Calimera Delfino Beach Resort & Spa

I have absolutely loved my stay here. The staff, especially in the restaurant, have been fantastic. A genuinely welcoming manner that really makes you feel looked after. There are ample venues and opportunities for food, snacks and drinks and we were always able to get our regular subbed spot by heading out around 8. No evidence of people putting out towels to reserve sun beds on the beach although we did see that at the adult pool, which is a nice, quiet location if the family vibe is not your thing. The local lager is very drinkable and there is plenty of variety in terms of food and drink. I would absolutely come back but my main warning would be about trips into medina. Please be wary of the “I work at your hotel. It’s my day off but let me take you to my brother’s shop” scam. Just google it and make sure you don’t get caught out.

Hotel is very clean, restaurant staff very helpful but lacks in variety of food much the same each day. Bar staff fantastic Walid in the day and Hamza on an evening in the pool bar made sure we always had drinks. Marwen collecting glass always willing to help carry drinks to tables for us. As for the entertainment team they are a credit to the hotel non stop working for these guys and always time to say hello when around the pool during the day and a chat on an evening, they made our holiday with there infectious energy thanks Rio, Bebo, Sam, Djo, Prince, Steven and the rest of the crew.

We researched this hotel carefully and generally it met our expectations. The room was gorgeous. So modern and with everything we needed for a comfortable stay. Our housekeeper Nahlia was a delight. She was smiley and really inventive with new ideas to make us smile at the end of the day. We got fresh towels and bedding changed daily too. The food was plentiful. I loved the Tunisian Corner especially. However I would second the review below regarding undercooked food. For example a shakshuka style dish contained totally raw eggs. The gala night food was exceptional. Especially the lamb soup, duck a la orange and the melting puddings. We were very disappointed with the a la carte restaurant. Although the food was lovely, it was cold both in temperature and location and extremely rushed. My husband finished his nicoise salad and staff then brought the soup out immediately despite the fact I hadnt finished eating my salad. We were looking forward to a more relaxed meal but all 4 courses were done in under an hour. We believe this was because the evening entertainment is held in the same location so staff were keen to clear the area. We personally felt this restaurant would be better in the part of the restaurant at the end overlooking the beach as it would be warmer and much less hurried. The beach was beautiful and there were always loungers free. We really appreciated the older guy who works so hard clearing rubbish and raking the sand. He was always so helpful and friendly. The pools were all lovely too. All the staff were so kind at this hotel and nothing at all was too much trouble for anyone. They made our stay really good.

