Fitzmum - shame about the food, I have yet to find a decent 4 star all inclusive in Spain anywhere, I really hoped the Flamingo Oasis would be different, I can't abide recycled meals , still we like to eat out anyway

BHIC - seems a silly rule to ban show cooking, I remember at the Meditteraneo last year their idea of show cooking was frying the eggs in the morning!

Kath - They may have a different chef over the winter months?, hopefully he will be there then on the 29th

Danny - Hope the food is as good as when you went

i echo danny's comments.
we couldn't fault the food. yes they have things more than once, but there are so many options that if you have a meal one day, and it is there the next, have something else instead.

I agree with Danny and Tuppence. We had a good selection to choose from. Tthere was such a good variety and mostly something you liked. Also I have never seen so many sweets, both hot and cold.

If there was no meat you liked on the hotplates you always had the choice of a carvery which was very nice.

Jean

we went march just gone also been two years ago in june, food was really really nice loads to choose from we had salmon, fish, beef, chicken and pork, so loads to choose from only thing i could say is it needs a lick of paint in areas. Some of the staff where still there from our first holiday and they all still want to please. Going back next sept.

All being well Im back in November
Kath x

Liana,

when in sept next year are you going?
we are going to book for sept also. whats the hotel like in sept in terms of kids, amenities being open etc..?

We have our eye on the 16th just watching the price of it and booking jan friend works for thomas cook she says thats the best time. Kids wise i think it will be ok as they are back at school however i dont find them a prob and you can go on the roof top pool ( adults only ) have you been before. I love it there.

i have indeed and can't wait to go back.
i like the roof pool but feel "away" from the action. i like to do the archery etc...

hiya,

i have found 2 wks at the FO from manchester (decent flight times) AI with 20kg baggage + in-flight meals + insurance for a total of £1431.98 for 2 adults.
i think this is a good price but what does anyone else think?

do you think it would be any cheaper in january or should i snap it up now.

also when does the "summer season" end at the FO?
we were there in may and they opened the pool bar on the 15th may. when did it/does it shut? anyone know?
is there a date when they start to cut back on the activities/entertainment etc??

cheers
ian

Just back from our first stay in Benidorm at the Flamingo Oasis.

We'd read mixed reviews on the hotel, mostly good, and I suppose our expectations were a bit too high!

Our room wasn't as big as we expected. Being a couple, we had a smaller room with no sofas. Also our balcony never got any sun, which was disappointing, although the view (at the back of the hotel) was great and it was very peaceful. The airconditioning was controllable - we switched it on and off to please ourselves, and the hairdryer was a bonus. The beds were very creaky - as with other parts of the hotel (leaky roof, bits of wallpaper torn off in places) they need upgrading.

The lifts were bearable, but we could imagine they could be hell during the school holidays. Having internet access was handy. Having English TV stations was nice - you could keep in touch with the news from home.

The food was plentiful but predictable. Like someone else has said, the same puddings were dished up every day and the ice cream and yogurt was the really cheap stuff - pretty tasteless. The hot meals varied in quality - I had some horrible ones and some that were okay. To be honest the best meal of the week was the one we had in Burger King at the airport on the way home, and neither of us are fussy eaters. I think the quality has to have deteriorated from the rave reviews people were giving some years back. The best word I can think of to describe the food is BLAND. The noise in the dining room of heavy chairs being scraped across the tiled floor was "getting to us" by the end of the holiday!

The drinks are as they state openly "locally produced" - that means cheap and weak. That didn't bother us - but if you're out to get drunk every day you'll be disappointed. Great bonus being able to have a continual supply of bottled drinking water whenever you need it.

The pool areas were fine - we like to sit in semi-shade so weren't part of the sunbed frenzy! The entertainment was average hotel stuff - great for families with kids. The Piano Bar for adults had potential but has an awful layout which didn't encourage people to get up and dance (e.g. they had a couple of singers on but you couldn't actually see them or the dance floor from most of the seats in the room!). It felt like a doctors waiting room.

We found the staff friendly and helpful. People who say they are grumpy may have caught them after they'd had to serve someones rude kids who haven't been taught to say please or thank you! And remember, you're on holiday but they're at work - probably on a low wage and at the end of a long shift. Are you always cheerful in that position?

All in all I would recommend this hotel for families with school-age kids, people with access issues (it is very good for that) and groups of friends on short breaks. In my view it isn't a couples hotel, and felt to us more like a 3 star than a 4 star.

There is definitely a couple atmosphere in the winter season.

I hope my stay in Novemeber is as good as the one I had in February.

Kath HT Admin

If you stay as 2adults in a room do you not get the benefit of having sofas in their?

We had a normal room with sofas in. I thought all the rooms were four bedded and a few five bedded ones or am I mistaken ?

Kath x

No, we definately had no sofas, just the two beds, there was no room for any sofas. To watch TV we either had to sit on the beds or bring in the plastic patio chairs. They were more use inside than on the shady balcony though! The information on the hotel's website is misleading as their photos do show large rooms with sofas. We felt it was a bit unfair as we hadn't paid a reduced rate, and this isn't a cheap hotel to stay in.

If you look back at reviews of the FO they are quite different according to the time of year, so it would be a good idea to look back for reviews appropriate to the month you're thinking of going in. We had assumed it would more orientated to couples/families with very young children in the middle of September but it seems people are happy to keep schoolkids out of school at the beginning of term! Personally I don't think Beni is a good choice for toddlers - skyscraper balconies and the rather steeply shelving beach surely don't make it a very relaxing holiday for their parents?

have to say i am now slightly put off after reading beni's reports.
we had a large room with sofas when we went as a couple in may and couldn't fault the food.

we were hoping to go early sept next year but certainly don't want loads of kids which was why we were looking at sept.

beni,
was the pool bar open whilst you were there?

Beni07 stayed in room **17. Now on alot of the floors at F.O they do not have a room 17 as the cleaners use these as there storage rooms. So just make sure you dont have a room 17 as these Definatly dont have sofas inn and are the smaller rooms of the hotel.

Yeah - we were done! I am going to write to Thomsons about it.

Yes, both the poolside bars were open. You can always use the rooftop pool if you want a childfree zone, but it was too hot for us. The weather was a steady 30 degrees all week - brilliant.

I've stayed at the Flamingo Oasis twice, both times in September (in fact, the same week each time - 6th to the 13th)

The first time the room was huge! Two double beds, two sofas, his and hers sinks in the bathroom etc and it was lovely. However, the second time I went we had a tiny room in comparison! Just two single beds, no sofas, one sink and a small balcony.

I was disappointed at the time, and had to apologise to my sister as I'd said how big it was going to be! We didn't let it spoil our holiday, but now I'm wishing I'd perhaps complained because we paid the same price as everyone else but got a broom cupboard!

As an aside... I also noticed the food had gone downhill slightly since the first time I went. Again, I didn't let it spoil the holiday and we still found enough food we liked, but I do think the Oasis needs a little TLC.
Jayne

I agree - we didn't let it spoil our holiday - in fact once we'd got over the initial "oh thats a shame" feeling we didn't really think about it again. However now I'm back I'm feeling a bit miffed that we paid the same price as those in the big rooms. I will write to Thomsons and post on here what their response is.