Side Royal Palace

There are some genuinely wonderful things about this hotel, but unfortunately, there are also several aspects that really let it down. First and foremost, the staff are an absolute credit to the hotel. From the cleaners and waiters to the chefs and other members of staff, everyone was genuinely lovely, hardworking and helpful. A special mention must go to Güner, who made the most absolutely delicious gözleme every day. What a gem of a woman! She was a real highlight of our holiday, and her gözleme were simply incredible. Another special thank you to Fatma, who took such wonderful care of our room. She was always so lovely, and her attention to detail was fantastic. The hotel itself was exceptionally clean, and the housekeeping team clearly work incredibly hard. The food was another huge positive. Absolutely delicious, with an impressive variety of dishes every day. I particularly appreciated the amount of traditional Turkish food available. Turkish cuisine is fantastic, and it was lovely to have the opportunity to enjoy so much of it. I would also highly recommend visiting the hotel's lovely coffee shop. The staff there were equally delightful, and it was such a pleasant, relaxing place to sit and unwind. Unfortunately, this is where the positives end. My biggest frustration was how overwhelmingly the hotel caters to German guests, seemingly at the expense of everyone else. Let me be clear: I have absolutely no issue with welcoming German tourists. What I do take issue with is a hotel in Türkiye behaving as though every single guest is German. We were constantly addressed in German before anyone even established what language we spoke. Entertainment was predominantly presented in German, German music featured heavily, and there seemed to be very little consideration for guests of other nationalities. At times, it genuinely felt as though we were holidaying in Germany rather than Türkiye. And that is such a shame because Turkish culture is absolutely beautiful and has so much to offer! There was one Turkish night, which was lovely, but why stop there? Where was the Turkish music, the celebration of local traditions, the atmosphere that makes visiting Türkiye so special? Even the Retro Night was disappointing. So many familiar songs had been transformed into electronic dance versions, alongside plenty of German music. It felt as though the entertainment was designed almost exclusively around one nationality rather than creating an enjoyable experience for everyone. Something else that disappointed me was the behaviour of some guests towards the staff. We witnessed several instances of people being quite dismissive and, frankly, rude towards employees who were working incredibly hard. Some couldn't even manage a simple greeting or thank you. Of course, this doesn't apply to everyone, but it was unpleasant to witness, especially considering how lovely the staff were. My advice to the hotel? Embrace your Turkish identity! You are in a country with an extraordinary culture, wonderful traditions, beautiful music, incredible hospitality and delicious cuisine. Celebrate it! Don't dilute everything to accommodate one particular nationality. Guests travelling to Türkiye should be encouraged to experience what makes the country special, rather than expecting it to resemble home. By all means, welcome guests from everywhere, but make everyone feel included and, above all, be proud of where you are. Another major issue was the complete lack of consideration for non-smokers. You could be peacefully enjoying the sunshine on your sunbed one minute, and the next feel as though you'd been transported back to a smoky restaurant in the 1980s. The poolside terrace was exactly the same. Cigarette smoke was constantly drifting across seating areas, making it difficult to relax and enjoy the surroundings. We also noticed people smoking on their balconies, sometimes with their balcony doors wide open, allowing the smoke to drift back into their rooms. I appreciate that people smoke, but surely designated smoking areas would be a reasonable compromise? Non-smokers should be able to enjoy the hotel's outdoor facilities without constantly breathing in other people's cigarette smoke. The upstairs terrace entertainment was another disappointment. Our room was directly by the terrace, and the music was sometimes ridiculously loud. I'm not exaggerating when I say that we had to raise our voices just to hear each other having a conversation. I understand that hotels provide evening entertainment, and that's absolutely fine, but there needs to be some consideration for guests whose rooms are nearby. The volume was completely excessive. And if you're visiting in October, don't expect a particularly exciting entertainment programme. We found it very underwhelming, repetitive and generally disappointing. There was very little that made us want to stay and watch. Would I return? Unfortunately, no. Not because of the food, cleanliness or staff, all of which were excellent, but because the overall atmosphere simply wasn't what I wanted from a holiday in Türkiye. If I wanted a predominantly German-language holiday experience, I would visit Germany. When I travel to Türkiye, I want to experience Türkiye. Its culture, music, traditions, atmosphere and hospitality are precisely what make the country such a wonderful destination. I cannot emphasise enough how exceptional the staff were. They deserve genuine recognition, and I sincerely hope the management appreciates just how much they contribute to the guest experience. Güner, Fatma and all the hardworking members of staff: thank you for making our stay so much more enjoyable. You were without question the best thing about this hotel. It's just a shame that the hotel's approach to entertainment, cultural identity and guest comfort lets down what could otherwise be a fantastic holiday experience.

