Mr & Mrs Smith

A truly world-class hotel. The quality of the fit and finish cannot be fully appreciated from the photographs. Whilst in No Man's Land between the motorway and the coast, the setting is incredibly peaceful and well designed to maximise the beautiful rural views (though like everywhere in Spain there are unfinished developments, blighting some aspects). A 50m adults-only pool was a nice surprise, in addition to a great 35m family pool. Beach Club was the only disappointment - too close to the road, the public beach it joins onto is a bit scruffy and you had to pay for beds on top of the room rate. Same great standards but let down by setting, and the food was not as good as at the main pool. Don Giovanni Italian, the cheaper of the three hotel restaurants, was very good and also surprisingly good value. The other restaurants were good upscale 5 fayre, but go to the Forge, a beautiful rustic retreat in the hills serving excellent traditional local fayre. Finca Cortesin golf course is now one of the best on the coast.

I cannot imagine why you would leave! The spa is really fantastic, our massages were superb. Don't bring your golf clubs without proof of a very good handicap: they're very serious about golf! We ate most evenings at the Italian restaurant, Don Giovanni, which was completely delicious. The Japanese restaurant was also great but they only do long tasting menus, so you need to be hungry and full of energy to go the distance.

If driving from Malaga airport to Finca Cortesin, you can choose between a fast toll road and a slower 'coastal' road. Choose the former-- its scenery is actually much more beautiful! Think mountains and vistas, versus tracts of high rises and shabby strip malls. We loved having a car and used it to explore Ronda (a gorgeous one-hour drive away) and the pueblos blancos (ancient white hilltop villages) in the hills as one heads inland from the Finca. That said, Finca Cortesin is so breathtakingly lovely that one could be forgiven for not leaving at all. Aside from our day trips, the best we could manage was to force ourselves out for dinner one night. We visited La Menorah (+34 952 937 882) a restaurant about a 10-minute drive from the hotel to which the staff can direct you. The food was great, especially the wild rocket salad with sherry vinegar and the locally caught fish. The restaurant manager speaks multiple languages and is very welcoming. All put together, Finca Cortesin is the perfect place to bunker down in absolute style... and the surroundings serve mostly to remind you of how lucky you are to be staying there each time you pass through its gates!

Finca Cortesin was one of the best hotels we've been to. We splurged on a pool suite and it was worth every pound! The restaurant was amazing and service unbelievable - a perfect getaway - we will definitely be going back!