Venue Booker Verity Deaville aka ‘Verity Venue’ writes an honest review on some of her favourite venues and this month she has chosen the luxurious Hotel Puente Romano in sunny Marbella.
Venue: Hotel Puente Romano
Location: Situated on the southern coast of Spain in the Costa del Sol within the “Golden Mile”, a residential area between Marbella and Puerto Banús, just 35 minutes drive from Málaga Airport.
Number of meeting rooms: 8 but one of these is the Andalucia that can be split into a further 5 rooms. Plus an amphitheatre-like square for outdoor events and the beach!
Maximum number of day delegates: 650
Number of bedrooms: 285
Car Parking: Free underground parking and outside parking areas
Verity Venue’s View
Hotel Puente Romano is possibly one of the best venues I have visited in Spain. On arrival we entered a very normal looking reception (although pleasant) but were soon directed down a little staircase and it was like entering another world. First we saw the Plaza Romana, a roman amphitheater-like square, set amongst beautiful gardens and dotted with very pretty orange parasols with comfy orange cushions (see pic). The Plaza’s main attraction though is the famous antique Roman bridge on which the hotel is named. The bridge was built in the first century as part of the Via Hercúla / Via Augusta, the old road, which once connected Rome with Cádiz.
As we continued the venue tour we noted that the whole resort is built in the style of an Andalusian village with 285 spacious guest rooms spread in 27 three–storey villas. The rooms were modern and fresh (see pic) and with 7 restaurants and bars, three swimming pools, tennis & fitness club and one of the best beach front locations in Marbella’s “Golden Mile” you cannot fail to be impressed by this venue.
Corporate Events and Incentive Trips
The Andalucía Conference Centre opened in June 2002 and with The Salón Andalucía, its largest room, holding up to 650 guests makes the venue one of the largest and most modern Conference Centres on the Costa del Sol. There are also two separate conference rooms, the Alhambra that can hold up to 160 and the Giralda can that hold up to 150. I was also impressed with the separate registration area available for larger parties. The venue has a selection of smaller rooms available plus outdoor facilities including two typical Andalusian Patios for outdoor functions and coffee breaks, not forgetting the beautiful amphitheatre-like square perfect for outdoor events (see pic).
There is complimentary wifi though the entire resort but the hotel does hire in their AV and airport transfers so this would be an additional cost to factor in.
Most incentive trips are for three days and are not booked during the peak summer months, activities include tennis tournaments, beach team activities, golf only 20mins away, horse riding, summer beach barbecues and the Marbella Club Thalasso Spa. Water-sports are offered in season include jet-skiing, kayaking, water-skiing, parasailing, catamaran, windsurfing and motorboat excursions. There are many excursions available and the hotel is in walking distance of both Marbella Town and Puerto Banús.
Celebration and Wedding Events
The whole venue is set around subtropical gardens, fountains and waterfalls that would make any event special. People tend to get married on the beach front at Hotel Puente Romano and you can choose from the 7 bars and restaurants for the celebration or for private use you can hire one of the private rooms. We sampled the food at the Beach Restaurant and it was seriously the best lobster I have tasted. Guests who stay at the Hotel Puente Romano also have the option of using the facilities at their sister Hotel the famous “Marbella Club”. This means that guests can hire the beautiful Villa del Mar, a lavish mansion (see pic) set in the grounds of the hotel which really is an amazing place to host weddings, birthdays, anniversaries dinners and cocktails. This would also be an ideal place if guests prefer to stay in separate hotels during a family wedding.
Anything else to add that makes this venue special
The venue is part of the ‘The Leading Hotels of the World’ and lives up to this accolade. The on site tennis club isn’t just an average club as it features ten courts (two hard and eight clay) together with a Centre Court capable of seating over 2000 spectators, as well as four paddle courts! The tennis & fitness club is one of Spain’s established clubs to host international tournaments and stages concerts with famous artists during the summer.
Access to the Marbella Club hotel, both beachfronts and the Thalasso Spa, exceptional food and service also makes this hotel very special.
Verity Venue (VV) Rating
Corporate venue: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Celebration venue: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★
Images thanks to Hotel Puente Romano & Villa del Mar at the Marbella Club