Playa Esperanza Resort — Hotel in Muro

Aug 2025 - 2 adults 2 Children (8yr & 12yr) - Half Board - Junior Suite||TL;DR - Great place, location, pools, facilities and food but glad we upgraded to a suite.||For context, resort is split into 3 sections as shown on google maps; Apartments (left), Hotel (centre), Suites (right).|It appeared to be fairly busy when we visited (early Aug '25) but there were very few queues or crowds. Lots of info is available on the website when visiting, and the hotel assumes you have a device to view it so doesn't post much of it within the site.||Facilities: There are three main pool areas; one near the Apartments for fun with some activities from the Entertainment team, one in the centre which includes lanes for regular swimmers and one near the Suites which is relaxing and has a deeper section. Each area also has a shallow pool for young children.|The pools were great and we never found them too crowded. Arrived at a variety of times and found loungers each time.|Additionally, the resort has a small library, TV room, various spaces for play. |Everything was clean and well maintained, with the cleaning staff doing a great job and friendly when we bumped into them.||Beach: The beach is right on the doorstep and is a soft, sandy beach with warm water (August). Arrived at multiple times and found space each time, although the loungers/shade were often very busy and incur a charge (the beach does not belong to the resort).|The water stays quite shallow for ages so its good for families, and wasn't overcrowded. ||Rooms: Our room (Junior Suite) was lovely and spacious, although we shared a room with the children and had to sleep on a sofa-bed which wasn't particularly comfortable.|Upgraded rooms/suites include extras (e.g towels etc.) and offer more space. Lower cost rooms in the Hotel area (centre) appear small and quite tightly packed, and many may be affected by evening entertainment noise.||Food: We found the food really good with options to suit tastes. Different foods on many nights but some basics repeated every night. There were some options for picky eaters most nights and a decent mix of desserts. Wasn't too crowded but busy enough to ensure fresh food was coming out regularly. Never had trouble finding a table and the staff were attentive and friendly. We were half board so had to pay for drinks, which were a little expensive but not too overpriced. Lunch was also extra so we used the snack bar near the fun pool (near Apartments) and tried the Luna bar in the centre. Both were fine but we also explored and found some lovely bars/restaurants within 10 min walk. There's also a decent supermarket across the road.||Entertainment: The entertainment team were great and enthusiastic. They ran many activities and engaged with children really well. The Children's rooms were great (one for younger kids and one for older ones) with lots to do and many facilities. The older one was much more relaxed and allowed teens to chill out.|Easier if you have a smartphone as a lot of info is online but there are posters around with info on daily activities if you know where to look.||The evening entertainment was good in general.|Although repetitive, the kids disco had the younger children engaged and kept them busy. Activities and songs from a variety of languages were used to ensure everyone was included.|The later entertainment was good (not aimed at children specifically) with some decent music until around 11.|The rooms facing the stage area are subject to loud noise until around 11pm, so take care staying in a room that faces onto the 'Luna pool/restaurant'. Other areas can barely hear the shows however, and we found the 'Suites' area to be quite quiet.||In general the entertainment for young children was good, but we found older children may find a lot of the entertainment a little young for them. The teen room is good but not ideal if you want to avoid consoles (They had a PS5 & XBOX during our visit).||Staff: We found the staff very friendly and helpful throughout our stay. Many could speak multiple languages but appeared grateful when we attempted to speak Spanish (badly).||Summary: We really enjoyed our stay and struggle to identify anything negative other that sharing a room with the children and sleeping on uncomfortable sofa-beds. it was a lovely holiday and we would definitely stay here again.||We've seen some poor reviews but many seem to be someone holding a grudge for a specific event rather than a fair review of the resort, although some of the lower cost hotel areas do look quite crowded and tightly packed to be fair and have to pay for some basics (e.g. towels etc) which may cause some irritation if not known when booking.|If you stay in the suites as we did, I would highly...

