Chiclana de la Frontera, Spain - Iberostar Royal Andaluz

Is Iberostar Royal Andaluz a good hotel? Yes, it is an amazing hotel for family vacation. It has great service, excellent food, great beach, and entertainment for adults and children.

Chiclana de la Frontera

The hotel area is very calm and is beautifully organized. There are palm trees and golf fields. This makes the area very quiet and calm. Each hotel has it's own drive way.

There are restaurants close to the hotels if you would like to try something different, and there is a shopping center where you can buy a little bit of everything, particularly beach items - towels, shovels for children, toys, etc.

There are also toy cars, for children!

Although I spent most of the time inside the hotel, the surroundings were calm and safe. In fact, I opted to park my car in the street during my whole stay, which was not only free, but I had to issues whatsoever. 

My Experience at Iberostar Royal Andaluz

The hotel

The hotel is a big complex with 2 main wings. There is one wing which is more directed to adults: there is a small bar and a cafe, a restaurant and a standard, but big, swimming pool.

There other wing is more directed to families and children: it has the main bar, entertainment area with a stage for shows, and several swimming pools, including some for children with slides.

 

Inside the main building there is the main bar, lobby and a nice sitting area, which is surprisingly calm considering how many people go across that area. It is a very nice area to wait for check out, check in, or just have a drink.

If you travel with children, there is a small park that they all seem to love. In my experience, it's these sort of details that make a great difference in having a quiet stay. If children are happy and entertained, you can usually have a better rest too!

As for the rooms, they were enough space, without being excessively big. The had a big bathing and toilet area, and a sleeping area. There was a sofa that was comfortable to sit and, if open, could be used as a bed.

The air conditioning was also important to keep the heat away.

Also, the standards were included: safe, shower gel, soap, wardrobe.

Everything worked fine, I did not have any issues at all.

The food

On the food side, everything was excellent. 

It is very typical from these hotels to have in the food court a permanent area of local products and dishes, Iberostar is not an exception. You can taste the local food which was well prepared and tasted beautifully.

There was a section for grilled fish and mean, as well as a pizza and pasta area. Both are permanent as well.

The remaining areas of the food court included themed dishes: one day is Spanish, one day Japanese, one day Mexican, Moroccan, etc. I really liked the way food was prepared and it always amazed me how well these local chefs could prepare food from so many different countries.

 As I mentioned above, the service was amazing. Employees were very kind and attentive to my requests.

oh! and for soup lovers, there were always at least a couple types of different soups.

There was another fancy restaurant, which needed to be booked in advance. But, honestly, I liked the food so much from the main area that I did not feel the need to try out anything different. Maybe next time...

Regarding breakfast, the selection was also good and the basics were always there: bread, cereals, good pastry, or some bacon and eggs.

The beach

The beach was excellent. Very close to the hotel which is reachable through an inside walkway. The beach is not crowded at all and the water was between 21 ºC and 23ºC.

Going to the beach is a truly relaxing experience where you can lay down your towel in peace, far from other people, and enjoy a relaxing swim at the swim.

Even though the beach is not crowded, there are still life guards for your safety.

The entertainment

Typically in these type of hotels, there is an entertainment team that prepares activities to entertain adults and children. Iberostar Royal Andaluz is no exception.

The entertainment team had several functions which went from taking care of the children's playing room, creating activities in the swimming pool, such as inflatable slides, games for children, and dancing and singing shows at night.

Every night, there was a show in the hotel common area by the swimming pool. The shows could be organized by the resident entertainment team, which consisted mostly of dances and songs, or with invited performers, such as a magician, acrobats, or other singers.

The activities were well organized, and although they were not unforgettable, they were not boring either! Honestly this is a relaxing time watching a show with a drink in your hand.

As for parents, there was a children playing room, which was open and had toys and books children could play with. There was always someone there to take care of children and to keep things tidy and organized.

In general the entertainment is very good and I spent a great time watching the shows and relaxing.

Why is Iberostar Royal Andaluz good?

The service and attention to detail of every employee is incredible. Everyone is kind and you don't need to keep asking for things you like, since most of the times the employees reach out to you directly.

The food was excellent. I really loved the quality of the food. Not only the themed days had international food beautifully prepared, but the local dishes were also excellent.

Also, in those days I just wanted to eat a pizza, I would have an area with several pizza options.

The beach was not crowded and you could enjoy a day at the beach at a distance of 5 minutes walking from my room.

It shows the Iberostar team is worried with their guests, and for families with children, you can't do much better than this.

What could be better at Iberostar Royal Andaluz?

Honestly, for the price, I believe the hotel was excellent.

Being picky, I believe the selection of beverages included in the "all inclusive" option during meals could be better. Also, there were some noisy areas, but this is normal in hotels this size.

Highlights

I prepared a very short video with highlights from my stay in this excellent hotel.

Conclusion

Is it worth staying ate Iberostar Royal Andaluz? The short answer is yes!

I really loved the experience. The food was great, the hotel is very well managed and I had some relaxing time. I will certainly return.