Best Indalo: My Honest Review After Staying (4-star hotel on Mojácar beach)
By Javier Sobrino
Travel expert and founder
We’ve come to the Hotel Best Indalo , a four-star hotel by the Best chain located right opposite Mojácar beach , in Almería. It’s the “big brother” of the Best Pueblo Indalo, the family apartments we already reviewed next door, and on paper it looks good: Almerian-style architecture, white areas, gardens and a main pool that catches the eye.
As always, we paid for the stay out of our own pocket , no invitation, no collaboration. And the usual thing happens: one thing is what it looks like in photos, and another is what it’s like to actually stay there.
In this article we’ll tell you the good, the bad, whether it’s worth it, and whether we’d recommend it over other options in Mojácar. We’ll tell you up front that several things surprised us… some in a good way, and others not so much.
My quick verdict
We give it 7.9 out of 10 . It’s a nice-looking hotel from the outside, with a very good main pool, one of the best gyms we’ve seen in a family hotel, and kids’ facilities that deliver. But when you expect four-star standards, some things fall short: the room doesn’t surprise, the bathroom amenities are basic and the buffet was the biggest disappointment .
In one sentence
A four-star hotel with a pool and beach right opposite that works really well with young kids, but it needs a push on rooms and food to fully win you over.
Pros and Cons
The good
- The main pool: the best thing about the hotel. Big, family-friendly, with a beach-style entry (a ramp that gradually gets deeper), sun all day until closing, and lots of sunbeds, parasols and Balinese beds.
- The gym: one of the best gyms we’ve seen in a family hotel in Spain. Dumbbells up to 25-30 kg, cables, pulleys and plenty of cardio. You could pay to train here.
- Kids’ facilities: large kids’ club with soft play, ball pit and very good entertainers. We give it a 9.
- Beach opposite: step out of the hotel, cross and you’re on Mojácar beach in a minute.
- The entertainment: the entertainers connect really well with the kids. One of them was among the best we’ve seen this year.
The bad
- The buffet: the big disappointment. Less variety and quality than you’d expect from a four-star, and the restaurant feels small when areas are closed off.
- The soulless room: it does the job, but doesn’t surprise. House-style air conditioning (with remote and outdoor unit on the terrace), far from the premium feel you expect from a four-star.
- Bathroom amenities: shampoo of pretty low quality and few details. For this category, you expect better.
- The badly located splash park: up a hill and with no bar or snack bar nearby. If you’re thirsty, you have to go back down to the main pool.
- The layout: getting to the splash park, kids’ club or gym involves some odd routes. With a pushchair or young kids, you notice it.
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The hotel from the outside and first impressions
As soon as you arrive, the hotel makes a good impression. From the outside it’s nice, with a very Almerian style, white areas, gardens and that main pool that visually catches the eye. You can tell some parts have been renovated and that, overall, the hotel tries to look well-kept.
But after staying and trying it, our feeling is that certain things aren’t at the level we’d expect for a four-star , especially compared to other hotels in the same area at similar prices.
A hotel with very spread-out areas
The lifts work well and are fast. But the hotel’s zones are quite spread out, and to get to the splash park, kids’ club or gym you take some odd routes. It’s not a disaster, but with young kids, a pushchair or lots of stuff, you notice it.
The room and bathroom
The room is pretty average in size. Not big, not small. It’s in line with a standard four-star hotel, with two Queen-size beds where up to four people can sleep if you’re a family, and a small terrace that’s good for sitting a while or hanging up swimming costumes and towels.
The bed and pillows are pretty good. We slept well, so no complaints there.
House-style air con, not built-in
The air conditioning isn’t built into the wall or ceiling. It’s the typical house-style split unit, with a remote and the outdoor motor on the terrace. It works, but it doesn’t feel premium.
Overall, the room does the job, but it’s not a room that surprises you.
Bathroom and amenities
The bathroom is fine, but nothing special. It’s not out of this world, but it does the job perfectly for a holiday stay.
The negative point here is the amenities. The shampoo seemed to us of pretty low quality , and in general there aren’t many details in this sense. It’s not something that ruins the stay, but in a four-star hotel you expect something a bit better.
Pool and common areas
The main pool
For us, the main pool is the best thing about the hotel. It’s a very large, beautiful, comfortable family pool. It has a beach-style entry , with a ramp that gradually gets deeper, which is great for kids to play in the shallower area. Plus, it gets sun all day until closing.
There are lots of sunbeds, parasols and some Balinese beds. It also has several entries: normal stairs, pool ladders and areas to get in comfortably. Next to the pool there’s a lawn area with views towards the beach, separated by a road.
The weak point is that the lawn was a bit neglected. Not serious, but it does lower the overall quality feel a bit. Even so, we really liked the main pool.
The kids’ splash park
The other big water area is the kids’ splash park. It’s an area with a pirate ship , slides, water buckets and jets, in a pool about 30 centimetres deep. It’s great for small kids: they can play without too much danger, and parents have a lawn area and sunbeds nearby to watch them.
