Starwood Preferred Guest - Mardaval Hotel and Spa Mallorca 2005 onward [Master Thread]

I am planing a trip to the Mardavall Hotel in august using my spg points. Can any one tell me what to expect at the hotel. Do we need to rent a car?

Any information would be greatly appreciated!!!!

I am planing a trip to the Mardavall Hotel in august using my spg points. Can any one tell me what to expect at the hotel. Do we need to rent a car?

Any information would be greatly appreciated!!!!


A fantastic hotel.

As Plat was upgraded to a Jns Suite. Very very nice.

You will need a car if you want to explore the Island. I was there for a few days and used cabs, but if I went back would rent a car.

Have a great time.


Word of warning. If you take a kid they will charge you 140 euros a night .

We stayed a couple of years ago. Excellent property. You should rent a car to get around. It is a very big island.

Regarding kids, if you ask for a rollaway bed they will charge you about 140 eurors. They have kids club and feed your child lunch and dinner for free.

I stayed there one month ago. The hotel is fantastic (service, rooms (was upgraded to a Junior Suite), garden with pools, health club, food, etc.).


You'll need a car if you want to explore the island. Parking was free of charge.
If you plan to stay in the hotel only without exploring the island, you should take a cab or ask the hotel about sending a car for pickup. This will be cheaper compared to a car rental.
There is a supermarket not far away from the hotel (maybe 10min to walk).

If you play golf, the hotel operates a free shuttle to some golf courses.

I am checking out this hotel for a stay in September of this year. The best rate I can find is "Luxury Romance" but lists a single bed. Seems kind of counter-intuitive. Is the bed big enough for two people or do I have to pay Euro 120 more per night to get two twins pushed together as a King?

I am checking out this hotel for a stay in September of this year. The best rate I can find is "Luxury Romance" but lists a single bed. Seems kind of counter-intuitive. Is the bed big enough for two people or do I have to pay Euro 120 more per night to get two twins pushed together as a King?

Why not call the folks at The Luxury Collection and ask them? 800-325-3589.
Best of luck.

Sincerely,


William R. Sanders
Customer Service Coordinator
Starwood Preferred Services

guest.forum@starwoodhotels.com

The single beds are tiny and (my experience) there is two in one room. I dont believe that the beds can be pushed together because there is a heavy nightstand that seperates them and I feel that the beds are fixed to the wall directly anyway (there are lights, etc that are hooked into the bed). Also, if you are a Platinum and it is not during the busy season you should have no problem getting a larger room and the larger bed that you are seeking.

Based on the glowing review here, we are planning a short stay in Mardavall in early Nov. Is it worth renting a car from Palma airport? How is the road from the airport to Mardavall hotel? Is Palma far from this hotel? Thank you.

Based on the glowing review here, we are planning a short stay in Mardavall in early Nov. Is it worth renting a car from Palma airport? How is the road from the airport to Mardavall hotel? Is Palma far from this hotel? Thank you.

We stayed there in September for three short days - I could have stayed a month! This is a most beautiful hotel, the rooms, thr grounds, the spa, the staff and eve the guest are beautiful - well most of them! :D

The road is good, but bery busy in parts. the resort is outside of town, however the taxi service is quick (but not cheap) and efficient. We also rented a scooter and they pick you up and drop you off - great service.

If you are an experienced Euro driver, rent a car there is so much to see. if you are a North American (I'm Canadian) take a cab and rent a scooter!

have fun

Based on the glowing review here, we are planning a short stay in Mardavall in early Nov. Is it worth renting a car from Palma airport? How is the road from the airport to Mardavall hotel? Is Palma far from this hotel? Thank you.

I would strongly recommend a car - no matter where you are from. The resort is some distance from the airport, and the center of town. It is also essential to see more remote part of the island - particularly if you are going during off season where the public transport may not be running as frequently. Ive always rented from PMI (airport) from Sixt and never had troubles.

Thank you gbeaumont (I'm also Canadian) and AA_SPG_Fan for the info. We may rent a car because we stay only 2 nights and would like to be able to explore as much of Palma as possible without having to rely on public transportation (I hear it's rather unreliable). Looking forward to being at the hotel (I hope they are generous with upgrades - I'm Platinum) and the surrounding area. We'll be there the first weekend in Nov.

