Iberostar Waves Málaga Playa

We stayed here for a very special family holiday last week and the hotel, staff and food was excellent.

I can't fault any aspects of the hotel, we each had excellent rooms, the staff were friendly and very accommodating.

My only criticism might be that they charge for the safe in the room, which isn't something I've experienced recently in hotels over the past 5-6 years or so, but at €3 a day, its not a huge issue.

The pool is absolutely huge, and that was a big plus for us, as the kids spent most of the day at the pool area and enjoyed the kids splash park during its opening hours.

The food in the hotel was great, with a good selection each night. We didn't have one night in our 1 week stay where the food was not enjoyable.

The prices for drinks and snacks at the hotel were very reasonable and its all premium alcohol they use, so its very good quality.

The nightly entertainment was ok, I think given it's location and perhaps the time of year we visited, the options for nightly entertainment were limited, but I'd have to say that the last night, where we 3 women sang motown songs, was by far the best night out of seven night stay.

I'd definitely return to this hotel, its such a magnificent building on the beach front and the staff and food definitely make the hotel a worthy visit and we were not disappointed.

We'd definitely consider staying here again and would highly recommend the hotel.

A well-presented hotel. Our rooms had recently been refurbished, staff appeared to constantly be cleaning and were always helpful.

The restaurant food was generally quite good, though some things let it down. Pieces of frozen-solid avocado at breakfast; soggy, defrosted chopped vegetables as ingredients at the omelette station; some near-cold items in the "hot" buffet.

The main issue we had was because our rooms face the pool area. The evening entertainment takes place in the outdoor bar area, and continues until almost 23.00 each night. On our last night, a Saturday night, it sounded like there was a nightclub on the other side of my balcony doors. Very inconvenient if you are wanting to get up early for days out or heading to the airport. Sometimes, after the entertainment has finished, groups of people continue to drink and be merry (or raucous) on the outdoor seating. If you like an earlyish night to bed, see if you can request a room that faces away from the pool (ie towards the car park or surrounding area).

I'd say the hotel is well-located on the seafront, with cafes and restaurants nearby. There is a free car park adjacent, and good road links to local and further-afield destinations.

The building looks like a cute little castle.
It looks like the hotel is old but has been refurbished and the interior of the lobby looks spectacular!

We've been pleased with the mobile app where one can learn about all of the activities around the hotel as well as see expenses or provide feedback.

We've had a chance to stay at another Iberostar hotel, Royal Andaluz, prior to this and because of that, our expectations were high and we were slightly underwhelmed by the staff's attitude. They are working hard, but it seemed like the staff at Royal Andaluz was enjoying their work more :)

Pool area:
- the aqua fun pool for kids is located at a place that stays in the shadow in the morning and the water is super cold
- it's only allowed for height between 80 and 150 cm, so parents with toddlers are not invited, which is a bummer for toddlers who most probably won't go on a ride by themselves
- the strict regulation is not explained anywhere, the lifeguards only tell you to go away and that they are sorry, although there is no weight or capacity limit
- the area around the pool is extremely slippery and if one wants to get to the other side of the pool, for instance to play pingpong, go to the beach or simply go to the playground area, there is no other way than go very slowly on the wet and slippery floor

Food:
- freshly made smoothies in the morning!
- we've been pleased by having access to filtered water during the whole stay
- the variety of food changes, sometimes there seems to be lack of vegetables
- the food quality is rather average
- some veggies and fruits are very cold in the morning
- the restaurant seems to be understaffed, sometimes one chef was making steaks of three kinds in the evening or making eggs, pancakes, refilling scrambled eggs, making tortillas alongside all that in the morning. That must be very stressful for the staff and people must wait in lines
- the waiters must walk kilometres during one shift
- we had a couple issues with having a wrong price and items on the bill. The waiters were keen to help, the reception made up for the issue but one time they forgot to submit our claim and we had to double check the invoice to make sure it was corrected. I think the staff is keen to help overall, but they have so much to do that they simply sometimes forget to finish something.

