Barceló Fuerteventura Royal Level

“Average resort but has the potential to be great”

We visited during half term. We arrived at around 7pm and Royal Level Reception was closed so we were assisted at the main reception. We were offered someone to walk us over to our accommodation but declined, as assumed it wouldn't be far away. The accommodation is quite a walk away, particularly w… more

We visited during half term. We arrived at around 7pm and Royal Level Reception was closed so we were assisted at the main reception. We were offered someone to walk us over to our accommodation but declined, as assumed it wouldn't be far away. The accommodation is quite a walk away, particularly with luggage and children in tow, so it's a shame we weren't offered a buggy ride to take us across. There's also no lighting turned on on the steps, so struggled a little to see where we were going with the low light. The room appeared clean on arrival and tastefully furnished and decorated. On closer inspection in daylight, tables could have done with a thorough wipe down and after 30 mins of being inside the room, my socks were dirty and were also covered in hairs. Floors didn't seem to be mopped. Our main door didn't close or open easily and housekeeping hadn't fully closed it one day, so we were just able to push it open without using the key card. Not very secure. We had to really put some effort into closing/opening it each time. No blind/curtain on one of the windows of the lounge area where my children were sleeping, so we ended up using a bed runner as a makeshift curtain. The bathroom smells of sewage at times and the air con created a sewage smell at various points of our stay. The same smell was often on the street outside so I assume the air con unit was drawing in this air and not filtering it properly. Credit to the housekeepers as I think they're short staffed and have a lot of work to get through so do the best they can. They were always friendly and kind. One of our children became ill and was vomiting, so I asked for more water which the lovely housekeeper provided. Our children were kindly gifted Halloween themed marshmallow lollies in our room and we placed these on the dining table in their packaging. We woke up the next day to find ants all over them. We also found dust mites all around the coffee machine area of the side board. Noise from The Show Factory was irritating when my 6 year old was trying to sleep. Loud live music played from around 9pm-10.30pm each night so avoid room 2112 and the other rooms nearby if you have young children. You could hear every word of every song, it's that loud and that's with the windows shut too. On a positive note, it sounded great. The resort itself seems generally understaffed and this was very obvious in the Royal Level El Ancla restaurant and the bar in front of this. Staff are all doing their best but mainly seemed fed up and stressed out. We felt like we were an inconvenience most of the time and it felt difficult to order anything with staff avoiding eye contact. We waited in the bar for 10-15 mins for table service on a few occasions then we'd try the bar where we were told we had to sit back down at the table and await table service. The staff would then eventually serve us at the bar but begrudgingly. This became frustrating. We were half board and grateful we weren't all inclusive as these guests were getting understandably really irritated by it. Cocktails were well made and tasty when we did get served. We had some food and drink one day from the bar outside The Show Factory and had our food served inside The Show Factory. 2 hours after we'd left the table, our empty plates/glasses were all still on the table. The footpath/decking leading around the marina and beach requires maintenence. Members of our group tripped a few times. Kids club isn't a fully functioning kids club. Turned up on Halloween to drop the kids off for the 2.30pm session at Castillo and were told we had to stay with our children as they were trick or treating around the resort. We'd planned to go to the adults area that afternoon, so that put a stop to that and we didn't bother with the trick or treating. A note to clarify this on the app would have been helpful. The drop and go sessions only run from 10.30am-1.30pm and 2.30-4.30pm despite the afternoon session stating a later finish each day on the app. We went to Castillo again for their 'Lab & Make' session and that turned out to be painting. My friend also put her children in and asked about it, and apparently the Mar kids club had the kit for it so it wasn't happening in Castillo. A simple update on the app would solve disappointing the guests, particularly when it's children. The staff member said to us that the kids club wasn't really suitable for our 11 year old despite it being meant for children up to the age of 12. It was surely her job to offer age appropriate activities. All 4 children in our group were bored and didn't want to return (aged between 6 and 11). We decided to try the kids club at Mar the next day which was better but our children were still bored.  We're used to a kids club being open from 9am - 6pm so you have the flexibility to drop in and out for a couple of hours at a time, so this was disappointing not to have so much flexibility. It was a shame as our children tend to enjoy kids clubs at other resorts. There are food hygiene issues, particularly at El Ancla with food being left luke warm on hot plates, smoked salmon/prawns being left out without ice beneath/on a cooling station. Some meat/fish quality is poor on fresh cooking stations/grill. Sometimes too fatty and cooked in so much oil. Breakfast was better with a good selection of food items and the freshly cooked omelettes and pastries were tasty. Some staff are on the ball and will lay your table and offer drinks and others would ignore you but probably because they're so flat out doing other jobs, they can't deal with it. It was irritating having to seek staff out to get cutlery and order drinks. Staff at Tindaya in the exclusive section were more cheery and on the ball. There seemed to be plenty of staff around too. Food was being replenished frequently too as it's busier. The Halloween Time Warp performance in the middle of the buffet restaurant was a fun touch. The queues for the cooking stations here are large but the food seemed generally hotter than at El Ancla. The ambience of El Ancla is better though. Good to mix it up between the 2 buffets. At the start of our holiday we tried to book the Mexican restaurant but this was fully booked throughout our entire stay and the Royal Level receptionist couldn't offer a solution on any night of our stay. We thought maybe they may have a waitlist or some standby tables but nothing. We visited the Italian restaurant for lunch one day and the food was good overall. We headed to a cocktail activity that was meant to be happening in the Royal Level section. It stated RL and not the adults only section, so we assumed we were in the correct place at the pool bar of our section. We asked the bar staff member and showed her the app and she seemed confused and was unable to tell us any details. We asked if she could help us by contacting someone to find out and the response was no and that she had no way of contacting anyone. The app is a pain to use at times. It's good for the basics but a daily print out of activities with locations would be really helpful. I may be wrong but I have my suspicions that some of the activities offered on the app, don't actually occur and the locations info is purposely very ambiguous for some activities for that reason. The management should try fully using their own app to understand the frustrations with it. We weren't alone in our frustrations with it either as I heard others complaining. There's also no clear list of what's actually included in the Royal Level package. A printed list would have been really helpful as it's all very vague. Some reception staff aren't friendly or attentive and don't seem keen to help as they're busy doing 101 different jobs. The marina area is attractive and Royal Level pool area is peaceful with an attractive view. We could usually find sun loungers here too whereas it was tricky in other areas of the hotel. Sun loungers are really packed in around the Mar pool and there still aren't enough for guests. Overall service was inconsistent but there were the odd efficient, lovely and helpful staff members. The weather was amazing, so it was great to see the sun and spend time as a family and with our friends. There was also lots to do in the town-plenty of restaurants and bars. The inflatable obstacle course and pedalos at the marina are good fun and the water is so clear. The spa circuit and changing rooms are unappealing and tired but the spas outdoor pool is great. The mini golf is fun and the course is well maintained. It's included in the Royal Level package too. It has the potential to be a fantastic resort but misses the mark. I think the main issue is that it's understaffed. I would definitely avoid choosing the all inclusive option.

