My husband and I were recent guests at Gran Melia Puerto Rico, where we stayed for four (4) nights (July 12th -July 16th), and I have to say that for being a four (4) star hotel it sure did not meet our expectations service wise. The quality of service was extremely poor. During our stay I was told by at least 4 different employees that they were unable to fulfill my services being that they did not have time or were too busy… this is something you do not tell your guests especially when they are paying $265 per night!!!!! The hotel should be prepared for any given number of guests on any given day. I’m sure the hotel gets a list of the number of guests that will be checking in/out on a daily basis in advance. Therefore, they should have the proper staff to cover the number of people staying at the hotel.

Now I will go into details of the services that I was totally disappointed about:

1. When we first checked in, the check in procedure went smooth; however, we had to wait around approximately 40 minutes for a bellboy to escort us along with our luggage to our room. That took away from our first impression of the hotel. How are you going to have your guests, who are trying to get away from stress and finally relax, get aggravated and waste time sitting around waiting as soon as they begin their vacation??? Obviously the hotel did not have the sufficient amount of bellboys needed for the number of people checking in. The least they could’ve done was given us some guidance on how to get to our room and around the hotel this way we could’ve enjoyed ourselves upon arrival rather than wait around and then bring our luggage to our room when possible.

2. Housekeeping was good the first day, then after that it went downhill. The 2nd day our room was never made, we had to call for clean towels and was told that they did not have clean towels cause they did not have time to do them?!?!? How can you say that to your guests???? Finally, like two hours later housekeeping came by (at 9pm) to make our room and after we had already showered provided towels. The 3rd day, again they came pretty late in the evening to do our room and did not even bother to take the dirty dishes that were sitting on the table, which actually stayed there till we checked out.

3. There aren’t refrigerators in the hotel rooms; therefore I was unable to store several items that needed to be refrigerated. Yet, I figured I’d get enough ice to keep them in the ice bucket and that should keep them cool. Well all the ice machines were out of ice throughout my entire stay and when I called “ServiExpress” to have them bring ice to the room once again I was told that they did not have ice cause they did not have time to make the ice?!?!?!?!? EXCUSE ME???? No ice in a 4 star hotel??? As a result my husband had to walk the lobby bar almost every night to get ice; mind you it was approximately 1/3 of a mile walk since our room (911) was almost at the end of the hotel.

4. We had a tee time to play golf at 3:45pm, however from previous experiences we decided to call the bellboy to pick up our golf clubs at 2:30pm, figured an hour and fifteen minutes should be enough time, specially since the golf course is only a two minute drive. Well good thing we call with plenty of time in advance cause after 3 phone calls and a 45 minute wait the SECURITY GUARD, NOT THE BELLBOY, came to get our golf clubs. Wait, there’s more to it… when we were done playing golf, we requested for the hotel to pick us up, so we gave them enough time to come by walking around in the clubhouse, since we know they are never prompt. Well as we are walking out of the clubhouse the guy is driving away, he never even bothered to come inside and ask who needed a ride back!!! Ok, so then he finally turns back – well the guy doesn’t even work for the hotel, the bellboy ask this guy (the driver) to do him the favor since they were so busy!?!?!? CAN YOU IMAGINE????????

5. Our last night we had our children stay with us since we were flying out the next day and figured they can sleep on the sofa bed, after all we only needed extra blankets and pillows… well once again it took them almost 3 hours (past midnight) to bring us the blankets and pillows. UNBELIEVABLE!!!

Overall, I do have to say it’s a beautiful hotel, great ambiance, nice rooms, good location and decent food. However, due to its lack of service I’d give this hotel 2 1/2 stars and would only recommend it to people who do not really care for good service.

I almost didn't book this hotel based on the not-so-great reviews but I am super happy that I went with my gut and booked the Oceanfront Royal Service. The hotel is absolutely gorgeous and relaxing. My only disappointment is that we were only there for two days as we traveled all over the island on our trip. If you can swing the Royal Service, do it!! It's completely worth it.

A lot of reviews have complained about how long the drive is to the resort and how far away it is from everything. Considering it only takes approximately 2.5 hours to get to the southwestern municipality of Guanica from Rio Grande, it's not that big of a deal. However, unless you are only staying in Old San Juan you definitely need a car to fully enjoy PR.

