Albizia Hotel

The reception staff were kind, and hot water came through within seconds. The hotel is close to the shore, which suited us while we were in transit. The rooms are a bit shabby, with corroded walls, and you can hear conversations from next door. The hallways also show that maintenance could be better. Breakfast was quite expensive for the small selection. I also have to mention the kitchen lady’s close watch: she came out to the terrace about five times to see why I kept returning to the buffet. She could have put a buttered croissant on a dessert plate, since there were no larger plates.

Albizia Beach Hotel Varna has lovely sea views and is very close to the beach. Our room was spacious, with a nice sea-facing terrace, and the bathroom was clean. There were also three hot tubs. Still, several problems made the stay unpleasant. We had booked a large double bed but were first given two single beds. After asking to change rooms, we moved to another one, where we found holes in the door, a large cut in the curtain, and a dried bloodstain on the bedsheet when we arrived. The minibar had sealed salt sticks past their expiry date, with no visible sign they had spoiled. The terrace door wouldn’t open all the way because tiles underneath it had been placed incorrectly. A few days later, an insect crawled out from behind the minibar. The worst issue was mold inside the air conditioning unit. After using it for a day, we noticed an effect on our breathing, and sometimes the room smelled moldy, humid, and generally stale. That felt unhealthy and unacceptable. We reported the issues to reception, but they only said they knew about some of them and apologized for the inconvenience. They didn’t offer a solution or compensation, which was disappointing. The outside walls and hotel sign were in poor shape, with paint peeling and coming off in several places. Breakfast was another letdown. At 9 euros, we expected more than the very limited options, and the taste wasn’t good. Despite the beautiful setting and views, the room condition, cleanliness, mold, and lack of response make it hard to recommend Albizia Beach Hotel.

We first stayed here in 2017, and we’re coming back this summer. We live in Los Angeles and have stayed in lots of hotels, but the breakfast here is one of a kind. It’s literally homemade food, and I hope the lovely ladies who cooked it in 2017 are still there. The place is clean, super friendly, and just 10 steps from the beach. The road to the hotel was the only thing we hated, it’s narrow and the drivers are bad, but that wasn’t enough to take away a star. We loved the place 😊

We booked a room with two beds and a sea view, but when we arrived the staff basically told us to feel lucky to get either the view or two beds. Then they blamed us for not booking properly, which was pathetic and embarrassing, and later just told us to seek compensation from booking. The reception service was incompetent and impolite. That’s how a hotel turns a good customer into a dissatisfied one. Worst customer service I’ve had in Bulgaria.