Hotel Alga (Calella de Palafrugell, Spain)

The restaurant food is well prepared, appetising and efficiently served. You don't have to eat here, there are plenty of other options nearby. You should, though,  give the restaurant a try - and prepare to be very pleasantly surprised. Breakfast, too, is really good.

The hotel itself is spectacularly well run and maintained. The gardens here are a delight. Venture a bit further away and the beaches are also spotless and the sea is crystal clear.

A useful bonus is that many staff members - particularly those on reception - speak English. There's a high level of customer service here and they'll answer any queries and advise on places to go and things to do in the Costa Brava region. It's noticeable how friendly the waiters are and how they take time to suggest to children, the meals they might prefer.

You expect these things to be supplied as one of the basic facilities in hotels, but most rooms here don't include a tea/coffee maker. It's a different story in the suite upgrades where the facility is part of the set-up. The lack of it elsewhere won't be everyone's cup of tea!

They must lose out on a great deal of income because, as often as not, the bar staff are nowhere to be seen, so customers shuffle off somewhere else. The pool bar is rarely open.

The Wi-Fi isn't very good. Dinner menus may be a bit too ‘continental' for some. The air conditioning is all or nothing; there's no happy ‘in-between' solution.