Bella Vista Hotel

10 readers found this review helpful

Arrived on 30th december for a week half board, there should have been 2 of us but i holidayed on my own ( female), I was a little anxious when I arrived but the receptionist soon put me at ease, the room was clean and spacious. The meals were lovely and plenty of choice, soup, pasta. salad , fish or meat choice etc. and the staff were friendly. the bar staff were friendly and if you make an effort to talk to them they become like friends by the end of your holiday.the free bus into town has to be booked the day before. If you go on the local buses get a day ticket which is 3.49 and you can hop on and off whenever you wish, very good value, I have holidayed in malta several times before and the people are so friendly and laid back, I would certainly return to this hotel again probably all inclusive next time as I stayed in the hotel most evenings and even the entertainment was ok - I think this hotel is most suited to the over 40's - the only possible downside i could say is the pool isn't huge and would be very crowed in summertime . thank you to all the staff and the friends I made who made my holiday a success.

11 readers found this review helpful

So what's with all the whinging about this hotel? I was nearly put off going but I'm glad I did. It is one of the best hotels that I've stayed at in Malta. The best things:- The food was exceptionally good. There was a fair choice, a good variety and the desserts were a revelation. The situation is unusually scenic, unless you get an interiour room and an easy ten minute stroll into town. Worst things:- Pools were freezing! I was so taken aback by the comments I had read previously I asked the manager why there had been such bad reviews. He told me that the person who complained (in the review) about the state of her bathroom didn't make any comment at the time she was there. The people who said the food and drink was rubbish disliked it so much that they spent every waking moment in the bar or restaurant later collapsing unconcious and abandonning their children! Ok, so this hotel isn't perfect but it's one of the best and most of the complaints I've read seem to come from people with unrealistic expectations. Some of the reviews appear to have been written by Wayne and Waynetta.

4 readers found this review helpful

We booked this hotel because it looked great and it was four star. Yes, we did think it was a bargain compared with other four star hotels in the Med we looked at, but what would most people do? So we booked it! My husband and two children (aged 13 & 9) stayed for a week, over the Christmas period. The kids were made up with the indoor pool and jacuzzi. Unfortunately it closed at 7.30, so they weren't too impressed with that. Another dosappointment was the fact that breakfast was only served until 9am.I don't know about others, but we like to stay up quite late and have a bit of a lie in, ceratinly not having to set the alarm to make sure we're up at the crack of dawn every morning (after all we did pay for breakfast!) The staff at the hotel were exceptionally friendly and efficient at all times, and the cleanliness of the hotel was of a very high standard. There was a small internet facility which the kids took advantage of, and a games room which included a pool table. However, they got bored pretty quickly with this. The evening entertainment left a lot to be desired too, although I must say it was certainly aimed at the more mature clientele, who obviously loved it! Fortunately for us, we could easily walk into the busier part of Qawra, Buggiba and St. Paul's Bay, and there was a local cinema too which we visited on a couple of occasions (loads cheaper than at home). The Bella Vista is ideal for older couples (at this time of year anyway) but if you have kids it's not ideal, unless yours are the kind who like to sit in front of a computer for hours on end! I'm sure it's a completely different atmosphere in the summer. We left feeling that we got a little less than we paid for - it's certainly not a four star hotel, but the staff did all they could to make our stay comfortable.

1 reader found this review helpful

I have to start this as once upon at time, I arrived at the Bella vista about 4.30 in the afternoon, i recently had a condition and was in a wheelchair when i tried to enter the hotel my path was blocked outside by tables and chairs, as i went into a small disable lift my path was blocked once again by large red lounge chairs there was no help in removing these chairs ( thank god for my hubby. I was told i would be on the ground floor, on speaking with the reception a young lady i was told that there is no ground floor, i was then given a piece of paper to put all my details and was sent to the first floor, when i came out of the lift the smell of damp water took me back, so i thought i will see the room. The room was basic with two single beds a little tight as i had my chair, i went into the bathroom and i was shocked to see a bath with a small shower head on the wall, when i turned it on the water hit the wall and the shower curtain (and me) but not the bath floor. I then went to look out of the balcony and i saw a high blue wall as my view , i could not believe i had to look at a wall for a week, i went back down stairs and but my concerns about the room to the young lady, she then got the manager a black haired women 30ish who was polite but told me, there is no ground floor, there are no showers in Malta that you walk into they said they would give me a box to step on into the bath, and someone would come and see the shower. I could not believe i had to spend 7 days in this hotel, o yes i have to say i have never been in a hotel of a 4 star that you have to pay 11 euro for a fridge ( that did not work). I Know this sounds like a horror story but it could of been if we did not check out the next morning and found another hotel ( The suncrest Hotel) the ending of this story is
ONE for people in wheelchairs the bella vista hotel is not suitable
TWO you get what you pay for and the bella vist is not a 4 star hotel and you should get a 4 star for what you have payed for.
THREE Malta is a lovely place but when you are looking for hotels please, please take heed of the reviews and you wont waste money or time. Sorry this , my review took so long.

