Wela Hotel

This is a superb hotel, from the moment we arrived to the moment we left this was top class.
I arrived with a few mates and can’t fault this hotel one bit, it is very clean, has a shop, dry cleaning services, swimming pool,2 bars, pool room and sauna etc.
It’s only a 2 min walk to the beach and the food is top quality, the staff are very friendly and this hotel is suitable for all ages.
I will definitely be coming back next year and definitely staying at the same hotel.

Being a little apprehensive as to the quality of hotel we would receive when we got to our resort, as we were told not to go for anything less than 3*, Hotel Wela is a 4.
On arrival the Hotel was immaculate and nearly every time you ventured out of your room you saw a cleaner.
Our room was a 1 bed roomed family room which was very comfortable and quite spacious. There was cable TV and a very nice shower room.
We were staying Bed and Breakfast and although there were plenty of choices we tended to stick with cereals fresh orange and toast. There was also pizza, cakes and fruit etc.
The swimming pool was a nice size with a child pool at the side along with a poolside bar. If you stop here be careful with the prices! At the poolside bar 1 pint of local beer/lager was 3.5 lev (approx 37p per lev) if you walked only 30 yards or so just past the reception to the hotel shop you could buy a bottle of the same beer for 1lev!
Needless to say many guests bought theirs from the shop and fetched it around the pool although there was a large sign outside reception telling you not too.
The entertainment in the hotel is virtually none existent but a 200yds walk down to the main centre opens up to boutiques, restaurants, bars, clubs, bungee jumps, etc and well equipped for children.
All in all we had a wonderful holiday, plenty of relaxation, cheap quality food and excellent local beer at unbelievable prices.
I would say if you want a relaxing holiday, away from the centre but close enough to stroll there at night, and then this is a beautiful Hotel at a sensible price.

