Caybeach Meloneras

For a limited budget, this is a great-value place and I’d come back. It has a sea-view restaurant, unlike Villa del Conde next door, and the food is good and plentiful. There are also more heated pools than at the other hotels, plus a good gym and very friendly staff. The rooms are calm and cosy, with good amenities. The restaurant can feel a bit like a canteen, though some different lighting and flowers might help, and a few of the meat and fish dishes were a little cold. You can’t compare its price and standard with Villa del Conde, which is five star and much more expensive. For a three-star hotel, it delivers well for the money.

Our first two holidays at Cay Beach were lovely, but this visit was such a disappointment that we won’t be back. We got what felt like the worst apartment in the whole complex: it faced the road through wire netting and got no sun at all. The fridge was broken, the microwave was dirty, the cupboard doors were warped and stained, and the wardrobe shelves were broken. Be very careful when booking.

We loved our last-minute week away at the end of June and would definitely return next year, just before the season starts. It was quiet during the final week before summer, and the room was more than enough for us. The pools were brilliant, the staff very friendly, and the food was excellent with plenty of choice on half board. The bar, which isn’t part of the complex, was great too. It was a very relaxing stay, though the atmosphere changed when families started arriving the day before we left.

A good choice if you want somewhere quiet, and it works for families as well as people without children. There are three large pools and a couple for babies. Dinner is a buffet for 18 euros per person, drinks not included, and the apartments are cleaned five days a week. The beds are comfortable, and each apartment has sun loungers on its terrace or in the garden. The location makes nearby beaches easy to reach. There’s a pleasant walk right in front along the promenade toward the lighthouse and dunes, about 30 minutes. You can park on the street for free.