Guest User
February 20, 2024
Algaldar Hotel is stylish and in a perfect location within this really lovely authentically Spanish town. However, the lack of information/communication from Agaldar Emblematico Hotel for those arriving by car, especially for those guests who are not Spanish speakers caused us enormous stress and ultimately cost us a €100 parking fine. Cars cannot pull up to the hotel as there's a no-entry barrier to the square where the hotel is located next to the church. Guests are not told this. It's therefore very difficult to unload luggage and get it to the hotel. In order to unload our luggage we reversed in to a nearby disabled parking bay and left it for less than 5 minutes. When we returned there was a ticket fine for €200, which reduces by 50% if you pay immediately. This was very upsetting and seriously spoiled our arrival. Reception told us "yes, they target hire cars". We pointed out we'd contacted the hotel about parking and there had been absolutely no mention of arrival, how challenging it is or how there's a 30 minute waiting/parking bay we could have used. We were told the manager would speak with the police "to see what they could do" and hours later surprise, surprise "there was nothing they could do". We were then directed to a local ATM to pay the fine. We did this but could not understand how to pay the fine this way. We again returned to reception and asked for directions to the local police station. We then spent an hour of our only night in Galdar finding the station and paying the fine. The police ironically were apologetic. Hotel management never once contacted us directly to either see how we were or offer any advice. When we asked a member of staff is this happens on a regular basis they were silent and their face revealed that it does indeed happen time and time again. The town parking policy is obviously not the responsibility of Hotel Algaldar, but guest hotel arrivals are . A simple email when making a reservation or information on the Algaldar website would help guests avoid unnecessary and very expensive fines. Another tip for would-be guests is when enquiring about parking you'll be directed to a nearby paid car park but guests can park for free on blue zone streets where there are no lines or white lines.