H10 Playa Esmeralda - Adults Only

“Excellent Food and Stunning Location, but Drinks and Bedroom Humidity Let It Down”

**Important: We booked a Privilege room, so some of the facilities and dining options mentioned below were included specifically as part of the Privilege package.** Overall, we had a very enjoyable stay at H10 Playa Esmeralda. The food, friendly staff and beautiful surroundings were the main highl… more

**Important: We booked a Privilege room, so some of the facilities and dining options mentioned below were included specifically as part of the Privilege package.** Overall, we had a very enjoyable stay at H10 Playa Esmeralda. The food, friendly staff and beautiful surroundings were the main highlights. The main drawbacks were the poor quality of the fruit-based drinks, particularly for anyone sensitive to artificial sweeteners, and the persistently high humidity in the bedrooms. The buffet food was good and varied, while the Privilege restaurant and Italian restaurant, both included with Privilege, were excellent. The quality of the food was one of the best parts of the holiday and a genuine reason we would return. The Privilege breakfast was particularly enjoyable, with a quiet and calm atmosphere overlooking the pool. The staff were genuinely friendly and happy, which made the hotel feel welcoming and comfortable. This was a major positive compared with some Caribbean resorts, where staff can seem under considerable pressure. Our room was spacious, well organised and had a wonderful view. The beds were extremely comfortable. The pools were excellent, and the indoor pool was particularly useful for avoiding the strongest midday sun. There was nearly always a breeze around the outdoor pools, making the temperature very comfortable. A new dedicated Privilege pool was due to open within days of our departure. It looked peaceful and had an excellent view. The hotel grounds were beautiful and spotlessly maintained. The outdoor terrace at the Blue Bar had incredible views, comfortable chairs and sofas, and was a lovely place to relax. The public beach is only a very short walk from the hotel, with fine sand and crystal-clear blue water. Two sunbeds and a parasol cost €15 for the day, with toilets and showers available. It never felt overcrowded, and even larger beaches can be reached within around 20 minutes on foot. There were, however, a few drawbacks. The air conditioning was not particularly powerful, and this is an issue affecting all rooms because the entire hotel uses the same centrally water-cooled system rather than individual compressor-based air conditioning. It could keep our room at around 22°C to 23°C, but it did not reduce the humidity. During our stay, the humidity in the room remained at 75% or above, which became uncomfortable at night. On some mornings, the room was warmer than outside despite the air conditioning running at full power. The system is designed for a dry climate, so this may be a problem throughout the hotel during humid weather, particularly for anyone sensitive to heat or humidity at night. There is little the hotel can do about this because it is a limitation of the system’s design. The curtains were thick and blocked most daylight, but they were not completely blackout. Some light from the hotel’s outdoor lighting entered the room at night. Anyone particularly sensitive to light may wish to bring a portable blackout covering or an eye mask. The biggest disappointment was the fruit-based drinks. Apart from the genuine orange juice served at the Privilege breakfast and tomato juice, the breakfast drinks and fruit-based cocktails were made from highly processed syrup blends containing added sugars and artificial sweeteners. They were extremely sweet and had a noticeable sweetener aftertaste. This significantly restricted the cocktail selection for anyone sensitive to artificial sweeteners. Standard all-inclusive guests had no access to genuine fruit juice at breakfast, which felt out of keeping with the otherwise high standard of the food. Despite these issues, H10 Playa Esmeralda is a beautiful, peaceful and exceptionally clean hotel with excellent food, comfortable rooms and genuinely welcoming staff. Better-quality fruit drinks and effective humidity control would make it outstanding.

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“Lovely and restful”

Just returned from one week at this hotel, and we were generally quite impressed. The room was a great size, with a fridge and safe (chargeable, which is unacceptable), huge walk in shower, large balcony, and very clean. The areas around the pool were nice, plenty of sunbeds, indoor pool if you fa… more

Just returned from one week at this hotel, and we were generally quite impressed. The room was a great size, with a fridge and safe (chargeable, which is unacceptable), huge walk in shower, large balcony, and very clean. The areas around the pool were nice, plenty of sunbeds, indoor pool if you fancied getting out of the sun, and great views. The pool bar was very handy, we popped in their daily for " light refreshments " and the snacks at lunch time were good. Lobby bar was the main hub in the evenings, with occasional entertainment which didn't really impress, but gotta give them credit for trying. Good selection of drinks and table service was very efficient. The buffet was great for breakfast, but we found lunch and dinner to be sparse. The Italian restaurant however was good too. We would return, simply because It was so pretty and so relaxing.

