For our first holiday alone, we decided to book a week at the Sol Lanzarote Hotel. The hotel doesnt appear to be that new (photos in the reception clearly show it being constructed in the late 80's), but the rooms are very nicely furnished and are certainly not old. We found the cleanliness in the room and around the hotel to be excellent, which is always a good thing.

The location of the hotel is a good aspect as it is right on the beach, so there are no long walks to the beach. The hotel is a 10 minute walk from the end of the runway at Arrecife Airport, so you do see the aircraft arriving and/or departing, and hear them quite clearly, but Matagorda is a quiet resort, and they do give you something to do whilst catching rays by the pool or on the beach.

If you want to go into Puerto Del Carmen you can walk up to the bus stop, where a bus into the resort will only cost a Euro, so it hardly breaks the bank. It was only

just returned from a holiday at the sol lanzarote we had two apartments and they were next door to each other as requested- we asked for a pool view but we were given a view overlooking the mountains which was lovely at night -we had some very very windy days and the design of the hotel means that the wind howls through the halls at night - we only ate breakfast there and it was a bit boring to be honest better to walk up the road and you have a choice of irish and english bars serving lovely big breakfasts and mugs of tea for around 3or 4 euro -the service at the bar at night was a joke they are seriously understaffed -we had three teenagers with us and they were delighted to see 4 computers in the lobby however there was only 1 working for our entire 2 week holiday - couldnt understand why there were so few english speaking channels and so many german on tv in room and they were american and english programmes dubbed into german and yet the resort was full of irish and english all in all we enjoyed our holiday and would return mainly for the location

First time to Matagorda, having stayed in PDC before. Hotel location was great right on the beach,found this area very quiet at this time of year.

Hotel room was great,We had a great view along the promenade. Rooms very clean, maid service good.

Public areas in the hotel nicely set out. Christmas tree and decorations set it off.

Good choice of food at breakfast and dinner, always somthing to choose from, even for the fussiest of eaters.

Found the staff in the dining rooms to be very nice.

Pool area quite quiet, no problem getting a sunbed,didnt participate in any of the day time activities, however did watch the others and heard lots of laughter from the adults and kids taking part in the pool games.

Only seen one show at night,Riverdance, very good, cant comment on the others.

Can imagine this hotel very busy in the high season.

We stayed at this hotel from 9th-23rd October and our first impressions of it were good.The reception area was clean and quite impressive and when we saw our room we were even more impressed-very large room,bathroom and balcony with views of the mountains and sea across to Fuerteventura(Room 2621-4th Floor).NOT ALL ROOMS ARE THIS NICE.

However it soon became clear that this hotel has lots of problems.
1.Although the pool area appears to have plenty of sunbeds,they are mainly old,uncomfortable and crammed together like sardines.That is if you manage to get one-We have read about them being reserved before 8am,our experience was that at 6am EVERY morning some kind person went down in the lift and then back again 10 minutes later ,presumably for this purpose.If you walked round the pool area in the evening it was a complete mess-towels,lilos,bottles,magazines etc left on sunbeds(This was never tidied up).Some people even reserved beds for their entire stay!!We decided not to bother and used the excellent beach instead.

2.Although the buffet was not the largest we have seen,the food was of good quality and well cooked.However,there was only 1 toast machine at breakfast and the fried eggs/omelettes and pancakes were prepared by one member of staff, even though they were at opposite ends of the counter.This led to quite a lot of waiting and often a change of plan.

We wouldn't class this hotel as 4 Star,more a 3+ and anyone used to 4 Star hotels would be disappointed.The staff were generally unfriendly, and the reception staff were mostly unable to deal with anything out of the ordinary.(We reported our balcony light not working on our 2nd day,and it remained that way for the whole 2 weeks-the girl on rception didn't know what a balcony was).

The hotel is understaffed,badly managed and attracts enough of the wrong type of people to ensure that we would never visit it again.

Our room,the location and our ability to adapt to the situation meant that we did,however,enjoy our holiday.

This was our 5th time in this hotel and our last. It gets worse every year.

You would think when you go off season you would have some chance of getting a sun-bed. But no towels on all of them at 8 every morning and you might be lucky to get the odd one but it would be a saggy one and wrecks your back. When we complained at reception they just shrugged their shoulders and said they can do nothing. My niece was with us and she said when she wins the lotto she is coming over as a pool supervisor and would gladly do it voluntary as it's disgraceful.

This hotel is not a 4 star in my eyes. No kettle or toaster and all the tv channels in German. This year they gave us a much smaller room one room with a slide over partition and when we asked why we could not have the rooms we had other years, separate bedroom etc we were told they were now 20e a day extra.

Also I feel sorry for anyone who arrives and have not been there before as the directions are dreadful. They just hand you a map. I cant speak on the entertainment as only had a drink there once and the staff rude and so slow.

