Sandos Monaco Hotel - Adults Only in Benidorm

We stayed at Sandos Monaco for 3 nights as a couple in our early 20s. Overall, the hotel was disappointing and felt more like a 3-star hotel than 4-star.

We had a standard room on the 16th floor (room 1608). The room itself was very basic and not soundproof at all. The biggest issue was the lifts — we regularly waited around 10 minutes, and they stopped on multiple floors each time. On one of the days, the water was turned off for the entire day due to building work, and we were not informed of this before or during our stay, which was really unacceptable.

Cleanliness was a big concern. In the restaurant, almost every plate we picked up was dirty on both the top and bottom, including glasses and cutlery. We also had silverfish coming out from under our bed, which was unpleasant.

The staff were generally slow and didn’t speak or understand English very well. Service felt geared towards the older guests — we were the youngest people there, and staff mostly focused on serving drinks to older tables. The atmosphere from other guests was quite obnoxious at times, but this may be due to the age demographic the hotel attracts.

Food and drink were very basic and mostly the same each day. As a vegetarian, options were very limited, and many dishes weren’t labelled, which also wouldn’t be suitable for anyone with allergies. The food was often bland, cold, and tasted of nothing.

Facilities were mixed. The spa itself was nice and probably the best part of the hotel, but we weren’t told that it had to be paid for separately when booking through On the Beach. We also had to pay extra for flip-flops and swimming caps, and the changing rooms had no locks on the doors. An older lady slipped in the changing area, which was concerning. The bathroom doors in the rooms also don’t lock. The outdoor pool was very cold, although this is understandable for the time of year. Entertainment wasn’t great and definitely not aimed at younger guests.

The location is excellent — about a 5-minute walk to the beach and the strip, very central with lots of shops nearby. Neptune’s is especially worth visiting. We also did an excursion with Marco Polo to Algar Waterfalls and Guadalest, which was lovely and a highlight of the trip.

Overall, this hotel may suit older guests who are happy with bland food and slower service, and it’s okay for a cheap staycation. However, it didn’t meet 4-star expectations for us, and we wouldn’t return.

We stayed for a week over Xmas, the staff were lovely especially the entertainment staff. The entertainment it's self was very good. Now for the food 😡 it was awful, poor choice always cold and not a good layout for service, all over the place. Xmas dinner worst I've ever had and again cold. Will definitely not be back which is a pity as great location