Belmond La Residencia

Fabulous 5 star hotel in Deià in the Tramuntana mountains of Mallorca. We went for a biking trip with friends and had a magnificent room in this unique and very old property. We dined at all three restaurants on the property and they were superb. The staff was excellent. The breakfast was also impressive in its variety and tasty. I was surprised that the room provided only instant coffee and a water heater rather than a coffee maker but there was coffee available very early at the main desk so this was a minor inconvenience. We would love to come again.

This is a unique, special and beautiful hotel. But it is badly let down by the food. I will therefore start with the less than good and move on to the excellent. The food was very very disappointing in almost every respect! I note a previous reviewer suggests Olivio, the 'best' of the restaurants (note the quote marks), deserves a Michelin Star! I am sorry but having eaten in Michelin Starred restaurants around the world, Olivio is far far from that status! In the round the food is very very poor., bread is terrible, and the choice at the outside pool cafe is nice, but totally repetitive.The other main restaurant is delightful in its position, and style, especially on the terraces, but again the food is far short of what one would expect in a Hotel of this calibre!! However the hotel itself, and the area is quite magnificent. It is like a village all of its own, and situated on the hill on the verge of a delightful village Deia. There appears to be no two rooms/suites the same, all in a beautiful jumble of positions on a hill as if they had been there for ever.We had 2 rooms, one for us and one for our daughter and 2 year old grandson. It was excellently situated for us, as I have to walk with a stick, and our 2 year old was near by. Both rooms had large private areas outside, although our daughters was rather dark and shady.But the rooms were convenient for breakfast and the main pool. The design of the hotel is amazing, the grounds are fabulous, and the staff, with one group exception, were wonderful and very child friendly. Reception staff were a little on the grumpy side with little enthusiasm, but I repeat, the rest were delightful and helpful. Fina at breakfast and the pool was a delight. In general the staff were superb. The village is a few yards away, and has some good eateries (see my next review). The whole area is wonderful, but the hotel so good we hardly left it (apart from eating out!!) This is a hugely expensive hotel, but it looks and feels it, the situation is gorgeous,the overall look and feel of the place is spectacular, but the food does let it down badly, and does nothing for the reputation of the country. The staff however are wonderful, adored our grandson, were helpful, kind and professional. Would we go again. I would love to, if only it wasn't on Easy Jet!! and if my husband agreed, which is unlikely owing to the food. Is it worth a try? VERY much so!!

Belmond have a knack for selecting the best located hotels whenever they add to their portfolio. La Residencia is no exception. It is located in the artists’ village of Deia, set under towering peaks of nearby mountains, and a view to the sea beyond. All of the new building, and restoration of original buildings has been carried out to the highest standards, and it oozes quality, uniqueness and discreet wealth. Add to this a fabulous art collection sprinkled very liberally over every wall in both public and private spaces and you have a very comfortable environment The staff are all first rate, approachable, chatty, friendly and very helpful and we did not meet a single member of staff who had anything bad to say about working there, in fact, quite the opposite, this despite them being laid off in the winter months when the hotel closes. Whilst the hotel is wonderful in its aspect and ambience it is let down by all of the food outlets. Just because you may be paying 100 euros and upwards per person for a meal does not mean that you should expect food to match the prices. They claim to have a baker on site, but if so he/she should be sacked, as the worst bread rolls in Europe were dragged out of retirement each evening, at a cost of 8 euros per serving each. If you stay for just a couple of days then you can just about manage but the menus are limited and uninspiring in both Cafe Miro and Olivo and almost everyone could cook as well at home. All food is very expensive, but I never mind paying if the cost bears some relationship to the quality, and here that link is somewhat tenuous. However all is rescued, with one single exception, by the quality of the staff who make your stay a pleasure. Breakfast has a large selection, again let down by the various bakery products, none of which seem to have had more than a passing glance from an artisan pointing at a machine. Fina, at breakfast, needs special mention as she paid so much attention to our grandson, as does Sophia who looked after this lively two year old for 3 hours each morning. Lunch by the pool was very relaxing though Pizza of the day alternated between Margherita and Pepperoni, the salad bar selection never altered, and cocktail of the day remained stubbornly fixed as Mojito. Finally, and just to prevent a faux pas, do remember that Gewurtztraminer is drunk at room temperature, or so the Sicilian Head Waiter would have you believe when he delivered a bottle that was tepid. ‘That’s how it’s drunk where it’s produced’ he said, after I noted that it was not cooled. Strange really, as when I last drank this same Trimbach Estate wine in Alsace the locals served it in an ice cooler. We learn something new every day don’t we!

We returned to La Res almost exactly a year after our first visit for a long 4 day weekend. Without getting over emotive about it there is an ambience about the place that I have not seen many other places. The views of mountains and sea are breathtaking - the light changes many times during the day and alters the appearance of the surrounding views. The hotel is mainly situated in 2 buildings but continues up the terraced hillside making it somewhat Tardis like once you get inside . The Superior room we had last year was great - this year we had a free upgrade to one of the larger suites with private pool which to say the least was incredible. This is a 5 star boutique hotel - but do not expect Ritz/Le Manoir type luxury rooms. The rooms are very much in the local style with tiled floored beamed ceilings and whitewashed walls. But this distinctly adds to the charm and atmosphere and they and beds/furniture are extremely comfortable - with an array of interesting art on the walls. We dined 3 nights in El Olivo - where food and service were excellent - the staff are very friendly and chatty but remain extremely professional - Daniel and Fabio in were complete stars. El Olivo in our opinion at least is worth a Michelin star and can't be too far from achieving one. Overall an ideal place to chill ouit for a few days - we were incredibly lucky with superb sunshine - and sitting drinking pre dinner cocktails on the fabulous lawn area was a highlight. Totally brilliant place which we both love and will be returning to next year.

A splendid traditional property with fabulous 5 star service. The views are stunning and the property very luxuriously apointed in a traditional way. The location in Dia is oerfect its a lovely stroll to the small cove below and a healthy walk back up the hill after lunch. Though not for the trendy set the adult only pool and seclusion of the new apartments make for a very private and safe destination. On a couple of evenings there were small wedding parties and hired in the spanish guitar music filled the air with a fabulous magical authentic sounds sitting having a sundowneer on the terrace listening to the guitar played so beautifully there could not be a nicer place in the whiole of Spain.