SG Festa Winter Palace

The food here is horrific. Even if you’re first to breakfast, it’s cold. The men working in the ski depot are unbelievably miserable and rude. Festa staff, on the other hand, are lovely and polite, and the rooms are clean and spacious. The location is great. I’d only recommend staying here without food, then you’ll have a great time.

Borovets isn’t the right place for skiing in December. There was no snow and no slopes were open, and with no snow there’s nothing to do in winter. The hotel is near the ski lift, but breakfast and the fitness room were below expectations.

We had an awful meal here. It took an hour and a half for the food to arrive, and only two of the four dishes came out cold and dry. Twenty minutes later the other two arrived stone cold. There was only one other table in the restaurant, so they couldn’t blame being busy. When I complained, the general manager said, “23 euros is not an expensive meal, you are from England,” then told me, “just pay your bill and leave a bad review, I don’t care.” I wouldn’t recommend this place.

The pool water was a real surprise, properly warm at 29 degrees, and the whole hotel felt warm too. The place is a little dated, but the staff and manager Yordan made up for it.