Barceló Fortina Malta

We had a comfortable stay in the hotel. The room and ensuite was large and clean. The breakfast was great with a good variety. However we felt the pool spoilt our overall experience. Whilst I have seen in previous comments that the Manager quotes they are transparent about the fact the pool is run by a third party provider, I feel that further transparency is required. The hotel has approximately 180 rooms and there are approximately 35-40 beds available for guests. You need to book these 24 in hours in advance, as mentioned on the website. The large number of remaining beds are for the public to book and pay for. The area for hotel residents is cramped with very little room between each bed. If your neighbour has the sunshade up you will also be shaded. The house music which is played all the time is unbearably loud with the speakers right above the hotel resident's sunbed area. We were chaperoned to the beds we were allowed to use like second class citizens. Whilst there were several empty beds on the front row at the end of the day we were not allowed to sit there unless we paid extra. I feel it would be more transparent to show a picture of the area available for the 5 star hotel guests and to mention they will be prohibited to use the much more pleasant areas.

Unfortunately, this hotel did not meet our expectations of a 5-star property. The main reason is that, although the hotel is not adults-only, the spa area (which we were informed does not actually belong to the hotel) does not allow children under the age of 16. This made it difficult for us to enjoy the spa facilities together as a family. Had this been clearly stated at the time of booking, and had the hotel not presented itself as family-friendly, we might have made a different choice. When we provided this feedback at reception, we unfortunately did not feel a sense of understanding or appropriate hospitality neither. Receptionists Nora and Luca came across as rather cold and unprofessional, showing little understanding of our concern and without offering a basic apology for the inconvenience. This suggested a lack of basic hospitality training. Further, when speaking with Nora, it seemed that not all English was fully understood, which may have contributed to the communication barrier. We would appreciate a higher standard of hospitality, regardless of the hotel’s star rating. For this reason, we are unable to fully recommend this hotel and hope that management will address these concerns and provide additional training to the mentioned staff members to ensure a more professional guest experience. That said, our interactions with the rest of the staff were exceptional, and we are very grateful for their kindness and service. Thank you.

We had a great week at this hotel. Our room was lovely, very clean and a really good size. The bed was huge and super comfortable. We had a seaview room with balcony which got the sun in the morning and had wonderful views of Valletta. We found the location just right as it was a short stroll down the road to lots of bars and restaurants. Very close to the shopping mall and the ferry to Valletta was 5 mins walk away. The area is quiet at night with no loud clubs nearby, which suited us. The staff were all very helpful and professional. Check-in was very smooth and we were offered ice tea or processo as a welcome drink. We didn’t use the pool but we ate and had drinks in the Manta bar which was very nice. We also used the spa and the gym which were both very good. The gym is busy as it is an outside company with free access to hotel guests but it is quite large and has plenty of machines and space so wasn’t a problem for us. Overall we would recommend this hotel and would happily stay here again if we return to Malta.

The room was comfortable and spacious with a balcony with a nice (if limited) view. Staff were polite and friendly, nothing was too much trouble. The facilities were very good. It is on the seafront but away from the busy area and set back from the road so noise was not an issue.

Lovely, modern hotel in a great location. We only had breakfast each day so don’t know what the lunch/evening food is like. Set just up the road from the busy centre of Sliema with a shopping centre located just behind it. Literally 2 minute walk to get the boat to Valetta which only costs £3.