less

“Disappointment”

On the plus side, beds were very comfortable and the housekeeping was excellent. Emailing guests ahead of arrival to find out their pillow preferences was a really nice touch. Breakfast in El Ancla restaurant was good. Overall we were disappointed with the holiday though. The sun bed situation is t… more

On the plus side, beds were very comfortable and the housekeeping was excellent. Emailing guests ahead of arrival to find out their pillow preferences was a really nice touch. Breakfast in El Ancla restaurant was good. Overall we were disappointed with the holiday though. The sun bed situation is the worst I’ve seen (having stayed in many many hotels over the years). Prepare to be up at 7:30 (some people earlier) to reserve a bed. And don’t expect to be able to to use any of the other 6 pools in the resort unless you have gone around and saved beds with towels in more than one place. Not a single bed was available at any of the other pools nearly every time we went looking. The hotel makes zero effort to stop this, and there aren’t enough beds for everyone. That alone would stop us returning. The hotel was also much too busy for our liking and not peaceful at all, although this might not bother others. Very glad we had Royal Level or it would have been far worse. It’s pretty unfair that RL family can’t have room service or order food to their sunbeds but RL adults only can. The kids club and mini disco were ok but organisation and communication was very lacking - our kids weren’t that keen either and they’ve loved kids club at other hotels. Having stayed in other Barcelos before we were expecting more from this one.

less

“An unwanted surprise”

Having stayed with Barcelo' previously I decided to experience the royal level deluxe suite, sadly from day one I had cockroaches in the bedroom, not really what I would expect from Barcelo. Not a pleasant experience for a solo traveller. I ended up sleeping in the lounge. Cleary there is an issue … more

Having stayed with Barcelo' previously I decided to experience the royal level deluxe suite, sadly from day one I had cockroaches in the bedroom, not really what I would expect from Barcelo. Not a pleasant experience for a solo traveller. I ended up sleeping in the lounge. Cleary there is an issue here which needs addressing as other guests will no doubt experience this. On the positive side the staff were amazing and so helpful, the food was lovely as where the views. The location and the overall ambiance was superb.

less