I have the Mardaval booked under the old award rate 12k/night, and would like to take advantage of the 5th night free, but is there enough to do in Marllorca to keep a couple in their late 20s occupied?

I have the Mardaval booked under the old award rate 12k/night, and would like to take advantage of the 5th night free, but is there enough to do in Marllorca to keep a couple in their late 20s occupied?


if I had a res for the Mardavall at 12K I would Keep it.

A fantastic hotel. Not sure about things to doo but the Mardavall itself will be a great experience.

Good place to eat just up the road Maison San Caliu or something like that. Giv it a go.

I have the Mardaval booked under the old award rate 12k/night, and would like to take advantage of the 5th night free, but is there enough to do in Marllorca to keep a couple in their late 20s occupied?
- If you are interested in sceneries, then you can make several day trips around the island.
- If you are interested in golf, then you can use the hotel shuttle to drive to the golf courts (around the ArabellaSheraton Son Vida).
- The hotel grounds (garden, SPA) are fantastic to just close the eyes and relax.

Anyone have experience going from the airport to the Mardavall Hotel via taxi? I am flying there for a business dinner and meeting the following day (boy do I love my work), but even the hotel was pretty vague about the cost of a taxi. Given that I travel to Europe regularly, I have a stash of Euros, but I hate being caught short when I find out the taxi is 4x what I expected (as has happened with some airport runs in European cities).

Any more recent experiences at this porperty? I am considering a 5 night award stay in July for 40,000 points night/160,000 points.

Would you stay there for 5 nights?

Is breakfast included for Plats on award stays?

How long is the ride from the airport and how much is a taxi?

How far is "town" to go for lunch/dinner?

I see that Mardavall on Mallorca basically charges 40,000-50,000 points per night for award rooms by calling most of the available rooms "Junior Suites" and charging the SPG suite redemption rate, whcih is 200% of the basic room rate for CAT 6.

This place better be pretty special...However, from the look of things, it seems just that way.

Does anyone know whether Plats receive free breakfasts on award stays and whether they provide a Platinum amenity?

I will say that this award pricing reminds me of the CAT 6 hotel on Sardinia that charges $300 per person per day for food for award stay guests, which is basically a cash surcharge to the SPG award rate.

Those people that got rooms at Mardavall for 12,000 points when it was a CAT 5 did very well!

I see that Mardavall on Mallorca basically charges 40,000-50,000 points per night for award rooms by calling most of the available rooms "Junior Suites" and charging the SPG suite redemption rate, whcih is 200% of the basic room rate for CAT 6.

This place better be pretty special...However, from the look of things, it seems just that way.

Does anyone know whether Plats receive free breakfasts on award stays and whether they provide a Platinum amenity?

I will say that this award pricing reminds me of the CAT 6 hotel on Sardinia that charges $300 per person per day for food for award stay guests, which is basically a cash surcharge to the SPG award rate.

Those people that got rooms at Mardavall for 12,000 points when it was a CAT 5 did very well!

I was lucky enough to do that.

A Great hotel.

No Free Breakfast for plats , but good upgrades. Good Choice of Amenity. Wife took the suitcase thing that they had on offer at the time.

If you take kids not only will the charge you 40 k - 50 k for the room but aroud 100 euro each for the kids.

A few years ago it was only cat 4 and 10 k a night.

I would look at a paid stay here rather than burning 40 k .

i didnt find this place to be that amazing. i dont understand why people love it so much. the pools r nice as are the grounds, but it wasnt that amazing that it would be worth 40k a night, i dont even think its worth the basic 20k points or the 400 eur or whatever they charge. you have a view of the sea, but it isnt the nicest view of water you will have at any hotel. and i heard they even want 110 eur a night per kid to pay for their kids club, which is just insane.

i didnt realize they only have jr suites. im a plat and they told me they had upgraded me to a jr suite. guess i wasnt upgraded afterall...best thing about the room was the electronic blinds, i liked that. also the rooms all have dvd players and they have a big collection of dvds at the front desk.

i was staying on a discounted rate that didnt include breakfast, but when i asked at checkin they told me all rates included breakfast, so who was i to complain. the breakfast buffet was great, and you could also order room service breakfast for just a 5 eur delivery charge if you wanted that instead.

