Anyer

I had booked a suite on the web and that we got. We entered into a medium sized living room which had seating area to the right consisting of a couple of small sofas around a coffee table. To one side was a round dining table, with a kitchenette beyond which contained a kettle and an empty fridge. Across on the other side of the living area were doors through to a bathroom on one side and, on the other, a small bedroom with a double bed and dresser. The floors were brown tile and the decor was generally Mediterranean in feel.

There was an air conditioner unit in each room and, once I was able to find the remote controls I was able to fire these up. The rooms were reasonably comfortable, and had some atmosphere, but they felt somewhat basic. The cupboards were bare, so was the fridge, the bathroom amenities were uninspiring and overall there was a sub-four star feel to the rooms, despite being comfortable enough.

The Sol Elite Marbella has an open lobby with a sea breeze wafting through. Reception is to the left; directly ahead, across the lobby, are steps down to the pool and beach level, with one of the restaurants to the right. Across the drive way is a small supermarket.

The pool is to the rear of the hotel which we reached down some steps from the lobby. At the near end was a wet bar, with a small seating area on the land side. Across from there was a connected children's pool with a slide and tunnels. Around the pool were tables and sunbeds and at the far end was a slightly raised area which doubled as a stage. The pool was a good size and, of course, the wet bar was a must. Although it was fairly busy, there were tables and sunbeds free.

Looking back we could also get an idea of the size of the hotel, which was large, standing six stories high around three sides of the pool in a U shape. Actually, a W shape, as around one side we discovered that there was a second pool, also encircled on three sides, this one with a couple of terraces and a large, children's play area at the bottom.

Later in the afternoon, as we sat by the pool, music started and a woman in a red leotard appeared on the raised, stage area, chattering loudly through a microphone. It turned out to be a free aerobics class and, for the next half hour, she led a couple of teenage girls and a grandmother through a programme of gentle aerobics.

Going back inside, we found two restaurants. There was one at the rear of the lobby, overlooking the pool area; we tried to have dinner here but were sent away as it was booked for a large group, so we went to the indoor one opposite. We learned that there was a 'Magic Show' about to start on a small stage just by the restaurant entrance. There were a couple of tables close by so we asked if we could eat there, so the kids could enjoy the show. The waiter agreed, we went to the buffet and brought the food out, to find the magician and clown setting up. It looked good, until we realised that we were sat at the back of the stage and all the action would be happening at the other side. The show was half way through when we finished and took the kids round to the other side, but they enjoyed the second half.

The food itself? Mediocre. We ate in the same place for breakfast. There was a fair selection of European and Indonesian food, it seemed fresh but was just uninspired.

The most important part and the most annoying. The sand was golden, the water warm, the surf inviting, but the beach was crowded. Not with tourists but with hawkers and touts. The beach is public, this is the only international hotel for miles around, so there were literally hundreds of people waiting to pounce on every gullible visitor.

The beach was at the back of the hotel beyond the pool. The pool area ended in a waist high wall overlooking the beach, about eight feet below, reached by a flight of stairs guarded by one solitary security guard. Whenever I came within sight of the wall, half a dozen people would rush towards the wall, holding up some piece of crap for me to see and, in their wildest dreams, exchange money for. Wooden carvings, stuffed lobsters, baskets, kites, you name it, it was thrust over or through the wall in the hope that we would experience a moment of insanity and buy it.

Twice we decided to try the beach and we descended the steps into the fray. We walked along, followed by up to eight or ten people offering us wind breaks, umbrellas, boat rides, massage, souvenirs, jetskis and that damned stuffed lobster. The first day we settled a short way along the beach and, through alternately ignoring them or being rude, we managed to keep most of the hawkers away and just had to put up a call of "Massage Mister?", "Boat ride Mister?" etc every minute or so. The second day we inadvertently discovered the solution. We agreed to take a sunshade and a mat from one guy who then took charge and acted as our guard, asking if we wanted anything and sending the others away. I hired a jet ski for 30 minutes, which was not too expensive and it worked. I also agreed to massage which started with one masseuse, then others kept asking to join in; at one point I had three women massaging, me which sounds great but the average age was about 60 so it was more a charitable action on my part!

Having got our 'chaperone' it was less painful than the day before but still not really relaxing and after an hour we retreated back into the fortress to the pool bar. A couple of times I did venture within sight of the wall and heard a 'Hello Mister'; turning I saw a stuffed lobster flapping at me over the wall. I quickly retreated back to the pool bar.