Don Carlos Leisure Resort and Spa

We stayed at Don Carlos Marbella for 11 nights, arriving on 24th June. This was our second stay at the hotel, having first visited last July shortly after it reopened. Once again, we had an absolutely amazing stay. We honestly cannot say enough good things about this hotel, and after our second visit, it has firmly become one of our favourite places to stay.

We had breakfast at the hotel every morning and the whole experience was consistently fantastic. From the warm welcome at the entrance and being shown to our table, through to the service and the quality and choice of food and drinks, everything was excellent. Breakfast was something we genuinely looked forward to each morning. We never had any difficulty finding a lovely table, and the whole experience always felt relaxed and well organised.

The rooms are beautiful. On both of our visits we have stayed in a Deluxe Sea View room, which we particularly love as these rooms are situated within the quieter Oasis section of the hotel. The rooms are a great size, with plenty of wardrobe and storage space, and all of the amenities provided are of a very high quality. The balcony is also generously sized and, with the sea view, is such a lovely place to sit and enjoy the beautiful outlook over the Mediterranean.

Housekeeping deserves a special mention too. Our room was always immaculate, and the evening turndown service is such a lovely touch. The attention to detail throughout the hotel really does make a difference.

The location of Don Carlos is also perfect for us. The hotel feels peaceful and relaxing, while still being ideally located for enjoying everything Marbella has to offer.

One of our favourite things about the hotel is the beautiful grounds. The gardens are absolutely stunning and so well maintained, and walking through them down towards the beach became something we really enjoyed during our stay. It is such a lovely, peaceful walk and really adds to the feeling of being somewhere special. Having the beach so easily accessible through the hotel grounds is another huge plus. You can spend the day relaxing by the pool and then take a beautiful walk through the gardens to the beach, which gives you the best of both worlds. The whole setting feels incredibly tranquil and luxurious and is a big part of what we love about Don Carlos.

What makes Don Carlos particularly special, however, is the service. The staff throughout the hotel are fantastic. Guest Services Manager Patricia deserves a very special mention. We first met Patricia during our stay last year and she made such a positive impression on us through her kindness and the way she made us feel so welcome. When we arrived this year, she came over during check-in and we were both genuinely surprised and delighted that she remembered us from our previous stay. It was such a lovely welcome back.

Patricia is exactly the type of person you want in Guest Services. She is warm, attentive and genuinely seems to care about every guest and their experience. Those personal touches are what turn a great hotel stay into a memorable one. We also had the pleasure of interacting with Blas, the Front Office Manager, during our stay. He was incredibly helpful, kind and welcoming whenever we spoke with him and nothing ever seemed too much trouble. Like Patricia, he has a genuine warmth about him and made us feel extremely well looked after. It is clear that providing a great guest experience really matters to him, and we very much appreciated the time and attention he gave us during our stay.

We also spent some time at Manero having drinks with friends and absolutely loved it. The restaurant and bar are beautifully designed, the atmosphere is fantastic, and both the service and quality of the drinks were exceptional. We will definitely be returning to Manero on our next visit.

We spent most of our days around the pool and have to say that every single member of the pool team is an asset to the hotel. Everyone made us feel incredibly welcome and it is such a lovely area to relax, enjoy the sunshine and simply watch the world go by. We never had an issue finding a sunbed, and even on slightly busier days the pool concierge team were always on hand to help guests get settled. A very special mention has to go to Nahuel. He really is fantastic at his job – a genuinely lovely person who has a natural way of making everyone feel at home and welcome. Thank you, Nahuel, for looking after us so well and for helping make our stay feel so special.

Ultimately, it is the people who make Don Carlos what it is. Every member of staff we interacted with was friendly, professional and genuinely kind, and that level of service is one of the biggest reasons we want to return. We enjoyed our 11 nights so much that we are already in the process of booking another stay for September!

Thank you to Patricia, Blas, Nahuel and the entire Don Carlos team for another wonderful holiday.

See you again very soon, Don Carlos!

A very beautiful and good hotel with super friendly staff everywhere. The included beach club is convenient and very good. Special mention to Sunshine Sihame at breakfast, a pleasant way to start your day, and the boss of the porter team fast and efficient.