Hi Jendave, In the last 3 years or so we have found that half board as opposed to self catering works out about the same and I feel as though I have had a complete break staying in a hotel whereas when I stay in an apartments, I'm always washing up, sweeping up e.t.c.

There has been very little difference on price between the 2 but also because we have paid for the holiday upfront we have found that we have had more money to spend on trips e.t.c. rather than on eating out or cooking in the apartment.

Generally speaking, the hotels in benidorm usually have a reasonable choice so there is something for even the pickiest eater and the kids enjoy helping themselves on the buffet.

We opt to share a family room to cut the cost down which means that we are limited for space but that doesn't really bother us, we manage.

We also have found by staying in a hotel that our daughter who will be 13 in May has had the chance to socialise with other children of her age whereas she wouldn't have had as much opportunity to do that had we have stayed in an apartment. The entertainment in the hotels has been generally good and they have catered for all ages.

Eating out in Benidorm is cheap in comparison to England but it's not as cheap as it used to be. Over a fortnight, it can swallow up quite a considerable amount from the holiday budget, in my opinion, definitely more than the difference between half board and self catering.

Don't get me wrong, it is nice to eat out and try different food but you can still have a few meals out and be in pocket by opting for a hotel.

Whatever you choose, I hope you have a good time.

Sue

Definately agree with sue, we have booked for august, and it was actually cheaper to book a 3* hotel half board, than to book a 2* self catering apartment.

Regards, BBB

I also agree with Sue and especially the bit about children being able to meet other children in hotels.
Don't get me wrong, there was a time when s/c is all we could afford and my suitcase would have tins of beans, ham. weetabix and such like, stuffed between the clothes....anything to save a bit of money.!

But, at the end of the holiday when we worked out the total amount we had spent including the food, then we just may as well have stayed in an hotel.
My kids got fed up the second week being dragged around the resort looking for somewhere to eat....and like Sue says, I got fed up of making beds, washing up and constantly tidying the place up...some holiday for me.!

The biggest advantage of staying in an apartment is the freedom from the hotel meal timetable and the space in comparison to all being in an hotel room.....but depending on the time of year you go, how much time do you really spend in an hotel room.?
I should imagine not a lot in August.

Sanji x

I can undersand the comment about children meeting others, but if you are a mature couple give me an apartment any day.

Fortunately we are not messy people so we keep an apartment very tidy so we aren't clearing up all the time, and the only washing up we do is the occasional cup, saucer and of course wine glasses!!

Maids usually come in a few times a week to sweep up and clean, so there is very minimal cleaning e.g. wipe over surfaces etc. But for us it is the freedom - no set mealtimes with the same kind of food each night. Benidorm has some fantastic restaurants, and you can eat out really well and at a time to suit yourself, at a fraction of the cost compared to home.

Perhaps we have been lucky in obtaining bargain holidays in apartments (we have flexibility on when we can travel) so feel that the overall cost of our holidays including eating out every day, has been very reasonable.

We have done both sc and hotel and a lot depended on the cost.We did find a lot more freedom with sc and the apartment allowed us lots of space and more of a choice of keeping our own times for going out and mealtimes.Benidorm is very cheap to eat and supermarkets cheap just to fill the fridge especially with kids. As I said at the beginning though sometimes the half board option is better value .

Alexa

Give me the space and freedom from schedules an apartment gives any day. Price doesn't come into it. I'd pay extra NOT to have my food prepared by a hotel kitchen. Most of them make J&Js look like a Michelin starred restaurant.

Why have you been inside a hotel kitchen.?
That's a rather derogatory remark implying that some hotel kitchens are not hygienic.

I would think that no hotel would let the standards fall and be responsible for an outbreak of salmonella poisoning, nine times out of ten it is down to one single person who has not followed the hygiene rules, and it can have effects that will take a couple of seasons or even longer to regain the clients confidence in the hotel, as well as the financial loss and all the legal costs from claims.
Nine times out of ten it is some dodgy snack/drink taken outside the hotel that is the culprit, but the hotel gets the blame and the person affected likes to share their germs around.

You are never trying to tell me that some back street cafe will have the same rules and regulations as a 4* hotel, that are atleast monitored by the T O's on a regular basis.?

I would also question that some utensils and appliances in some apartments have never seen a bacterial spray since the day they were installed.

I can name you quite a few hotels in Benidorm that have received the "Excellence in Kitchen Hygiene Certificate"... which is awarded to those hotels that comply with the maximum kitchen hygiene requirements by the public health department of the autonomous government of Valencia.

sanji

I'd pay extra NOT to have my food prepared by a hotel kitchen. Most of them make J&Js look like a Michelin starred restaurant.

Come on Colin, I don't think that you're been fair. Perhaps you have had bad experiences regarding hotel food but I can honestly say that the majority of mine have been positive.

I hope that you are only joking about John and Josephs, I can assure you that none of the hotel food that I have ever had has been inferior to the "grub" that they dish up.

Yes it can all get a bit repetitive if you're there for a fortnight but on the whole I think that the hotel kitchen staff work extremely hard to please everybody.

This is only my opinion but thousands of other people opt to stay in a hotel rather than an apartment year after year, surely that wouldn't be the case if all hotel food was so cr**

Kind Regards

Sue

Sue

When my son was a younger, we went self catering as we found it a lot easier with meals and apts were a bit bigger to cater for a cot. However, we were always charged an underoccupancy fee as most apts are for four people. We now go half board as it is easier plus no "housework" for me. We have found since doing this, our holiday has been a few hundred pound cheaper due to not paying underoccupancy.

Hi There,
We stayed half board in the Levante Club Hotel last year with two teenagers, while the hotel was superb the food was awful, so we ate out most of the time. The trouble is if the food is not up to scratch you have already paid for it, If you eat out and have a bad meal you dont go back. We went into the old town and eat at a restaurant called Frankie and Johnnys they have a website the food is second to none, a bit more upmarket than some but worth it. It is all down to personal preference but i prefer S/C or B/Breakfast.

Hi iallen, - I understand what you are saying, - we have only been self catering twice (Sharing a 2 bed apartment with family -) last min cheap deal. A couple of years ago stayed an aparthotel in benalmadena, and decided to eat in the restaurant one night, the food was terrible (Considering it was 4 *), and I would have been so peed off if I had payed to stay half board! That is why now when I do go half board, I read all available reviews, on the hotel I'm wanting to stay at, and touch wood, I have not been dissapointed in any of the food I have had whilst staying half board. I think if you do enough research you shouldn't have a problem!

Regards, BBB

Hi There,
I did know the reviews were not that good about the food in the Levante Club, but i could not book it bed and breakfast, we got a really good deal so decided to book it anyway. It was the first hotel were i have had two showers in the bathroom. I fully appreciate it is a good idea for some families to go all inclusive, as i would not like to hazzard a guess at the cost of buying ice crean and drinks etc for two weeks.