Aldiana Club Fuerteventura

We came back after 20 years and were really delighted. The whole complex has been nicely renovated and the little bungalows are unique. The food as well was excellent and there was nice company. What we missed a little was a heated outdoor pool, but never mind.

The Aldiana Club itself is a reasonable place with bungalows spread across a large estate rather than being stacked on top of each other. It is geared to German-speaking clientele so if you book here and speak only English, you might struggle. Everyone speaks German or Spanish so be prepared. We arrived at the club in the afternoon and entered the slightly-dated foyer. Check-in was easy and friendly, while you walk to the bungalow, someone takes your suitcase in one of the small vans they have. The bungalows are quite nice but be prepared to give up a comfortable terrace if you choose a suite over a standard room. They are not particularly soundproofed, we had a family of 2 adults and 3 kids in the next door place to us and we heard them stamping about at 0800. On the subject of the terraces, it would work so much better that the terrace has chairs and a table rather than a pair of sun beds. We liked to sit out late at night and sitting on sun beds was not the most comfortable experience. The view is tremendous. The sports options are good, plenty of tennis courts (mix of carpet and sand), beach volleyball, gym and fitness, mini-golf, boules. The pool is small for the number of bungalows and potential guest volume. There is one buffet restaurant which serves up most food steeped in garlic oil. There are some featured meals in the evenings but the quality we found mostly ＜meh＞. I read it on here and did not think it would be true but to get a booking at one of the favourable outdoor tables by the desert buffet, you need to commit to ordering a bottle of wine. We followed a German lady that refused to do this....! We were told by the helpful restaurant manager that we could book many days and have our bottle of wine looked after if we did not drink it - across two or more nights. They cost €20-30, on top of all-inclusive it clearly upsets some people...! There is a restaurant and a bar down by the beach. The restaurant is not included in AI but we tried it. I would not recommend the walk, the food was on a par with the buffet (which is not what we were hoping for but.....). The evening entertainment is mixed; a Lady Gaga evening was good but the same singer shouted out some Queen songs which did not fit her voice. In between, we had some average bands, some terrible bands and a most excellently fun Silent Disco - where everyone wears headphones and can listen to one of three DJs. Again, it's all in German so if you don't understand, don't book and don't complain :D It's a no-band AI club which we found an advantage. We have a teenager who likes a drink and was asked only once if he was 18. If you have a 17-year-old, this might be useful information to you ;) If you're an active family or couple (or single) and want sport/fitness, weather, tennis, beach and proximity to a reasonable town, this could be for you - but speak German because you will not enjoy it otherwise. The limitations of AI, buffet and single restaurant w

After a long day and travelling thousands of miles we were greeted with "How did you end up here: this is a hotel for Germans and you will be the only English people here". We were told that everything is in German and there is no translation to English. Then we were shown a map that indicated our room was not overlooking the sea, but we were assured that we would have a lovely sea view. The continuing deceit was a feature of the holiday. After wandering about in the dark we found the room. Disappointingly, it had a view of a neighbouring hotel and what looked like sewage works! The receptionist said that the pictures and description given to us when booking was misrepresentation. Most of the next day was wasted as promises made were broken, but eventually we were moved to a room with a sea view. The booking site gives English as the first language and promises - a flat screen TV with satellite channels. Predictably, none are in English. There is a Gazette printed everyday giving a timetable of events and other important information - the manger promised that it would be translated so that we would know what was going on. However, despite several reminders it was never provided. We are keen tennis players and wanted to take part in the daily clinic - to do this you need to sign up on a Sunday, but we were not told and could not take part. Our other enjoyment on holiday is swimming. Unfortunately, the hotel pool is at a temperature that makes this unattractive, and we did not see anyone swim all week. Heavy Smokers will enjoy this hotel - there are designated smoking areas (Everywhere?). This holiday was like going to Butlins - with all the entertainment in a language you could not understand. And the activities you came for being unavailable. There is not enough room here to cover the many failures of management and other problems at Club Aldiana. We were made to feel unwelcome and even the shuttle bus was only available if we arrived at the airport over 5 hours before departure, leaving us with a taxi bill of 100 euros.