How does the booking process work with El Rey Villas?

Key facts

• A 25% deposit secures your booking; the remaining balance is due six weeks before arrival.
• Every villa in our portfolio is personally selected for comfort, privacy and style, not signed up indiscriminately.
• Your holiday, your way: our concierge arranges private chefs, golf tee times, spa sessions and more, before and during your stay.
• We are a family-owned team based in the Golden Triangle, you speak with people, not a call centre.
• 24/7 support is included throughout your stay, so any question or issue is handled fast.

Step by step

1. 1
   Browse and shortlist 🌄
   Start with our hand-picked portfolio at elreyvillas.com/properties/. Filter by guest numbers, location within the Golden Triangle, and the features that matter, sea views, private heated pool, proximity to Puerto Banus, pet-friendly, golf-access. If you see two or three that feel right, note them down. Not sure which area suits you? Our team is happy to talk through Marbella, Benahavis and Estepona before you even enquire.
2. 2
   Send an enquiry
   Drop us your preferred dates, party size, and any must-haves via the enquiry form, WhatsApp, or email, whichever suits you. We’ll come back quickly with availability, a detailed quote, and honest answers to any questions you have. Because we’re a local, family-owned team rather than an automated platform, the response you get is from someone who has actually been inside the property.
3. 3
   Receive and review your quote
   Your quote sets out the rental rate, what’s included, and our booking terms, including the cancellation policy, in plain language. Nothing is buried in small print. If you’d like to adjust dates, swap to a different property, or ask about adding concierge services like a private chef or golf tee times, this is the right moment. We’re here to shape the booking around you, not the other way around.
4. 4
   Pay your deposit to secure the villa
   Ready to go? A 25% deposit confirms the booking and takes the villa off the market for your dates. Payment details are confirmed in writing. Once the deposit is received, you’ll get written confirmation and the villa is yours. The remaining balance is due six weeks before your arrival date, we’ll remind you well in advance so nothing catches you off guard.
5. 5
   Build your stay with our concierge 🌅
   This is where the holiday really takes shape. Between booking and arrival, our concierge team is on hand to arrange everything: in-villa dining, wine tours, spa sessions at Six Senses, a morning at Purobeach or Tikitano, a cultural day in Ronda or the white villages. The earlier you tell us what you’d love, the more seamlessly we can arrange it. Every detail is crafted to make the stay feel effortless.
6. 6
   Arrival and 24/7 support throughout
   Check-in is handled by our locally based team, you will never arrive to a locked door and an instruction sheet. Throughout your stay, 24/7 support means any question, any issue, any spontaneous request is handled by a real person who knows the property and the area. That’s the El Rey difference: stunning views, incredible comfort, and a personalised service that doesn’t clock off at five.

What happens if I need to change or cancel my booking?

Life changes, we understand that. Our cancellation and amendment policy is set out clearly at the point of booking, and we walk you through it before you pay a penny. Because we are a family-owned team rather than an automated platform, there is always a real person to speak with when circumstances shift. We’d always rather find a workable solution than lose a guest we’ve come to know. For the precise terms on deposits and refunds, take a look at our dedicated cancellation article, or simply call or WhatsApp us and we’ll talk it through.

How does the concierge service work, and when should I book extras?

Think of our concierge as a personal genie at your beck and call, available from the moment your deposit lands. The sooner you tell us what you’d like, the better: private chefs, wine tours through boutique vineyards, golfing tee times, sunset dinners, spa days, day trips to the white villages, these take planning and availability fills. Drop us a message alongside your booking enquiry and we’ll start building your itinerary straight away. Your holiday, your way is not just a phrase; it’s genuinely how we work.

Is it safe to pay, and how do I know El Rey Villas is reputable?

We are a family-owned business helmed by Kevin and Anna, based in San Pedro de Alcantara and operating across the Golden Triangle every single day. Trust and transparency is at the heart of everything we do. Payment is handled through secure, established methods, details are confirmed in writing before any money moves. Every villa is visited and assessed by our team in person before it joins our hand-picked portfolio, so you are never booking from a listing we’ve never set foot in. If you want to speak with Kevin or Anna directly before committing, that’s exactly what we encourage.

Three things guests often get wrong when booking a luxury villa

Leaving the concierge conversation too late. The Golden Triangle’s best private chefs, sought-after golf tee times at Finca Cortesin, and tables at Dani Garcia’s restaurants fill up well in advance, particularly across July and August and during Semana Santa. The moment your deposit is paid, tell us what you want from the week. We can do a great deal on short notice, but we can do even more with a few weeks’ lead time.

Assuming the balance deadline is flexible. The balance is due six weeks before arrival. This is a firm date, not a soft suggestion. Guests who miss it risk losing their booking and their deposit. We send reminders, but the responsibility sits with the guest. Set a calendar alert the day you book.

Booking on a major platform and expecting a personal service. Aggregator platforms are useful for discovery, but the experience they deliver is automated. When you book directly with us, you’re dealing with a family-owned team that knows every property in our hand-picked portfolio personally, responds to WhatsApp messages, and builds your holiday around you, not around an algorithm.

Are you ready to book? 🌴

You’re in the right place if you know your rough travel window and the size of your group, even an approximate answer on those two things is enough for us to match you to the right properties and send a real quote. You don’t need to have decided on a specific area yet; part of what we do is help you weigh up Marbella’s Golden Mile against the hillside calm of Benahavis or the Old Town charm of Estepona. And you certainly don’t need a fixed wish-list, tell us what matters most (sea views, a large heated pool, walking distance to the beach, space for a multi-generational group) and we’ll do the shortlisting.