Review of Finca Cortesin, by Cecilia Bogaard

Finca Cortesin is one of a special breed of hotels that manages to combine luxury with a feeling of comfort managing to overcome the sterility that accompanies much of the luxury accommodation available these days. Even though Finca Cortesin has 67 suites, if you’re looking for peace you’ll find it easy to feel practically alone, the grounds being so extensive as to allow you to revel with little, if any, company.

This is a hotel if you’re looking to get away from it all and escape the outside world. With the look and feel of a hacienda, Finca Cortesin is brimming with relaxed sophistication. As close to perfection as I’ve ever encountered in a luxury setting, the hotel is located near the white village of Casares, just above the once beautiful stretch of the Costa del Sol that runs between Estepona and Sotogrande. Leaving the urban sprawl on the coast, the contrast as you drive up towards Casares serves to heighten the pleasurable arrival.

Finca Cortesin is all about details: from the fact that you can drive up, handover your keys and have someone park your car, allowing you to feel at ease from the first second, to the water and herbal tea served in the spa at no extra charge or the way the staff remember your name and have genuine conversation to share.

If you’re a golf aficionado; this is paradise. If you’re not; who cares? The spa will keep you busy for a long while with its sauna, snow room, steam room and 25 metre indoor pool overlooking the gardens. Outside there are more options with the choice of either a 35 or a 50 metre swimming pool.

With five restaurants on the grounds Finca Cortesin is also heaven for foodies. The highlight is most certainly Schilo with its selection of Arabic, Asian and European culinary creations. Peanut Sponge with Wasabi Mayonnaise, Green Curry with Lime Risottini and Hamachi Sashimi with Wasabi Sorbet were just some of the tantalising dishes on the menu.

The suites are conducive to staying in and you’ll be forgiven for finding that at the end of your stay you haven’t set foot outside the hotel. Sitting out on your private terrace taking in the unspoilt view, sipping your freshly squeezed orange juice, sprawling out on the ridiculously comfortable beds to watch movies borrowed from their DVD library (at no extra cost), eating croissants with homemade chocolate spread or even soaking in your giant tub… You may start to understand why I found it hard to bundle my partner into the car at the end of our stay!