Solim Hotel

The sea was incredible, and there were always empty sunbeds with mattresses on the beach. Other hotels kept trying to take ours, but we found free ones every time. It was a 5-7 minute walk to the water. Food was plentiful too. We once arrived as it was running low, but there was always a main dish, along with soup and salads. Meat wasn’t always available. A neighboring hotel even told us one time that they weren’t serving dinner. The rooms were old and dirty, and there was no real cleaning. In eight days the towels were changed once, and only after I called the maid, or whoever she was. The sheets weren’t changed at all. The mop they used looked like it needed a biohazard label. We cleaned the room ourselves; fortunately, we’d seen the reviews and were somewhat prepared. The staff made us feel like a burden, as if we should’ve paid and stayed away. What looked like photos and a mini-club sign turned out to be a plastic playhouse and a slide. There was nothing for children. The hotel could have been okay with a decent owner and staff, but I’ll never go back. I’d rather pay another 10,000 for a better hotel, or stay fewer nights. Reviews said the area’s three-star hotels all had similar problems. The sea was the one thing that made this trip worthwhile.

The on-site hammam was a real highlight, and the food was great. It takes about five minutes to walk to the sea. The bar was disappointing, though, and the local alcohol didn’t compare with what we’re used to. The rooms could have been cleaner. It’s a decent hotel that matches its three-star rating.

The staff do try, and the food is fine. If you’re mainly here for the sea, it’s okay, but honestly, the hotel itself is so-so. For something sweet, get a seat near the front and head over early. Other reviews cover the rooms.

The sea was 500-600 meters away, and the sun loungers were broken in half. The pool was okay, but it closed at 6 PM for chlorination, and the fountain beside it didn’t work. Air conditioning was a plus. There was only one Russian-language TV channel, TNT. If you can, find another hotel. We returned in August 2017, and the beige hotel we’re reviewing was already close to falling apart. It didn’t come anywhere near its European star rating. They advertised it as 3+1, but it wasn’t even close to two stars. The mini-club was shut, as was the open-air mini-cafe above it. Its awning was torn and had been closed for a long time. The mini-mart at the far end was closed too. Going into the nurse’s room felt like hell. Ants were everywhere. The bathroom was awful, with black mold throughout, including the shower, and water leaking from the ceiling from the floors above. We checked five rooms, and they were all identical. In room 309 the sinks were broken. Towels and sheets were never changed, there was no soap, and toilet paper didn’t arrive until day three. The shower had no hooks for a washcloth. Hot water came once a day at 5:00 a.m.; if you missed it, that was your problem. The room and even the hallways were cleaned only once during our stay. Asking reception for help got a blunt response along the lines of “Get lost, I don’t know anything.” I should have called an ambulance. The public toilet by the bar was never cleaned and smelled so strongly of urine your eyes watered. The accessible toilet was cluttered. Plates and bar glasses were just rinsed under running water, so it wasn’t surprising to find dirty dishes. Salads were soaked in vinegar, apparently to save money and avoid preparing them as often. They were made from leftovers from the previous meal, including salami, eggs, sausages and even pasta. Sometimes the tomatoes were rotten. The menu barely changed from day to day. Don’t trust the photos: there were no beautifully arranged slices or red fish like in the pictures, though they did serve watermelon. They served cookies just once, so you had to rush at dinner to get any. The bar closed at 10. Even when they had alcohol, it was kept in a back room. They’d say there was no beer, and beer and liquor only arrived every other day. The choices were limited. The grounds were strewn with trash, especially when wind blew things off the balconies. You’d see it walking from reception past the playground on the right, or heading down to pick something up. The waiters did their jobs well, though no more than necessary. The bartender was okay. Petrovich was genuinely helpful: he assisted with my phone and even offered to drive me to the hospital. Management seemed clueless and focused on squeezing out profits until the last minute. The cleaning staff blamed being short on time, though they seemed to spend much of it on their phones. The owner, an older man with black hair, came by in the mornings and evenings. Wi-Fi was paid, despite being described as free when we bought our package. It only worked at reception, and there was no room safe. The insurance doctor arrived the next day, after it was no longer needed. He didn’t care that the $30 needed to activate insurance came to 26 euros. He took the $30, checked my blood pressure and temperature, then left without useful advice, medicine for the symptoms or an injection. The guide, Elmar from Coral Travel, was an interesting character: he makes soft beds, but they’re very hard to sleep in. The central entrance was ugly and easy to miss. Coming back from a tour, our guide stopped the bus 50 meters down the road and asked where our hotel was, since the guides looked for the central entrance of the hotel opposite, Akka. The official guides were hiking up prices. Maybe this beige hotel used to be good, but not anymore. The second hotel we saw, the red and white one, is considered four-star.