Jan L
Google
We booked a week in Laredo for some beach time and authentic Spanish atmosphere and Laredo did not disappoint. However, although situated in an ideal beachfront location, the Aparthotel Playamar was a disappointment on many levels. ||||We had booked a two bedroom / one bathroom apartment for two adult couples, with lounge/dining area, balcony and fully equipped kitchen for Euro 178 / night.||||The lounge consisted of a small round dining table with four chairs, a sofabed and a desk with TV. There was no other lounge seating or chair for the desk.||||The balcony had 3 plastic chairs ( we had to ask for a 4th) but no table, so we shifted the dining table to the balcony when we wanted to eat outdoors. ||||The "fully equipped kitchen" consisted of a bar fridge, sink and two burner hotplate - no oven, no microwave, no electric kettle, no toaster and other than one non-stick fry pan which was losing its Teflon and a cheap cooking pot, no other pots or pans, no dish towels, no dishwashing detergent, no can or bottle opener, and a wooden cutting board but no sharp knife of any kind. Dishes consisted of supermarket quality plates and cups and mismatched cutlery for four.||||The bedrooms were reached by a steep open tread ladder/stair leading to a narrow alcove above the lounge. Incredibly small, each had the depth of a single bed and had two single beds fitted snuggly into the walls on three sides with a nightstand in between and no bedside lamp. One bedroom had a closet, but neither bedroom had any other furniture or floor space to set a suitcase. We had to place our suitcases on the upstairs landing and use them for clothes storage. One bedroom did have a tiny ceiling window which opened to the outside, but the other had only a sliding window which opened onto the outside hall and which faced directly across to the apartment on the opposite side. There was no central air conditioning, so the very tiny bedrooms located in the ceiling space were stifflingly hot at night.||||The bathroom had a modern basin, toilet and bidet and tub with shower nozzle. However, the bathroom door could not be fully opened because the fixtures were wider than the door opening, the holder for the shower head over the bathtub was broken so showering had to be hand-held, there was no peg in the toilet role holder and a torn coil on the built-in hairdryer made it unusable.||||What ultimately disturbed us most was that, although located on the 5th floor, the apartment smelled of cooking fumes at all times, usually worse during midday and evening. We are assuming it was near or connected in some way to the central kitchen vent.||||The bank of two small lifts was also located at our end of the building and were hugely noisy every time they went up or down. Our experience with the lifts was also enhanced on the first day when all four of us entered the lift at once. Although the sign in the lift said it was limited to four persons, the lift got stuck in between floors and the doors would not open. We had to press the emergency button, be rescued by staff and helped to climb out of the lift. Signs appeared the following day limiting the lifts to no more than 2 persons. ||||On the plus-side, the rooms are serviced daily and although they speak very little English, staff are friendly. There is internet service and it functioned well. ||||The beach is flat with fine sand, is miles long and has a wonderful and wide promenade that runs the entire length of the beach into the city, where there are restaurants and cafes lining every street, a charming old town centre and superb Spanish cuisine. Laredo really is where the Spanish come to holiday, so accommodation is limited to rental properties and a very small number of hotels, especially during the summer season. But, if you're after an authentic Spanish experience, it's a good place to visit. Unfortunately, attention to detail was seriously lacking and our choice of accommodation made our holiday less enjoyable than it could otherwise have been.
