Iberostar Málaga Playa

Food was aweful and not any entertainment

A good hotel but a little tired. Annoyingly part of the IHG chain but not yet awarding points for staying, which was the main reason we booked. Food was OK, but very repetitive. They do have theme nights but other than a few dishes everything else remains the same. Also, labelling was VERY poor - many dishes were unlabelled or incorrectly labelled with limited or no allergen information. There is only one restaurant which is buffet style. Rooms were really good although dated. No coffee or tea provision, but I did like the complimentary water fountains and refillable carafe. Bathroom was good but amenities were quite sparse. Service on the whole was ok, but especially at the bar was very brusque. Reception staff (especially Fran and Angel) were fabulous however. Disappointing not to be asked how our stay was on checkout though. The beach attached is not owned by the hotel and you have to pay €6 for a lounger! Overall this is entirely average - nothing terrible but nothing great, which considering the price we paid is somewhat diaappointing.

We stayed here week beginning 13th May and had a fantastic time. The hotel was very clean & tidy, and we were happy with our room (although the pillows were a little bit flat). Food was varied and enjoyable (only downside was my 9 year old didn't like much of the food so lived on salami, chips & icecream, so I would suggest more variety to be made available for kids at the buffet restaurant, chicken nuggets, burgers etc). My son used the kids entertainment at the star camp daily, and looked forward to going, the staff here went above and beyond to make his holiday enjoyable, which I truly appreciated. All the staff there were fantastic, my son was particularly fond of Alex, who was amazing with him, and made sure he had plenty of fun. Only downside was the pool was absolutely freezing, so we didn't use it much. All in all we had a great holiday and really enjoyed ourselves, thank you.

Lovely hotel, clean, great food, staff all amazing. The staff work so hard, especially the ones who man the bar by the pool, sometimes they are on the shift by themselves, I’ve no idea how they cope. I hope in peak season they get help. I have a few moans, I had to pay a €20 deposit on a beach towel. I’ve stayed in Iberostar hotels before, towels are free, safe js free and coffee and tea making facilities in the room. I missed these little touches. Otherwise a great hotel.

This was our third visit to this hotel and it’s just as wonderful! From check-in to check-out everything flowed efficiently. We arrived late in the evening after dinner but no worries as a cold buffet had been made available for late arrivals. A couple of drinks and we prepared to unpack before bed. The beds are so comfortable I never wanted to get up. The rooms are clean and nicely decorated with plenty of storage and a carafe for filling up drinking water, with filling stations on all floors ( nice touch). The bathrooms are clean but could possibly do with updating as the shower is above the bath, not ideal as you get older. Although there are no speciality restaurants, the food served here is fabulous. Lots of show cooking and themed nights. The choice is enormous and delicious. There was loads of sun-beds situated around the huge pool and well kept gardens, there was never a problem finding one. The Starfriends provide lots of activities throughout the day if you want to participate. What a friendly bunch of people. We met some old friends from last year, Carlos and Fran who have been joined by some new team such as Gabi and Mimi, all of the team are so friendly and work so hard to ensure you enjoy your holiday. Although the hotel is in a beautiful seafront location, it is the staff who make this a wonderful experience from reception, housekeeping, bar and restaurant staff, animation and hotel management, everyone is visible and everyone makes eye contact and acknowledges you, making you feel special. Thank you Malaga Playa, hopefully we’ll be visiting again soon.

The hotel is spotless and most staff lovely, especially the staff that clean the rooms. I found the trainee young lady on the reception was absolutely lovely and very efficient, she’s a real credit to the hotel , but throughout my stay other different reception staff seemed stand offish ? No smiles and not quite as helpful as they could be? On occasions refusing drinks in the bar area where the stage was, got a shake of the head or a comment, but as I’m a pensioner and was on half board I couldn’t afford to buy drinks all evening? Aside from that though the grounds and everything else , food etc was perfect. I couldn’t fault the food at all. The lovely gent in the gift shop at the front of the hotel was really kind and genuinely friendly. There a great market next door to the hotel on a Monday morning so don’t miss that, it’s mainly clothes and spices but worth a visit. I do wish hotels would stop guests reserving sun beds from an ungodly hour with towels? My holiday wasn’t as restful when having to get up at a silly time ,or the sun beds had all been taken ? All in all though I would go back, but hopefully reception staff will have learned to give a nice smile to their guests like the young trainee staff member.