Karmir Resort and Spa Hotel

The hotel was not what we expected. Booking was easy but the according to the website the hotel seemed like it would be like any other 5 star hotel. It really wasn’t. We have been to Turkey ten times prior to this time so we was expecting a little more.

Here’s the list of pros and cons.

Cons: Family Room was very small for five people. Only one bathroom and toilet. Beds were super uncomfortable and the sheets were even worse. No shampoo and conditioner unlike other hotels.

Main restaurant finishes by 9pm so if you’re a little later like even 8.30pm you have warm food and not loads of options. No grill or pasta station. More traditional foods which doesn’t always work well with young kids.

Beach was only 5/7mins walk but you have to cross a busy road to get to the other side and then a couple of mins walk to the beach. Again, a little unsafe for children that may want to go by themselves. This isn’t reflected on love holidays website.

No wifi in the room. You have to pay 5euros per phone per night! WiFi only in the lobby for free.

Not much for kids to do. Entertainment could be better.

No indoor swimming pool during summer period which sometimes we would have liked to use when it was too hot to be outside. No jacuzzi.

Towels are only given once until 11am.

If you wanted to book al la carte, you have to pay 25euros per person - other hotels do this for free.

Last day, we were told we had to pay 25euros per person just to have dinner - we always have a late flight and never have any of the other hotels ever mentioned us having to pay. So this definitely took us by surprise.

No guest relations to help with any issues. Reception staff don’t seem to happy to want to help with any issues you might have.

Pros: Hotel was smaller than we expected, however we could always spot and find the children (ages9, 11 and 12) quickly.

Loved the Turkish snack resturant (lamachun and flatbread).

No queues in any of the restaurants

Always found a sunbed

Zakariya in the spa was a lovely person to deal with in the spa. And my massage therapist was great.

Overall we would give the hotel and love holidays 2.5/5

This is definitely not a 5-star hotel.

Unfortunately, our experience was far below what you would expect from a 5-star property. The room had no bathrobe and barely any basic toiletries — not even shampoo, conditioner, or similar essentials.

The pool and bathroom areas were constantly untidy and poorly maintained.

The bar was another major disappointment. The alcoholic drinks were so heavily diluted with water that they had virtually no taste. The quality of the cocktails depended on how busy the bar was. If there was no queue, they might actually mix the ingredients properly. If there were many people waiting, they would simply pour some syrup and what was supposedly alcohol into a glass and call it a cocktail.

Most of the dishes and glasses were dirty or poorly washed, and we often had to search for clean ones ourselves. Much of the food was also tasteless and disappointing.

As for the staff, they were generally inattentive, unfriendly, and unprofessional. We rarely received a smile or a polite interaction. Most employees seemed to be doing their jobs simply because they had to, rather than because they cared about providing good service.

The worst experience was with the reception staff on our departure day. Our transfer was scheduled for midnight, so we asked for a late check-out. We were told this was not possible because the hotel was fully booked. I specifically asked whether, despite checking out of the room, we could still stay on the hotel premises and use the facilities and have meals. I was clearly told that we could use everything except the room.

We spent the entire day at the pool and went to dinner in the evening, only to be refused entry to the restaurant. I asked the staff to confirm the information with the manager because I had specifically clarified this issue earlier, but they still refused.

Another receptionist then spoke to us extremely rudely. She claimed that her colleague had meant that only lunch was included and that we had simply misunderstood. She repeatedly insisted that her colleague had worked there for 11 years and therefore “could not make a mistake,” meaning that we were the ones who were wrong.

No alternative solution was offered, despite the fact that I was travelling with my child. At one point, she literally threw a piece of paper at me and told me that I should have read the rules and that she should not have to explain them to me.

This was an extremely disappointing experience from beginning to end.

I absolutely do not recommend this hotel. If you expect 5-star service, cleanliness, quality food, and professional staff, I strongly suggest choosing another hotel. If you don’t want to receive the same poor service we experienced, stay away from this place.