Eftalia Marin

"We stayed at Eftalia Marin and came away with quite mixed feelings. There are definitely some things this hotel does very well, but there are also several issues which, for us, prevented it from being a 4- or 5-star experience. ✅The positives Let's start with the strongest point: the service. The staff were genuinely excellent. They were polite, friendly and helpful throughout our stay, and whenever we needed assistance, they were generally happy to help. This was probably the best part of our experience, and the staff deserve real credit. The hotel itself is also beautiful, modern and generally very clean. The public areas were well maintained and our room was cleaned regularly. We had no significant complaints about the cleanliness of the room. The food was also good. There was plenty of choice and, although there were a few things that could have been better, overall we enjoyed the food and never struggled to find something to eat. The resort is also huge, with lots of pools, water slides, facilities and things for families to do. If you are travelling with children, there is certainly a lot to keep them occupied. ☝️All Inclusive Plus — technically yes, but... This is probably the most important point to explain fairly. You can absolutely have a holiday within the All Inclusive Plus package without constantly spending money. The hotel provides plenty of food, snacks and drinks, and the official hotel information lists breakfast, lunch, dinner, snack options, patisserie, pool/beach snack areas and ice cream at certain times. The hotel also states that some local alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks are included. However, the problem is what happens when you want something beyond the basic package. easyJet describes All Inclusive Plus as offering everything from standard All Inclusive plus additional benefits, which can include branded drinks and other extras depending on the hotel. At the same time, easyJet also makes clear that the exact inclusions vary from hotel to hotel. At Eftalia Marin, many of the things that make the resort look more premium are available for an additional charge. For example: • ice cream advertised at £3 • cocktails around £9–£11 • private gazebos from £20 to £50 • room upgrades and various other additional services So while you can certainly remain within your All Inclusive Plus package, there is a constant feeling of “this is available — but you'll need to pay extra for it.” That was disappointing for us, especially because the whole concept of All Inclusive Plus naturally creates an expectation that more of the premium experience will already be included. The official hotel information also makes some distinctions that aren't necessarily obvious when you simply hear “All Inclusive Plus”. For example, the hotel's current information says that cocktails, foreign alcoholic drinks, Turkish coffee and fresh orange juice are charged separately. ❓Why are so many prices in pounds? Another thing that really caught my attention was the currency. We were in Turkey, but many of the additional services around the resort were advertised in British pounds. Seeing £3 ice cream, £9–£11 cocktails and gazebos costing up to £50 certainly gives the impression that a significant part of the resort's additional business is aimed at British holidaymakers. Maybe this is simply because the resort has a very large British customer base, but as a British tourist myself, I found it quite noticeable. ⛱️The beach The beach was another significant disappointment. The resort is enormous, and getting from the hotel to the beach took us roughly 10–15 minutes on foot. The walk itself wouldn't necessarily be a problem, except that the route involves an underground tunnel which frequently smelled very unpleasant. This wasn't just something I noticed once. We experienced the smell repeatedly, and I saw other guests literally covering their noses while walking through the tunnel. Once you reach the beach, there is another issue. 🌊The sea entrance is very rocky and slippery Getting into the sea can be genuinely difficult. There are large and small stones, uneven surfaces and very slippery areas. You need to be extremely careful when entering or leaving the water because it would be very easy to slip, twist an ankle or hurt your feet. I appreciate that a natural beach cannot simply be redesigned, but in my opinion the access to the sea could be made much safer and more comfortable. There were also regularly “Caution – Wet Floor” signs around the resort and on the route towards the beach. Obviously, wet surfaces are unavoidable around a swimming resort, but seeing these signs so frequently reinforced my feeling that the area could be safer. 🚭Smoking This is a more personal criticism, but it affected my experience quite a lot. I don't smoke. In the evenings, however, smoking was extremely common around the outdoor seating areas. Almost every time we sat outside, there were people smoking cigarettes nearby. In normal circumstances this might not bother everyone, but combine cigarette smoke with the hot Turkish weather, and I found it genuinely uncomfortable to sit there for any length of time. We sometimes moved upstairs, although that didn't completely solve the problem, and on some evenings we simply left the area. I understand that this is partly a personal preference and not necessarily something every guest will consider a problem, but for non-smokers it is definitely worth knowing. 🪂Activities and entertainment There are plenty of activities and entertainment options, but organisation could be better. The resort is so large that it isn't always obvious where something is happening or what time it starts. You often have to look for the information beforehand and then make your way across a huge complex to find it. Compared with other hotels we have stayed at, I felt that the activities and entertainment could have been communicated and organised more clearly. The huge size of the resort is both a strength and a weakness: there is a lot to do, but sometimes it feels like you are spending too much time trying to find out where you are supposed to be. ❓Would I return? This is where I find it difficult to give a simple yes or no. If you are looking for a large family resort with lots of pools, slides, food options and facilities, Eftalia Marin has plenty to offer. The staff are excellent, the hotel is beautiful and clean, and the food is generally good. But for us, the overall experience was dragged down by the constant availability of paid extras, the unpleasant tunnel to the beach, difficult rocky sea access, the amount of cigarette smoke around the evening seating areas and the sometimes confusing organisation of activities. I don't think Eftalia Marin is a bad hotel. I think it is a hotel with a lot going for it, but also a lot of small frustrations that add up during a holiday. Excellent service and a beautiful resort, but the overall experience didn't live up to what we expected from an All Inclusive Plus holiday."

