Hotel Serapo

The building looks like an exclusive resort from the outside, maybe it did seventy years ago. Inside, it feels like the Twilight Zone, an empty shell without any substance. The advertised WiFi was 2mb, with the signal constantly dropping. Air-conditioning wasn't available, and staff said the engineering team hadn't fixed it throughout the building. With the windows open, expect dampness in your wardrobe, plus noise from barking dogs, crying babies, screaming teenage girls, loud trucks, motorcycles, and the groundskeeper cutting grass and blowing the pathways. The room TV only gets local channels, so don't count on watching a movie or two. For the beach, you might spend €30 on an umbrella and two chairs, then deal with loud music, screaming children, and rowdy, carefree chaos. Hard to relax.

The hotel itself was fine, but the restaurant wasn't open at the times it advertised.

The location was the best thing about this hotel. I'm not sure if the rudeness was because I'm American, but nearly everyone I dealt with was rude, except for a bar lady and the last person I met at checkout. Parking was a nightmare, the rooms were very basic, and it took almost two full days for the air-conditioning to feel comfortable. A small oscillating fan would've helped. I tried to have lunch there once and sat for about 15 minutes without being served. The girl took orders from several tables that sat down after me. I even tried to get her attention, but she ignored me.

The hotel felt stuck in the 60s, though our group of 7 agreed it was good value. We paid around 150 euros per night with breakfast for a junior suite. We also asked reception for a one-hour late checkout for one room, but that wasn't possible. Our sea-view suite was large, airy, and very clean. The double bed was two beds pushed together, not especially big but comfortable enough. Towels and bed linen were good, and the bathroom looked fairly new. Despite things I'd read about air-conditioning and rude staff, our room stayed cool in high summer and the staff were lovely. The location is close to the town center and the beach. The beach can get crowded, but we were happy with it. The sea view also includes the hotel car park, and every morning at 7:30 the nearby beach resorts ran a sand blower for an hour. If that might wake you, avoid a sea-view room. Internet was reliable all day only in the one room at the back of the hotel, among our group of 7 across 4 rooms. The small pool has a strange shape, is fully shaded, and comes with some funny rules. It closes from 1 to 3 pm, then for good at 7 pm, and you can only go in wearing a hat. There's a larger indoor pool too, with even stranger hours and stricter rules. We'd heard plenty of complaints about breakfast. The room does look like an 80s boarding school or prison cafeteria, and the food and staff uniforms aren't presented in a flattering way. Still, if you can get past the look, breakfast is okay, and you can go back for more as often as you want. The beach isn't private to the hotel. There's a small private area where it rents out two loungers and an umbrella for 25/35 euros, depending on how near the water you are. You can also use another part of the beach. Bring your own towel, since the hotel doesn't provide one.