Inturotel Cala Esmeralda — Hotel in Santanyí

We stayed at Inturotel Cala Esmeralda and overall had a relaxing and enjoyable experience. The hotel is adults-only, which creates a peaceful atmosphere, and the entire property is well-maintained and clean.

🌟 Highlights:

• 🛏️ Room & Comfort: We had a sea-view room with a lovely balcony. While the view included the road, parking area, and houses across the water—not a full sea view—it was still pleasant. The bed was very comfortable, and the room was spacious and spotless. • 📶 Wi-Fi: Strong in the room, but in common areas I had to disconnect to get any signal. • 🧘 Spa & Wellness: The spa area is a standout—open access to the sauna, steam room, and heated pool was a real treat. There’s also a unique outdoor gym for kinesthetic workouts and a basic indoor gym that’s perfectly adequate. • 💆 Massage Experience: My partner and I booked the same Mediterranean massage but had very different experiences. Mine wasn’t full-body and didn’t quite match the quality of theirs—so consistency could be improved. • 🍾 Check-In & Arrival: A glass of cava on arrival was a lovely touch. Even though I checked in online, we had to repeat the process at the desk. Still, they had prepared a light meal for us when we arrived late at 10pm, which was thoughtful and appreciated. • 🎶 Entertainment: Every second night there’s entertainment either at the beach club or the indoor bar. We attended a DJ night and it was genuinely fun—great energy without being overwhelming. • 🍳 Food & Dining: Breakfast was fabulous, with cava available for mimosas. Dinner was fresh and varied, with themed nights that kept things interesting. The desserts were especially impressive. • 🤝 Staff: Everyone we interacted with was friendly, helpful, and welcoming. • 🧘‍♂️ Atmosphere: The vibe is chill and laid-back. It’s a 10-minute walk to the center of Cala d’Or, with plenty of restaurants and bars nearby.

⚠️ Things to Know:

• 🏖️ Beach Access Confusion: The hotel advertises beach access, but it’s actually a small platform for jumping into the water—no private beach space for guests. To access the sea, you need to cross the road to the “Sa Cala” beach club, which has a small pool, sunbeds, and a bar. • ⏳ Limited Sunbed Availability: There’s not enough space for all guests at the beach club. People start queuing as early as 9am to secure a spot, and the 20-minute unattended sunbed policy isn’t enforced. At times, it felt chaotic, with non-guests possibly taking spots and no staff managing the situation. • 🚸 Water Access Crowding: The platform access to the sea can get crowded and noisy, especially with kids climbing over rocks and parents shouting—definitely not the serene adults-only vibe promised. • 🚗 Parking Issues: Reserved parking outside the hotel isn’t monitored, so non-guests can take those spots. • 💸 Bar Prices: Food and drinks at the bar are on the pricier side, though that seems typical for Cala d’Or. • 🧼 Cleaning Policy: For sustainability, bed sheets aren’t changed regularly unless requested, and cleaning times vary day to day. It’s a minor inconvenience, but worth noting for a 4-star superior hotel. • 🚐 Transport: The hotel doesn’t offer its own shuttle service. We rented a car, which was more cost-effective than booking a round-trip taxi. The drive from the airport takes about 50–60 minutes depending on traffic and driving style.

✅ Final Verdict:

Despite a few logistical quirks—mostly around beach access and sunbed availability—we genuinely enjoyed our stay. The food, staff, and overall ambiance make it a great value. I’d recommend it for couples or solo travelers looking for a relaxing, adults-only escape, but be prepared to rise early if you want a prime...

This really was just the most Incredible place to stay. Based on a 10 day trip, double select room, UK couple, early 30s and vegetarian diets. Oh we also rented a car with ROIG ( there’s a discount code if you email the hotel).

Adults Only

This factor was just the by product of us finding somewhere nice so we didn’t actually book it because of this. The pools do have a bit of PDA. We didn’t realise how great Adults Only was until we visited our friends who were staying on the other side of the island with their children.

The Hotel Decor

Everything is beautiful and clean bright and airy with interesting architecture everywhere. It’s well looked after and just absolutely stunning throughout. The loungers are premium and a little longer which is great for a tall person like me. There is also lovely seating all around the hotel so if you want to just sit and read there are loads of interesting spaces.

