"I’ve stayed in 8 “golf” hotels in Belek (Regnum, Maxx, Cullinan, Gloria Serenity, Gloria Golf, Gloria Verde ,Sueno and Cornelia Diamond) inc 5 different ones in the last year so able to compare Sueno deluxe with some objectivity.
Although it was only built in 2015, Sueno shows signs of wear and tear everywhere. Carpets and walls in public areas have stains, furniture is worn, bathroom fittings broken etc. Everywhere is clean but the hotel is jaded and in the worse condition of any hotel I’ve stayed in. Sueno was also the least expensive of any of the hotels so price versus quality needs to be factored in.
The food was a lower standard than the other hotels. The main dining is buffet style and the food was generally warm rather than hot however this is true of most of the other hotels. The difference was the other hotels had food stations where they replenished the food so you could choose to take food where it was likely to be fresher and warmer. Other hotels themed their daily buffets e.g. Italian, Asian so there were different daily choices whereas Sueno had the same food every day, albeit an extensive range. I usually have smoked salmon and melon for breakfast and the smoked salmon was so sloppy that I didnt eat it. The breakfast omelette station was very good when the female chef was working on it. The a la carte restaurants were only Euro 10 pp so we often ate there as the food was freshly prepared. Service was good but food quality and presentation below the al la carte restaurants of the other hotels.
Drinks service is the public areas was very mixed. I asked for drinks for both of us and they just brought one (this happened 3x). Sat in a public areas in the lobby (reading a book) where there were waiters and no one came in 45 minutes. Unlike other hotels which has “suits” overseeing areas, Sueno didnt have any visible management and waiters were very busy.
The choice of “premium” brands was very limited. Glasses were cheap, ice cubes just 2 per drink (you could ask for more), no crisps as standard (first world problem).
The hotel didnt have a 24 hours restaurant (unlike Cornelia, Serenity, Regnum etc). It also didnt have a public area to watch sport on TV although the rooms did have sports channels.
Unlike most other hotels, the bedrooms didnt have access to Netflix.
We stayed there in the winter and the biggest issue the bar areas (lobby and downstairs with no natural light) were badly designed (high ceilings, uncomfortable chairs, stone floors). The lobby bar just felt like a lobby with some seats where you could order drinks. The bar on the ground floor felt like a waiting room in bus station with no natural light. Subjective opinion and see the attached photographs. IMO, a badly designed hotel. In the summer when everything is al Fresco then the experience would be different.
The swimming pool and spa area was ok and the gym was excellent.
Our bedroom (we had upgraded) was quiet, clean with very comfortable beds. We spoke to other guests (we were at a golf tournament) and not everyone had the same positive experience. The plug in the washbasin was broken and didnt work, the tray in the shower to put shower gel was broken. The amenity kit was more limited than the other hotels. No big deal but equally, not 5*.
The 2 golf courses (Pines and Dunes) are good. Interesting design, good greens and bunkers but the tees were in poor shape. The outside bar and dining area at the golf course is nice and the service was good there.
While I don’t know how the Turkish star rating system works (in the UK it’s things like 24 hour reception, room service etc), Sueno felt like a low end 4* that needed refurbishment. The 1st prize at the golf tournament was a free 4 night break holiday to the hotel. When the other competitors are joking that the 2nd prize is 2 weeks at the hotel then you know the hotel is a bit of a disappointment.
If the hotel has somewhere pleasant indoors to drink in the evening then I would have scored it as average taking in to account price and quality. But it didnt and the other golfers I spoke to wouldn’t return there. In summary, just the wrong side of OK and if I owned the hotel, I would refurbish and modernize it."