This hotel and the vast resort is located in a prime location very close to shops and restaurants. It is also based around a beautiful sandy beach with clear water and lots of water sports to try out. The sea appears turquoise and being on the beach feels like paradise, which we really didn't expect and so it was a lovely welcomed surprise. I was disappointed that the hotel did not provide sun loungers on the beach. The sun loungers present on the beach are not the hotel's and there is a charge to use them, which I was not aware of. However, the resort offers plentiful sun loungers to use, just not on the beach. There are three swimming pools on location too, in addition to an indoor heated pool. I was quite surprised there was no concierge desk or anyone to help with luggage, as we had lots of it. We booked a premium sea view room expecting a frontal sea view room, although on reaching the hotel what we actually got was a pool view with partial sea view, which was disappointing. But nevertheless, the room was clean and comfortable. I would have expected slippers, gowns and tea/coffee making facilities in the room as this is a four star hotel. But the hotel room and balcony are reasonably sized and have comfortable and practical furniture to use. The shower was amazing! Our hotel room was kept in pristine condition every day by our lovely maid Cati Mari, she was superb and her English is fantastic. On the first night we couldn't sleep as surprisingly the heating in the room, set by the hotel was on full, it felt like an oven This was in place of the air conditioning. We had to switch it off and leave the balcony door open every night for the room to be cool enough to sleep, even though it wasn't hot outside. We had very noisy people staying next door partying till early hours of the morning for some days, which ruined our break away except the last few days, especially as we had requested a room in a quiet area, which we did not get. Also I was quite surprised of the level of noise that could be heard from the corridor inside the room, I did not expect that. There are exceptional staff working at this hotel, starting with Esperanza, the Maitre who is in charge of the dining room, yes her name matches the name of the hotel and she does it proud, always making us feel so welcome. I would have liked to see a bit more variety for dinner as on some days there just wasn't enough choice of food to cater for everyone's needs. I would have liked to have seen more chicken dishes available and more choice for children. Thanks too to Stefan one of the many great waiters, thanks to Conchi and Juan who both work on the reception desk for their excellent customer service and for doing all they could to help make our stay feel comfortable, and last but not least thank you to Abde for his infectious smile, always so friendly to see and talk to. The hotel has lots of great activities for adults and children of all ages to try out and a great deal of facilities to use. I wish we were able to enjoy every day rather than the last few days as when we finally started to relax and enjoy ourselves our holiday came to an end. We will definitely return to this hotel at a much warmer time of year. I definitely recommend this hotel and it's lovely staff...

What I liked The grounds – pure wow. Hectares of immaculate greenery, palm trees, pines, plenty of natural shade, lawns, winding paths – 10 / 10. Playground. Large, multi-level, safe surface – 8 / 10. Free sun-loungers anywhere on the property – no paid “VIP zones” to hunt for – 10 / 10. Dream kids’ club. Football pitch, ball pit, hundreds of dolls, endless crafts and activities; the animators are superheroes for children – 100 / 10! On-site doctor (paid). Consultation + test cost €170; very quick, and although the doctor’s English was basic, we understood each other – 10 / 10. Food. Tasty, varied buffet; waiters whisk dirty plates away like ninjas – 9 / 10.

⸻

What I didn’t like (and future guests should be warned!) Playground under the sun. Hardly any shade, few swings; one swing constantly stood in a puddle that attracted bees. Dinner drinks = extra charge. No tea or coffee at any price. Kids don’t drink beer or ice-cold cola – at least provide hot tea! Language barrier. Restaurant and housekeeping staff speak almost no English. Asking for “hot tea” took mime-level explaining and still brought a bottle of iced tea. Housekeeping glitches. Towels disappear and reappear; shampoo refills are hit-or-miss. They burst into the room without knocking! Twice, even with “Do Not Disturb,” once catching me naked, just to ask if I liked the cleaning. Unacceptable. The great “new minibar concept.” Day three: a manager walked in unannounced, grabbed every drink from the minibar and said, “The boss decided minibar is now pay-as-you-go. Pre-pay at reception.” Minibar was clearly included in my rate! Reception surprise on arrival – a story you need to know. • Arrived 11:00; keys promised four hours later “because of cleaning.” • Told my room was on the ground floor, and offered €250 (later €50) to move up “for the maids’ double work.” How can it be double if I hadn’t even checked in yet? • Hotel support later confirmed “Yes, €50 is normal.” • In the end, junior suite 2004 does have a lateral sea view – but I learned that only at 14:00 when I finally got the key. A simple “Your room has sea view” at the desk would have avoided all drama. • Important: while I was arguing, two couples beside me said they’d been offered the same “extra-floor fees.” Not a one-off. Compare with the neighbours. At the Iberostar next door no one demanded “floor surcharges” or barged into rooms – true guest-oriented service from the first minute.

⸻

Bottom line • Come for the grounds, the beach and the kids’ facilities – you’ll love them. • Expect four-star service – brace for surprises: unexpected surcharges, minibar disappearing, staff entering without permission.

I visited in 2021 and was blown away; in 2025 the management and service spoiled the magic. Tip for future guests: film everything, ask questions at check-in and insist on what...