Royal Asarlik Beach

I’m going to give an honest and fair review on our stay at this hotel, firstly I’ll speak about the room we stayed in, it was very dated and the shower wasn’t great and the room is just desperately in need of being decorated as even the wallpaper is peeling off. We checked in and arrived late at the hotel approximately 1am and went straight up to our room only to be woken up by a cleaner at 7.40am after she knocked on 3 times repetitively. Anyway we woke up and went for breakfast and was actually shocked at how bad it was and the food was cold, we sat at a table and asked the waiter if we could have an orange juice to which he said no, we asked for apple juice and he said no there’s only water and cherry, no fizzy drinks were available either. After this we went down to the pool and the pool area was nice which we really enjoyed although in the mornings we did often come down to dirty tables from the evening before where people had been drinking plus they have little plant pots for smokers to put their cigarettes out in and the plant pots would sometimes have water in with food floating about and cigarette ends which wasn’t a pleasant site. The towel service was helpful but the times often varied for when the hotel staff would be there to hand them out. During the day around the pool they have a snack bar which had burgers and fresh pizza and chips being made for most of the afternoon and this is the only food we had there which was edible and fresh and warm. Also the waiters at the bar around the pool put a crate of water on the counter which then goes warm rather than go to the fridge to get a bottle each time someone asks for one. There’s also ice cream and waffles available during the afternoon which was nice. Moving on to dinner in the evening now, well what a shambles when it was opening time people were queuing up next to each other no social distancing at all whatsoever literally back to back and the food was just as bad as breakfast if not worse, the same meals were on offer most nights with a choice of two meats, one was a fish with its tail and head still on and the other was normalmy either like a beef or liver stew type which was sat cold and stagnant and the meat was hard to chew. Again there was an issue with drinks with the buffet restaurant running about of beer two nights on the trot plus they ran out of gin and wine one night, They also ran out of beer downstairs at the pool plus said they had no ingredients to make mojito cocktails. When we booked this holiday it said we would receive a meal from each of the a la carte restaurants which we looked forward to but none of them were open and haven’t been all season apparently but that’s an issue we’re taking up with jet2. We ended up eating out every evening because the limited food on offer was so bad, I’m not really someone that participates in pool games and activity during the day but if you are then be warned they don’t invite english people to play along and the entertainment staff spoke mostly in Turkish as well during these games when talking on the microphone so we didn’t have a clue what was being said anyway.

We booked very last minute to have a short break. With the way the world is at the moment didn’t know what to expect. As we arrived our case was taken to be sprayed and we were guided in through a one way system (shame people don’t take note of this!). All staff wear masks, there is plenty of hand sanitizer around and they have spare masks around as well. We had a nice, clean modern room with a fridge, there was a safe and toiletries available. You are given a card to collect towels each day for the beach/pool, which are very handy to have. There are 2 pool areas. The one on the side of the hotel has a lot of wooden loungers. No pads on them which makes them uncomfortable after a while but the area is nice and clean and has a bar. The only thing we found was there is constant music here, which around 3-4pm gets so loud we left at this time....Much too noisy to relax by the pool. The other pool area is lovely. It has 2 sections and a spa pool area in the middle. The water is a nice temperature and the area is clean and tidy. Most of the restaurants are closed but the snack area by this pool is open and the buffet there is open as well. Also, there is an ice cream area in the Italian restaurant (as this is closed) which has waffles and ice cream to die for!!! Go down to the steps to the beach area. Always sun beds available, but should there be none the staff bring some down for you (if space). It’s not a sandy beach, it’s small stones beach and heading out into the sea there are some rocks...so wear reef shoes. ... once in, it is lovely. They have loads of water sports and even exercise in the sea. All the staff are really helpful and friendly. I must mention Ogun, he went out of his way to help all customers especially when by the pool. He would see you running out of a drink and bring you another over or come and ask if you wanted another. He was friendly and helpful. They all work long shifts and yet stay so friendly, thank you to all the staff. The main restaurant on the top of the building (floor6) is ok...not great but ok ... We went for our first nights main meal. Nothing special but edible. The following morning we went for breakfast...well to be honest it was terrible!!! I’ve never seen cauliflower out for breakfast before. Don’t expect anything special... we only had toast and marmalade. Food wise a light breakfast, snack bar food good but main meal we went out for. Taxi to get you around are just up the road in the left and are really cheap. One issue we had at the hotel though. My husband put a bracelet he wore in the bedside table one night, left it there the next day while we went out and when we came back and he went to put it on it had gone!! We went to reception to report it, they didn’t seem at all surprised which we were shocked about and made no apologies or tried in anyway to be helpful over it. Shame about this. Holiday not spoilt and hubby learnt a lesson but doesn’t take it away from the fact that he had something stolen from our room. We would go again....but don’t leave anything in your room.