Fairmont El San Juan Hotel - European Plan

Customer Ratings & Reviews

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating

1813 reviews

• 

  Hit or Miss - not worth the price

  The People: As my title says, hit or miss. There were some standouts, like Natalia at the Concierge Desk, Wilson the bartender at Caña, Jennifer in Housekeeping, and all the servers/towel staff around the pool. But many others, including Front Desk staff and lobby bartenders, are very obviously harried, barely make eye contact, and do not want to be bothered with your request. There is a training issue here, and I expect better from a Fairmont. The Food: It's expensive as you would expect. Good but not amazing. Breakfast buffet is varied and everything is fresh (omelet station included). They obviously have staffing issues as we were told by the hostess at Caña one night that they were "not taking walk-ins" when the restaurant was half empty. DO eat at Il Sole, the Italian restaurant in the hallway with the shops. Food and service there were fantastic. The Facility: The property itself is beautiful. The lobby, gardens and pool area are all very well mantained. The pools near the beach tend to be more crowded and lively, with "club" music playing. We opted for the "back" pool which has a quieter vibe, and slower, softer music. Despite the hotel being pretty full, we never had trouble finding chairs. However there is definitely a shortage of umbrellas so if you want shade you may be out of luck. The beach is wide and there are plenty of chairs AND umbrellas. But there's also sargassum which not only looks gross but smells bad as well. In addition, there are signs in the rooms that warn of biting insects in the sand, and the hotel provides insect repellent spray at the towel hut. These things are not the hotel's fault, but they are the reasons we stuck to the pool. The Room: We booked a Banyan Bungalow room because the price including breakfast was lower than most other room types that didn't include breakfast. There are 13 of these rooms that are tucked away behind the pool. We chose this room because of proximity to the pool, and also because each room has its own (somewhat) private patio with view of the lovely garden. This seemed more attractive than being on the 3rd floor of the tower overlooking a parking lot or a bunch of air conditioning units. The furnishings seem new, bed is comfortable, sheets and towels top quality. There are robes and slippers in the closet, as well as a Nespresso machine. No minibar, but there is a fridge if you want to keep anything in the room. Now for the bathroom... The photos on the hotel website are lovely, but misleading. In our bathroom, the tiles were dirty and could use a good scrub, and the faucet (which I could never figure out how to work) was falling off the wall. (See my pics.) Wow. The Gym: Very well-equipped. Bikes, treadmills, ellipticals, weight machines, free weights, TRX and kettlebells on the roof! But... several times we went there were no towels. The entire time we were there, there were no disinfectant wipes in the dispenser on the second floor so NO ONE was wiping down a machine after using. And while we used the gym at least 5 times while we were there, only once was there an attendant at the desk (busy on his phone, never even looked up). The Locker Room: Check-out time is 11am but if you have a flight later in the day, front desk staff will tell you that you can stay and enjoy the beach/pool, and use the showers in the locker room (located next to the tennis/basketball court) before your flight. Don't. This locker room is DISGUSTING. The showers don't drain, so you'll be standing ankle deep in water with other people's hair. The shower curtains have mold growing halfway up. It was awful. TL:DR $4000 for a 4-night stay. Not worth it. Not Fairmont quality. Spend your money elsewhere.

  Mar 24, 2025
• 

  Mother Daughter trip

  The Fairmont main grounds and main lobby and interiors are wonderful! Beautifully maintained and clean. However the rooms leave a little to be desired. They are worn, stained and ours must have had a dog stay there previously as the bottom of the bathroom door and closet doors were chewed up. We enjoyed our stay even though they are very understaffed. We sat the the swim up bar in the pool for 30 minutes and were never served even though we were only 2 of the 6 customers waiting to be served. There are suppose to be servers coming around to take food and drink orders around the pool and on the beach, but in the 5 days we were there we were approached to be helped only once. Probably the most disappointing was the concierge. The gentleman who was working was very unhelpful and in fact told me on the two occasions I requested help that he was too busy (even though I was the only one there with him) and i could simply take care of what i needed myself. Certainly not customer friendly. The location of this resort is perfect and I would like to be able to return but the owners need to fix these problems. Was better when it was a Hilton property and not independently owned in my opinion.

  Mar 24, 2025
• 

  Not worth the money

  Very disappointing place for price. Needs updated bad. The room had a lot of bandaids.. needed a complete remodel and not just the continued paint job. The outside especially looked weathered and worn. The pool was flooding and smelled like algae, you constantly had to walk through pools of water. It was gross. Bathrooms are very small in the room. No balcony for the rooms. Restaurants were not good. Cana had great service. Meat market service was awful. Food was all just ok. Drinks were all just ok. We did have a lovely server by the pool. Would not recommend this place. Would not come back. Very disappointing for a Fairmont.

  Mar 22, 2025
• 

  Paradise

  The staff at fairmont are incredibly friendly and accommodating. the hotel grounds including the beach area just outside of it are gorgeous! Love this little paradise. ( Hey trip advisor: Why do I need to write 200 characters this is silly.

  Mar 19, 2025
• 

  Disappointing and dirty

  The lobby is vibrant and attractive. Upon reaching the room floors it all changes. Everything needs a good cleaning and a paint job. Rooms are basic. Our view was atrocious (which is fine we were only here for 36 hrs). Every meal was mediocre if not inedible. Dinner last night for four was $500 and the fish was so overcooked it was like jerky. Spectacularly disappointing. The music around the pool was entirely too loud. Clientele left a little to be desired.

  Mar 17, 2025