Defne Defnem Hotel

“Great Family Holiday (As long as you know what to expect)”

This was our 4th time to Turkey and so we knew what the area was like in terms of hotels mainly catering for German & Russian families. Only a few staff spoke some English. We stayed for 10 nights in a 2 room family suite on the 5th floor in late June/Early July. I thought that the hotel decor wa... more

This was our 4th time to Turkey and so we knew what the area was like in terms of hotels mainly catering for German & Russian families. Only a few staff spoke some English. We stayed for 10 nights in a 2 room family suite on the 5th floor in late June/Early July. I thought that the hotel decor was very nice and it was kept very clean. Rooms were very nice and the air conditioning was a must. You had to keep a key in the card slot by the door or the air con stops when you leave and then you come back to hot rooms. The larger room with the windows and the patios was where our 3 daughters slept. Even with curtains closed and the air con on, the room would warm up in the early morning. My wife and I had the other room with no windows, which stayed nice and cool. There were 2 showers and 2 bathrooms so that worked fine for us. Outdoor swimming pools were fantastic (indoor one was closed). There is an adult only one (which we didn't use), a kiddies pool, a pool for the water slides and then the main pool. We used the main pool every day and we couldn't believe that coming down at 08.00 that we were first there every day and had the choice of any sunbeds. Never happened at the other hotels we have stayed at in Turkey before. We could see all the Russians and German heading for the beach and it could often be after 09.00 before anyone else came to the main pool. Animation was fine. Not the best and not the worst. They were only a small team and they were nice friendly folks. They would come and ask if you wanted to join an activity but they weren't pushy. If you said no then that was it. Evening shows with dancers, acrobats, etc were good and we all enjoyed them. We didn't get pestered by hotel staff selling Spa treatments or from a photographer wanting to sell his/her services every day (which again we have seen on other holidays). Wifi worked throughout the hotel and even by the pool which was great when you have 3 teenagers !! Meal times : I could say that after a week then the menu is a bit "samey". You have to like grilled chicken and spaghetti bolognese. to be fair we never went hungry and we ate well for the 10 days. Comparing to other hotels again, the food queues were pretty small usually. This still didn't stop some people from thinking that they could just push in straight at the front to grab the grilled meat. We become accustomed to this from our previous holidays and a couple of times I just couldn't help myself from telling rude people where the end of the queue was. Hotel location was great. It's a 5 mins walk to the beach where they have private sunbeds an a small bar. At night it was great to walk along the walk by the beach and see some great sunsets. Some shop on either side of the hotel selling fake designer cloths, bags, perfume, belts, etc The ones up from the front of the hotel was smaller and cheaper. The ones at the back of the hotel had more choice but a bit more expensive. You can get a bus (every 10 mins) into the Side old town or to the Side Bazaar (Saturday) or the Manavgat bazaar (Mon/Thurs). Bus stop was just across the road is much cheaper than a taxi. We were less than 1 pound each to get to Manavgat. Definitely suggest you check out Side old town in the evening at sunset. They have put in glass flooring above some of the old ruins, mosaics, etc and it was really cool. Bars/Drinks were fine. Only 1 cocktail was free (Defne Exotic) and the other cocktails you paid for. Beer, wine, spirits and soft drinks were all free. Bars were never too busy that you had to wait too long. All in all, we had a very relaxing holiday and I would come back to the Defne again.

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“Mr I Gozubuyuk”

This hotel is no more than 3 star. 1. There’s no bottled water available at any time near pool, beach or even spa facilities. 2. Some of the English music is full of swearing. 3. The beach is way too far away and you have to walk quite a bit. 4. You can only get a selection of drinks at the ... more

This hotel is no more than 3 star. 1. There’s no bottled water available at any time near pool, beach or even spa facilities. 2. Some of the English music is full of swearing. 3. The beach is way too far away and you have to walk quite a bit. 4. You can only get a selection of drinks at the beach. 5. Food selection is limited. 6. Slides are only open 1 hour in the morning and 2 hrs in the afternoon. 7. You can only change beach towels every other day. 8. Service is poor, staff uniforms ugly, looks dirty and they’re not happy either. 9. In an all inclusive hotel you have to buy 1 scoop of ice cream for 1€. 10. Management is unfriendly and not accommodating and not helpful at all.

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