"We arrived late, the second to last stop on the EasyJet coach. The hotel front of house immediately gave us AI wrist bands and said to go straight into dinner as it was finishing soon and that we could check in afterward. After a long day travelling this was a relief as I didn’t think we’d get any dinner.
I must apologise to all the wonderful staff who’s names I do not know. I am terrible at getting names and remembering them. The were all really excellent.
After dinner we went back to check in and met a lovely lady who took us through the process, explained in detail all the mealtimes, how to book the restaurants (Italian and seafood), towels, currency exchange, and answered any questions we had. I had also emailed the hotel in advance to ask about upgrading my room from a double to a family room. They had my request on the system and were able to accommodate it. This was excellent as it gave my teen son a bit more privacy at bedtime.
We were on the first floor; the main bed was a superking and very comfy. DS had his own single bed behind a half wall and trellis. There was air con, that didn’t feel like it was doing much till you came back in the room after being outside! There was plenty of storage, a fridge and a safe. Shower pressure was fine and always warm water available. There were two bottles of still water in the room when we arrived. Maid service was great, we didn’t use it every day (Teen sleeps till midday!), but had no complaints about the cleanliness in the room or around the hotel.
The two bigger pools were salt water, but that wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be. The smaller pool and heated indoor pool were normal chlorine water. We never had a problem getting a sunbed, the pool/beach staff were always able to find some, even if we didn’t always get the best spots as we came down so late. The kids had fun on the slides, and we also did the aqua aerobics and archery which, along with darts and boules, is around the main pool with the slides. The pools were cold getting in at first, but fine once in. The heated indoor pool was lovely; however, the gym next door plays some horrifically loud music when there is a spin class on.
We had no problems with the food and always found plenty to eat. Lunch at the beach can get very busy with a lack of seating. The lunch in the main restaurant was really good. Our waiter in the evening was amazing, looked after us so well. I don’t normally do tipping (being British not American the expectation irks me!) however, our waiter was thoroughly deserving of a few tips along the way as he truly went above and beyond with our service. Breakfast had the typical continental mix of cheese, meat, pastries, yogurt, grains, fruit (not the best selection) and then the cooked options, lots of local foods along with a egg station making omelettes and fried eggs. Also, a pancake station and fresh beignet’s which were delicious. Lunch always had a pasta station – warning potions are very big, along with pizza, burgers, chicken, (they kept pulling the wings off and just serving the breast and legs so hubby asked for some wings and was given the lot!) mash, chips, rice, salads etc. Dinner again, different Tunisian dishes each night along with a cooked meat which was sometimes over cooked, but my son asked for some fresh steak with just a quick sear and got it perfect, vegetable, potato and rice sides along with salads and of course lots of desserts. Everything is labelled in English, so you know what it is. Seating is random throughout the day, but on an evening, you pick a dinner slot (5:30 or 8pm) and have an assigned seating. We never tried the al a cart restaurants as we were happy with the main one.
The main reception bar where we went in the evening before dinner did the full range of drinks, but far too strong. I’d order a cuba libre, a coke and an empty glass and split the drink and top it up with the extra coke. The bar by the pool/stage had a full selection as well and we often got drinks from there when watching the evening entertainment which consisted of karaoke, local dance shows, musicians and earlier in the night a kids disco which we missed by having the later dinner option. There is another indoor bar, but we didn’t really go there, the outside seating area near it seemed to be mainly smokers. The beach bar only serves soft drinks/water – bottled water is sparkling, still water comes out of a water cooler, so bring empty bottles of still water to top up (these can be obtained from the main reception bar area). There is a small beer bar around the corner, just serving beer on tap. The bar near the water slides only serves soft drinks, beer and wine. I didn’t like the red wine, but the white was okay.
We took one trip out to El Jem Amphitheatre/colosseum. I spoke with the lovely lady at reception again and she arranged a taxi for us to take us there, hang around and then bring us back. It took about an hour to get there and cost 12 Dinar each for entry. Stunning site and amazingly intact.
One of our party is a wheelchair user, the hotel is not to UK standards for accessibility. The ramps that were there were often very steep. The main route to the pools/beach had stairs only so the wheelchair had to go out the front and around the buildings, a much longer trip. The walkways were uneven, a crazy paving style that looked great, but not so good for pushing someone. Staff were always willing to help and lift/carry, but someone shouldn’t have to be carried to get to the facilities. Their bathroom had a walk-in shower, but no handrails or seat.
We went end of October and had excellent weather. Personally, I prefer a smaller quieter hotel, but I can’t complain about the facilities and the service was top notch."