"Overall, we had a really good experience at Eftalia Marin and, considering what we paid, I think it represents good value for money. Our original “Large Family Room” was unfortunately nowhere near as large as we expected, so we paid an extra £100 to upgrade to a two room apartment. This was a much better option — comfortable, spacious and cleaned every day, with fresh towels available whenever needed. The beds were a little on the hard side, but otherwise the accommodation was good. The hotel and facilities were generally very clean and well maintained. The pool area is probably a little small for the number of guests, but the staff were always helpful and would do their best to find you a sun lounger. The Eftalia Island Aquapark was a real highlight and there was plenty to keep everyone entertained. The beach was okay, although it wasn’t the cleanest or nicest beach we’ve visited. Food was generally very good, with a huge amount of choice, and we never had any problems finding something we liked. Drinks were more mixed — the beer was good, but the local spirits were pretty awful! Entertainment was also good, with plenty going on during the day and some good bands and other entertainment in the evenings, so you’re certainly not short of things to do. Unfortunately, the biggest issue for us was some of the clientele. The pools were closed several times because of people using them as toilets, and on one occasion there was even faeces found next to an indoor bar. There was also quite a lot of litter and cigarette ends being left around the pool despite bins being provided. Obviously, this isn’t something the hotel can completely control, but it did affect the overall experience. As others have mentioned, there are also some things the hotel could improve, particularly the constant upselling of so-called premium products and having certain bars closed, meaning you sometimes have to walk through the whole hotel just to get a drink. Overall, though, we really enjoyed ourselves. It’s definitely not a 5 star hotel and there are improvements that could be made, but at the price we paid, we felt it was good value. I would recommend Eftalia Marin if you’re looking for a good all-inclusive family holiday on a budget, especially if you want plenty of facilities, food choices and entertainment."

"Excellent Holiday at Eftalia Marin We had a wonderful holiday at Eftalia Marin. The hotel is spacious, clean and offers a huge variety of activities for both adults and children. There are several swimming pools, water slides, a beautiful beach and plenty of entertainment throughout the day. The staff deserve special praise. Everyone was friendly, helpful and always willing to assist with a smile. Our room was comfortable and clean, and the housekeeping service was very good. We especially enjoyed the access to Eftalia Island, where there is always something to do. The atmosphere was lively and enjoyable, and we had a fantastic time throughout our stay. Overall, we were very happy with our experience at Eftalia Marin and would definitely recommend this hotel. We would be happy to come back again!"