The catch: the location
To get to the splash park you have to go up a fairly long hill. And once you’re up there, there’s no bar or snack bar where you can get water, soft drinks or a beer. If you want a drink, you have to go back down to the main pool and order there. The area is nice, but the logistics could have been better thought out.
Facilities for kids and entertainment
Next to the splash park is the kids’ club, and this is one of the things the Best chain usually does quite well. It’s a large space, with areas separated by age , soft play, ball pits, ramps, mats and a big area for painting, doing activities or drawing competitions. There’s also a more conventional playground area a bit further away, with slides and climbing zones.
The entertainment team was one of the positive points of the hotel. The entertainers seemed very good to us: you could see them connecting with the kids, running activities and creating a good atmosphere.
In the evening there’s minidisco and shows . We saw a magic show that was fine for the kids, though a bit weaker for adults. It’s typical of family hotels: the shows are mainly designed to entertain the little ones. Even so, the kids’ entertainment seemed to us one of the best things about the hotel .
Food: the biggest disappointment
Moving on to the buffet, and here’s one of the things that surprised us most, in a bad way.
Compared with its brother in the area, the Best Pueblo Indalo, we expected a lot more. This hotel is four stars, while Pueblo Indalo is three. However, our feeling was that here there was less variety, worse organisation and, in some products, even worse quality .
The most uncomfortable thing was the restaurant space. We went at the end of May and the hotel was probably at high occupancy, but they had many areas of the restaurant closed off . That made the open area feel very cramped. We had to walk around looking for a table, and it wasn’t a comfortable feeling. It wasn’t just a couple of missing tables: you could really tell they should have opened another area to spread people out better.
Breakfast
In terms of variety, the buffet seemed somewhat limited for the size of the hotel. It’s not that you can’t eat. We ate, and there are things that are fine. But overall, it felt like a buffet closer to a three-star than a four-star.
Lunch and dinner
For both breakfast and lunch/dinner, we missed more variety and better quality. Some things were good, but if you come expecting a buffet clearly superior to the Best Pueblo Indalo’s, you’ll probably be disappointed. We expected more.
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Gym
The gym was a very positive surprise . In fact, I’d say it’s one of the best gyms we’ve seen in family hotels in Spain. It’s a gym you could pay to go to.
It has quite a few cardio machines, cables, pulleys, chest and shoulder machines, dumbbells up to 25 or 30 kilos and enough options to train practically your whole body.
The beach
The beach is literally opposite the hotel . You walk out, cross and in a minute you’re on Mojácar beach.
But you need to be clear about what this beach is like. It’s not a beach of fine sand and sea that stays shallow for many metres. Mojácar beach has coarser sand, some small pebbles and a slope that means the water gets deep relatively quickly . If you’re going with small kids or kids who can’t swim, you need to keep a close eye on them.
Staff
The staff had ups and downs, with one very standout part: the entertainment. One of the entertainers seemed to us one of the best we’ve seen this year . The kids were very connected, taking part and having a good time.
In other areas, the staff seemed a bit lost and the service was normal. Nothing more.
Do we recommend it?
We recommend it with caveats .
It’s not a hotel where I’d say “don’t come”. You can stay here, the kids can have a good time, the main pool is very good, the splash park is nice, the gym is excellent and the beach is right opposite.
But if you ask me whether I’d recommend it over other hotels in the area, my answer is no . With nearby options like the Best Pueblo Indalo , which seems better value for money, more versatile and with a better overall feel, I’d probably choose that one first.
To sum it up: if you find a good price, want to be right opposite the beach and liked the pools, it can work quite well. If you’re looking for the best value for money from the chain in Mojácar, take a look at Pueblo Indalo before deciding.
Scores and verdict
| Category | Score |
|---|---|
| Cleanliness | 8 |
| Bed and pillows | 7.5 |
| Bathroom | 7.5 |
| Breakfast | 7 |
| Lunch and dinner | 7.5 |
| Pools | 9 |
| Facilities for kids | 9 |
| Facilities for adults | 7.5 |
| Beach | 8 |
| Staff | 8.5 |
Average score: 7.9 out of 10.
The Final Verdict
For whom do I recommend it?
Perfect For
- You have young kids and want a beach-entry pool, splash park with pirate ship and a kids' club with good entertainment.
- You care about having a good gym on holiday. This is one of the best you'll find in a family hotel.
- You want the beach right opposite without using the car, even though the sand is coarse and the water gets deep quickly.
- You find a good price and don't mind the room and buffet being decent rather than premium.
Skip It If
- You're looking for the best value for money in Mojácar . In that case, Best Pueblo Indalo seems the better option.
- You're demanding about the buffet . Here the restaurant and variety will feel short for a four-star.
- You expect a premium-feeling room . This one does the job, but doesn't surprise.
- You're travelling with a pushchair and get annoyed by odd routes between hotel areas.