Aqua Hotel Promenade - Pineda de Mar, Spain     

We flew from Bournemouth to Gerona with Ryanair - flight was good and on time and, having booked early, under ?50 each return. I had booked car hire from Gerona with Auriga Crown and we had a new Fiesta with A/C - essential in July! Again, very reasonable although I chose the supplementary insurance for 20 euros in case of damage to screen or tyres. Found the hotel and were able to park right outside, free of charge although the car had to be moved from Thursday evening due to local market on Friday. Room was clean, modern and reasonably spacious but all the sea view rooms seemed to have been reserved for the Dutch! It didn't matter that much as we overlooked the shopping street and there was plenty going on. The cafeteria was good with free entertainment every night. Noisy but hey - we're on holiday! Staff were great in all departments. We were on B & B terms and the buffet selection was very good, if a little oily. Avoid the restaurant at opening times if you don't want to queue as the Dutch seem to eat early. There's also a mini rush just before closing time as well but we never had to wait more than a couple of minutes for a table.The resort is wonderfully clean with plenty of room on the beach, plenty of sunbeds for 4 euros a day. The sea is warm but gets deep very near to the shore so watch out! Local trains run along the front between the hotel and the beach but are barely noticeable and there are subways to use to reach the beach safely. There's a land train connecting a few resorts and a boat also connects to various resorts although it's a bit more expensive at 23 euros return between Pineda and Lloret. There are a few restaurants in the town although they do tend to close a bit early for my taste but again, our continental cousins seem to prefer this. I would definitely use this hotel again and would recommend it for people liking a beach holiday. The pool was a bit small though and I was told it was a bit cool! With a beach like Pineda's, the pool is by no means an essential.

We were really impressed with this hotel. It is excellently located, right opposite the beach, the pool is really nice the service friendly and efficient, and the rooms a very good size. We only had breakfast which was a standard buffet with a good choice but not exactly Michelin standard. The only downside to the hotel was, being on the first floor, it was slightly noisy in the evenings when the cabaret was on until midnight. I imagine this would be overcome if you were on a higher floor. Pineda is a quiet resort, which was just what we were after, but during the day there are plenty of cafes and the beach is lovely. The train station is less than a 5 minute walk away with direct trains to Barcelona and Girona. In the evenings, we were hoping to explore the area and sample some Spanish cuisine but there was a real lack of restaurants that were open at this time of year (May). However, we found a jewel in the crown of Pineda that we would thouroughly recommend - Diagonal (on Av. Monsterrat). Only a 5 minute walk from the hotel, they did a great selection of meals and one of the nicest vegetarian meals I've ever had. They also cater for families. We liked it so much we went 4 nights out of 5!!! We are a party of 3 from ages 26 - 55 and would recommend this hotel if you're looking for a relaxing getaway.