Cap Menorca Relais et Chateaux — Hotel in Alaior

Cap Menorca is a perfect example of what not to do when managing a luxury hotel. Our stay at this self-proclaimed "ultimate luxury hotel" was, to put it mildly, an exercise in patience and a masterclass in lowered expectations.||||From the start, signs were there that this hotel was a recipe for disaster. My wife and I were planning a nine-night stay in Menorca, and I attempted to book the hotel 45 days in advance through my Amex concierge. To my astonishment, the hotel reservation team was entirely unresponsive. When they finally deigned to contact me, they sent a payment link that didn’t work for Amex cards. How charmingly amateurish. My concierge had to intervene, and the hotel's response was to suggest I contact the hotel manager directly—a chap who thought WhatsApp was the height of professionalism for handling luxury bookings.||||Now, I’ve traveled extensively, but I must say, I’ve never been asked to conduct official hotel business through WhatsApp. However, this guy, the hotel GM, assured me that Amex concierges were "always too noisy and complicated" (how professional) and asked me to send my card details and ID directly to him. I obliged, somewhat begrudgingly, and then—nothing. Radio silence. Eventually, I received another payment link from the booking team, which miraculously worked. A month later, a week before our arrival, I finally received a confirmation email. What a relief.||||The comedy of errors began long before we even arrived. On the day of our departure, I received an early morning call from the hotel asking if we were still planning to travel to Menorca. There was a big storm on the island. I hadn't received any indication from the ferry company that our trip would be canceled, so I assured them we were still coming. The person on the other end of the line sounded quite nervous and insisted that I keep them updated if we decided to change our plans. They called twice more to confirm, and finally, I informed them that we were indeed on the ferry.||||Upon arriving in Menorca around 9 PM, I called the hotel to let them know we'd made it. This is when they casually mentioned that our room was not available due to the storm. Why hadn’t they told me this before I left Barcelona, before we embarked on the ferry? They knew about the situation earlier in the day, yet they kept this vital information from us. They offered to relocate us to another hotel within their group, which was a reasonable gesture, but then called back to say that hotel was fully booked and they would find us something else. By this point, it was nearly 10 PM, and I was frantically searching for accommodation myself, unsure where my family would sleep that night. Unsurprisingly, the entire island was fully booked—flights were canceled, and not a single room was available.||||The hotel eventually found us a room, but the road to access it was closed. Utterly useless. Finally, around 11 PM, the road opened, and we arrived at a nice hotel with a tiny room facing the parking lot. By that point, all we cared about was having a place to sleep. A wonderful start to our vacation and the first sign that we had made a terrible mistake. But the true outrage came during checkout at Cap Menorca, 10 days later, when they attempted to charge me for that night at their own rates—over €1,000 for a 20 sqm room facing a parking lot. It was the final proof that this hotel is run in an utterly improvised manner by a group of friends who have clearly never worked in the hotel business before, let alone in the luxury tier. It was a complete and utter lack of common sense, the perfect closure to a parade of terrible service.||||Upon arrival at Cap Menorca, we were greeted by a young lady who clearly hadn’t been briefed on the basics of our stay. She guided us to our room without so much as a mention of breakfast hours, activities, or amenities. Not to worry, though; I had the pleasure of unloading our luggage myself and hauling it onto a golf cart, as no bellboy was available. A lovely start to our luxury retreat.||||The room itself was pleasant enough—large, well-appointed, with a private pool and all the necessary amenities. However, the devil is in the details. They kindly provided a kettle but no tea bags, which I thought was a particularly creative approach to offering refreshments. And the tissues? Those ran out on the first day after we used the single decorative sheet they provided, and they weren’t replaced until we asked.||||Speaking of the pool, we quickly discovered that it was, to our surprise, unfinished. The first step into the pool was a metal platform rather than the stone finish one, or similar. Even the maintenance guy, with a look of genuine concern, asked us to be careful not to slip while entering the pool. A truly reassuring moment.||||As for the "turn-down service," it was more of a turn-down in expectations. It consisted solely of opening the bed. No fresh towels, no replenishment of water, no thoughtful touches like sweets or flowers—just your bed, open, ready for you to collapse into after a day of lowered standards. And speaking of towels, they seemed to be something of a rare commodity at Cap Menorca. On more than one occasion, we were left with a single towel to share after a shower, or the pool towels were simply “forgotten.” Though, to their credit, this did improve as our stay progressed. Whether this was due to our complaints or the hotel being less occupied during the last days, I can only speculate.