6 readers found this review helpful

OMG! Just be glad that You did not share your holiday with these moaners and complainers. If you have booked or worried about booking - you have nothing to fear. The Bella Vista is fantastic!.
Most of the rooms are in a great location and are of a good size. The Bathroom was a good size and clean with a fantastic power shower. Yes some of the tiles could be re-grouted, but hardly a holiday killer.
Rooms were cleaned daily except Sundays, we came back daily to clean rooms, beds made, floors clean, bathroom fresh.
Food was piping hot, delicious and plentyful. however Breakfast ends at 9am, so guess what happens when half the hotel descends for breakfast at 08.45am? Queues, long ones. I suggest arriving before 08.30am. Dinners are tasty and different daily.
The Pool is in the sun from 9.30am till 2pm, for more sun use the rooftop terrace. We found the pool to be just big enough for the hotel, our kids loved it.
Overall the service was fantastic and the hotel is great as a base for your holiday.
Personally I would recommend this for B&B or HB only, This is not really the place to go all inclusive - if you are the sort of person to stay in your hotel for the whole holiday this is not the place for you - spend some more money and stay elsewhere more suited to you.
I chatted to a lot of people in the Hotel who were worried after reading the reviews for this hotel, and all said the negative ones were a load of rubbish as the Hotel was simply great and they had a fantastic Holiday.

A VERY LONG AND PRECISE REVIEW!!! ;-) Sorry
We booked the holiday in March 2008 and to be honest, it wasn't our first choice. The hotel we'd originally booked was further into busier seafront however the reviews were really bad so we changed it for the Bella Vista.
We found Malta to be a lovely place though thought Qawra lacked in colour in some parts. St Pauls Bay was much more colourful than Qawra and is such a pretty bay! The cost of the holiday was reasonable yet not the cheapest package holiday by far. We were quite realistic but found ourselves expecting a higher standard [at the bella vista] than we actually experienced.
The transfer to the hotel was promt and the gentleman was very informative, friendly and polite. We arrived promtly at the hotel around 12.30 and was informed that we could book in at 2pm. The reception staff were polite and quite friendly.
We sat in the lounge area and decided to try out the all inclusive snack range. The snacks arrived delivered by a uninterested and rude barman (young, local and very slim - rarely smiles) and we hoped that things would improved on the hospitality score.
The pool area was sunny until around 2-3pm but it was still roasting way after that and sometimes a nice place to get some shade. We went to the rooftop area most nights to get the last of the sun. The entertainment was very simple and relaxed. There was a couple of nights of Kareoke which gave some light entertainment, another night a bit of a disco and twice i think there were two men who had excellent voices and weren't that bad looking either. The all inclusive drinks end on the dot at 11pm as does the entertainment. It was good but everyone wanted it to be extended later than that. The hotel was made up of mainly middle aged people, older people, young couples, a few young familes (though in the minority) and small pleasent groups of european teenagers.
Generally, the hotel was clean, the staff mostly informative, polite, and a few very friendly and happy... look out for Bob Marley lol
Our rooms were clean and there was enough space to move around in. Nothing really fancy but acceptable. As others' have noted, the TV just had one channel in English but who goes on their holidays to watch tv? They put family movies on in the evening which both our 17 and 10yr old was happy with and if asked they would replay them a little later on too. The bathroom could have benefited with an update although everything worked (just watch out for the shower temperature changes ... ouch!). Our balcony looked out onto a back street - it was clean though and was nice to wave and say "morning" to the local gentleman who enjoyed his morning relaxing with a coffee however the daily bin collection is sooo noisy. Our children shared their own room which again was clean and spacious enough. They wasnt as happy with their balcony which was tiny and facing a wall.
Considering we paid for all inclusive, we were very disappointed with the food. It couldn't have got more basic. Breakfast was a meal we never missed - the bacon tasted a little odd but otherwise it was all okay and much better than the following meal times. The lunch time and main meals lacked in variety, taste and quality. It all was very basic. With regards to the snacks; these were very limited and only on at certain times of the day. The children couldnt even get an so much as an icepop.
The walk into town wasnt too bad even if it is uphill on the return walk. Some larger people struggled with the walk and looked as though they needed wringing out on their return to the hotel but if you are able bodied and not massively overweight you should be fine.
Their is a nice little pizza place that sells pizza slices at a really reasonable price - we ate their a few nights a week rather than rushing back to the hotel for a disappointing meal. We also ate at a few seafront restaurants around the prom further into Qawra and an italian restaurant which was excellent (it has a huge sculptured head outside poss called michaelangelos?)
The hotel is an affordable, cheap base to stay and we would stay there again however we would never go all inclusive there again.
We're looking at going back in Decemeber time but would stay at St Pauls bay - its prettier there and much closer to the sea. We spent a lot of time around there, hired a little boat from a maltease man called victor and took it out to St Pauls island, anchored up and went snorkling in the shallower (15/20ft) waters. It was great, clean green and blue waters swimming with little fish :-). Golden sands was a great beach too but was really busy unless you go there later on in the day - its visable as it stays hot til 7-8pm.
We liked malta, its people are mainly nice, we felt safe on the streets and even considered buying/leasing a holiday home there! Just don't go expecting too much unless you're willing to pay for the Radisson!
We'd give malta 9 points out of 10 but the hotel only really scores a 5 due to food

