Hotel Lighthouse

My husband and I stayed at the Hotel Lighthouse at the end of August and had a lovely time. The hotel is very clean, views are out of this world the only thing which lets the hotel down is the food. We was half board but ended up eating out most evening in the next bay called Yashi, only 5 minutes walk away. Yashi is lovely, still unspoilt and not to commercialised.
We ate in a few of the restaurants along the promenade, the gozlem place where Turkish ladies sit on the floor making pancakes for you is great for lunch. There is also a nice fish restaurant at the end of the bay called kosem but make sure you order something to go with your fish otherwise you only get a piece of onion and a salad leaf.
The best restaurant by far was Viras, the food is of amazing quality, the restaurant is very clean and all the staff are lovely. Prices are very reasonable with a 3 course set meal for under £10. Main Courses start from around £5 and come with vegetables, roast potatoes etc. Excellent value for money the steaks and Turkish dishes are amazing.
Overall we had a fantastic holiday.

Myself and partner have just returned from a two week stay at the Lighthouse Hotel and had a wonderful time. The hotel is lovely and very clean. Before we went I read the reviews on this sight and was weary of taking food and drink into the hotel. We did hear a couple of instances of bags being checked but we never experienced any problems. You just have to be careful.
I do feel the prices the hotel charge for drinks are to expensive so there is no wonder people want buy them from the market. The hotel doesn't sell Efes either and we found that hard to believe as it is Turkey's national beer!
We never ate in the hotel apart from breakfast as we found the heat in there too much. There was no air conditioning which made it very uncomfortable. The first week we had music on the beach, it wasn't too loud but the second we had no music at all and it was lovely and peaceful.
We went into Bodrum a few times. It's definitely worth a visit but most of the time we took a stroll along the beach to Yashi where there are more than enough bars and restaurants.
After reading a review saying not to go into Jimmy's we decided to not eat in there. One night by mistake we ended up in there by entering the other entrance. We were so glad we did. The food was great; you do not get plied with drink. Yes all drinks are free but it’s up to you how much you drink.
Jimmy is lovely and works really hard to make sure you have a great meal with great service. We ended up eating there most evenings. We also ate in Vera's where the food, staff and service is also really good. I would recommend Hotel Lighthouse and Yashi to anyone, it is still a very unspoilt resort and very Turkish.

The lighthouse Hotel was lovely and the views where everything they said they would be. The rooms where clean and the maid was really nice. As for the rest of the staff well. The waiters where only nice because they wanted to be tipped, the kids club was fine if you was foreign as they did not include any English families what so ever with any of the activities and the rest of the staff struggled to understand let alone speak English.
The foreign guests were very rude towards the English guests as well. The prices in the hotel where ridiculous. Four cans of coke cost me £10.00 and water which I class as a necessity was about £2.00. It’s not so much the price but the fact that water should not be charged for. We did find shops a lot cheaper around the hotel but you wasn’t allowed to bring any food or drink in from outside and if you did they had security guards to take it off you.
I wouldn’t go half board again as there was no variety with the food, which also was not ever covered over allowing the majority of the guest to go down with deli belly. The entertainment wasn’t up to much either. They only did one thing the whole time we were there. All in all the hotels views where fantastic but as for the rest of the place beware!!!

My daughter and I found the hotel luxurious, it was brand new and the design was gorgeous all set in rock. The view from the lifts were fabulous which were partially made of glass so you could see right across the bay. I loved the marble flooring everywhere. The lower pool outside the restaurant was the prettiest of the two and it would have been better if there had been more room for extra sun beds.
The rooms were attractive with excellent sea views from the balconies. The remote controlled air conditioning and TV worked well and had plenty of settings.
The restaurant was spacious with lots of different types of seating, private alcove, outdoor and indoor. The food was delicious with plenty of choice. There was a good mix of Turkish and European cuisine and a barbeque most nights.
The beach was nice and clean with a selection of sun beds available. The beach bar however did have a rather mouthy bar man who played inappropriate music most days that we were there and at times I found it intimidating. I think a complaint would have stopped it though. Over all we found it to be fabulous.

As soon as I got there I felt warm and welcome. The staff are friendly and most kind. They are always there to help you, moreover they are very polite which is also a good point. When I got there they took my luggage and took it to our room. They came to our hotel often to check we was ok. That pleased me.
The rooms are modern and comfortable which suited my family and me. We stayed in a family room and the beds were washed every 2 days! The room was fresh very clean and absolutely perfect! You had lots of space and there was air conditioning if you got hot. There are towels so you do not have to bring any.
The food was very nice, however I did get a bit board of its so my family and I went to restaurants near by which are all very good. We also got free food if we made a review. Maybe that gives you an idea about the services and restaurants.
I hope this have gave you an idea of what it might be like. If you go you will enjoy it. Have fun!

