Hotel Aromar

Hotel Aromar is a seafront base for divers who want the sea close, a proper meal within reach and a room where the air conditioning can deal with the day's heat. You are on the Passeig Marítim, with an outdoor pool, balconies and sea views across most rooms. It is a straightforward place for combining time in the water with an easy coastal stay rather than turning every evening into a logistical exercise.

English is spoken by the hotel team, alongside Catalan, Spanish, French and German. That matters when you are discussing arrival arrangements, room preferences or the practical details that can make a diving holiday run smoothly. The hotel was refurbished in 2018, and the overall set-up is geared towards staying close to the beach while keeping the usual comforts close at hand.

You stay in Platja d'Aro, Spain, directly on the seafront at Avda. de la Platja. The beach is not a shuttle ride or a long walk away: Platja Llarga is immediately beside the hotel, while Platja Gran de Platja d'Aro is about 0.1 miles away on foot. Sun loungers and parasols are available by the beach, which is useful when the plan is simply to dry off, read a few pages and do very little.

The location gives you more than sand and water. Restaurants such as Friends, Xicbeach and El Gauchito are within roughly 0.1 miles, while bars including El Chiringuito, Baobab and Malibu Platja d'Aro are within about 0.2 miles. Parc dels Estanys is around 0.6 miles away on foot. Girona-Costa Brava Airport is about 16 miles away by the direct road distance, and the bus station is a ten-minute walk from the hotel.

The room choice is mainly about how much space and how much sea you want. Couples can look towards the sea-view rooms, with several categories offering either a full sea outlook or a lateral view from a balcony. The panoramic option is the obvious one when the view matters more than having a large room. For a third adult, a lateral sea-view room with a king-size bed gives you the extra capacity without moving into family-room territory.

Families have more room to manoeuvre in the larger family categories, with separate single beds and a double bed in the sleeping arrangements. The Junior Suite offers sea views and a separate suite layout, while the most compact basic room is better kept for a short stay when the room is mainly somewhere to sleep. Choose carefully: the difference between a balcony and a lower-floor sea view will be more noticeable at dawn than in the booking photographs.

All rooms have air conditioning, a fridge, a safe, satellite television and a private bathroom with a hairdryer. Balconies and outdoor furniture give you somewhere to sit without taking your sandy feet straight onto the bed, and soundproofing is included in the room set-up. Free WiFi is available throughout the hotel, with daily housekeeping and a lift for upper floors.

Restaurant Aradi handles breakfast, lunch and dinner on its terrace, with a buffet built around Mediterranean cooking. The kitchen works with local produce and presents the food as healthy and varied rather than as a formal dining ritual. That makes the arrangement practical after a morning in the water: you can eat properly, return for lunch and still have dinner on site without planning the day around restaurant openings.

Breakfast is a buffet with a notably broad range, including continental, Italian, full English and Irish, vegetarian, vegan, halal, gluten-free, kosher, Asian and American choices. The official breakfast service starts at 08:00. Special diets can be requested, and the property also has a snack bar, a coffee house and vending machines for snacks and drinks.

The Lobby Bar is the place for soft drinks, juices, spirits and cocktails, with views over Platja Gran de Platja d'Aro. There is one named bar rather than a trail of competing lounges, which keeps the choice pleasantly simple: terrace and buffet when you are hungry, lobby and a drink when you are not.

The outdoor pool gives you a second option when the beach has had enough of you, or when you want a short swim without carrying half your belongings down to the shore. Pool and beach towels, sun loungers and parasols are available. The formula is refreshingly clear: swim, stretch out, and let the afternoon go slightly soft around the edges.

For a change of scenery, bicycles can be hired and golf is available within 1.9 miles. The hotel also offers access to cultural and outdoor excursions, including Parc dels Estanys, the Camí de Ronda, the Roman Villa of Pla de Palol and a farm visit. These are sensible choices for a non-diving day, particularly if one of you wants a walk or some local history while the other is content to remain horizontal.

The surrounding coast also does much of the work. Platja de Port d'Aro is about 0.4 miles away, Cala Rovira around 0.8 miles and Platja Sa Conca about 0.9 miles by the listed route. You can use the concierge and tour desk to organise outings, while the shared lounge and TV area cover the less ambitious evenings.

Check-in runs from 15:00 to 23:30, and check-out is from 07:00 to 12:00. You will need photo identification and a credit card at arrival. Early check-in and late check-out can be requested, which is useful when flights and dive days refuse to line up neatly. Luggage storage, a 24-hour reception, concierge service and a tour desk are available.

An airport shuttle service is available from Girona-Costa Brava Airport; arrange it with the hotel before travelling. The airport is about 16 miles away by road. Private parking is available nearby, with limited spaces, and an electric-vehicle charging station is available. If you are driving, deal with the parking question before arrival rather than discovering that the car has become the least mobile member of the group.

WiFi is free throughout the hotel. The building has wheelchair-accessible facilities, accessible upper floors via lift and an adapted bathroom option. Pets are welcome, and cash, Visa and Mastercard are accepted. Cots and extra beds can be requested for children and adults, depending on the room selected.