Hotel & Spa Dynastic in Benidorm

If it wasn’t for the food, I would honestly give this hotel -5 stars.
From the moment we arrived, the experience was disappointing. We came at 12pm to check in and were told the room wouldn’t be ready until 4pm — with no apology whatsoever. We went back several times to check, but the staff seemed completely unbothered. It almost felt like they were doing us a favour by letting us stay there.
At 5pm, I had to firmly explain that my child was extremely tired after an early flight and needed to rest. I made it clear that if the room was not ready, we would look for another hotel and request a full refund. Miraculously, the room became available shortly after.
Unfortunately, the room was dirty and very outdated. The sockets were half broken, the furniture was old-fashioned, and there was visible mould in the shower. The main issue was the door lock, which wasn’t working. We reported it multiple times and were told someone would come, but no one showed up until the next day. Again, I had to speak firmly and mention moving hotels and requesting a refund before someone finally came — and interestingly, it was fixed within 30 minutes. Why did it take threats of leaving to resolve basic issues?
We booked all-inclusive, but the drinks were poor quality with very limited choices. The most surprising part was that although the SPA was included, we had to pay extra for basic things — £3 to rent a towel, €9 to use the rusty gym, and €12 for the indoor swimming pool. I understand that massages or treatments can cost extra, but charging for the gym and indoor pool is something I’ve never experienced before, and I’ve travelled to many countries.
The outdoor swimming pool was also small — even my 9-year-old noticed that.
I genuinely don’t understand how this hotel received 4 stars. The service and welcome were not worth the money. The only positive thing I can say is about the food — when you work with fresh products, it’s hard to go wrong, and that was the only safe part of this stay.
This was our first and definitely last time staying in Dynasty hotel.Benidorm The place itself is beautiful to visit and for sure very soon we will be back, but unfortunately, this hotel made the start of our holiday very stressful and worthless.