"We booked our holiday through a well known package company and flew into Dubrovnik. Perhaps of relevance at the time of writing, passage through Dubrovnik airport was without issue and no undue queueing or delays.
The Hotel Kompas is situated in the north corner of the Uvala Lapad bay, a bay which is much smaller than we expected from a cursory glance on Google Earth. The building is an inverted L shape which means one portion looks across the bay whilst the other faces out to sea
On our arrival (last off the coach, and about an hour from Dubrovnik airport), the coach stopped at the top of the drive as it was too big to pull into the drive alongside the hotel entrance. It was a short slope down towards the entrance and reception. Reception at the Kompas is at the top of the hotel, on the 10th floor. The Reception area itself is quite spacious with a fantastic view out towards the sea. Staff were extremely welcoming on our arrival and quickly sorted out the necessary paperwork to complete our check-in. A member of staff then took charge of our luggage and showed us to our room. We and our friends each booked a “Double Deluxe Sea View with Balcony”. Our room was on the 9th floor (921) and faced across the bay whilst our friends were on the 8th floor facing in the direction of the sea.
Our room was light and spacious with plentiful wardrobe space and hangers. There was also plenty of room to store our suitcases. There is a fridge stocked with the usual items, tea/coffee making facilities and a safe. Staff were very keen to emphasis the purity of the water which is safe to drink from the tap. There were two single beds, configured as a double.
The bathroom layout provided plenty of room for holding toiletry bags etc. The bathroom offered a shower over the bath configuration.
The balcony was of a good size and included two low back chairs with a small table. Herein, lay our first negative in that our room faced across the bay and was directly facing two large conifer trees which appear to be in the garden of a property immediately in front of the hotel. This property is separated from the hotel by a high wall which I suspected would block lower room views (see photos). Our friends who were on the 8th floor and faced seawards indicated on our last day that their view was blocked by a wall. I’m the first one to hold my hand up and say we did not complain about the view and so cannot comment on how this issue would have been treated.
The hotel itself was spotlessly maintained and all of the staff at all times very, very friendly and efficient. We would particularly commend the restaurant staff for the friendliness and politeness. On the subject of the restaurant, our stay was on a half board basis. It was possible to take meals inside or outside on the terrace. Breakfast each day was very good, offering a variety of cooked and cold dishes. I was particularly impressed on two days of our stay to see crumble on offer at breakfast. Alas, the apparent absence of custard, and thoughts of my waist meant I declined. Dinner, the main course in particular, sadly was a different matter. The choice of food on offer was somewhat limited and not the most appetising. Also, whilst the terrace located musical entertainment was high quality, we found it rather loud and we were sat inside the hotel.
The Uvala Lapad Beach area did not offer an awful lot for us. There was a pleasant walk along the coast from the hotel but otherwise it was along a single street lined with restaurants past the fountain to the bus stop for Dubrovnik. We are not sit by the pool people or sea swimmers and so felt the resort had little to offer. The number 6 bus and the number 4 bus both get you into Dubrovnik relatively easily (be prepared that the number 6 can be very, very, very busy). We opted to go to Dubrovnik twice and from there on to Lokram Island one day, and Cavtat on another day. Both days were very enjoyable.
A number of the excursions on offer were 8hr days, not for us. We did take the Tuk Tuk outing to the top cable car station which gave us good (the best) views of Dubrovnik. Better viewed from above than inside to my mind.
Summarising, the Hotel itself and the room were excellent. Some Deluxe rooms with sea view and balcony have a view that does not match expectations, all staff were excellent, main course dinner on a half board basis was not good. Lapad as a resort offered limited attractions for those not interested in sunbathing or swimming. If you accept the limitations of the resort, my advice would be bed and breakfast."