||||The pièce de résistance was breakfast. On our first morning, we arrived at 10:00 AM, with service supposedly ending at 10:30. We ordered two omelets, which took a leisurely 40 minutes to arrive. When I asked for more coffee to accompany my now-cold omelet, I was told coffee service ended at 10:30, and they simply couldn't manage another pot. The staff proceeded to have a rather loud disagreement over the matter, which all the guests could hear. Mind you, this is a 15-room hotel, with rooms starting at €1,000 per night. I dare say I’ve had better service at a motorway café.||||As if this wasn’t bad enough, breakfast became a daily comedy of errors. Out of the eight days we had breakfast, seven of them involved issues with our egg orders. One day they forgot to place the order, the next day the power went out in the kitchen, and on another, the order simply disappeared into the ether. All of this, mind you, while they strictly cut off coffee service at 10:30 AM, regardless of whether you’d had your first sip or not. It was almost impressive in its absurdity.||||But the true nadir of our culinary experience came with our last dinner at the hotel. In a country famed for its cuisine, on an island with a rich culinary tradition, Cap Menorca’s restaurant managed to deliver the quality of a low-end eatery in Aberdeen, Scotland. The evening menu is fixed, with two starters and two mains (one vegetarian), and they boast that it changes daily. However, after dining on a Friday, we discovered the exact same menu on Sunday. We deduced that while the menu technically changes daily, it simply repeats every two days—a hilarious interpretation of "variety."||||Feeling some pity for our prolonged stay, the hotel manager arranged for a "special menu" on our last dinner—a local paella, no less. When it arrived, it was a culinary tragedy: dry, burnt, and with the unmistakable flavor of microwaved rice garnished with a few forlorn pieces of seafood. I’m still baffled as to how anyone could think this was fit to serve. In a state of frustration and resignation, we ate what little we could and swore off dining at the hotel for the remainder of our stay. It was, without exaggeration, the worst culinary experience I’ve had in years.||And if that wasn't enough, the food prices at the hotel are set at high-end restaurant levels—as if they genuinely believe their kitchen is dishing out Michelin-starred cuisine. One can almost imagine the chef, with a straight face, charging €35 for half a portion of fish that’s more reminiscent of a frozen fillet than anything from the sea. Or perhaps €90 for a burnt paella, served with the confidence of someone who’s never actually tasted a proper one. They even have the audacity to charge €18 for what I can only assume was supermarket hummus, and €8 for a handful of olives—the standard, uninspired type you’d expect as a free nibble with your drink. And let’s not forget the crowning glory: €40 for 100 grams of jamón that would struggle to impress at a budget tapas bar. It’s almost as if they’re playing a grand joke on Spanish gastronomy—charging gourmet prices for what can only be described as an insult to anyone with functioning taste buds.||Now, you might wonder why we didn’t simply leave the hotel after enduring all this torture. Well, it was the middle of August, the island was fully booked, and there were no reservations available at any decent hotels. We also had our dog with us and needed a pet-friendly place, not to mention we had prepaid our stay—a minor detail compared to the others, but still an annoyance.||||If all this wasn’t enough, the hotel is notably lacking in activities and amenities that one might expect from a luxury retreat. There’s no spa, no yoga classes, no gym, no bikes, and no information on trekking trails. Not even a concierge to assist with arranging off-site activities or recommending local attractions. Essentially, you’re left to your own devices—fine if you’re paying for a budget stay, but at these prices, it’s frankly unacceptable.||||In conclusion, Cap Menorca is a study in contrasts: a five-star infrastructure paired with the service quality of a roadside motel. If you're seeking a true luxury retreat in Menorca, I suggest you look elsewhere. There are plenty of options on the island that offer a genuine five-star experience—often at a lower rate. It seems Cap Menorca has invested heavily in the building but spared every expense on hiring competent staff. The entire operation feels improvised, struggling to maintain even the most basic standards of luxury hospitality.||||One positive note, however, is that the hotel is pet-friendly, and they treated our dog very well. This was a small comfort in an otherwise disappointing experience, and I genuinely appreciate this detail as it was very important to us.||||In summary, if Cap Menorca is the "ultimate luxury" of the island, then I shudder to think what the budget options are like. Avoid it, unless you’re in the mood for a very expensive lesson in how not to run a hotel.||Some of the staff were clearly trying and making an effort, but there was a blatant lack of experience, inadequate training, and overall poor management. The general manager, rather than taking responsibility, spent more time pointing fingers at his staff—very unprofessional and entirely improvised. ||||And lastly, for the life of me, I still cannot fathom how Relais & Châteaux is willing to lend their name to an operation like this. Perhaps they enjoy a bit of irony themselves, or maybe they just have a wicked sense of humor. Either way, it’s a mystery that might just be as unsolvable as the elusive luxury experience at...

