Gran Meliá Don Pepe

Great place to spend the family holiday ! Nice and spacious rooms with perfect views over the sea. Lots of different ammentities in the hotel, which makes your holiday perfect. We liked very much the pool area. Water in the pool was really perfect. No smell of clorine. It is perfect for those who are sensitive to clorine. Dinning was very good ! Breakfast includes everything you need in the morning. We wisited T Bone Grill and Cappuccino cafe. Both places are excelent ! The service of the hotel was very kind, nice and helpful. We had a breakdown in the room, which was repaired very fast. And it did not spoil our day. So I can say, that this was one of the best holidays I ever had. And I definitely recommend everyone to spend your holiday in this hotel. I recommend to book the Red Level room. It will give you some additional options, which you will definitely like !!!

A very nice hotel with a friendly and helpful personnel. Vast pool area, great dining beside - pool bar serves best paella in town. Rooms: don't get caught by the "premium" room name. These are really small with outdated furniture and bathrooms. Beach: no proper beach near the hotel. The one next to it is small, dirty and with overpriced beds & umbrellas. The water is freezing, the bottom is covered with big stones. The hotel pool, however, is great.

We stayed at this hotel as part of a tour that involved staying at 6 hotels in Portugal and Spain. This one was the most expensive (equal to the Four Seasons Ritz in Lisbon) and offered the least. You got a pool and views of the Meditteranean, but the room was small, and the bathroom was very small. If you got the pool view room with a patio, the room was small and the bathroom offered one sink and the toilet was so close to the bidet, you had to sit sideways to use it. The staff were not nearly as competent as other hotels we stayed at. My daughter was given keys to a room and when we went there, there were someone else's clothes on the floor! Fortunately, we are honest and did not touch the other woman's things, but that is not acceptable. There seemed to be a lack of language skills. I understand that not everyone can speak 4 languages, but the staff at all the other hotels we stayed at spoke Spanish, French and English well enough to understand us.

I have stayed at The Don Pepe 4 times over the last few years and have always enjoyed my visits. The pool area and grounds are the diamonds at the heart of this 5 star resort, however there are a few things that are starting to change some of my opinions on the hotel..... Before I go there, let's start with the positives: 1) The pool area is 1st class and is suitable for most ages. 2) The grounds are well manicured and a pleasure to walk around. 3) The hotel lobby gives you more than just a welcomed entrance and you feel you have arrived. 4) Geographically the hotel sits in an ideal location, close enough to Marbella Central (15mins), but also within walking distance (30mins) of Puerto Banus. There is plenty to like and after all, I have kept coming back here, but....there are a few 'buts' for the first time... 1) The bedrooms are looking slightly tired. I initially wondered if I was just being unfair here and that it's getting used to the comfort of such rooms that has swayed my perception, but things like the wardrobes being slightly frayed, tiles not as clean as they should be (for a 5 star) and the overall attentiveness to the rooms isn't quite at the level you would hope for the price - this suggests I am right to point these out if you are paying for it. 2) The pool area tiles are a major hazard. I am actually amazed there hasn't been a bad accident. Put it like this, if you were living in America then it's a lawsuit waiting to happen. I would strongly recommend they pay for some non slip tiles. The amount of people I have seen falling or slipping, including my own child is incredible and ultimately unsustainable until a serious injury happens. The hotel need to take this seriously and must make changes. My advice is if you have kids between the ages of 2-5 then I would be extremely cautious about taking them here whilst the tiles are the way they are. That's a shame of course because the hotel is ideal for families, but not at the risk of a bad accident. 3) The service. This isn't quite what it used to be. I am being a little kind when I say it's inconsistent (note the staff are friendly and do try to help). The overall picture here is that it's sluggish and slow. If you want food or drinks by the pool then expect to wait (sometimes up to an hour). Occasionally it's better than this, but it takes time. Check-in can also be pretty slow depending when you arrive so also be prepared to wait. That all said these are three things the hotel can fix pretty quickly and retain its repudiation (in my eyes at least) as a 5 star luxury retreat. I still very much enjoy the hotel and I am being a little picky, but I figure it's important for the hotel as much as its residents to get a feel of what is required to keep it to the standards set in the past and this is why this review gives it a 'good' mark and not a 'great' one.

It's a really nice hotel with a big pool , delicious breakfast buffet , direct on the beach, amazing staff , and love the cappuccino restaurant they have a good coffee , but the rooms are a bit old need to be redecorated which they will do in October I think . My only problem is the room otherwise it's a perfect hotel with nice location away from the noisy neighbors .