Half Board

We got half board whilst there. At first I was a little disappointed as I love eating out but after I realised how much we’d struggle for vegetarian options out it was such a welcomed luxury of our stay. If you do go to eat out you want to head up the coast (if you have a car to Cala Marçal bay or just up the hill towards Porto Cristo. Some great places to eat there including a place called Organic. Restaurant Ecologic. Even though the vegetarian options within the hotel were better we do feel they could have done a little more options to be accommodating. Also the drinks were reasonable with our meals. Drinks at breakfast are free but at dinner are chargeable.

Lunch Food

We ate lunch in the bar and it was excellent. You can’t eat around the pool though.

Staff

The staff are all incredible and speak better English than me at times.

The Spa

This is incredible. Super relaxing room with huge loungers and a lovely chilled pool. We also had a back and leg massage each as it was probably one the best we’ve had.

Evening Entertainment

Each night there’s a different performance so after dinner if you don’t want to go out grab yourself a seat outside and wait for the performance to start.

Beach Club

We never ate here but did use the pool and loungers. I wouldn’t say there was a sun bed issue but these were hotly contested sun beds and would have people down early to sit on the ones with the best view over the cove.

Other Pools

The hotel has two other pools closer by and they’re great. With the position of the sun you’re also able to grab shade in different spaces throughout the day.

Excursion

There is a list of excursions you can purchase through the hotel. If you’ve got a car don’t bother… we paid €45 a person to visit the Caves of Drach thinking we’d be getting a premium service but the caves were only €15 each and the journey is all of 25 minutes each way. We got ferried into a Pearl shop at the end too. So yeah avoid the super tourist trap excursion and just go yourself.

One activity we loved was paddle boarding though. Only €15 and on the opposite side of the cove to where we stayed.

Parking and Car Rental

Loads of parking around the hotel. Sometimes you can’t get out front but it’s only a short walk. You don’t need a car but it is nice. One of our top things to do was Santanyi market.

Cala Esmeralda Beach

We LOVED the proximity to the beach. It was by far one of the best things about our stay. So often we’d head down and swim with the sun coming over the peninsula in the morning. It was beautiful, clear and warm. We also did the same in...

I am here with my family for my grandparents 55th anniversary. Half of the family is staying at Cala Esmeralda, and half stayed at Cala Azul. It was communicated to us that the family would be able to eat together at Cala Esmeralda so that we could be together and not separated. However, a crucial part of that agreement was left out by the hotel front desk staff. We would be able to eat together, but those who are staying at Cala Azul must pay an extra 30 euros per meal in order to eat at Cala Esmeralda’s restaurant with the family. This is absurd! We only found out about this after we checked into the hotel. Nonetheless, we paid for a breakfast and dinner in order to be with the rest of the family. We decided to just eat out at the restaurants outside of the resorts for the remainder of our stay since the food at the resorts was not worth 30 euros a person. My family requested to cancel the half board at Cala Azul so we weren’t wasting money while not eating at our hotel. The price for half board dinner at Cala Azul was 27 euros a person for dinner and 30 euros a person for Cala Esmeralda. So, we proposed our very fair and logical solution for this problem to the manager at Cala Azul: We would pay the difference of 7 euros per person per meal to cover the cost of eating at the “higher end” restaurant so that we could eat with our family during our stay. However, the front desk staff and manager at Cala Azul said that it was not possible and the only “solution” they had for us was to book at Cala Esmeralda at the cost of an extra $1800 dollars for 2 nights. Do they think we’re crazy?!?! Who in their right mind would do that? The answer? No one. The manager was trying to take advantage of our situation and desperation to be with our family to get us to pay more money. This is an example of how heartless and selfish the people are that work here. To make matters worse, the manager- Miguel- at Cala Esmeralda accused us of lying to the staff at the restaurant about our room number, when in reality, we did not! If we had lied, we would have gotten away with not paying the fee of 30 euros to eat at their restaurant. Also, the lady at the front desk at Cala Esmeralda asked if we had been to the spa and we truthfully answered “yes.” She got a tone while talking to us and said that we were not allowed to be there since we are not staying in the hotel. We said that we did not know this and didn’t think it was an issue because we used our key from Cala Azul to get into the spa. She looked very confused at how this was possible and she said something along the lines of “no that can’t be right. You must have used her (a relative staying at Cala Esmeralda) key to get into the spa.” At this point, we were very upset because she would not believe us even though we were telling the truth. She still thought we were lying. Overall, it has been a terrible stay at this hotel company and I won’t be visiting either of these hotels ever again. If anyone is thinking of traveling here with family, think twice before booking in the sister hotel because they are very strict with their rules, have poor communication skills, have no empathy, and don’t put their guests first. Customer satisfaction is not their top priority,...