Cap Menorca is like sleeping in an expensive construction site. The bad signals started on day one: the road to get there is full of big potholes, even the final part of the road which is private, which we already thought was very peculiar given the R&C plate proudly exposed outside the gates. As we were checking in at around 17, a woman was asking to check out in advance, for the surprise of the receptionist. Little did we know we would have done the same two nights later, foregoing one prepaid night to avoid another sleep in that place.||One could start by pointing to the lack of the simple details that make a luxury resort, but even the most basic services and facilities were missing. First and foremost, as the general manager proudly explained at breakfast, the hotel project might entail more phases of construction. It was an utter delight to hear that we were part of phase 1, having seen the day before a ghost unfinished swimming pool with an unfinished bar area at the end of the resort, wild plants everywhere, construction tools on the sides, and even a pile of bricks in the olive tree garden overlooked by some suites.||The privacy advertised is barely existent: the suites have been built by renovating soldiers barracks of the old military base, most next to each other, with the opportunity to hear clearly the schedule of your neighbors. Furthermore, going up the staircase of the restaurant terrace I realised all guests had a great view on our garden and on our room and those of the neighboring suites if the curtains weren’t closed.||Personnel is kind, but very rare: the pool bar was never manned when we tried to use it and we had to chase someone down to get a drink at 18. Not at 4am.||Piece de resistance: we could smell a weird smell of waste water from our garden and also in the room when a/c was on. We pointed this to the receptionist, who, after a short discussion with the manager, offered us a free upgrade. We think this might be a recurring issue given we read this in other reviews afterwards.||To add, towels seem to be a rare commodity (after the first night they only left us one bathrobe and we had to call housekeeping to get towels for the beach), they have a deposit of plants and vases in the flowerbeds (likely preparing for next year?), you constantly have to watch your step for holes, pieces of glass or tools (despite the advertised luxury barefoot experience).||One could also point to the lack of the services that make a 5* hotel, like the little treats left during day service (which only consisted of opening our bedlinen), fresh water bottles (which were never substituted), decent pillows (for some reason they decided to provide 4 identical pillows, no choice given), an experience manager (who went missing in the 24h we needed him), a clean pool, but we are quite far from this level.||To the good side, the location of the resort on the cliff is stunning and there is a great sunset spot for happy hour near the cannons.||Feeling part of a scam, we decided to leave early. We do not understand how the hotel achieved the 5 stars and made it to be part of R&C. Upon check out, the receptionist did not ask us the reason why we were checking out earlier than planned. Two days later, nobody from the hotel reached out to us...

It's taken me almost a year to write this review, mainly because the experience left such a bad taste in my mouth and I was hoping that the manager Karim would reach out as promised but to no avail (plus the hotel was not listed on TA until several months after my stay).||Full disclosure - I booked Cap Menorca (CM) in July 2024 during its soft opening. I am a journalist who has stayed in incredible hotels, luxury and otherwise, around the world, but this was a personal stay. I have stayed at other R&C properties which have always been top notch, although I was surprised that Cap Menorca already made the cut (its sister property in Mahon has been a member for a while, but don't expect CM to come close in service!!)||Staying at newly opened hotels has its pros and cons, so I expected a few teething problems, but our stay was a total disaster. ||The positives - the hotel is beautiful, with stunning views and chic modern rooms. But that's where it ends. ||The cleaning was sub par (we found broken glass in the room and 2 nights out of the three, "turndown" service consisted of the moody housekeeper throwing back the duvet cover, leaving dirty towels and glasses everywhere). The aircon wasn't great but turned out we were luckier than our neighbours who had no air-conditioning for 2 nights (it was 30 plus degrees!)||There was only one restaurant open, but we heard from other guests as well as a staff member to save our money and eat at Experimental Menorca next door (it was great!.) ||Breakfast was another joke, with staff running around like headless chickens or ignoring us completely. The cheeses and other dairy items in the buffet were left out in the sweltering sun, and my poached eggs came out raw . I asked the server if she would eat them and she replied a firm NO. We never returned to breakfast.||To add insult to injury was the total apathetic and unhelpful staff. On several occasions the concierge gave us wrong information about parking/tourist spots and didn't make any of our restaurant bookings (it was embarrassing when we turned up at various restaurants insisting we should have had a reservation to no avail!) There was one young gentleman who tried his best but he alone was not enough to save this disastrous vacation!||Throughout our stay the manager Karim was aware of our various issues, but avoided us every time we walked into the reception area to complain (the phone didn't work either so we had to go there physically). It came to a point where I didn't want to complain anymore as it was completely futile and falling on deaf ears!||Karim finally showed his face during check out upon learning that the team had misplaced my laundry, specially a favourite T-shirt of mine. He gave us a whole spiel about following up and enusirng he would DHL my shirt should it be found. He also insisted to email us a coupon for a three night complimentary stay in the future to make up for it. I received a copy of my bill but no coupon since then. ||While I see from recent reviews that CM has improved, the first impression is the most lasting and I will NEVER go back nor would I...