1 reader found this review helpful

We were obviously a bit worried after booking this hotel then subsequently reading the reviews written by people who have obviously spent their whole holiday just looking for things to moan about! We needn't have worried as the hotel was very pleasant (although yes not 4 star but for the price you pay you cannot expect luxury!!)
Some of the things that a lot of people seem to moan about:
HOTEL BEING IN THE MIDDLE OF NOWHERE & 25 MINUTES (UPHILL) WALK INTO TOWN - THIS IS NOT THE CASE! If these people only had the common sense to ASK the hotel receptionist how to get into town they will gladly give you a map with directions! (Or they will even tell you how to book the bus which picks up right outside the hotel) We strolled at a leisurely pace & were in Bugibba Square (full of cafes, bars, shops & restaurants) in under 10 minutes!
THE POOL - Yes the pool is not massive but neither is the hotel & so is sufficient I believe for the potential number of guests (plus there is also an indoor pool). As for there being no sun by the pool this is ABSOLUTE RUBBISH! We arrived at around 11am and there was sun around the pool until at least 1.30pm - after this time you can take the lift up to the roof sun terrace which has sun from around 8am until early evening & is lovely! There is a bar up there and a jacuzzi if you need to cool off from the heat - we used the sun terrace every day
FOOD - there was a large variety on offer daily - for breakfast you could have bacon, sausage, egg, tomato, beans etc, or a choice of 3 cereals, as well as cheeses, ham, fruit, bread, salad. For dinner there were always 3 main hot dishes to choose from, including a fish dish plus a vegetarian option (different each day) as well as a pasta dish, salad, soup, plus a selection of delicious cheesecakes! Mmm... the meals were quite nice, although as it states in the brochure that it is a "buffet style" dinner service you cannot expect restaurant standard meals - I would recommend that you book bed & breakfast rather than half board if you're going to be fussy about what you eat - there are loads of restaurants in the square & they are reasonably priced - we ate in a really nice restaurant with a bottle of wine & it came to 38 euros for the 2 of us & was delicious (Venus Restaurant - lovely!)
ROOMS - the room was quite basic but comfortable & clean - a few tiles in the bathroom could've done with replacing but this hardly spoils your holiday! We had one of the smaller balconies as it was on a corner but it was sufficient for the two of us to sit out in the evening & enjoy a lovely bottle of wine from the general store next to the hotel! All rooms have a tv & hairdryer as well as a fridge (which you can pay a surcharge to use - approx £7 for the week). If you look in your information pack in the room there are many other "upgrades or extras" available for a small cost
Most of the things that these people were moaning about could have quite easily been rectified if they only had the sense to ask the staff - who were friendly & helpful....but then what would they then be able to talk about!?!?!
We stayed at the Bella Vista for 4 nights following our wedding & were pleasantly surprised by the hotel overall (it is NOT the Hilton by a long shot but I think only a fool would expect such a high standard from such a reasonably priced holiday) We absolutely loved Malta & will definitely visit again. Everyone speaks English & everyone is really laid back which (if you let it) leads to you having a very relaxing & enjoyable holiday.

