Collingwood House, the Hotel Del Almirante, Menorca

Hubby and I have been on a two week vacation. It is three years since our last such vacation and so we not only needed this break, we deserved it. We booked early in the year to ensure that we had sufficient funds in place. Travelling on the 15th October was late in the year for us but it was timed so that Hubby could celebrate his 60th Birthday whilst we were away.

Now that we are home I have so much to write about that I did not quite know where to start. I have decided to begin with the hotel which was both charming and quirky. Hopefully it is true to say that those adjectives and the Hotel Del Almirante suited us down to the ground.

The Hotel Del Almirante is situated in what was the home of UK Admiral Collingwood. It is perfectly placed on the road between Mahon and Es Castell, in the north east of Menorca, which is one of the Spanish Balearic islands.

The hotel is well suited for easy travel from the airport. With luck the journey from the airport to the hotel will be a mere 10 minutes.

We booked via Thomsons in the UK but you can opt to travel independently. The rates are per room and not per person and so are very good. Of course it does depend if you can get a suitable and competitively priced flight. If you upgrade to half board it will be more costly if you have booked with a travel agent, such as Thomsons.

The Hotel Del Almirante currently only has a one star rating but do not let that deter you. The rating is based on many things such as services. If you are looking for old fashioned good service then look no further.

The Hotel offers:

A laptop available from the reception, for you to use. Ask at reception also if you want to borrow playing cards, dominoes or even a travel plug. Enrique or Maria will try their utmost to oblige. The lovely Maria has worked in the Hotel for 30 years.

Call at reception for the latest weather forecast, bus timetable or the like. You can even ask for recommended walks or how to get to places.

The breakfast provides an ample amount of cereals, bread, fruit juice, hot drinks, sweet cakes, fruit, cheese, ham and fruits. The exact ingredients vary according to the season I guess. Pour yourself a last minute coffee or tea after breakfast and take it outside to enjoy the morning sun. If you prefer you can choose a different type of breakfast for a little extra money.

A table tennis room and TV room are available also. The TV was not working when we visited but that was just right for us. Outdoors there is a table tennis court and boules area. The grounds are lush.

A well stocked bar and buffet service which is reasonably priced. Ask Carlos for the menu and he will happily provide it promptly. You can eat in the hotel's restaurant which offers a choice of a three course meal for 12 Euros per person. The restaurant and breakfast room have great views over the water when it is daylight.

A pool table provided some evening entertainment. It was not allowed after 10pm so as not to disturb guests who had rooms nearby. This seems sensible to me. A game cost 1 Euro.

Satur (apologies for the spelling), the head waiter come maitre d. His service is excellent and he remains professional whilst displaying a great sense of humour. I guess he is bit of a legend in his own lifetime.

This year visitors were still able to smoke in the bar and the rooms. Great for my Hubby. I did not mind as it was a holiday and the weather was good enough to have doors and windows open. I am told that next year the hotel will be no smoking, in line with their legal obligations.

A decent sized swimming pool. One half is fairly deep and the other shallow for youngsters or those like me who are not strong swimmers. The area around the pool has a good seating area.

The hotel also has two outside verandas. One overlooks the estuary and the other faces the countryside. Choose the harbour veranda in the morning sun and the other one later in the day to catch the last rays. The other veranda is often used by those wanting to enjoy a game of backgammon, in the evening.

Part of the hotel incorporates what was Collingwood House, home to Admiral Collingwood. Across the bay you can see what was once the home of Lord Nelson. It has interesting displays and antiques on show. Each Thursday someone offers a guided tour of the house, which lasts around an hour, more or less. As we visited late in the season this was unavailable. You can, however, wander around as and when you want.

The reception has a small gift area, postcards, postage stamps and a small post box.

There are a selection of English magazines or papers often in reception. A bookshelf offers holiday reading. Guests take and leave books constantly.

A few cats are spoilt by the guests and staff but they are not actually residents of the hotel. Perhaps they keep the bugs at bay. Maybe that is why we saw none. A black cat with only half a tail, christened Stumpy by us, was especially friendly with Hubby.

Overall.

Hotel Del Almirante is relatively small and set over two floors. There are 40 rooms for guests. There are no lifts or elevators but there are many rooms on the ground floor. Our room had a bathroom which included a shower, bidet, loo and wash basin. Some rooms also had baths. The rooms were painted a relaxing primrose colour with dark wood furniture. The sleeping arrangement was twin beds.

In some ways the rooms are fairly basic but we liked ours. The rooms are kept to a good standard of cleanliness by the team of hotel cleaners and ancillary workers.

There was a safe deposit in the room for hire at 24 Euros for two weeks. The rooms do not have drink making facilities or fridges. However, the bar area is open for much of the day and evening. We always pack a travel kettle but did not use it much.

There is no evening entertainment as such but that suited us down to the ground.

There is one family guest room, I think, but it is not really a children's type of hotel.

The Hotel will have closed this weekend, 31st October 2010, for the winter. However, if you fancy visiting next year check out the Hotel's website. With so many people returning each year it may be hard to be accommodated.

Even the staff have been working at this hotel for donkeys years and so it has a warm, friendly, family feel to it. If you thought common courtesy was dead and buried you will find it going strong here.

We usually say that we would like to return to our liked destinations but there are so many places yet to see. Whether it is our advancing years, or simply the charm of the place, the island and the staff I do not know, but I know that, finances permitting, we are going back next year. Perhaps we will see you there.

Details correct at 30th October 2010.