Best hotels for kids in Salou [Tried and Tested]

My opinion after staying 📝

We stayed two nights because it is one of the hotels people ask about most in Salou, and the location is the first thing that hits you. You step out of the hotel and you are touching the sand. Not “a few minutes from the beach”: out of the door and onto it.

The best thing inside is the water park, with slides for children and lifeguards who actually watch the water rather than the phone. There is also an indoor pool for families and a small gym, complete enough that I could do almost my whole routine in it.

The family rooms are refurbished and standard: two large beds, a balcony and a bathroom. The detail we liked was two pillows per person, which sounds like nothing until you have spent a week on one flat pillow.

On the food, I have been in a lot of hotels and I will not oversell this one. It is around average, perhaps a shade above other hotels of the same category, and the noise is the other thing to weigh: this is a busy hotel and it sounds like one.

Who I recommend it to

For families with children between 3 and 12 who want to be on the beach, with an all-inclusive option and entertainment laid on all day.

Not for anyone who needs quiet, and not for anyone who books mainly for the buffet.

My opinion after staying 📝

We stayed two nights because we kept getting messages asking about this one. It sits in the middle of Salou centre, so you are never short of restaurants or shops, and the beach is about an eight-minute walk.

On facilities and entertainment for children, it is among the best in Catalonia. A wide range of activities, slide areas, a water park and splash zones, and the detail that matters with small children: the splash area is two metres from the loungers, so you can watch them without standing up.

What I liked least was the food. There is variety, but some dishes have no flavour, and that is why I would book half board rather than full board and eat out at the beach bars nearby. It also gets you out of the resort, which with this many facilities is a real risk: you can finish the holiday without ever having left.

Who I recommend it to

For families with children up to about 10 who want a resort packed with things to do and a central location.

Book half board and eat out at least half the time, and do not come expecting a quiet week.

What this hotel is like 📝

La Siesta Salou Resort is 500 metres from the beach, and its four outdoor pools are surrounded by trees, which in a Costa Dorada summer is worth more than another slide: there is real shade.

The bungalow is the reason to come. Most of them have a TV, a fully equipped kitchen and several rooms, sleeping up to 6 people. The pools are varied, with a hydromassage area, slides for children and a solarium.

The children’s mini club runs a lot of activities and keeps them busy all day. The buffet restaurant by the pool has a good range, and there is also a bakery, a supermarket and a cafeteria on site.

Who it is for

For large families who want somewhere near the beach with entertainment for the children and room to spread out. Book early: in summer it is hard to find availability.

My opinion after staying 📝

It is 50 metres from Racó beach, next to La Pineda, and that stretch is one of the best rated by families on this coast. You are not walking twenty minutes with a pushchair to get to the sand.

There are two outdoor pools, one of them with slides for young children, plus a sauna and a hydromassage area for the adults. The family rooms are what you expect at this level: air conditioning, a private balcony, neither large nor cramped.

On the food, one thing worth saying plainly. The buffet has variety but it can feel short, and the fair way to read it is against the category the hotel charges for, not against a five-star. There is entertainment for children and adults, though the night shows are the part that could improve.

Who I recommend it to

For families with children from about 3 to 10 who want slides for the small ones and the beach at the door, without paying resort prices.

Avoid the peak fortnight of August if you can: it fills up and the pool areas feel it.

What this hotel is like 📝

This is an apart-hotel, four-star superior, so the facilities and the food are slightly above the average of the other family hotels in Salou.

It has 4 outdoor pool areas, one of them with slides and water games, and an indoor pool with hydromassage. The food is one of its strong points, with good quality and variety at both breakfast and dinner, which is not where this kind of hotel usually wins.

Who it is for

For families with young children, up to about 7, who want apart-hotel space with hotel-quality food. Bear in mind the beach is 600 metres away.

What this hotel is like 📝

Cala Font is a family hotel on the edge of Salou, right in front of Cala Font itself, a cove rated 4.5 out of 5 on Google.

It has two pool areas, smaller than other family hotels around here, entertainment, and very good ratings for breakfast and dinner. Because it is aimed at families with very small children, it is quieter than the hotels where the guests are older children and teenagers.

Who it is for

For families with small children who want a cove rather than a long busy beach, and who would rather have calm than a big water park.

What this hotel is like 📝

This one has options for large families, with two-bedroom apartments, as well as ordinary rooms for families of up to 4.

H10 as a chain is reliable on facilities and service and this hotel is no exception, which is also why the price is above the average for family hotels in Salou. As an extra, it has a supermarket, two restaurants and a gym, and the reviews of the entertainment team are very good. There is a slide area for children and a splash zone.

Who it is for

For families who want a step up in quality near the beach, with a water park for the children and areas for the adults, and who have the budget for it.

What this hotel is like 📝

This is one of the places for children that I like most in the area. It is 100% focused on families, and above all on the little ones having the best possible time. The family rooms sleep up to 5, they are spacious, and some of them are themed.

The children’s facilities are a blast: two pools, one for all ages and one for children, both with slide areas, sports courts, a play area and a mini club from 4 years old. The entertainment team is what stands out, and for the adults there is a spa and a gym.

Who it is for

For families with children up to about twelve. The one thing to weigh is that it is not near the beach, so if the plan is sand every morning, this is not the one.

What this hotel is like 📝

If PortAventura is the reason you are coming, this hotel is inside the park itself. With your booking you get unlimited access to the park and one day at Ferrari Land, which changes the sums of the whole trip.

In season it has an outdoor jacuzzi, an adults’ pool and a children’s pool with a pirate ship, plus an entertainment programme and a games area with pool tables. The themed family rooms sleep a maximum of 4.

The downside is the one everybody reports: in high season the hotel is very full and long queues build up, especially at the buffet.

Who it is for

For families coming for the park, with children old enough for the rides. If PortAventura is not the plan, you are paying for a location you will not use.

What this hotel is like 📝

We close the list with this three-star, 200 metres from Playa Larga and Capellanes beach and ten minutes from PortAventura. The rooms are spacious and clean, though the pillows are very thin and, because of that, uncomfortable.

There is an adults’ pool and a children’s pool with a splash zone for the little ones. There is a mini club, but it only opens in the mornings, and an entertainment programme in which most activities are in English. The buffet restaurant has live cooking, and there is an all-inclusive option on bookings of more than 4 nights.

Who it is for

For families with children up to about 4 who want all inclusive near the beach.

I do not recommend it for older children: the pools are small and the games are aimed at toddlers.