After a long red-eye flight we stopped for lechon asado and batata off the freeway (OMG! Amazing) and a Medalla at a roadside bar a bit further up the road from our meal. We were on vacation after all and in no huge rush to get to the hotel. It is true that the resort is a bit of a drive from the airport and about 3 miles once you pull off the main road but the view is so stimulating you don't even notice it! The plants, golf course, flowers and birds are pretty and vibrant.

When we finally pulled up I took one look at the parking lot and it was decided we would spend the extra cash for valet. Totally worth it! The last thing I wanted to worry about on vacation was finding parking. Check-in at the RS lounge was quick and easy; it should be noted that when I called three days prior to arrival they did not have a reservation under the booking number I was provided by the website. Two phone calls later it was fixed. Save yourself the hassle and call ahead. We were greeted with cocktails and our fab butler, Manuel, picked us up and gave us a tour of the property all the while providing us with useful information about the resort and surrounding attractions.

Our room was right next to the RS pool and was big and beautifully appointed. I loved the huge shower! Manuel took care of everthing we needed, whenever needed, and my boyfriend loved how close it was to the beach. The outdoor whirlpool was so relaxing at night with the sound of the waves lapping the beach and the coqui chirping. *sigh* I miss it already!

Another big complaint that I read about was that the beach was rocky and full of seagrass. It totally is, but we thought it was fun that you could walk out super far and the bathtub warm water is barely thigh deep. We enjoyed looking for shells and playing with the colorful hermit crabs. Again, you are on vacation and walking along the beach in Puerto Rico, enjoy it and stop sweating the small stuff! HAHAHA

We only ate at the resort twice. Once for dinner and again for breakfast. Although the food is a bit salty, it was still pretty good and coming from San Francisco we thought the prices were reasonable. Service is a bit slow but our waiter was personable and accomodating at dinner and the waitress at breakfast was awesome as well. Our big thing was to eat Puerto Rican food so we only ate at the resort when necessary. By choice, we did walk alot on the resort but there were always carts going by. When we did want a ride back to the room it was not a problem catching one.

All in all this hotel is beautiful, the staff is amazing and we had an AMAZING trip. I am so glad that the Gran Melia was apart of our grand time and I can't wait to go back!!

We stayed 7 days and 6 nights at the Gran Melia in Rio Grande, Puerto Rico and had the best time. The Gran Melia upgraded us to an ocean front room (which was beautiful and even had a jucuzzi tub on the balcony), sent champagne to our room on our "1" year anniversary night, upgraded us to the
Royal Service which includes a butler and happy hour every night from 6-9 p.m. They set us up with a rental car for 5 days at a great rate and the employees even helped us find a Catamaran/Snorkeling trip not even affiliated with the Melia. They could not do enough for us. The hotel is beautiful, the Room Manager was the best, the F&B Manager also treated us like we were the only ones at the resort. Everyone at the hotel from butlers, to chamber maids to waitresses to golf cart drivers treated you like kings and queens. The restaurants had good food, room service was good and very prompt. We had a great time there and have already recommended it to our friends (6) who have already booked for September. We are looking forward to going back and if you can stay longer, do it, there is plenty to do and see, I highly recommend this hotel and if you can stay longer than a week, I recommend at least 10 days.........

I've been to Puerto Rico, many, many times, and always like to try newer hotels. I didn't want to stay at the Grand Melia when it was an all-inclusive resort, but was very interested in trying it out when it became a regular hotel. For comparisons sake, I have stayed at the Rio Mar (when it was a Westin) several times and the El Conquistador many times as well. I'd put my overall experience at the Melia up there with both of those resorts.

The hotel is located about 7 minutes from the main road and there's a lot of construction going on before you get there, but once you get to the hotel, it's beautiful. I stayed in the Royal Service part of the hotel, so you have a dedicated check-in desk away from the masses, although they don't tell you that (I waited in line for about 15 minutes before I was shuttled over there).

My room was spacious, marble-laden, and luxurious. I appreciated the private pool and cabanas that are reserved for the Royal Service clientele. The restaurants were very good, and the sea bass at Nami, for $22, was a relative bargain and outstanding.

I had a late flight, and they accommodated me with a 3 p.m. late check out, even though the hotel was completely sold out that day. I'd stay here again in a heartbeat, especially if you can get a deal.