"We stayed here for 9 days as a family of 2 adults and 3 children. We went into the holiday hoping for a relaxing family break, but unfortunately there were several issues throughout our stay that made it more stressful and inconvenient than it should have been.Overall, we felt the hotel fell well short of what we would reasonably expect from a 4-star hotel and personally would avoid going here and choose somewhere else.
Starting with arriving and after a long day of travelling, we arrived at around 11pm expecting to get straight into bed. Unfortunately, our room wasn’t properly prepared for 2 adults and 3 children, we were missing a bed. We had to call reception and wait around another hour for the additional bed to arrive. When you’ve been travelling all day and are already exhausted at 11pm, this was a very disappointing start to the holiday and something that should have been checked before we arrived.
If you have kids and need the Wi-Fi, I’d avoid as it was extremely slow, reaching only around 1–2 Mbps at best. When the hotel was busy, it would frequently disconnect and could be unavailable for hours at a time. The Wi-Fi code also isn’t provided on arrival, so you first have to call reception to obtain it. This is another small but unnecessary inconvenience, particularly when arriving late at night.
The air conditioning in our room was very weak. During the night, the room remained quite hot and we were unable to get the temperature below around 27°C. The air conditioning unit also leaked, which became more than just an inconvenience. Water regularly collected on the floor, making it slippery, and we had to keep cleaning it up throughout our stay to prevent the children from slipping and falling. This really should have been addressed as a basic maintenance and safety issue.
The bathroom was very dated and, in our opinion, in need of significant investment and refurbishment. Our particular bathroom also needed a proper deep clean, with visible build-up and worn/discoloured sealant and grouting around the shower and drain. The bathroom also had an unpleasant sewage-like smell, which added to the overall impression that the bathroom needed more attention and maintenance. The shower pressure was very weak and the temperature fluctuated. With three children, this was particularly inconvenient and made showering unnecessarily difficult.
The mini-bar was stocked with water, which is perfectly fine and appreciated. However, when travelling with three children, having a small amount of juice or another soft drink option available would have been a nice additional touch, particularly in a 4-star hotel.
There is also a building site immediately next to the hotel. This is worth being aware of when booking, particularly if you’re expecting a completely peaceful resort environment.
In regards to food, this was probably one of the biggest sources of frustration. At busy times in the buffet restaurants it felt very chaotic, with no clear system for finding tables. Even once you managed to find a table, you often then had to track down a waiter simply to get cutlery. Or to have it cleaned from the previous diners. There could also be long queues for food and drinks. For made-to-order food, such as pasta, expect to wait around 15 minutes at busy times. We also experienced people pushing in ahead of others, which made the queues frustrating. On occasions, it appeared that guests who spoke the local language were receiving more immediate attention, which could leave other guests feeling overlooked.
The food itself was also quite repetitive. After several days, we found the buffet became quite dull, particularly during a 9-day stay. More variety and rotation of dishes would make a big difference.
The snack bars around the pool were also quite limited, often offering only one or two food options each day. When you did want something from them, there could also be a considerable wait, so getting a quick snack by the pool wasn’t always particularly quick or convenient. For example we were told 5 minute wait for only two wraps and it took over 30 minutes. Again those who spoke the local language seemed to skip this wait.
There are also some additional charges worth being aware of. The sports bar is located in the main building near reception, and some of the facilities there, including the pool table and popcorn, are chargeable. Ice creams near the buffet are also an extra cost, and the ice cream area wasn’t manned, so you need to find a waiter if you want to order one. A number of alcoholic drinks are also chargeable and come in a tiny plastic cup. We are not drinkers so not a problem for us but others might not appreciate this. These aren’t major issues individually, but they are worth knowing about when considering what is and isn’t included.
We did, however, meet Khodir Ismail, the captain, who was absolutely fantastic. He was friendly, attentive and incredibly helpful throughout our stay, particularly during the buffet. We gave him a well-deserved tip and he continued to look after us whenever he saw us. He really stood out and showed what good service should look like.
Unfortunately, the fact that we had to rely on finding a particular waiter to make the restaurant experience run smoothly says quite a lot about how disorganised it could feel at busy times.
Regarding the pool, it is a lovely large pool and the only strong point for the hotel but worth noting a third of the pool is adult only. The kids pool area has three main slides which are in use, but the two slides located around the pool were always closed during our stay. This was disappointing, particularly for a family with children, as the slides are one of the attractions you would expect to be able to use. Unfortunately, there were occasions when the pool area had a very unpleasant smell, which at times seemed similar to sewage. This was particularly noticeable around the pool and was not what we’d expect from a 4-star hotel.
Most of the pool loungers were already occupied by around 7:30am, so if you wanted a spot for the day, you needed to get up early. The same applies to the seafront area, if you want a good spot, it’s worth getting there before 8am as it becomes very busy.
One important safety issue we experienced was the access down to the sea. The ladder into the sea has some very sharp edges, and unfortunately my partner caught himself on one and suffered a large, deep cut. As a result, he was unable to go back into the sea or pool for the remainder of our holiday. We appreciate that accidents can happen, but the condition and design of the ladder are something the hotel should look at from a safety perspective. Also if you don’t get here early, you will need to queue to get into the sea.
The first-aid provision was also disappointing. When we needed basic supplies, they didn’t have waterproof bandages, and the plasters they did have appeared old and wouldn’t stick properly.
For anyone staying here, we’d recommend taking a small first-aid kit with you, particularly if travelling with children.
Also around the hotel, a number of the handrails on the stairs are looking very tired and worn. Some appeared to need sanding, repair or replacement, as the wood was rough enough to cause splinters. Unfortunately, our children experienced this themselves. For a family hotel, this is something that should be checked and maintained
The constant sales stuff became particularly tiring during our stay. At multiple points throughout the day around the pool, we would be approached by roughly five different sales staff, often selling different things such as boat trips, massages, henna and other activities. What made it more frustrating was that sometimes it would be the same people approaching us multiple times in the same day, even after we’d already politely declined. We completely understand that these services are part of the resort and that staff are doing their jobs, but the frequency and persistence made it difficult to properly relax. Once a guest has clearly said no, it would be much more respectful to leave it at that rather than repeatedly asking throughout the day. They can also be very pushy and don’t like no.
We also found some of the lifeguards unnecessarily strict and, at times, overly aggressive towards all children. There was constant whistling at them without it always being clear what rule they had broken. We completely appreciate the importance of pool safety, but the approach could have been much more friendly and appropriate for a family hotel.
A minor inconvenience was that we weren’t given a towel card at check-in. The following day we went to reception to ask for one, but were told to go to the towel hut. When we got there, we were told we needed the towel card first, meaning we had to walk all the way back to reception, speak to a different receptionist and collect it and then return to the towel hut. A simple issue that could easily have been avoided at check-in.
On checkout, we called reception around 30 minutes before check-out to ask if someone could collect our luggage. We were told to call again when we were ready as it would only take around two minutes for someone to arrive. We called approximately 20 minutes before check-out and then waited nearly an hour for our luggage to be collected. This was particularly frustrating when we had specifically been told it would only take a couple of minutes.
Overall, none of these issues on their own would have ruined the holiday, but taken together, they made the stay feel considerably frustrating, less comfortable, safe and organised than we expected from a 4-star Hilton.
There were certainly positives to the resort, and individual members of staff such as Khodir were excellent. However, based on our overall experience, we would struggle to rate this as a 4-star hotel. In our opinion, the overall experience was closer to what we would expect from a 2–3 star hotel, particularly in terms of service, organisation, food variety, cleanliness, safety and the condition and maintenance of the facilities."