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“Not quite as expected”

I stayed as a party of six for 7 nights, booking two superior rooms and one twin room. Overall, we had a good holiday and there were plenty of positives. The hotel is clean, well maintained, and in a great location. The issues we experienced didn't spoil our holiday, but I would think twice abou… more

I stayed as a party of six for 7 nights, booking two superior rooms and one twin room. Overall, we had a good holiday and there were plenty of positives. The hotel is clean, well maintained, and in a great location. The issues we experienced didn't spoil our holiday, but I would think twice about returning. The main disappointment was the all-inclusive experience, which I found underwhelming for a 4 star hotel. The all inclusive felt very restricted and largely centred around the opening hours of the main buffet restaurant. Outside of the restaurant, there were no self service food or drink facilities apart from water stations. The pool bar food service was particularly disappointing. Rather than being able to help yourself, everything had to be ordered, often resulting in long waits. The food quality was inconsistent and generally below expectations. Unfortunately, on one occasion I had to return a dish due to it being seriously undercooked. We eventually stopped using the pool bar for food midway through the holiday. The drinks service was however good. The main restaurant was also somewhat of a let down and did not provide a particularly relaxed dining experience. All the food is cleared promptly at 2130 hours. The atmosphere often felt more like a canteen opposed to a 4 star hotel restaurant. Food trays frequently took too long to be replenished, and there were often lengthy waits for freshly cooked dishes. All inclusive snack options outside the restaurant were limited. The only included snack outside the restaurants, on the all inclusive option was the "cake of the day" from Mike's Coffee Bar, which unfortunately appeared to be the same baked tart throughout the week. Aside from that, the only other all inclusive option available was a small selection of cookies. I also found some of the additional charges surprising. Random scanning of the all inclusive wristbands felt unnecessary and inconsistent, and I cannot remember the last time I stayed in a 4 star hotel and had to pay extra for use of the room safe. Pool towel exchanges are limited to one complimentary change, with additional exchanges charged at €2 each. Another issue was the shortage of sun beds. There are clearly not enough for the number of persons staying at the hotel, which inevitably leads to people reserving beds early morning and not using them until much later in the day. This became a daily frustration. The rooms, cleanliness, location and general upkeep were all very good. The all inclusive felt restrictive, particularly when it came to food availability outside restaurant hours. Combined with the additional charges and ongoing sun bed issues, I’m not sure I would return. Good points • Clean rooms and well maintained public areas with attractive décor. • Clean indoor and outdoor pools. • Comfortable beds. • Stromboli restaurant was excellent. (one complimentary visit included) • Great location close to a lovely beach. • Good drinks service. Negatives • Underwhelming all inclusive. • Inconsistent food quality and slow service. • Poor pool bar food experience. • No self-service food or drinks outside the main restaurant (apart from water). • Very limited snacks and refreshments available during the day. • Additional charges for amenities that arguably should be included for a 4 star hotel. • Restaurant atmosphere lacked ambience. • Not enough sun beds. We all genuinely had a good holiday, and I accept a lot is based on personal choice / expectations

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“Disappointed in the location”

The hotel was lovely. It was peaceful and relaxing. We found everything to be clean and well maintained. The food was very good, varied and tasty. We found the staff to be helpful and friendly. Our main criticism would be the location. You are completely isolated. There are no amenities or shops… more

The hotel was lovely. It was peaceful and relaxing. We found everything to be clean and well maintained. The food was very good, varied and tasty. We found the staff to be helpful and friendly. Our main criticism would be the location. You are completely isolated. There are no amenities or shops nearby. There is nowhere of any interest within walking distance at all. We felt that had we known about the location we would not have booked a holiday here.

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