Grand Hotel Excelsior – Malta

Needs a new rating on Google, and REAL reviews. Like Spa Index  -- more honest here! This is NOT the 5 star hotel is purports to be on Google Rankings, but it IS a solid 3-star budget-friendly hotel in a good location. It needs major upgrades, but it benefits from great views and walking distance (for the fit, anyway) of many attractions. What is "run-down" could be called dirty, but it's most just aged. But the trade off is that it's more affordable than other 5 star hotels (which are really 5 stars). Spend a night or two in a 5 star for the experience, and spend a night or two here for the pools, beach, and location, to make the most of your extended stay.

Nice, relaxing atmosphere. Pleasant spa. Polite and helpful staff. Not 5 stars (needs upgrades) but very nice stay.

We enjoyed the cleanliness and comfort of our room, as well as the pool area which is spacious and well-kept. There's quite a good choice of items for breakfast, not exactly 5-star but good enough - mostly targeted at English residents. Didn't quite understand why portions served had to be so exaggerated.  Unfortunately, the service, though generally friendly, is considerably below the standard of a 5-star hotel. Most employees, especially at the restaurant and pool area seem to have no hospitality industry catering experience. They are loud, inexperienced, speak very poor English, and rough.  Even classic cocktails were served wrong. There seemed to be no management or supervisors at the pool area. The staff there, mostly teenagers, had no clue as to what they were meant to do. As for the reception staff, though cordial, but it came across as rather artificial. On the other hand, the housekeeping staff was very polite and efficient. In general, the hotel might be cheaper than others in the same category but that translates into very poor service.