On the plus side the space is spotless and central for the beach, which we had to go to most days to get a sun bed.

We asked at reception on numerous occasions to change the tv over to English speaking which they doid other years, and they never bothered.

Another thing I did not like was the room service - every morning at around nine the maid just walked in, she never knocked and it is far too early to get up when on holiday, you could use your do not disturb sign but then you never get it cleaned.

Ate in the buffet once and it was lovely.

Our first impressions of the hotel were very good, apart from the slow check-in. Both bedroom and bathroom were large and airy with hairdryer and lots of toiletry freebies. Both the safe and fridge were free of charge, and the safe was of the digital keypad type which we find much better than a key.

The meals were very good, with lots of choice and show cooking at breakfast and dinner. we found most of the staff to be very friendly and helpful, especially Monica who worked very hard in the pool bar and made great coffee.

The pools were very good and two out of the three had easy access (slopes as well as ladders to get in). The whole hotel does seem very geared up for less able-bodied guests with plenty of ramps and handrails.

We found the entertainment pretty good overall, much better than some hotels we've stayed at over the years. We had a great holiday with great weather, but after visiting some other 4star hotels nearby, we came to the opinion that this hotel was more of a 3star standard overall.

As a couple now child free one of the joys of holidaying in September is that the kids are back at school. However this hotel seems to attract British families with hoards of kids even through to the end of the month, and that will stop us going back to this hotel.

We arrived at the hotel around lunchtime but our room was not ready until 2pm. That didn't worry us, we got changed and spent the day round by the pool. When we got our key, we were extremely surprised at how big the room and bathroom was - it was lovely and on the bed the maid had made a couple of towels into a swan which we thought was a really lovely touch. We had a sea view and it was amazing. The towels and beds were changed every day and the rooms always left tidy - you couldn't fault it.

We stayed bed and breakfast which suited us as we liked to get out for a bit of lunch and dinner. There was lots on offer and always plenty of it. At lunch we would take a very short walk along the promanade and have a bite to eat at one of the many restaurants along the seafront.

We didn't experience the entertainment in the hotel as we went out every night, so wouldn't be able to comment on that.

There were alot of children at this hotel but to be honest that didn't put us off. They were entertained during the day so they weren't always around!

We would most definately go back to this hotel.

I stayed here with my husband son and mother and father inlaw. We arrived at the Sol on the 24th July 2006 at about 1.30pm and as we had been travelling from 4am we just wanted to get unpacked and then get our bearings. So it was a bit disappointing when we were told that our room wasn't ready, it was only two and a half hours later that we got our key, but I can honestly say it was worth the long wait. Room was basic but clean as the beds were made every day and fresh towels also.

The Hotel on a whole was extremely well kept and always very clean.

We stayed half board and the food was amazing even for the fussiest of eaters, I am now on a diet as I put on half a stone in the space of two weeks.(Mainly due to the omeletts and pancakes and Danish pastries I had every morning)

We stayed in most nights as the entertainment was superb, every second night was a professional show eg acrobats Beatles tribute act and Abba. Then other nights the entertainment staff put on a musical show and if you enjoy being part of the show then this is the place for you. I ended up on stage most nights joining in, also they have different nights were the kids can join in their acting shows as well as the mini disco. My 7yr old was in Greece, Snow White and Peter Pan. Even through the day the kids were entertained in Kids club they take them from 11am-1pm and then again from 3pm to 5pm, while the kids are away their was also activities for the adults such as shooting, archery, French bowls, volleyball and football. If none of this appeals to you its only a ten second walk out the back gates of pool area to the beach.

I arrived home on the 7th August after a two week stay and on the 8th August booked the Sol for next year.

The hotel is spotless and maid service is every day and always pleasant. Staff is very helpful at all times. Getting a lounger at the pools can be a problem if you don't get up early and reserve your lounger with a towel(which the rule is you are not supposed to do, but the hotel do not enforce it).
Just across the service road from the beach it is ideal for beachers. We nevre used the hotel catering but the prices are fair and the food looked OK.
Entertainment was OK on a couple of nights ie Beatles night. A taxi to the new town costs 3.50 euros and the old town 5 euros.

This hotel is spotless and we never saw a cockroach which was top of my wifes priority.

We stayed self catering and used the restaurant for breakfast a few days which sets you up for the day and half the time you dont get charged, they think you must be half board, "so dont offer," just wait till you are asked to pay. ;)

We dont have young kids so cant say much about the kids club but it looked like they all had fun to us and the childrens programme looked pretty good as well. Yabba Dabba doooo !!!!!!!

That was the first time at Sol Lanzarote and definately not the last,, OH !!! almost forgot, they have a few rooms with king size beds so, mention that at reception when booking in, it made my holiday just that little bit better ;) and the safes are free, all you do is punch in your own code and your done.

The beach is great, the loungers and umberella cost about