Cluba Calahonda

Club Calahonda Crown Resort

C/Almendralejo de Jarales 27, Pueblo Jarales, Mijas-Costa, Málaga, 29649 Mijas, Málaga, Spain

Disappointed

We stayed at Club Calahonda for a week recently, having chosen the resort as it was described as having facilities for kids (we have a two year old).

Things did not start well. We had contacted the resort 5 days in advance of our trip to ask them to book us a local taxi. After exchanging a few emails with the hotel, with them taking a long time to reply each time and us having to provide credit card details in advance, they did not book the taxi in time. We didn’t find this out until we were off the plane and there was no taxi waiting for us, and so then had to stand in a queue for nearly half an hour.

 
Reception staff were friendly on arrival and facilitated an easier to access room on a lower floor as we had a buggy for our child. We were aware of a renovation at the property in March, but in all honesty, I presume this was only the walls.
 
The furniture looked dated and dull, and the two fabric covered chairs and the bed settee were uncomfortable and all smelled of stale body odour. One of the floor tiles near the door to the balcony had an obvious large crack and the safety gate in the balcony was rusted in parts and difficult to move.
 
The bathrooms and kitchen area were fine, although the electric cooker was temperamental in what functions chose to work and when. Location was good with bars and restaurants around the corner a few minutes away from the resort and a 15 minute walk down to the bottom of the hill to get buses to Marbella or Fuengirola. Warning: The climb back up the hill isn’t ideal for people with mobility issues.
 
 
On-site facilities were a restaurant with bar, pool, small baby pool, crazy golf, spa and gym. We tried the restaurant for lunch on day one. The pizza and fries were fine but we didn’t use the restaurant other than this. Buffet selection in the morning looked fine but in the evening looked very limited.
 
We didn’t use the adult pool but it wasn’t particularly big, nor was there space for many loungers close to it. We used the gym, and it was only cardio equipment, with no weights and no water facilities available.
 
We didn’t use the indoor pool or sauna but both had very good massages from Alison’s spa. A large disappointment was the lack of available facilities for small children.
 
The outdoor play area only had a chute and two sit on things on big springs. While this area was floored by safety tiles, several were loose with big gaps between many. The indoor kids club was constantly unmanned and locked.
 
It was supposed to be open 9-5, according to the dismissive man on reception, but we tried this on 7 occasions at times varying between 9-11, all between Monday and Friday, the days it was supposed to be open, but it never was.
 
We requested a taxi to be booked in advance of our departure date and the price quoted was 5€ more than we had been quoted by email before the holiday for a one-way journey.
 
All in all, we probably wouldn’t choose this resort again. Some good things, but the room was disappointing and not enough available options for kids