Gran Castillo Tagoro

We’ve just returned from a two-week all-inclusive stay in a Superior Sea View room. This was our second visit, having had a great experience last year. While we felt standards had dipped slightly in a few areas, we still had an enjoyable holiday and the hotel continues to offer good value. Our room was spacious, with plenty of storage and ideal for a two-week stay. The location is excellent, with a lovely walk to the nearby marina, and we also hired a car to explore further afield. Reception was always quick to arrange taxis when needed. Housekeeping did an excellent job every day, and the hotel was generally clean and well maintained. The buffet food was varied enough that we found plenty to enjoy each day. As with most buffet restaurants, there was some repetition, but there were always good options available. Both main swimming pools are excellent, with lots of space for swimming or playing with children, and the daytime entertainment was popular. The main area that could be improved is the outdoor seating around the pool bar and sports bar, where tables often weren't cleared, meaning guests sometimes had to tidy them before sitting down. We tended to avoid the pool snack bar for this reason. Most of the bar staff were friendly and hardworking, although one member of staff was noticeably less welcoming than the rest. The evening entertainment isn't great and our daughter was happy to miss this most nights (It was almost exactly the same as last year and repeated on a weekly basis). A meal at the a la carte restaurant was included in last years package but this is not the case this year. We didn't notice the Japanese and Italian a la carte being opened at any point so they don't seem to be popular. One slight disappointment came on our departure day. We received an email from the hotel mentioning late checkout as an option to make departure more comfortable, but unfortunately reception couldn't accommodate our request. With a 6pm transfer, it made for a long final day without access to a room. Overall, despite a few areas where standards could improve, we enjoyed our stay and would happily consider returning in the future.

Just returned from a 7-night all-inclusive stay. We checked in and had all of our bags taken to the room. The hotel was like a maze, and we couldn't get our heads around it at first. The room was very spacious. We didn't have the greatest view, but someone has to pull the short straw. We noticed cracks in the floor tiles, and with little feet running around, we were worried our daughter might cut herself. My partner put tissue in the cracks as a temporary fix. When we returned later that day, they had been filled, so I'm guessing the cleaners noticed them and reported them to maintenance, who fixed the problem. It took us around 20 minutes to walk to Marina Rubicón along the seafront, admiring the beautiful views and taking in some of the area's history. I believe Playa Blanca was a further 20-minute walk, but with a small child, that wasn't going to happen. Marina Rubicón was a lovely spot, and there's a fantastic market on a Saturday. We enjoy an evening walk with a few shops and a bit of atmosphere, but the hotel's location is very quiet. We hired a car for three full days, which allowed us to explore the island and visit other places. If you're able to, I'd definitely recommend hiring a car. Cockroaches, like many bugs and insects, are little pests. We did see a few during our stay and witnessed several scattering around the snack bar area. Some guests didn't put the lid back on the bread, and I couldn't help but wonder what might have landed on it. The snack bar really let the hotel down. It wasn't monitored very well, looked filthy at times, and was often left to its own devices. This applied to both sides of the resort. The restaurant opened at 7pm, and you had to book a table. I understand the logic behind booking, but I don't think it should be compulsory. The food was freshly prepared, regularly replenished, and there was plenty of choice. However, the little details let it down. The crockery was chipped, the placemats were ripped, and some of the serving dishes were chipped too. The sports bar was a hit, but some of the staff were rude. It didn't open until 5pm, and it would have been great if it had been open during the day as well. We stayed in Block D, so if we wanted a drink, it was a bit of a faff as we had to walk to one of the bars. We were right in the middle of the Adventure and Castillo sides of the resort. The atmosphere lacked in places. It was very quiet and seemed to be missing daytime entertainment, especially on the Adventure side. I can't comment on the Castillo side as we didn't spend much time there. That said, my daughter loved the mini disco. Again, the atmosphere down there felt quite dull. I can't praise the staff enough because they worked incredibly hard, but perhaps they don't have the resources to make it a little better.

Lastly, the communal area by the lifts, which takes you through to the restaurant, didn't look clean all week. I noticed plastic cups hidden behind the rocks, dirty tissues, dust, and even dead cockroaches accumulating throughout the week. It wasn't pleasant. It's a shame because it's a lovely area with lots of history, beautiful features, and running water, but the lack of cleanliness really let it down.

Would we stay here again? No, mainly because of the location. I also don't believe it was a true 5-star hotel. In my opinion, it was more of a 4-star resort.

What a great spot and hotel this is. It has clearly had upgrades done based on past reviews and they do not disappoint. The place was spotless everyday with staff constantly working by the pools to keep everything running smooth. Everyone was so friendly and helpful and always happy to say hello or good morning.

We stayed in a kids adventure room which was so nice for our daughter, we combined 2 single beds into 1 big bed for her. The room itself was big and very clean and bottles of water on arrival really helped as it was very hot. The cleaning team also came daily and did full change of all bedding and mopped the floor and bathroom as well as general clean. So when you came back to fresh sheets and lemon fresh smell it made a difference.

We were all inclusive so used the restaurant daily except for 1 night we paid for the Barbacoa. In general the restaurant food was good, always options for fish and mean in sauces, daily changing roast, fish and meat option cooked fresh in front of you as well such as turkey fillet and mackerel. Spanish potatoes and a fresh salad bar at every meal plus a themed food bar as well. On the night we arrived it was Mexican food, we also say German, Sushi and Tapas options as well. These is a dedicated kids section with Burgers, Pasta with sauce on the side and fresh cooked Pizza. It also included fresh fruit and dessert daily with a smaller option for lunch time.

Gabriel and Nancy looked after us in the restaurant so well and Luis and Yoandy on the Barbacoa who made amazing food for Spanish BBQ night. It is well worth the extra cost with fresh Jambon, salads and bbq done right on the terrace for you.

We didnt use the entertainment too much but what we did see was good. Fanni was so nice to our daughter with the Spanish games and disco and Omar who arranged the pirate night my family loved.

Finally the reception team who arranged Taxi, excursion to Rancho Texas and all our enquiries you were so good in helping us. Daron also really helped me in buying local products and finding what i needed in the local area.

Great hotel with fantastic staff, very clean and end of May and start of June was not packed. Already booked to come back next year. If you get the chance do go.