H10 Rubicón Horizons Collection

“A great holiday, but not 5 star”

We are a family of four (husband and wife and two children aged 7 and 12 years old. We went half board. We agree with others who have reviewed the hotel, it’s not 5 star! It’s sad, as it has the potential to be a 5 start if it had some TLC. We had a fabulous holiday and I can honestly say it’s … more

We are a family of four (husband and wife and two children aged 7 and 12 years old. We went half board. We agree with others who have reviewed the hotel, it’s not 5 star! It’s sad, as it has the potential to be a 5 start if it had some TLC. We had a fabulous holiday and I can honestly say it’s not a bad hotel overall! We were there during the second week in August and it’s possibly one of their most busiest times of the year! We had a beautiful room, near the reception with a lovely sea view. Our room made the holiday, as I can imagine being on a lower floor might not be so great. The staff are really great and very accommodating , especially in the buffet, mikes coffee shop and reception areas. The tiles on the pool are falling off and they were constantly trying to fix them around the pool during the day- in fact, my kids found loads of them in the pool and started to replace them! It’s little things like this that doesn’t make it a 5 star. We only did the main budget and food was great, lots of variety - but there is a bit of queuing when busy. Plus it’s very hot indoors. I suggest you bring a water bottle which you can fill up. The pools were cold and it is salt water in the main one which my kids didn’t like- so bring some googles. We found it to be fine. Although very windy so think about bringing some clips for your sun beds. Plus we found you had to get to the sun beds quickly in the morning or you wouldn’t have one! Things you need to know; You have a wrist band so you can buy things at the hotel, to get in and out of your room and to get in and out of the back door to walk along the waterfront. When we arrived it wasn’t very clear how we paid for things (being half board), but it soon became apparent that you used the wrist band for almost everything and then at the end of the holiday you pay the bill before you leave , or they take it from your credit card. We liked this as you didn’t have to carry money around, and they were also happy for you to pay it off each day if you wanted. If half board you can either have lunch or dinner. Breakfast is set and can’t be changed. If you want to change your dinner to lunch instead, you just let them know when you go into the restaurant. This was great as it gave you flexibility. Rooms are cleaned every day, except they don’t change the sheets, (just make the beds) I think our beds were changed once in the week. Towels changed every day. They did have an issue with towels and I had to ask for new ones several times as I think they hadn’t enough cleaned to meet the demand. You receive three towel cards when you arrive and can change the towels every day at the swimming pool office. You must hand the cards in at the end of your stay, otherwise they will charge you for the towels. Things to do; Mikes coffee shop is really nice and the drinks and cakes are wonderful! Don’t stay in the hotel, go and explore! There is a lovely walk along the seafront.if you turn left there is a lovely little music bar and a few nice restaurants. The pizza and Greek restaurants are nice up the steps. Market days are Saturday and Wednesday at the marina. Papago beach is the best white beach, take the bus all the way to the end of the route and take a little walk (15-20 min) to the beach. There are some beautiful views! The bus is easy - you can get it outside the hotel and it’s 1.40euro each. Although taxis are also cheap as well. Overall not a bad holiday and we had a lovely time x

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“Lovely family holiday, with some opportunities to improve”

Lovely family holiday, with some opportunities to improve We have just returned from another lovely family holiday at the H10 Rubicón Horizons Collection. This was our second stay at Rubicón, and we have also stayed at H10 Atlantic Sunset, so we have had the opportunity to experience two of the H1… more

