I will keep it brief,It's a 30 mins transfer time from the airport,The Hotel is very spanish with not many English, to start with the hotel is very clean and the hotel staff are on the the whole nice people,the rooms are of good standard with Tv, only one English channel BBC world news all other programs in Spanish,it also has small fridge and air con with door leading out onto small balcony with sea view, beds are made daily, Sorry no Kettle, but coffee available from bar.
We were all inclusive but not every one is, if you are going to this hotel with children I strongly advice to go all inclusive as drink prices are very very expensive, every time you go for meals or have drinks you have to sign for them,a word of caution every week end the hotel gets invaded with Spanish they have special offers for weekends the place gets really busy and noisy especially around meal times.
The Hotel has 4 lifts on each floor, and waiting time was not long.
Location of this hotel is miles from anywhere, you will need to catch buses or taxis, buses are cheap but can get very busy, taxis avoid if possible they are expensive.
Now then the swimming pool, from the hotel its about a 300 yard walk,(I think it must have been an after thought) forget taking any balls lylos or water guns they are 100% not allowed, not much to do in the pool quiet boring,there is a SMALL Water slide there is a small bar where you can get drinks/crisps, any food you will have to go back to main restaurant, there is a indoor pool and that was open when we were there but that's small and if you have 12 people in there its full.
Food: the best meal of the day was breakfast, dinner is the same as lunch but dressed up differently.You MUST where long trousers for evening meal.
Drinks: There are 2 bars, and waiter Sevice if your lucky.
Entertainment I rate '0'don't even go there its a 0ne person show with bingo/ quiz nights and mini disco for the kids which starts at 21:30 for 30 mins.
Beech towels are available wit 20 euro deposit.
We would not ever go back to this hotel, but you might go and like it, every one to there own.
If you get a chance go to Gibralter its well worth the visit also visit the monkeys and if you smoke fags are really cheap 15 euros for 200,on the down side this trip on the coach is 2 hours 15 mins.
Good Luck

We are just back from a lovely week at the Playabonita.I will try and keep this as brief as i can.The hotel itself is very nice and has lovely sea views.The whole place is kept very clean.Food was pretty good for the selection that was there ,but we have been at hotels of this standard that have had more of a selection when it comes to main courses.I have to say the fruit and cheese served at mealtimes is fantastic and you would never go hungry.The clientele is mostly German and Spanish,and although there was no harm in this,i felt food wise etc the hotel catered mostly for their tastes.
The hotel is pretty remote,although we didnt mind to much as we found plenty of places in the hotel grounds to sit or wander in.We were in between Benalmadena and Fuengirola.One time we got a taxi into fuengirola and it was 15e,another day we taxied into Benalmadena to get a boat trip(20e)and the fare was 12e.There is a bus from the hotel,but depending on how busy the hotel was depended on wether the bus was on or not.
We were there on AI basis wich was good as you could get international drinks at the bar,but a word of warning,we did not get picked up by bus til about 4.30pm on the day of leaving and were lead to believe by the holiday company that we would be all inclusive until we left the hotel as we have been in other places,but as soon as 12 o`clock came our cards swithed off for the bar and for restaurant facilities,so it is one to keep in mind.All in all we had a great resfull week.Views from the hotel lounge are brilliant with a sheer wall of glass across the front of the area.

Stayed in this hotel in October 08 on all inclusive.
can not fault the hotel in anyway.
Never went to the entertainment hence, the non rating.
Staff very friendly and helpfull, free bar with international brands open until 1 AM. Food wonderfull, If you are all inclusive you can order any bottle of wine from the wine list up to 10 euro after that there is a small supplement.

Have booked to return in April

This hotel must be one of the best in the resort. The hotel was so clean you could eat your food from the floors. The view from the rooms are outstanding overlooking two small bays. The rooms are well serviced with remote control TV, and towels are changed if you so require every day. Although the hotel is on the outskirts of Benalmadena a free luxury coach is provided for you to go to Benalmadena cente and Torremolinos 3 times per day. The staff are top class nothing is to much trouble for them. The food caters for all nationalities. I did not participate in any of the entertainment. Towels where provided at reception for your use at the swimming pool which was away from the main hotel, and sun beds were plentyfull. I can not wait to return to this hotel.

The Playa Bonita hotel has a warm and welcome feel to it our cases where taken to room for us this was unexpected. Clean and well maintained an obvious 4 star hotel. Food was of a high standard. Rooms cleaned daily with clean towels each day. Towels provided for the beach and pool area ask at reception free service, these can be changed each day at the pool area. TV in room has only one English channel this is BBC World shame as various other channels for non english speaking guests. All rooms have a sea view, hotel is 10 yards from the beach area. Hotel is a little way outside the centre of Benalmadena however a bus service is available outside cost 1 euro 10 cents, same price and same bus takes you to Torremolinos. Bus on other side of road same price takes you to Fuengirola. Taxi 10 euros to Benalmaden marina and to Fueringola. Mini bar in room ask at reception and mini bar items can be taken out so fridge can be used. Pool area strangely a little way away from the hotel couple of minutes walk.

The hotel deserves its 4 star moderate status and my marks are probably harsh - my children would be more generous.

We didn't know pets were allowed at the hotel and as my children are allergic I was a bit wary particularly as our floor 3 seemed to be the one used for most of them but the cleaners were very thorough and towels would be changed as regularly as you wanted.

