus in my book!), bedrooms lots of storage. Staff very helpful and friendly, nothing too much trouble.



Great beach 5 mins walk away (try the small cove at left hand end of bay), safe swimming etc. Lots to see locally, all very centralised, which meant we didn't have to hire a car.



Local restaurants - best we found was Sa Gavina, overlooking bay. Very reasonable and food home cooked and served with fresh veg (not just chips like some of the others!). We ate out every night for between 50 and 70 Euros (for 4 of us), main course and dessert.

Good varied menu, and staff very friendly.



Local transport - very cheap local (air conditioned) bus to Fornells and Mahon etc (stops right outside apartments) - 1 Euro 40 cents each way per person to Fornells / Mahon- much cheaper than the organised day trips, but be careful not to miss the buses in the afternoon as they are around 2 hrs apart. Mahon great to see - great markets and restaurants / bars, and boat trips. Ditto Fornells.



Thoroughly enjoyed this holiday, only (tiny) drawback was some noise in the late evenings when people coming back into apartments, but this really was minimal, and the fact that these lovely apartments were so reasonably priced in August (half of what we were quoted for a caravan in Weymouth for the same weeks!), made this holiday an absolute bargain and one of the best holidays we have ever had.



SUPERB!!!!