We are as you will know by now if you have read any of my reviews so far a very large family with myself and my wife and 5 children and when trying to book a holiday now we tend to go for villa's but when we only had 3 we decided to take a holiday to Turkey a bit controversial as my wife's family are Greek Cypriot.
We decided on Antalya strangly and sadly enough because I recognised the name from a tile supplier I used during my business of selling tiles.
We booked our flights and hotel package to the then 5 star Ozkaymak Hotel and off we went in Sept 2003. We got airport parking and all our flight's etc all went to plan.
Arriving at the Antayla airport we breezed through and waiting for us was our coach to transfer us an hour and a half to the hotel. After a brief stop for refreshment and for the driver to eat as he had been fasting all day we got on our
way at night I might add so everything was black.
We arrived at the hotel to a very organised welcome our bag's were taken straight to our room by very smartly dressed porters and after checking in and leaving our passports at the check in desk we were shown to our rooms.
Walking through a very grand reception with indoor fountains and no end of statues we reached some very smart and plush lifts to our floor and into our room.
The room was huge with en suite bathroom all marble as with the rest of the hotel and enough bed's comfortably for us and all the children. One down side to the room was that the cot supplied was ancient and dangerous but after refering this to the reception sincere sorrys were exchanged and a brand new cot supplied.
Our Balcony looked over the beautiful hotel gardens and out to sea this of course we only found out upon the morning sun arriving.
When we woke in the morning we explored the grounds and what grounds they were. All sorts of weird and wonderful plants and a path leading straight down to the hotel's own private beach.
The kids also went potty when they saw not only one huge pool with a massive play fountain but also a large kids pool with loads of huge waterslides. We hardly saw the children all holiday as they have staff on hand to run loads of childrens clubs from archery to dance so something for everyone.
There is also a daytime creche for the really small ones again free and very smart with great facilities to keep the little ones happy for ages.
The private beach was huge with its own Water Sports centre and beach volleyball court and even Parachuting off the back of a speed boat for the more daring. Clean and very well laid out with ample sun beds so even the Germans could not reserve them all and a little man who makes sure your happy on the beach and even comes and props up your sun umbrellas for you should you need them.
This hotel is an all inclusive hotel and scattered around the grounds are various different places to grab some food during the day and drinks these are all free and actually very nice even if slightly limited got feed up with burgers after a while.
There is also a very good kid's adventure playground outside right next to the beach and a great outdoor dining area where you can be served breakfast dinner and tea. There is also underneath the main reception area a beautiful restaurant with waiter service but be warned if you have small children the waiters are obsessed by them in a good way lol.
The food is pretty much the same each night however but it is nice and there is a selection of about 8 dishes and if you prefer outside eating they do nightly barbecues with fish and chicken being the main dishes.
Also deep down in the depths of the hotel is a wonderful spa and turkish bath where you can enjoy a super relaxing time with massages and steam rooms, indoor pool and wet room but be warned these are chargable but very very reasonable our massages with facial cost us only £8 each.
The night time entertainment really varies one night it's Bingo but really made fun by the staff (like redcoats) to Disco where the whole family can relax and have a boogey. Adult night's are also put on so be aware when these are as they won't stop you bringing the kid's and some of the games are just not for kid's eyes if you know what I mean.
The room service is fantastic not sure if I appealed to one of the cleaners but every morning on the way out I would greet here and when I returned a fresh flower had been placed on the bed and when i left a thank you letter with a lipstick kiss(strange I know I thought the same lol). The beds are made and room is spotless after every visit and believe me our 3 made a mess dont worry though a healthy tip was left 3 days salary apparently I was told upon checking out.
This hotel has its own security team posted at the main gate and gives a very welcome sense of security with passes having to be worn when you leave and return, the guards even get to recognize you so friendly and always up for a chat as are most of the staff there.
The bar area is lovely if a little small with balcony's again over looking the sea and hotel grounds a lovely place to sit with a pint and watch the sunset over the sea.
There are some limited shops within the hotel grounds but these are substantially more expensive than those 5 minutes walk outside and be warned the jewellery shop man will try to drag you in at every chance dont there are loads of jewellery shops in this area of Turkey alot cheaper than that one.
I would recommend this hotel to anyone travelling to Turkey and the area is beautiful with shops easily nearby and loads of historic places to visit and trips to go on the camels are an absolute must.
Barry
How helpful would this review be to a person making a buying decision? Rating guidelines
NH Hotels, the hotel chain leader in Europe, with more than 300 hotels in 20 countries in Europe, Latin America and Africa. Enter into our web site and find the best available tariff at all times
exceptional by (6%):
very helpful by (94%):
