VS Gandía Palace Hotel

The noise is what I’m dreading most tonight. Even with maybe five people by the pool on a cloudy afternoon, the bar was blasting loud dance pop. One corner of the hotel is a big nightclub, and my room is right above it. As a solo woman in my late thirties, I guess they thought I wouldn’t mind. I had no idea about this when I booked and paid in advance, and I wish I could leave now. I’m writing this from the pool area, which is almost empty. The pool is small, shallow, cold, and unheated. I’m 171 cm tall and could stand flat-footed even at the deepest point, with my shoulders above the water. It’s in the middle of the hotel, so there’s no sun. The double sofa-style loungers look cool from a distance, but they’re dirty, very uncomfortable, and the ones I tried had broken springs. I’d only booked yesterday because I needed somewhere at short notice, and my options were limited. I arrived a few hours ago and had already paid 700 Euro for a week without food or extras. They kindly let me check in at 1 pm after a difficult journey, but the air conditioning in my big, bare room was broken. Reception didn’t answer after I tried calling for ten minutes. I waited over five minutes for an elevator, though it’s a hotel with about 250 rooms and five working lifts. A maintenance worker passed by. He spoke no English, but we managed with Google Translate, and he came straight up to fix it. Now it runs, but the controls are useless: it’s either fixed at 19 degrees with full fan or completely off. The room has no amenities apart from a phone and a toothbrush and razor in the bathroom. I tried all three reception numbers on the phone and nobody answered. The towels are tiny hand towels, so I’m glad I brought my own large beach towel to dry off with. There are eight drinks in the fridge and they cost 3.50 each, including water. I’m ASTOUNDED this is considered a 4-star hotel. It’s far from a total nightmare, though. The staff don’t speak good English, but they’ve been polite and helpful when I’ve asked questions. When I asked for a kettle, reception said that wasn’t an option and I could bring them a cup of water to microwave if I needed it. I think 2.5 stars would be a more honest rating. This isn’t what I hoped for, and I’m not usually someone who complains or writes bad reviews. I’m posting because I wish I’d had more information before booking, and hope it helps future guests.