Back from Turkey at last!!!!!
Discussion
Glad to read a few friendly words and see people not called Ahmed, Tarik or Memhet for a change!
Won't be going back and I thought you'd all like to see my write up left on holiday watchdog (review site) about the five star 'CAN GARDEN RESORT'!
Happy reading!!
CAN GARDEN RESORT, SIDE, COLAKI, TURKEY (9TH - 23RD SEPT 2008)
WARNING *Staying at this resort could seriously damage your health*
Right then, where do I start, my girlfriend and I are both 24 and relatively new to travelling, so certainly not the ‘seen it all, done it all types’. However…
After just a day, myself and my girlfriend came down with a stomach bug (as did 8 -10 other couples that we knew of) which rendered us room bound for a couple of days. Diarrhoea and Vomiting very common. Constant running to the loo, stocking up on (nicking) loo paper from the guest area toilets and visited the 'Apotheke' (Pharmacy 2 mins up the road) on several occasions to get antibiotics and stomach tablets as normal Imodium goes through you like a Porsche/has no effect! We were assured that the room would be disinfected regularly but never smelt or looked any cleaner.
To rate things individually:
Hotel/Resort: 8/10 - As others have said, first impressions are good, resort appears clean and tidy and the majority of the staff were helpful. Impressive design, modern, well laid out, good pool, even only three years old starting to show a few signs of neglect (damp, cracked tiles but nothing too major).
Staff: 8/10 - Friendly, polite, very well presented, not all speak English but never a problem. If you flirt well enough, some of the barmaids will show you their skimpy nik-niks! (Ok, so I didn't post that on the Watchdog site but thought you guys would appreciate it, just don't tell the missus why I spent so much time at the bar
!!!)
Food/Drink: 1/10 - Would rather stick a sharp thorny stick in my eye than eat the food. At first, seemingly wide variety, then you notice it is repeated every 3 days (so 2 weeks in, you've had more than enough). Flies constantly seen feasting on uncovered food (a pet hate of mine as they carry so many germs). Food only ever luke warm and never hot (had Meatballs and Chicken served up still raw inside). Again as others have said, lived on chips, plain pasta, and fruit for 10 days. Drinks menu VERY limited with few known brands. I did loose half a stone though so every cloud does have a silver lining! J
Entertainment Team: 1/10 - Utter rubbish, annoying, childish, rude and like a stuck record. (Germans loved them as it was very 'Eurocheese' entertainment). Never knew when enough was enough (disrupted meal times, the quiet areas and even on the Beach). I heard one guest mutter "If that little **** carries on like that he's going to end up in the pool", within minutes there was an almighty splash as someone finally cracked and had to shut him up by chucking him in!! The cheer from the Brits was the highlight of the holiday! Well done that man!
Excursions: 10/10 (Booked through Thompson) - Excellent, could not have been better, anything to get out of the resort!!! Turkish Bath and Massage so relaxing, would go back for another just on its own merits! Jeep 4x4 Safari again excellent, had a few 'health and safety' niggles on my mind but all went without a hitch (for the time being) with the drivers informative and the scenery breathtaking. Manavgat Waterfall and Market very good, needed more time in the market and got lost with the basic map but all good fun! Most enjoyable part of the holiday was the trips out (planned around the toilets of southern Turkey!)
In general, mixed feelings about this holiday, loved the excursions, Side itself very quaint and nice to relax walking round the many shops and restaurants. However, after being pestered like George Michael in a Public Loo, the shop holders do run you down after the 10th time!
Can Garden Resort has the basic potential to be very good, needs to tighten up immensely on Food and General Hygiene Issues. Also, the management need to look at the Entertainment Team’s attitude, which is way over the top for a relatively ‘adult’ resort, it annoyed other guests and ourselves right from the word go. Overall, based on our visit, we won’t be going back and the saviour of the holiday was the excursions and the wonderful company of other British ‘suffering’ guests!!
Have a nice time in Turkey if you've already booked!!!
Won't be going back and I thought you'd all like to see my write up left on holiday watchdog (review site) about the five star 'CAN GARDEN RESORT'!
Happy reading!!
CAN GARDEN RESORT, SIDE, COLAKI, TURKEY (9TH - 23RD SEPT 2008)
WARNING *Staying at this resort could seriously damage your health*
Right then, where do I start, my girlfriend and I are both 24 and relatively new to travelling, so certainly not the ‘seen it all, done it all types’. However…
After just a day, myself and my girlfriend came down with a stomach bug (as did 8 -10 other couples that we knew of) which rendered us room bound for a couple of days. Diarrhoea and Vomiting very common. Constant running to the loo, stocking up on (nicking) loo paper from the guest area toilets and visited the 'Apotheke' (Pharmacy 2 mins up the road) on several occasions to get antibiotics and stomach tablets as normal Imodium goes through you like a Porsche/has no effect! We were assured that the room would be disinfected regularly but never smelt or looked any cleaner.
To rate things individually:
Hotel/Resort: 8/10 - As others have said, first impressions are good, resort appears clean and tidy and the majority of the staff were helpful. Impressive design, modern, well laid out, good pool, even only three years old starting to show a few signs of neglect (damp, cracked tiles but nothing too major).
