Majorca Hotels Guide

We stayed at the Pinos Altos Apartments in April 2009 for 5 nights and enjoyed our stay so much (having stayed regularly in Cala San Vicente 25 years earlier when our son and daughter were children) that we returned in September 2009 for 11 nights - or so we planned.

We made our booking with www.travelrepublic.co.uk but on presenting our voucher on arrival we were told there was 'no booking'. We were re-allocated to an Hotel in another resort which we felt we had no alternative but to accept - 'under protest'.

6 months on we have not been able to get to the bottom of what went wrong and have only been offered a derisory amount in recompense. It is a pity that this experience has soured our view and we feel unable to return to these basic but very clean and delightful Apartments.

We have stayed at Pinos Altos every year since our children were little. We stumbled over it by accident about eight years ago when we were so disappointed by a Club Pollentia luxury resort, that we checked out - and checked into Pinos Altos after seeing it advertised in a window along the sea front.

It didn't have any of the luxury of our original accommodation, is definitely not five star and is certainly a little dated interior wise, but it is pretty, clean, immaculately maintained and equipped and is loved by our children for its beautiful swimming pool and endless new friends that they meet around the pool year in, year out (mostly British, but often Spanish and Danish - never German strangely).

We adore its location, two minutes stroll to the beach, and close to two of our favourite restaurants in Spain, Modesta and the Trattoria in the Cala San Vincente hotel.
It is a fantastic base and I highly recommend it. It's not for those expecting high glamour, but for families and friends wanting a small, chilled and friendly apartment holiday,with like minded families, it can't be beaten.

Two tips, take extra pillows and a soft blanket if you can to cosy up the basic bedding a little, and always request a view of the pool. Two of the larger apartments in the "annex" feel a little out of it. Apartments 1,2,3,4 are perfect at ground level for the pool and have great terraces for chilling and watching the kids in the pool, the two front facing apartments in the annex are brilliant too.

We're staying there for a month this summer and friends of ours are taking two other apartments - similar to sharing a villa but cheaper and wih more privacy!