enjoy,
r

i didnt find this place to be that amazing. i dont understand why people love it so much. the pools r nice as are the grounds, but it wasnt that amazing that it would be worth 40k a night, i dont even think its worth the basic 20k points or the 400 eur or whatever they charge. you have a view of the sea, but it isnt the nicest view of water you will have at any hotel. and i heard they even want 110 eur a night per kid to pay for their kids club, which is just insane.

i didnt realize they only have jr suites. im a plat and they told me they had upgraded me to a jr suite. guess i wasnt upgraded afterall...best thing about the room was the electronic blinds, i liked that. also the rooms all have dvd players and they have a big collection of dvds at the front desk.

i was staying on a discounted rate that didnt include breakfast, but when i asked at checkin they told me all rates included breakfast, so who was i to complain. the breakfast buffet was great, and you could also order room service breakfast for just a 5 eur delivery charge if you wanted that instead.

enjoy,
r

I think they "technically" have a few "standard" rooms, which they call Grand Deluxe rooms. Not sure of the number of of Grand Deluxe rooms vs. Junior Suites, but I will find out and report back when I return.

FYI, the rates at this hotel are now in the 700-800 Euro range/night (basically $1,000/night). So, at that price, I put this hotel in a category of something we wouldn't tend to do on our own for cash. Therefore, it becomes a very good use of points for us -- providing an opportunity to do something we would otherwise do -- if not necessarily the best ROI vs $ in the network. Now, if upgraded to a $1,700/night suite...it becomes unbelievable.

About the only "good deal" here is that we are taking advantage of the 4 for 5 night redemption program, so we're technically paying 32,000 points per night.

Alll the paid room rates include breakfast...in that sense, I think it's unfair to charge us award stays for breakfast, but I guess we don't have a choice.

We'll be there in next weekend...so, I'll report back when we get home.

im pretty sure my paid rate didnt include it.

anyway, they dont ask you anything when you go down to breakfast-at least they didnt ask me-so i think you could just assume breakfast comes with your room and see what happens...

r

I see that Mardavall on Mallorca basically charges 40,000-50,000 points per night for award rooms by calling most of the available rooms "Junior Suites" and charging the SPG suite redemption rate, whcih is 200% of the basic room rate for CAT 6.

This place better be pretty special...However, from the look of things, it seems just that way.

Does anyone know whether Plats receive free breakfasts on award stays and whether they provide a Platinum amenity?

I will say that this award pricing reminds me of the CAT 6 hotel on Sardinia that charges $300 per person per day for food for award stay guests, which is basically a cash surcharge to the SPG award rate.

Those people that got rooms at Mardavall for 12,000 points when it was a CAT 5 did very well!


I stayed there recently again, this time paying and have to say it's worth it still. The €110.- for the kids includes not only the Kids Club and the accommdation but also full board, they even have their ownkids Restaurant with a buffet open for lunch and dinner. My wife and especially teh kids loved it. The Spa is great, a must to visit, so are the facilities. Long walks from the room to the Pool and Restaurant facilities but that is because of their room sizes the have.

And about the breakfast common, this is part of the deal with SPG points, isn't it?

All in all the hotel left again a very good impression to us and I am sure you will enjoy your stay there.

We were lucky to stay there for 4 nights in September 2005 on points - wow! wow! wow! What an amazing resort - the pools, the saunas - everything was top notch - while it is not cheaper - the value provided is excellent. Large rooms, very attentive service, great concierge -

Just wonderful place that will be remembered for a long time!

Mrs. Raindeer and I just spent five nights at the beginning of the month at the Mardavall. The hotel is indeed lovely, but it feels very generic. As one person pointed out to me, you could be in Majorca, London, or Dubai when standing in the hotel. There's little that's authenticly Majorcan about it. The grounds around the hotel are also well-maintained, but the property itself is right on top of it's neighbors on either side. Hence, you don't get a sense of serenity at the property like one does at Manele Bay (a former LC property). The view across the bay there is of a bunch of hotels, so the feeling is that one is on a very crowded part of the island, which is really the case. There is a "beach" in front of the property, but you need to walk down a hill, there's no sand, it's very narrow, and, once we got to the water's edge, all of us felt the pool was a better option. Bottom line: there effectively is no beach. The tiered pool does, indeed, rock, and the spa pool is awesome.