The hotel is built into a cliff face. It doesn't have alot of ground to walk in and when it uses the word 'private' beach I think it means secluded as it is open to anyone.

The room key acts a key to the swimming pool area which is strangely a walk away from the the gated hotel area.

The beach club/ entertainment area isn't gated so I assume that is open to everyone. Anyway being polite most people would open the gate for others without questioning whether they Were residents.

I'm sure non residents use the pool particularly on a Sunday but although the pool area and pool can get crowded we had no problems getting at least 3 loungers and one umbrella at any time of the day.

Considering the size of the hotel there was a very good service and variety of food. I was a bit disappointed with the quality of the meat on offer, hardly any plain poultry. There were always queues for pancakes and grilled fish and meat but these were orderly and quick. When I explained about my daughters nut allergy the chef cooked especially for her on one day and then pointed out which staff to go to for help.

The staff were so efficient and helpful and polite. The entertainment team looked like they really enjoyed their work and worked hard but given the size and quality of this hotel the entertainment was below what I would expect.

The entertainment area is outside in summer but covered which makes it quite stuffy and hot and there are no fans, the seating was inadequate and there weren't nearly enough paid for quality acts. I wouldn't say that the entertainment was particularly geared towards the Spanish but thats the way it worked out as alot of the English families seemed to favour the bar upstairs where there was no entertainment. There were inadequate snooker tables table tennis computers and no games room!

The hotel was too big and impersonal for me and it would be nice to be able to walk to a few shops.

We have stayed in this hotel four times now and are heading out again this summer!! Upon arrival you are checked in quickly by the English speaking staff at reception.

The rooms have 2 double beds, a mini bar/fridge, TV, air conditioning, lovely bathroom with bath and shower and balcony with sea views.

The private man made beaches are a matter of yards from the ground floor exit of the hotel and a 2 minute walk takes you to the gated pool area, where there is a security guard on patrol in high season, lifeguards and a bar which provides ice cream, burgers, baguettes, toasties, beer/alcoholic drinks, coffee, tea, soft drinks etc.

Entry to the pool is by the room keycard, ensuring only hotel residents get in.

The restaurant caters for everyone, definately great for fussy eaters!! Dress code for dinner only requests that men wear long trousers, we've always went to breakfast ready for the pool with shorts & t-shirts!! The hotel has a shop, hairdressers and money/travellers cheques can be exchanged at reception.

Rooms are always clean with the maids coming in daily. Pool towels are available from reception free of charge and are swapped for fresh ones on request. There is an indoor pool aswell for when its too hot.

Nightly entertainment is provided at the hotel at the beach bar, with a mini disco at 2130 for kids and adult entertainment afterwards, whether it be a show put on by hotel staff or flamenco dancing, live music, magic shows etc. If you'd rather have a quiet drink there is a bar just across from reception at the other end of the hotel.

A short taxi ride takes you to the hustle and bustle of Benalmadena town centre for those in pursuit of a more lively evening!!

Staff are always pleasant, especially toward children! There is also a kids club which is run by the hotel staff during the day!

All in all an excellent 5* hotel which I would recommend to everyone!!

The service offered by everyone in the hotel was excellent. The staff could not do enough for you.

The rooms all had sea views which was fantastic.

Our room had 2 double beds pushed together which made the stay seem just that bit more luxurious.

TV channels limited - only english speaking channels were CNN and Eurosport - which has done wonders for my current affair knowledge.

The restaurant never seemed that busy which was great and 9 times out of 10 we could sit near the window which looked directly over the sea.

An earlier customer said that there was quite a bit of traffic noise heard. We heard nothing other than the waves crashing in on the beach. Having said that if your room is near the lift then you do here the 'pinging' sound constantly.

Not ideal for young lively couples as there only a handful of bars/cafes. Having said that you can get a taxi to the marina for about 7 Euros.

It takes about 1 and a 1/4 hours to walk from the hotel to the marina if you are feeling energetic.

Train station to either Fuengarola or Torremilinos (excuse the spelling) only 10 mins walk away from hotel. The trains were always on time and very cheap.

Tivoli World is 2 stops away on the train - 4 mins I think. Worth a visit but be prepared to spend quite a bit. 4.50 Euros entrance fee then a further 13 Euros for all the rides except a couple where you had to pay again. We arrived at 4pm - when the park was just opening (times do change depending on the time of the year)so it took a while for most of the rides to start as there weren't too many people around.

There were three of us my boyfriend 25, me 22 and my son 3. We went on this holiday only knowing that it was in costa del sol and that it was 4*. I was a bit scared but i thought it cant be that bad if it was 4*. We got there and we were amazed, the hotel is gorgeous we went in the rooms and we couldn't believe our eyes it was like paradise, the bedrooms are gorgeous the view from our balcony was the best you could imagine. The pool was lovely but when we went on the beach it was quite grainy but it was good if you wanted to exfoliate your feet put it that way. The hotel was a bit out of the way and if you went to eat anywhere nearby you would find this out cos they charged a lot for food, we went into town and the food was a third of the price and just as good but the taxi journey there was a bit scary! The entertainment was very cheesy they did a medly and included things like pretty woman, greece etc but they couldnt even mime the words they looked really daft but it was a laugh just watching this (sit outside thats my advice). There wasnt much going on outside the hotel but I would definately go back to this hotel as it spoilt me and now i cant go anything but 4* I hope my next holiday is as good. Oh by the way the staff are great!