A nice place for a quick trip to the sun, out of town location but facilities within easy reach, having hired a car for the full week getting around wasnt a problem.
The hotel is what you get for small change, it isnt the best and not the worse but it certainly has a problem with loud music everynight. the only place you can have a reasonable conversation other than shouting is out the front of the hotel but then you have the locals sceeming around in their cars. Weekends the hotel seems to cater for the high influx of locals and their uncontrolable kids. The hotel is generally very cheap the and the staff work long hours for peanuts but always obliging. Rooms are quite reasonable but be wary of the centre segment of the hotel as you will be facing brick walls. The hotel is used a lot for caravan families who spend 3 months of the year there, as this is their annual holiday there can be a hard job booking over the winter period. if you use the hotel as somewhere to sleep and get food then you wont have a problem providing you are not expecting a 4 star reception. Food hasnt changed in 4 years, it is always the same , left overs from previous days with a bit of glossing up on the newer stuff to fool you.

6 of us have just come back from a week at the Bellavista.
4 of us half board and 2 All Inclusive.
The rooms were comfortable with a TV but no remote and only one channel.
There was also a fridge in the room but this was locked and had to be paid extra for.
The bathroom was roomy with a very good shower though needed upgrading as grouting had the usual mould.
We certainly did not have a room with a view. Our tiny balcony (which was about 2ft just enough room to fit a chair on) looked out onto a high brick wall approx 6ft away from the balcony which was around 30ft high.
The mealtime were very early breakfast finishing at 9.30 & evening meal at 8.30 except Friday & Saturday nights which was 8pm otherwise they would charge you extra for eating outside this time. The food though was on a par with many european hotels we have stayed in. With breakfast and evening meal being buffet style. Breakfasts were the usual scrambled and fried eggs, beans, bacon (after a fashion) cereal and toast with of course cheese and cold meats.
The evening meal always consisted of a soup which was always very tasty, there was also a salad bar, cold meats and three choices of main course with there always being one fish dish. Maybe some people are complaining about the food as there were not chips on the menu the whole week we were there. We also enjoyed the puddings.
The snacks at lunch time were also of a reasonable price and quality. Drinks at the bar were also reasonable.
The swimming poor is very poor......Very small, very shaded for the size of the hotel.
We did find the hotel to be too far from the resort and a poor shuttle service as this had to be booked in advance for both outwards and return journeys. With no bars or restaurants around you are left with little choice but to go into buggiba which is a 25+ mins walk away and the walk back is uphill.
The worse thing about this hotel is the lack of curtesy room on departure, we had to vacate room at 11.30am with our coach pick up at 6pm with temperature of 35+% we all wanted and needed to shower, this could only be done in the changing rooms down in the basement used by the indoor swimming pool, which had no facility for drying hair etc. etc.
We did hire a car for the day and travelled around, Malta is a beautiful island with lots of interesting places to go, and would go back but not stay at this hotel or resort.

i was a bit worried looking at some of the reviews of the bellavista but for the price i paid cant complain yes its not a 4 star prob a 3 star basic in rooms but clean . clean towels and cleaned every day stopped bed breakfast choice of ceirel warm breakfast bit bland but aint everywere you go on hoilday but still ok yes swimming pool small best time after breakfast till about 1.30 to catch the sun then go on the sun terrace on roof .no probs with the staff.now to the moaners about the walk to the resort yes if you go out the front door and turn left and walk on the front will take you 25 min but still a nice walk but if you go out the side door if locked go out the front turn right about 200 yards theres a passage go through turn left then left again then right by little park follow that road to church on right then turn left to end then turn right and just follow that road {or just zig zag alway from hotel}it only takes 10 mins wich we did twice a day and its safe.if you like a good curry theres a good one if you sit in sqare look for fat harrys on right go past that take next right and its on your left. if you want a day at the beach meilena beach is nice buses go there. but dont go to popeye island not worth it .just watch out for time shares