Lovely hotel with stunning views. The hotel is very clean, the staff in general are friendly. The food is acceptable but not up to 4* rating.
Yashi beach is a lovely area with a good choice of restaurants. After three days of hotel food we decided to eat out in the evenings. The Turkish are friendly and very accommodating. We ate at a couple of restaurants and found them all reasonable both in cost, quality and quantity.
Jimmie's restaurant is a very good restaurant with extremely genuinely friendly staff, especially Jimmy. He appears a little over powering initially but really is a lovely guy.
One evening the whole of Yashi suffered a power cut, he escorted me and my partner as well as another couple back to our hotel with his lit lantern. The 'free puffy' bread on offer was excellent.
I would certainly return to the lighthouse but possibly on bed and breakfast board. The hotel is new and has a few teething problems to iron out but the prices on offer for a 4* reflect it's current situation.
The only thing I really didn't like was being 'frog marched' by the security guy to reception for bringing in bottled water from a local shop. The carrier bag was taken from us and put behind reception. A bit harsh, especially when the temperatures were in the mid 30's. :-(

Having been coming to Yahsi over the past 6 years I was deeply shocked to read the reviews made this year about some of the restaurants. My wife and I have tried absolutely everywhere over the years and completely disagree with the bad reports especially about Vira's. The food is lovely of a high standard, they cater for everybody and as a lot of there customers are Turkish the food is most definitely not catered for tourists.
At the end of the day you get what you pay for. But for only a few pence more I know where I would rather eat. The staff are all friendly they can’t do more for you, the place is clean and atmospheric. How can you ask for more?
Don't listen to what people are saying go and try out the restaurants and you will find the best for yourselves. All we noticed is if you write a review for Jimmy he'll give you free food. That told us exactly what we needed to know.
Yahsi is a lovely unspoiled part of the Bodrum peninsula if you want a relaxing holiday this is the place to come you wont be disappointed.

14/05/06 - 28/05/06 Great first impression on arrival, although reception staff were having problems with computer booking in procedures, and only one person was checking in about 6 different parties. Took about 1.30mins after arrival to get to room. Rooms are spacious and clean with great views across the bay.
Restaurant is a huge great room with un-attentive staff. It could take 15 mins to find a waiter to order drinks because they do not appear to have sections to look after. And you don't get an allocated table so you don't get to know your waiter either, and more especially he doesn't get to know you or what you want. This aspect was very disappointing and no-one seems to be in charge either. Oh - and the drinks are expensive at the hotel - they do not serve any local drinks except wine. The cheapest being about £15 and not of good quality. Food was awful, main courses are kept hot in containers and no kitchen staff on hand. If you choose to eat later the food gets dried up and was sometimes inedible. Although half board we ate out about 9 evenings in nearby restaurants. Another draw back is that there is no indoor bar area. The only bar is the beach bar which is very nice, but this is where the evening entertainment is located. You have to sit through the snoopy disco every night at 9 and then suffer the other entertainment after if you want a drink. One night we were told that the entertainment was a celebrated guitarist from the local area. We arrived late - having eaten out that night - in time to hear this guy's renditions of Delilah and My Way , I've never laughed so much in my life and we ended up setting a load of other listeners off as well, we had to leave, I couldn't take it anymore.
I have read very mixed reviews about restaurants at Yashi - Jimmy's is very good, Vera's is over priced and others are very good to, even those right down the other end by the small pier. What's great about them is that the staff will place tables right on the beach next to the water opposite their restaurants and you eat by candle light. Very romantic!!
The beach at the hotel is fabulous, great swimming and snorkelling, especially if you venture outside the safe area over to the left round the small headland. If you keep close to shore there's no problem and lots to see. Spent days at the hotel on the beach, the pool areas are a bit cramped.
We hired a car through our First Choice rep - who incidentally was extremely helpful and honest. She loaned us a guide to help us on our travels. We had the car - with aircon - for 3 days at a cost of about £70. We drove to Turtle Beach one day, Effesus the next and drove round the Bodrum peninsular on the third day. All fantastic days out and amazing sights - it's great to explore on your own! Road signs are very clear and the driving was fine. Even with petrol and only two of us, it was still cheaper than doing the excursions and so much more enjoyable.
We weren't sure after the first week if we would return to this location, but now we know what to expect at the hotel food wise - we will return - one day.

Hotel Lighthouse was wonderful. We are 2 independent travellers who rarely take package holidays but the deal on Thomas Cook website was too good to let go and we booked with some trepidation having been unable to find reviews of the hotel.
Fear not, it is stunning; we had an amazing room with an enormous balcony with even more amazing views out onto the bay.
Great staff, only on B&B and the breakfast was good, plenty of choice and fresh eggs/omelettes every morning. The resort is small, relaxing and marvellous. The Turkish people cannot do enough for you.
I agree with the comments about the music on the beach, a real pain but not too bad if you use your ipod.
I disagree about the food, VIRAS is bland, Turkish style English food for tourists. I found both the English and Turkish owner quite unfriendly if you did not rave over the food etc they produced. Over priced and not worth it. As for Jimmies - please, please try them. We ate there most days, lunch or dinner. The family will bend over backwards to please you and cook things you ask, all the food is so fresh and the salads and Turkish Pied is fabulous. Yes, Jimmy will hassle you but in a wonderful friendly genuine Turkish way.
All in all, a fantastic holiday, probably one of our best and we have seen a bit of the world. Go and try it, but don’t tell everyone!

When we arrived we were very impressed with the hotel on the cleanliness, friendleness of the staff and the stunning surroundings that we had. The location is absolutely lovely, Camel Beach hasn't got much to offer but with Yahsi only 5 minutes walk away you are saved from staying in the hotel for the duration of your holiday.
I must say i had some reservations before i came to Turkey but our First Choice Rep made us feel very welcome and as she lives in Bodrum herself she was very helpful in answering any queries we had. We had read a few reviews about the hotel before we came so asked her about these. I would like to take this opportunity to enlighten future customers that the First Choice Rep does not in anyway receive commission from Vira's Restaurant which she was very adamant about (she would lose her job for this). She assured us that First Choice actually recommend this restaurant having checked it qualifies for Health, Safety & Hygiene standards set by UK officials. Recommending it to customers of other resorts as the food is very good.
After hearing this we tried a few restaurants in Yahsi and Bodrum and we must agree Viras is definitely above the rest for quality and value for money. We will definitely be recommending this resort to all of our friends.