Lovely family holiday, with some opportunities to improve We have just returned from another lovely family holiday at the H10 Rubicón Horizons Collection. This was our second stay at Rubicón, and we have also stayed at H10 Atlantic Sunset, so we have had the opportunity to experience two of the H10 Horizons Collection properties. Overall, we had a fantastic holiday. Rubicón is a huge, beautifully maintained resort with a fantastic seafront location, lovely gardens, great pools and plenty for a family to enjoy. The size of the resort gives it a wonderful sense of space, although it also presents some challenges when it comes to delivering a consistently high level of service. We stayed on a Privilege basis, and the food throughout the resort was excellent. We ate in all of the restaurants during our stay and were very impressed with the quality and variety. The Privilege restaurant was a particular highlight — we really enjoyed the food, atmosphere and service, and it definitely added to the overall experience. The only real disappointment food-wise was the steakhouse, which we found fairly average compared with the other restaurants. Also, the toilets outside the restaurant area are in serious need of an upgrade, particularly as they service three separate restaurants. A special mention has to go to Abel at the Privilege pool, who is excellent at his job. He was friendly, attentive and consistently provided a very high level of service. Staff members like Abel make a real difference to a holiday. The newly renovated Red Mountain Lounge is also a lovely addition. It has been done very well, and the service there was excellent. Pedro in the Piano Bar also deserves a special mention — he was fantastic and made our visits there a particularly enjoyable experience. There are, however, a few areas where we feel the resort could improve. Having stayed at Atlantic Sunset, we did feel that the overall level of service at Rubicón was a little disappointing by comparison. We completely appreciate that Rubicón is a much larger resort, but the difference was noticeable. On arrival, despite checking in to Privilege, we didn’t receive the welcome drink or hot towel. We had also contacted the hotel approximately a month before arrival and specifically requested a front sea-view room, one of the better rooms and somewhere quiet. Unfortunately, those notes hadn’t been picked up and we were initially allocated a room down near the children’s pool. Once we raised this, the team were helpful and moved us to a much more suitable room. The rooms themselves are spacious and comfortable, although some are starting to look a little dated, particularly the bathrooms. This didn’t detract significantly from our stay, and I’m sure it is something the hotel has plans to work on. A refresh of the rooms and bathrooms would certainly bring them more in line with the more modern feel of some of the other H10 properties. There was also a small incident involving the gym during our stay. It didn’t spoil our holiday and was ultimately dealt with, but perhaps it is something management can learn from in terms of how these situations are handled with guests. Greater management visibility around such a large resort would also, in our opinion, make a positive difference. The gym itself could also do with an upgrade. For such a large resort, it feels quite small and can become busy, so an expansion and/or investment in additional equipment would be very welcome. The Junior Kids Club was good and our children enjoyed it. One relatively easy win, particularly for slightly older children, would be to make more use of the outdoor sports facilities by organising activities such as football every day. The football was only organised every other day during our stay, and having something available each morning would be a great addition for older children who are beginning to outgrow the traditional kids’ club activities. We would also love to see the cabaret show brought back, as this would be a great addition to the evening entertainment for families. Despite the points above, I want to emphasise that we genuinely had a lovely holiday. These are constructive suggestions rather than things that ruined our stay. We clearly like the resort — this was our second visit — and we would happily return. I think there is a real opportunity for Rubicón to work more closely with the other H10 Horizons Collection properties and share best practices, particularly around service and the small details that make guests feel valued. Our experience at Atlantic Sunset showed us just how good the H10 service can be. With some greater attention to those details, more visible management, continued investment in the rooms and gym, and a few additions to the entertainment and activities, I think Rubicón could take an already very good family holiday experience to another level. Overall, 4/5. We had a lovely family holiday and would happily return. There is plenty to like about Rubicón — particularly the food, facilities, location and staff members such as Abel and Pedro — and with some relatively straightforward improvements, I think it could become an outstanding experience.

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“Good Family Holiday, But Not 5-Star Standard”

For context, this was a family holiday with my husband and me (early to mid 30s), my brother, his wife and their two children (1 and 4 years old), and my parents (60s). Overall, we had a good time, largely thanks to the company of our family and the generally friendly staff. One of the biggest posi… more

For context, this was a family holiday with my husband and me (early to mid 30s), my brother, his wife and their two children (1 and 4 years old), and my parents (60s). Overall, we had a good time, largely thanks to the company of our family and the generally friendly staff. One of the biggest positives was that the children really enjoyed themselves. There was a good range of activities and facilities suitable for both babies and older children, which made the resort quite family-friendly. It was reassuring to have options to keep the little ones entertained, and they definitely seemed to get the most out of the holiday! The other positives were the friendly staff, surprisingly decent buffet variety, and the fact that most issues we raised were eventually addressed. The resort itself is huge, beautifully laid out and clearly has a lot of potential. Unfortunately, there were also quite a few negatives. We encountered cockroaches in our room, as well as a persistent sewage smell from the bathroom. The resort is also in need of significant refurbishment, with chipped tiles, staining, tired furniture and areas around the pools needing attention. It simply doesn’t match the polished appearance shown in the promotional photographs. There was also inconsistent information about what was included in the all-inclusive package, with different members of our family receiving completely different answers despite booking the same package. Some food and drinks also came at an additional cost, making the “all-inclusive” offering feel somewhat misleading. Drinks service in restaurants was extremely slow, sandwich options were limited, and the adults-only area felt more like an afterthought. Most facilities also closed around 12:30am, which felt unnecessarily early for a holiday resort. One particularly concerning issue was food allergies. We specifically declared seafood and nut allergies when booking the Japanese restaurant, yet a dessert containing nuts was still served. Thankfully, nobody was seriously affected, but this is something that should never have happened. Overall, we enjoyed our family holiday, and the children certainly did too, but I wouldn’t consider this a 5-star experience. The resort has 5-star potential, but it needs substantial investment, refurbishment and better attention to detail to reach that standard.