We stayed at this hotel with our family for three nights. The family rooms were nice and the staff members we interacted with were friendly and helpful. However, as a British Pakistani Muslim family, we found the atmosphere among some of the other guests extremely uncomfortable. During our stay, the hotel appeared to be predominantly occupied by German families, and we were the only British Pakistani Muslim family we noticed. We experienced repeated staring from other guests, including prolonged looks in communal areas and while eating. On several occasions, we also heard people muttering in German while looking towards us. We cannot know exactly what was being said, but the repeated behaviour made us feel very uncomfortable and as though we were being judged simply for being different. This unfortunately affected our enjoyment of the holiday. We appreciate that a hotel cannot control every individual guest’s behaviour, but we do feel hotels should be mindful of how minority guests experience the atmosphere and should make everyone feel equally welcome and respected. The rooms and staff themselves were positive aspects of our stay, but unfortunately the behaviour of some other guests left us feeling uncomfortable and isolated. For this reason, based on our personal experience, we would not choose to stay here again. I am sharing this review mainly to give other potential guests an honest idea of what our experience was like during a September stay, particularly for other British Pakistani Muslim families or guests from minority backgrounds who may be considering this hotel. I am not trying to generalise about German people or suggest that every German guest behaved this way. This is simply our personal experience of the atmosphere we encountered during our three-night stay, and I feel it is important to be honest about it so that others can make an informed decision when choosing their holiday accommodation.

Very nice hotel with helpful people,the foods were very delicious,the rooms are clean,the staff is really nice. The foods on the seaside restaurant were also delicious, Hassan helped us in everything,he is really friendly and nice. The cocktails are so yummy. We are definitely coming back in every year.

That was the best hotel I visited in my life. Nice country, nice people. The seaside restaurant is excellent, Hassan was so nice and helpful, he helped us in everything. We are definitely going back with the whole family.

[Romanian guests, but TripAdvisor won’t let me select “Romania” as the region I come from]. So, my husband and I stayed at this hotel (the “old” one, Side Royal Palace) for 7 nights and all in all the experience was a pleasant one. What we liked: - The rooms were nice and well cleaned; - The hotel was clean, as so were the public bathrooms; - The hotel is within a walking distance from the beach (a 4-5 minutes walk). Also, there is a shuttle from the hotel; - The food was tasty, the vegetables and fruits were fresh. A few dishes (not all of them) were a bit repetitive indeed, but it didn’t bother us since they were good and there were a lot of options to choose from. I highly recommend trying the local - Turkish food, since they really know how to cook it. Indeed, the international dishes (such as burgers) were not very flavory. However if you visit a foreign country, it is quite obvious that the locals will master their local cuisine. We also had dinner at the Sultan’s restaurant and have been served traditional Turkish food which was delicious; - The drinks were also good (mineral water, sodas, teas, coffee) and the cocktails were made on the spot from local alcoholic drinks; - There is a bar by the pool that is opened 24/7, so if you want to grab a coffee early in the morning before breakfast, that’s your place; - The staff was polite and welcoming, smiling and willing to help. We didn’t feel like they were expecting a tip, they behaved properly with or without tipping. It is true that they are not fluent in English, however we didn’t feel like this was an inconvenience, since we could communicate our requests and they did understand without any problems (they seem to speak better German though); What we didn’t like: - The beach-cleaning process could get some improving. There were some bottles, leftover cigarettes, straws and other things left in the sand by tourists. Even though it is disrespectful for the tourists to leave garbage behind, I think the hotel should take better care of the beach and clean it properly. The employees did remove the bottles and other bigger garbage left, but there were still cigarettes leftovers, straws and other small pieces of garbage in the sand, which was unpleasant; - The beach bar opens at 10 a.m., a bit late for those who enjoy an early beach visit; however, starting at 8 a.m., you can get bottled water and some soda from the fridge on the beach (that’s separate from the beach bar); - We found a bug in the bathroom on our last night, right before checking out; - There was no food whatsoever available for those who departed early. In theory, the restaurant is open from 1:00-4:00. Despite this, we couldn’t find anything suitable to eat. There were some tomatoes and olives but we couldn’t find anything else, so we left without eating. It would have been nice to have something else, such as a slice of bread and some butter, nothing very complex or complicated; - Even though we love cats and appreciate the care the Turkish people show towards them, I think it is a bit unhygienic to let them wander through the hotel’s restaurant and sit on the sofas and chairs in the lobby. If they are not dewormed or untreated for parasites, it could be dangerous for the tourists. My husband found himself having plenty of flea bites on his legs and arms and we suspect that he got them either from sofas/chairs where the cats sat or from the beach; - There was a small incident with a waitress and a what-seemed-to-be-a-German tourist, which made us feel a little disrespected: one evening we went on the terrace where was scheduled a live-music-program. We stayed at a table that was free and had 2 half-empty glasses placed on it. After a while, a waitress came to us and asked us to leave, because the table was booked by a German lady who left those 2 drinks there. We left because we didn’t want to make a scene, but I don’t know how is it possible to leave a table unattended, without any belongings, only with a few half empty glasses on it, and expect people to know that the table is “booked” and not sit there; - Also there are not a lot of activities to do inside the hotel, for those who don’t want to stay on the beach or by the pool the whole day. All in all the experience was a positive one, despite the incidents above mentioned. We do recommend the hotel and we would like to return there some day.