Hotel Wela is rated as 4*,but as we were going to Bulgaria for the first time we were unsure how this would reflect in real standards. We need not have worried as the hotel came up to expectations.
It is only a few years old and as such, everywhere is in good condition. It was one of the cleanest hotels we have stopped in. There seemed to be cleaners on duty 24 hours a day.
This was proven on the last night, when we were sitting in the foyer at 3:00am waiting for our departure coach. Some young lads had been having fun and one of them was thrown into the pool. He came into reception and asked for his key so he could get changed (Not go to bed!).He stood there dripping, leaving a big puddle on the marble floor. The receptionist, (By the way, all of them always had a smile and would always be polite and helpful) cheerfully gave him is key and within seconds a maid was there mopping up. It was as if she had been kept in a cupboard and was pulled out just to deal with emergencies!
The rooms were really nice. 2 large single beds, pushed together made a kingsize. TV and fridge included. Bathroom was large, fully tiled, with hairdrier, clean towels everyday and a full range of toiletries provided.
Maid service everyday, and they kept coming back until they found the room empty! One lady came back at 4:30 in the afternoon, after we had a very late start!(Nothing to do with the cheap beer which you can get for less than a £1 a pint. Cocktails work out even better value for money!)
Hotel provides facilities such as a small well equipped gym (I didn’t see it used once in 2 weeks because I think people go on hols to enjoy themselves!) Masseur, hairdresser, beauty parlour, Internet cafe, small gift shop, table tennis, football field and volleyball court.
The swimming pool is small but it never got overcrowded, even though we went in the busiest 2 weeks of the year. It has a poolside bar so there was no need to keep going back into hotel for drinks (although its only a few yards more to the hotel, you are, after all on holiday!!).There are plenty of sun beds and you are never more than 10 yards from the pool, but this didn’t stop the usual gangs of self important idiots putting their towels out early in the morning and keeping them UNOCCUPIED all day until they came back and decided to use THEIR OWN reserved beds late in the afternoon.
Trust me when I say you don’t need to bother. One bloke made me laugh when in frustration he shouted a lot of obscenities in, I think, French and then proceeded to throw 4 towels, airbeds, bats and balls into the pool which had occupied prime poolside position until 2:00 in the afternoon. I layback impatiently, with a pint in hand, soaking up the sun, reading a book, but with one eye, hiding behind my fake Ted Bakers, staring at the new occupier, waiting for the action to start.
Unfortunately, for me the family arrived, took one look at the size of this French beast and sheepishly recovered their belongings and sat on the opposite side of the pool which sort of spoilt my day!
Our room view summed up the area we were in. If it wasn't for the 3 half built hotels surrounding our lovely hotel we would have had beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. There was however no building work going on at all. I don't know whether this was deliberate and left until the end of season or if they had all ran out of money, so it only spoilt our view and not the holiday.
This is Sunnybeach .It is a mass of hotels built eclectically along the black sea coast. with no thought for the end result. Apparently the coast used to be covered in tall pine trees, mingling with sea and sand dunes. They have been ripped away and the result is a concrete mishmash of old, new and unfinished buildings. No area looks completely finished and it is a shame that planning permission is not as well controlled as here.
The hotel is only 200 yards from the beach and the beaches are kept nice and clean. Lovely white sand and a warm sea. Not as clear as the Mediterranean so not so many fish to see when you go snorkelling but still a good experience.
The seafront is very busy and stretches for miles. Loads of shops selling loads of fake designer gear. Bars and restaurants everywhere and all plying for your business. So it is a very busy feeling and can soon wind you own. The upside is you have loads of choice and loads of different places to try.
We found a restaurant near the hotel close to the seafront called the ARIZONA. Food was dearer than most places but they did a good steak with a good choice on the menu. This place was always busy. Most people though, once they had eaten, went back there at about 9:30 to watch the live band who were brilliant and always have a fan club by the end of the week. We only ate there twice because there are so many other places to try which are cheaper and better.
We ate out every night for 14 days and I can't remember a bad meal. It is so cheap to eat out. You get about 3 Levs to the pound which quite often translates into things being 3 times cheaper than here. This is about right for meals and drinks. They do however charge some silly prices, but again because of the exchange rates its still cheaper than England.
They are definitely catching on and soon costs will spiral. Watch out for when they join the EEC next year then they will go up and up. To sum up I would say that if your holiday revolves around, sea, sand, sun and beer you can’t go wrong here.
There are loads of families here so you do not get the 18-30 club feeling that surrounds some resorts. it feels safe. We even let our 2, 16 year old lads out on their own every night, but they had to report back to us for "kit inspection" at 10:30 to see how they were fairing. They had a great time and want to go back ASAP.
If you want a more cultured holiday go to one of the other resorts or even the city of Sofia. The other end of Sunny beach is a small ex fishing village called Nessabar which looks more like the Bulgaria we expected and was probably a good base to start from. In all we enjoyed it but we would probably not go back to this resort. The people of Bulgaria, however, really are the best, they try so hard to make you welcome, they are polite, friendly and engage readily in conversation ,enjoying telling stories of their life in Bulgaria. That’s why I go on holiday to foreign countries, to get to know them and their ways. They have certainly sold themselves to me and I will visit Bulgaria again

Hotel Wela was very clean and the rooms were comfortable, as long as you are not on the 5th floor where the water pressure is poor for showers.
I went to Wela with a group of 28 people, and on arrival was told that we had been double booked, and had to be accommodated in three rooms. Some people having to share with people they did not know very well.
The manager stated it was her mistake and apologised. However after a few days it became apparent that it was common practise for them to double book people for one night and we met at least 5 groups it had happened to.
On our final day, we were due to leave at 4am Sunday morning, and the manager approached a number of our group on the Saturday evening to vacate their rooms so that new arrivals could have them, otherwise there would not be any rooms for them.
This meant that some of our group only actually had a room for 12 nights out of 14!
The hotel also charges for any broken glasses etc! The hotel did offer us half board to compensate, but when we went to dine on our first night the food looked awful and tasted awful, thus the offer was then declined.