A Mixed Experience – Beautiful Rooms and Beach, but Room for Improvement I'm not a particularly picky person when it comes to holidays, and I always make a point of reading reviews before booking. The reviews for this hotel made it sound like the perfect getaway, so I arrived with high expectations. Unfortunately, after spending a week here in September, I came away with mixed feelings. For what we paid and what we received, I would say it was okay, but certainly not amazing. Arrival and Check-In We were told the airport was around 45 minutes away, so being the last drop-off after a journey of 1 hour and 40 minutes wasn't the best start to the holiday. However, this isn't the hotel's fault. On arrival, we were greeted by an extremely friendly receptionist who had a great sense of humour, which was a lovely welcome. Unfortunately, our rooms weren't ready, so we had to wait a while after an already long flight and an uncomfortable coach journey. The Rooms and Cleanliness Once we finally got into our room, we were pleasantly surprised. The room was beautiful, modern, and tucked away in a peaceful location. The beds were extremely comfortable, and the room itself was a real highlight of our stay. The housekeeping team also deserves a special mention. The cleaners were always polite and friendly and did a fantastic job of keeping the rooms clean and tidy. The Pool and Beach The swimming pool area was a disappointment. There is very limited space for sunbeds, with room for perhaps ten, meaning it's not really suitable if you want to spend the day sunbathing by the pool. Most people seemed to use the grass area instead. Thankfully, the beach more than made up for this! Located just outside the restaurant and less than a two-minute walk away, it was definitely the best place to relax. There were plenty of sunbeds, the sea was lovely and clean, and the beach staff worked hard to keep the area tidy. For us, the beach was one of the biggest positives of the holiday. The Food Unfortunately, the food was one of the biggest letdowns. As this was our first visit to Tunisia, we were hoping to experience more traditional Tunisian cuisine, but we found the food generally bland and lacking in flavour and seasoning. There was plenty of food that felt more like standard international fare, such as chips and spaghetti Bolognese, rather than the local dishes we had hoped to try. We also had concerns about some of the food, including meat that appeared undercooked and fish that seemed raw. Flies around the food were another issue and something the hotel really needs to address. The Atmosphere and Entertainment One thing that really stood out was how heavily the hotel seemed to cater to German guests. During our stay, the majority of visitors appeared to be German, and much of the entertainment, food presentation and general atmosphere seemed geared towards them. Staff often greeted guests in German, which is understandable given the clientele, but it sometimes felt as though other nationalities, including English, Italian and Polish guests, were an afterthought. Even the welcome signs in the restaurant appeared to be aimed primarily at German guests. We also noticed guests reserving the best sunbeds very early in the morning and not using them until around 2 pm. Although there were fortunately enough sunbeds for everyone, it was disappointing that management didn't appear to do anything about this. The entertainment wasn't really to our taste. The children's club ran until around 9 pm, followed by tango dancing that seemed mainly aimed at German guests, before an evening show occasionally followed. Some of the shows were okay, but overall, the entertainment didn't give us much to look forward to. The entertainment team clearly worked hard, although we didn't feel they made much effort to engage with us. Whether this was because we weren't German, I can't say for certain, but it did leave us feeling a little left out. The Surrounding Area There isn't a great deal to do within walking distance of the hotel, and the surrounding area felt quite run-down. If you enjoy spending most of your holiday relaxing on the beach, this may not be a problem. However, if, like us, you prefer a bit of variety and aren't keen on the hotel's entertainment, you could find yourself getting bored fairly quickly. Final Verdict Overall, this hotel has some genuine positives, particularly the beautiful rooms, friendly housekeeping staff and lovely beach. However, the disappointing food, lack of pool space, limited entertainment and feeling that the hotel caters predominantly to one nationality took away from the overall experience. We had some enjoyable moments, but I wouldn't describe this as the perfect holiday the reviews had led me to expect. With improvements to the food quality, entertainment, guest experience and pool area, this hotel could be so much better. The good points: - Beautiful, modern and comfortable rooms. - Friendly and hardworking housekeeping staff. - Lovely, clean beach with plenty of sunbeds. - Friendly welcome at reception. The not-so-good points: - Food was bland, with concerns about some items being undercooked. - Flies around the food. - Very limited sunbathing space around the pool. - Entertainment and atmosphere seemed heavily geared towards German guests. - Limited things to do in the surrounding area. - The transfer took 1 hour and 40 minutes, despite being advertised as approximately 45 minutes. Would I return? Probably not, unless some of the issues were addressed. It wasn't a terrible holiday, but for the money we spent, I expected more.

I found the hotel to be nice and clean. We had a large family room which we were surprised with as there was only the two of us, our room was cleaned and had fresh towels every day. All staff were lovely. The hotel is fab if you like to join in all the games that the entertainment team organize during the day and like to join in with all party dances of an evening. In regards to the food, we could always find something to eat., the main problem for us is that there are a lot of large tables reserved, and hardly any tables for two so you end up walking around trying to find somewhere to sit, it would be nice if someone was directing you to a free table. I would personally not go in September as apparently this is when the flies breed and there's lots of them. There is nowhere to walk out of a night. In October the pools are freezing, I don't just mean cool I mean freezing The beach was very nice but be aware of the fish in the sea that nibble you, people that had cuts and grazes if not covered up were coming out of the sea bleeding' The shows of an evening consist of Karoke, Miss hotel, games etc and of course the entertainment team dancing and miming to different tracks. There are lots of people that say they come back year after year, in the conversations I had with people while we were there they all said that they would not come back only one man said he comes back year after year