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“Not the best - but not the worst.”

Mixed feelings on this hotel. Booked through Jet2 holidays who were great. Arrival was excellent. Met by friendly staff and provided drinks and snacks whilst we checked in. Taken to our room by golf buggy which was great fun. Room - Family double room located in block 82 very close to the ma… more

Mixed feelings on this hotel. Booked through Jet2 holidays who were great. Arrival was excellent. Met by friendly staff and provided drinks and snacks whilst we checked in. Taken to our room by golf buggy which was great fun. Room - Family double room located in block 82 very close to the main swimming pool (and toilets). Ground floor room so not much of a view. Very busy outside our patio doors so tended to keep curtains closed. Always seemed to be staff pushing trolleys or resort buggys passing by so not much chance of peace and quiet. We also had some sort of store room outside our front door which didn't help. Room did feel tired and a bit rough around the edges. Floor felt and looked dirty and in need of a good clean. Children's campbed was very soft and squeaky. One of our children ended up sleeping with us on the two double beds which was fine. Room service was poor compared to other hotels we have stayed in. Beds were made up but that was it. We had to request toilet rolls. Towels were taken and not replaced so another call needed to reception. Basic stuff which really shouldn't be a problem. Free safe was easy to use and the shower was fine. Mini fridge also provided in the room. Restaurant/ Bars We only ate in the main buffet restaurant throughout our stay. Good choice of the usual stuff. I did think fussy eaters would struggle though. It did feel very busy at times - especially between 8pm-9pm. Staff worked hard. Again, some seat cushions were grubby and in need of a clean. Plates and cutlery were the same. Poolside snack bar consisted of chips, cheeseburgers, onion rings, hotdogs, nachos and a selection of fruit and cakes. Weird queuing / wristband scanning system at the bar and staff did seem unfriendly at times but probably just due to numbers within. Loads of drinks on offer but yet to get a fizzy soft drink. If I'd been paying cash I'd have taken them back. Estrella Beer was fine. The glass floor panels looked like a great feature until two men unfortunately fell through them injuiring themselves! Both removed to the on duty lifeguard for treatment before ambulance and police arrived. I think the hotel needs to review its first aid procedures in regards to this incident. No injured party should be made to stand at the first aid station in the middle of both pools in the blazing sunshine for all to see. Also, no pool lifeguard cover during this time - as he was giving first aid. Pools were very busy with children. Thankfully the glass panels were boarded up. Mikes coffee shop is great but be patient, its not the quickest service. Piano bar is a lovely space, especially the terrace area. Great views. Table service at night was very slow and at times woeful. We gave up one night and left. Entertainment was ok but again we skipped a couple of the shows and headed into town. Pools Sunbed situation was fine but its school holidays so the towels are down early. Market days seem quieter. Good variety of pools. Children's pool did look very busy but great fun for the wee ones. Closed on 2 of our 7 days. Reasons unknown but we had our suspicions. Turning left out of the hotel grounds at the rear of the hotel - Flamingo beach is a 25 min walk and a further 15 minutes will take you into Playa Blanca. If you turn right out of the hotel towards the lighthouse there is a great little beach bar and areas which are great for snorkeling. Loads of fish on display. The number 30 bus cost a family of 4 more than a taxi did into Playa Blanca. Taxi was 5 euro, 7-8 minute journey. Overall observations - Pro's - Grounds, views, area, drinks selection. Cons - table service, room cleanliness Great weeks holiday but not a 5* hotel. Probably won't return to this hotel but certainly will to the area.

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