Hiya,

I think this is your hotel HERE. St Pauls bay, 1km from Bugibba.

MrsMac

With regard to Maltese Lira, I would use your cashline card. If you don't want to do this then take cash and exchange it in one of the many exchange shops over there. You should be able to get .61 to the pound.

I was in Malta 2 weeks ago the rate was 61.5 no charges and no commison from the souvenir shops

Hi there I have satyed at the santa Maria many times and was dissapointed to read the negative repors about the cleanliness of the rooms. However I have inside information that they have a very good housekeeper back as from last week and I know that the room cleaning standards will improve otherwise there will be huge trouble !
Have a great time and please report bak about how you found it

I cannot believe that travel agents are still sending people out to this pit of a hotel. We visited Malta for the first time (and last) in 1998 and stayed at the Santa Maria, the hotel was a dump then. Unless it has had a complete revamp I dread to think of the state of the place today

so it was your 1st and last visit? How much did you pay for and how long did you stay in the hotel? Where did you go within the islands? What did you explore? Who did you meet? Where did you eat?

The hotel should be a small part of the visit. I agree, don't go back to the same hotel but why not visit Malta again? Just because of a one bad hotel experience?

Get real please!

OpenMinded Please take care with the tone of your posts so as not to cause upset within the forums.

Everyone has the right to their own opinion regarding their holidays and whether they wish to return to a certain area.

I was very concerned when a friend of mine said her partners brother was going to the Santa Maria on his first holiday to Malta.

He travels alone and he has only been abroad once before. He suffers from Parkinsons Disease so is slightly disabled.

I have heard such bad things about the hotel and I must say when we have walked past it does seem very noisy and bit scruffy but he had a wonderful time.

He loved Malta, he loved the hotel and the food at the hotel. He can't wait to go back. I am so pleased he had such a good time.

Hi Mandy,
Glad to hear this guy enjoyed himself at the Santa Maria. Sometimes these "less posh" hotels are in fact little gems.
When sister stayed at the Bugibba Holiday Complex this August there was also a lady in a wheelchair enjoying staying there. I noticed they also had a spare wheelchair in the office at the rear of the reception. I asked the receptionist if they often had disabled guests staying with them and if they had suitable rooms for wheelchair users, they do, I live here so family and friends are often asking me for information.
Although Bugibba as a resort is not to everyone's taste, it is compact and fairly easy to get around. There is a sandy beach planned to be built at Bugibba next year, near the Dolmen, it would be nice if the designs include access and toilets for disabled.

A few simple questions and someone here is upset? oh well, I thought thise was a discussion forum which was open to ALL opinions including those which people don't like very much.

Your questions are fine, its your attitude thats the problem. There really isn't a need to use phrases such as

Get Real

.

open minded, My husband suffered a sever stomach upset, as did many of the other guests, and the amount of ear infections were dreadful, the doctor practically lived at the hotel. On arrival we opended the reception door and the smell of damp took my breath away when sitting round the pool flakes of oil were floating down from the roof and our clothes had to be cleaned by the hotel, the pool was covered in the stuff. On our last day the whole of the hotel got together to sign a petition in readiness to take back to the tour operator who issued immediate refunds without any hasstle. Thankfully it was just my husband and i, the children weren't with us, we ate out most nights and I don't appreciate having my change slammed down on the table, I felt that as a paying customer I should have treated with a little bit of respect, at the very least treated in the manner in which I treated them, which was nothing but politeness. yes we didn't explore the island, every day anything to get out of that hell hole of a hotel, as pretty as the island is, it's not a place I would consider returning to. Which i think is something I am entitled to do without having to justify myself to anyone

so it was your 1st and last visit? How much did you pay for and how long did you stay in the hotel? Where did you go within the islands? What did you explore? Who did you meet? Where did you eat?

The hotel should be a small part of the visit. I agree, don't go back to the same hotel but why not visit Malta again? Just because of a one bad hotel experience?

Get real please!

Can't agree - I had a terrible time there this year and will never go again. The hotel (Bugibba Holiday Complex) was the most disgusting and filthy and run down place I have ever stayed and not only that but Bugibba itself was dirty and run down, prices were inflated, people were rude and inefficient in service jobs and the whole experience was one I would never care to repeat.

Yes the beach further up the coast was nice and yes the weather was nice and yes Valletta was historic but those pros are 1000% outweighed by the cons.

valleyman - just skip Malta, and give Gozo a try - get all the pros you listed, and none of the cons

Caw Mark, me thinks Mr Z might be falling out with you again

I think he's got more to worry about than me, with guests posting "The hotel (Bugibba Holiday Complex) was the most disgusting and filthy and run down place I have ever stayed", guards posted on lookout duty at the ferry terminal, just in case

Gozomark....not worried at all, I know exactly what we have to offer and I take certain comments not with a pinch of salt but rather with a whole cellar of it.....this is an excellent forum, but unfortunately sometimes people do blow things totally out of proportion for sensationalism....just like the UK Tabloids do. You are more than welcome to walk into the door anonymously to the Bugibba Holiday Complex next time you are in the area and have alook for yourself and then you can make up your own opinion based on what you see and experience rather than basing your judgement on what others have said. Many a person on this site have contacted me personally due to certain comments posted on the website about the BHC, but I think their post holiday report proved otherwise. Yes we have our own faults and the BHC is not a five star luxury hotel...but we are also now approaching the end of a £1,000,000 refurbishment program which will be complete by the end of January 2006. but unfortunately, some people seem to expect five star accommodation when paying just £70Stg per person per week for a room on Half Board basis. I will say this publicly, that if anybody does want a cheap holiday which is good value for money, contact me directly and see how much you can save. Come and experience the BHC for yourself and rest assured you will not be dissapointed. If booked directly with me then I will offer you a 100% satisfaction guarantee, meaning that if you are not happy with something and I do not rectify it within 24hours, then I will refund you for the time that the problem was not rectified (refund applicable to Accommodation only)

I agree with all you have written - I'm ashamed to be British when I see people complaining about a cheap holiday - as you say, £10 per person per night for a room and two meals - you can't expect the Ritz !! I've never expressed an opinion about BHC - I've never been there, never mind stayed, but will take you up on your kind offer to visit sometime. My somewhat tongue-in-cheek comments about Malta v Gozo, I do believe Gozo is a far nicer place, but also love alot of Malta. I think the mess that is alot of Paceville and St Pauls Bay is a disgrace to Malta, but us Brits are also to blame by expecting to get stupidly cheap holidays, and then complaining about them ! Fortunately very little of Gozo has been affected by this race to the bottom (although alot of Marsalforn is horrible).

Phew I feared the worst earlier , but it seems that all is harmonious in Malta & Ghawdex, well said both of you chaps