The room itself was quite big (Grand Deluxe), but I am convinced this was no platinum upgrade. The room was ground floor, meaning the view was of a railing (it may have faced the sea, but one could not actually see the sea from this room). I asked about an upgrade and they said they'd let me know the next day. They never got back to me, and, eventually, we gave up trying. The bathroom is large and awesome, the toiletries lovely, the rooms comfy. The safe failed halfway through the stay, causing the front desk to have to come and unlock it (I always wondered how that worked if someone forgot their code, etc....) The charge for the internet was 29 euros a day, which I found to be a bit excessive (the hotel is fairly new construction, so it's not like they had to pay up to rewire some antique property.)

The food is really awesome at the property (and at Plat d'Or at one of their sister properties) and not overpriced. Lunch ran 25-35 euros per head, and the food was several levels above burgers and fries. We never did breakfast (always slept through that meal.) Drinks on the veranda are highly recommended in the evenings (5-8 euros), but avoid ordering water by the pool. Yes, it is very hot and one should hydrate, but at 5 euros for a small bottle, you should bring your own....

They need to work on their concierge staff. There were a few people who didn't speak English, though they insisted they could. We had fun on several occassions getting driving directions from them. Well, maybe not "fun".... In fact, the working assumption, if you are pale like we are, is that you are German, and most conversations start in German. That should give you a feel for the typical guest at this hotel.

So, bottom line, the hotel has a wonderful physical plant on a very mediocre piece of land. The Platinum recognition is lousy, the staff tries hard but needs to understand that Americans speak English, and, to the extent that they are marketing themselves to Americans (as they are LC, the working assumption is that they are), they need more English speakers. We fell in love with Majorca, but, next time, having discovered the west coast of Majorca, we will be staying at La Residencia (and eating more meals at Il Olivo.) Now that place is amazing, and, unbelievably, it seems less expensive for a regular room....

I just responded to a comment about that expensive hotel on Sardinia with what turned out to be a basic review on Mardavall on Mallorca (Majorca), so I figured I'd repost it here in case someone is searching:

I just returned from 5 nights at the Mardavall Hotel and Spa on Mallorca and the hotel is very SPG friendly, although I think they may be "stretching" the SPG rules just a bit, but the resort (and the island) are very special.

I say they are "stretching" the rules due to two factors:

1) They call what I would call a premium deluxe room a "junior suite" and then charge double for an award redemption; so, it's 40,000-50,000 points per night for a room which would cost EUR 700-800 per night (basic rooms are called deluxe rooms). I am not sure how many basic rooms they have, but most of the rooms seem to be what they call junior suites, which are beautiful, large open rooms (although there's not much of a couch/"suite" area)....but they categorize these rooms as suites for SPG award redemption purposes and therefore charge double.

2) They also charge EUR 34 for breakfast to award guests even though every paid reservation otherwise includes breakfast. This is basically just a cash surcharge on award reservations and seems unfair to me.

On the other hand, the hotel is so beautiful that it almost doesn't matter that there are these charges and it seems like one of the best uses of SPGs I can imagine -- if not the best -- because it might be hard to otherwise justify 5 nights at 700-800 Euros/night...and with the 4/5 deal, it actually works out to "only" 32,000 pints per night. Also, I challenge you to compare this hotel to other hotels that would charge EUR 1,000-1,500+ for a comparable experience in places like France and Italy.

And, you don't have to have breakfast in the restaurant...there are ports with lots of restaurants on both sides of the hotel within a 15 minute walk. There is a genuine large, modern supermarket 5 minutes from the hotel. So, better yet is breakfast on your balcony overlooking the Mediterranean...making liberal use of the custom brewed espresso machine and the ample fruit available in the room, the lobby and/or the spa.

Mardavall is a very special place and Mallorca is an amazing place. One other note about prices and value: the food prices at the hotel, barring breakfast, are actually not too expensive. Interestingly, appetizers are sort of expensive and entrees are not expensive at all. For example, an appetizer might be 18-20 Euros while a whole grill Sea Bass or Turbot would be EUR 23-25. Then again, water and cokes are EUR 5, although there's plenty of free water around the property/spa/room, and excellent Spanish wine is available for 7-8 Euros. I think the lunch buffet is EUR 25, and it's very substantial. Massages are EUR 80 -- not too bad (although I found a great massage place down the street for EUR 45). Rental cars from the hotel start at 45 Euros (again, we found a place agency down the street for 30 Euros), but the point is that none of these charges are too bad -- especially for such a luxurious and glamorous resort.