Entertainment for kids:
- although there was some program for kids under 3, in reality it just meant the kids could join the older children, but the actual activity in the calendar started 30-40 minutes into the scheduled time
- sometimes it seemed like the staff couldn't handle so many kids who sometimes preferred playing on the playground instead of joining the games they didn't understand
- there is a minidisco every night, but it takes place during the dinner
- kids love the mascot Estrella, but I had a feeling Estrella showed up only to take pictures with the kids, and the staff wasn't very keen to having kids touch Estrella or give a high five which is probably more entertaining for them than just taking a picture. Instead, they rushed Estrella to go into the backstage. It was quite demotivating andade our little one sad as we had a better experience from a different Iberostar hotel.

Iberostar Waves Malaga Playa is one off our favorite hotels.
We visit this hotel for your years.
The staff is very friendly and during the years it feel like one big family.
The rooms are clean ,big enough and it's all quiet during the night to have a good sleep.
During our stays the rooms have been renovated so the bath with shower has been changed into a walk in shower which will be welcome for older people .

The buffets are excellent with fresh food enough variety and the staff will give you a warm welcome.

In the evening there are some shows like flamingo ,tenors and before kid disco.
The shows will be sometime outside or inside .

On the floors there are fresh water taps for free also near the pool.
The pool is very nice with a towel service and a pool bar.
Also there's a little kid water park what goes on from time to time and kids entertainment.
Also I am using the gym almost every year.
The gym isn't so big but enough equipment to do your excersises.

The Hotel is directly at the boulevard with enough restaurants like a Chinese Restaurant to eat and drink but in the after season some will be closed during the evening.
It's a quiet boulevard but excellent for older people ,young kids in a buggy to walk.

If you have a rent a car you could park your car for free safely next to the hotel on the big parking place .
Except on Monday there will be a nice market to visit .
For all kind off questions the reception will be there to help you.

For young people who likes a banana boat ride or disco and so one I would say it will be a no go.
It would be better for them to go to Fuengirola and so one to find more nightlife and so one.

A last word about the buffet area if you like to have a romantic or quiet breakfast or dinner you will be disappointed the restaurant area will be very big and crowded .

But overall during all our visits the 5 stars will be given by us straight away.

Style over substance I think is the best placed description of this hotel. Our recent stay at Iberostar Waves Málaga Playa left much to be desired for, particularly for a resort of a grand brand like Iberostar.

Minibar Mystery... The room’s minibar was empty throughout our stay, not even a bottle of water on arrival! For a property that claims premium all-inclusive service, charging for mini bar refill was somewhat cheeky.

All-Inclusive… Until You Check Out!! Access to all-inclusive facilities was abruptly cut off the moment we checked out, despite still being on the premises. The all-inclusive bracelets were snapped off us albeit us staying on the premises only an hour after check out, which left such a bitter after-taste, made the whole experience feel transactional and not hospitable.

Unsafe Pool Surface! The pool area was dangerously slippery. My child fell multiple time,at least a dozen! Wet floor signs were present, but unless one mastered teleportation, there was no safe way to navigate the area. The tiles should really be slip safe and not smooth like an ice rink. No preventative measures, no staff concern—just a hazard waiting to happen.

Water Park.... The water park rules prohibit adults from accompanying children up to the slides. My child, excited but nervous, was left in tears. When I tried to support him, I was repeatedly whistled at by a lifeguard—as if I were misbehaving, rather than parenting. It was humiliating and deeply frustrating. Worse still, one child in our group fell on the steps and hit their head. The lifeguard didn’t notice—he was too busy policing adults near the slides to actually look out for the children using them.

The resort may photograph well, but the reality is a rigid, impersonal experience that fails to meet the needs of traveling families. We expected warmth, flexibility, and relaxing holiday but all we got was a checklist of restrictions and rules. Won't be in a rush back...