Staff: 8/10 - Friendly, polite, very well presented, not all speak English but never a problem. If you flirt well enough, some of the barmaids will show you their skimpy nik-niks! (Ok, so I didn't post that on the Watchdog site but thought you guys would appreciate it, just don't tell the missus why I spent so much time at the bar
!!!)Food/Drink: 1/10 - Would rather stick a sharp thorny stick in my eye than eat the food. At first, seemingly wide variety, then you notice it is repeated every 3 days (so 2 weeks in, you've had more than enough). Flies constantly seen feasting on uncovered food (a pet hate of mine as they carry so many germs). Food only ever luke warm and never hot (had Meatballs and Chicken served up still raw inside). Again as others have said, lived on chips, plain pasta, and fruit for 10 days. Drinks menu VERY limited with few known brands. I did loose half a stone though so every cloud does have a silver lining! J
Entertainment Team: 1/10 - Utter rubbish, annoying, childish, rude and like a stuck record. (Germans loved them as it was very 'Eurocheese' entertainment). Never knew when enough was enough (disrupted meal times, the quiet areas and even on the Beach). I heard one guest mutter "If that little **** carries on like that he's going to end up in the pool", within minutes there was an almighty splash as someone finally cracked and had to shut him up by chucking him in!! The cheer from the Brits was the highlight of the holiday! Well done that man!
Excursions: 10/10 (Booked through Thompson) - Excellent, could not have been better, anything to get out of the resort!!! Turkish Bath and Massage so relaxing, would go back for another just on its own merits! Jeep 4x4 Safari again excellent, had a few 'health and safety' niggles on my mind but all went without a hitch (for the time being) with the drivers informative and the scenery breathtaking. Manavgat Waterfall and Market very good, needed more time in the market and got lost with the basic map but all good fun! Most enjoyable part of the holiday was the trips out (planned around the toilets of southern Turkey!)
In general, mixed feelings about this holiday, loved the excursions, Side itself very quaint and nice to relax walking round the many shops and restaurants. However, after being pestered like George Michael in a Public Loo, the shop holders do run you down after the 10th time!
Can Garden Resort has the basic potential to be very good, needs to tighten up immensely on Food and General Hygiene Issues. Also, the management need to look at the Entertainment Team’s attitude, which is way over the top for a relatively ‘adult’ resort, it annoyed other guests and ourselves right from the word go. Overall, based on our visit, we won’t be going back and the saviour of the holiday was the excursions and the wonderful company of other British ‘suffering’ guests!!
Have a nice time in Turkey if you've already booked!!!
Sorry to hear that.. the Deli Belly got me in Egypt and it does curtail a lot of things you're planning on doing. Swimming for one.. the rest of the holiday makers didn't like the slick I was leaving behind me in the pool but heh ho.
I think you were just a bit unlucky this time. Have been to Turkey a few times myself and with exception of a Football trip, the country, people and food are nice. Better luck next time.
I think you were just a bit unlucky this time. Have been to Turkey a few times myself and with exception of a Football trip, the country, people and food are nice. Better luck next time.
Sorry to hear your experiences at the Can Resort.
My wife and I came back from Turkey after 9 nights at Montana Pines Resort at Hisaronu, flying via Dalaman Airport. We can thoroughly recommend this hotel, having been there before 6 years ago. It has not changed since then. Its good points are the rooms are good, although not "superior", food is acceptable, facilities are great, friendly staff, and nearby facilities, ie Hisaronu itself, Fethiye and Oludeniz, are good to vist, shop, eat etc. Only poor point is crap entertainment but this can easily be avoided.
Booked via hotel website which worked very well.
Have a look here if you're interested. www.montanapine.com
R.
My wife and I came back from Turkey after 9 nights at Montana Pines Resort at Hisaronu, flying via Dalaman Airport. We can thoroughly recommend this hotel, having been there before 6 years ago. It has not changed since then. Its good points are the rooms are good, although not "superior", food is acceptable, facilities are great, friendly staff, and nearby facilities, ie Hisaronu itself, Fethiye and Oludeniz, are good to vist, shop, eat etc. Only poor point is crap entertainment but this can easily be avoided.
Booked via hotel website which worked very well.
Have a look here if you're interested. www.montanapine.com
R.
I went to Side in June, but stayed in a privately owned appartment. We found the resort too comercialised for our liking, although old Side was nice enough, what with the ampitheatre, temple and other ruins. But the constant hassling by shop owners meant I didn't even dare glance in the direction of a shop. Thankfully, because most of the tourists are German, the locals learnt German and will speak to you in this, which meant I could still ignore them as I don't understand German! Generally I found many of the shops just sold tourist tat, fake designer jeans, bags and shoes/trainers or were jewellers.
Because we were self catering we mostly cooked our own food and only went out two or three times. We went to a couple of restaurants but I felt I was getting food for tourists rather than food that the Turkish eat. I wasn't overly impressed with the standard of food/cooking, to be honest.
Side isn't a place I would go back to, although we had a relaxing time and it suited our purpose.
Because we were self catering we mostly cooked our own food and only went out two or three times. We went to a couple of restaurants but I felt I was getting food for tourists rather than food that the Turkish eat. I wasn't overly impressed with the standard of food/cooking, to be honest.
Side isn't a place I would go back to, although we had a relaxing time and it suited our purpose.
VerySideways said:
Bugger, sounds like you should be trying to get some compensation out of the travel company.
I did think about it but the whole process is so long and strung out that it would cost me more time and money to not get any further forward.. I think I'll just put it down to expericence and learn by mistakes etc!!On the other hand I hope you have a good time when you go!
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