The company that owns the hotel owns two others, one of which is a renovated 13th century castle affiliated with LHW that is just amazing (I think they just spent 30 Euros). They offer a free Mercedes shuttle service to the other hotels for dinner (the Sheraton has a Michelin Star). We has an amazing dinner at the Castillo Son Vida (LHW castle) over-looking the port of Palma -- such an inspiring view...I had the tasting menu which included a GREAT seafood appetizer buffet (which would have been EUR 22 separately), an incredible duck that would challenge Tour d'Argent, and delicious desert for EUR 49.

I have posted some pictures on Snapfish.com, if you want to register and open a free account: http://www1.snapfish.com/share/p=83...c=SYE/otsi=SALB.

On the other hand, the hotel is so beautiful that it almost doesn't matter that there are these charges and it seems like one of the best uses of SPGs I can imagine -- if not the best -- because it might be hard to otherwise justify 5 nights at 700-800 Euros/night...and with the 4/5 deal, it actually works out to "only" 32,000 pints per night. Also, I challenge you to compare this hotel to other hotels that would charge EUR 1,000-1,500+ for a comparable experience in places like France and Italy.

I could certainly take that challenge, but I'd be typing all night. I will, however, take that challenge just for Mallorca.

http://www.hotellaresidencia.com/web/olar/olar_a2a_home.jsp

La Residencia is an Orient Express Hotel. We checked out the property, and dined at Il Olivo (which was far better than the meal at the Sheraton). Rooms are much cheaper than Mardavall (though cheaper is a relative term here, still 450-600 euros/night), you have the feeling of vastness and space (one way you look, you see mountains, the other, the sea), the physical plant is stunning and historic, and the service is truly impeccable. Deia is a breathtaking village, and the road that runs along the western coast (where La Residencia is located) is like the Pacific Coast Highway along the Amalfi Coast. Comparatively, Mardavall is like a nice hotel located on the Jersey Shore. Sure, the property itself is nice, but, from a real estate perspective, you are on top of your neighbors, and they have tattoos.... We only spent 20K per night (actually, 16K per for a 5 night award), but I think that even that is outrageous for this property. To spend double is insanity for this property. Yes, the value per point may be high, but that's because this hotel is ridiculously overpriced for Mallorca. Save your points (and dollars) elsewhere.

I could certainly take that challenge, but I'd be typing all night. I will, however, take that challenge just for Mallorca.

http://www.hotellaresidencia.com/web/olar/olar_a2a_home.jsp

La Residencia is an Orient Express Hotel. We checked out the property, and dined at Il Olivo (which was far better than the meal at the Sheraton). Rooms are much cheaper than Mardavall (though cheaper is a relative term here, still 450-600 euros/night), you have the feeling of vastness and space (one way you look, you see mountains, the other, the sea), the physical plant is stunning and historic, and the service is truly impeccable. Deia is a breathtaking village, and the road that runs along the western coast (where La Residencia is located) is like the Pacific Coast Highway along the Amalfi Coast. Comparatively, Mardavall is like a nice hotel located on the Jersey Shore. Sure, the property itself is nice, but, from a real estate perspective, you are on top of your neighbors, and they have tattoos.... We only spent 20K per night (actually, 16K per for a 5 night award), but I think that even that is outrageous for this property. To spend double is insanity for this property. Yes, the value per point may be high, but that's because this hotel is ridiculously overpriced for Mallorca. Save your points (and dollars) elsewhere.

That's why there's different strokes for different fokes. The West Coast is beautiful, dramatic, amazing. But it's "out there"...far away from anything and there's also something to be said about be close to Porto Portals, Palma, Castillo, etc.

Fair enough

I also think the Mardavall is nice...but not so much. I don't like the area where it's located, and the jr. suites are new, comfortable and modern, with wonderful bathrooms....but wouldn't be called "jr. suites" in most places. They are Grand Deluxe rooms or something like that, but not real jr. suites, and far, far away from a real suite. In my opinion, they shouldn't , in any case, charge for those rooms the number of points needed for a suite. A suite is a suite, not a jr. suite. In many hotels you can have a jr. suite with points as a specialty 2 upgrade. And that should be the case here.