Hotel El Paso, (Universal Port Aventura Complex) Review

Overall Rating

VISITED 2008 - April 11th-18th
Maid changed towels daily, bed linen changed every 2 days.
Adequate selection of food

Beds have 6 legs metal frame. Every time somebody moves creak , creak creak and you are awake. Walls paper thin, hear EVERYTHING next door, mould on wall tiles in bathroom, air conditioning not running all week at El Paso hotel (april 08). Only double doors, no window. very difficult to ventilate. Vending machines not running on floor, swallow money though. Shower rail loose and falling off wall with dodgy tiling. All pools closed, no other facilities open (told inside pool would be open). Lack of signage / explanation on hotel operation. No kettle or hot water facilities. MFI type furniture, lots of chipboard and screws sticking out ready to rip clothes (as we found)

I would suggest everyone read the other reviews on this site. They are not gripes or moans but true statements about this resort.
It is not a bad resort, but it is NOT 4 star by English standards. I spent time reading the reviews before I left and took ear plugs, it was the BEST thing we did. The noise was unbelievable, and our visit was at low season. I eventually rigged up the balcony door with my belt so it would be open by half an inch at night to get some ventilation into the room.
There is also music in the central courtyard till 11pm every night, not a problem if you can close your door on it. The rooms are ceramicaly floor tiled. They also have tiled skirting and bath panels. This adds to the noise. All the grout cracks in the tiling and the inaccessibility for maintenance means there is a damp smell in the bathroom.
Water
Hot water was always there when I wanted it, but other guests were saying it ran out at times. I noticed the water went hot/cold when someone turned on their tap in the next room. I would question whether thermostatic valves are fitted and as such, you would need to watch your children.
Food.
Adequate selection of food at restaurant, but temperature of serving was debatable. Some hot, some look warm and some cold. Also, watch how busy the hotel is. We were out of season, but still had to queue for 15 minutes on one day to be seated in the restaurant.
Explanation of hotel and information
A good example of lack of explanation was our check in. We were given our room cards and told we were in room 13xx. We then asked where it is and told the lifts would take us there. That was it. After that it was a wonderful mystery tour of the hotel, pick a floor and find your room. I also enquired about the local buses, and was simply given a leaflet that said the bus service picks up from Salou at 9am. No information in the leaflet about where in Salou, just Salou. After some more enquires I eventually got a map of Salou showing a bus station. Information in not volunteered, if you need to know something you have to ask every little point. Maybe just a Spanish thing, but information boards and leaflets make lots of assumptions.
Transport
Taxis are only 5 minutes call from the hotel and the reception will order it for you. To give you an example of costings, the distance from El Paso to the Aqoupolis water park (dolphin show) in la Ppenida was 13 euros. To the railway station was 8 euros.
The Park
Spanish rules are for breaking. If you are going to use the rides
1) Expect queue jumping - it is the norm. 2) queue line fences are meant for jumping. It is the norm - if you don't leap over the fences and barriers you will have another 20 people in front of you when you get to the ride. 3) You do not get a choice of seat position on any ride or coaster. I love the drop tower, I did it 14 times and only got the stand up twice. People in front of me did not want stand up because they were scared, but were given no choice. Either stand up, or re-queue. Considering points 1 and 2 I found this a bit of a joke.
Plenty of food and toilets although the toilets can be a bit of a hunt as there are limited signs. Be aware that if you want to do rides, go to the back of the park and work forward. The locals have a habit of jumping in the first line the see, so work back to front. Some shows not running as we are out of season, and no waterpark in any form or pool.
Would I go again to Port Aventura ?
We enjoyed the park and shows. We visited Barcelona a couple of times and I would strongly suggest visiting the main museum and magical fountain there. The hotel is not 4 star by any standards. The rooms are sparse and bare. White and magnolia with a mirror, a wall hanging and naff beds and furniture. The maid service is first class though. Food is rotated with different courses each day. But temperature issues. Basically, it is worth going as long as you take earplugs, but I would not pay high season price for this hotel.
I paid £1200 for a weeks holiday for the four of us, I would not pay the £2500 they would like for high season, it is not worth it.