Can Garden Resort

Having read previous reviews I had no problem or worries about going to this hotel. As we pulled up to the hotel there was pat waiting to welcome us all even though it was 3am! Food was even laid on for us; we just had a quick scout round then hit the sack.
As the sun came up we looked out from our balconies. There was eight in our party, luck would have it we all had pool view, nice. The rooms are kept spotless, fresh towels daily, the fridge kept topped up with coke, water & fizzy water every few days free of charge.
The hotel is done out in marble everywhere. From the reception staff to the cleaners they were oh so helpful you just can’t knock it. The all inclusive even reaches to the beach which is just ten mins walk away, but there is a free bus every thirty mins if you cant be bothered walking, it does get scorchio after twelve thirty.
The food is a bit give and take, you will always find something you like though. I’m a breakfast person, I like my bacon & sausage but there is none, but like I said you will compromise unless you are a real awkward sod! The waiters fetch you your drink in the dining room which is a nice touch. The beer is certainly not watered down, I was bladdered every night.
The beach is the place to go to book your trips & water sports, you will save a bomb. Overall it’s an up & coming resort, there is not much going on outside the hotel but a few markets. There is one big market at the top of the road to the left near a military camp which is ok, but I wish they would just leave you alone to get on with your shopping, the shop keepers really hassle you & it really annoys you after a while.
I would go back to this hotel again no problem at all. Enjoy your stay............Oh by the way. Don’t even bother with the entertainment shows at night, they will drive you to drink (the hard stuff)! just chill out in the many bar lounges they have.

The hotel is beautiful and very clean, the pool is superb and the food plentiful and of a high quality although those with very British tastes may be disappointed as they cater mainly for the Germans of whom there were many!
What let it down badly was the (lack of) entertainment, no disco and the promised kids club was non-existent. The entertainment provided was funny because it was so dire, but teenagers would be very bored indeed.
On the whole a lovely unforgetable holiday.

The Hotel was very nice, clean and new there were just a few slight problems, maybe this was because it was only the third week it was open.
As it was all inclusive at 12:00 you had to start to pay for your drinks - fair enough but some of the bar staff acted as though they were doing you a favour serving you drinks. The chase around the bar kept you on your toes as they suddenly close one bar and then open another. Why close the outside bar if people are sat enjoying their drinks outside? It was like time ruled the hotel.
Even though all the above points are negative there were many good points - mostly that the hotel was always clean and any suggestions you made for improvement were done by the next day. The food was lovely but as with all all-inclusives very repetitive.
Anyone going to this hotel I hope I have not put you off just be prepared for the bar chasing and the 'keen' staff!

I must say that this hotel was actually a very good hotel. The rooms looked very nice and I enjoyed the night entertainment.
One thing that I realised let the hotel down is the food. There was a wide range of food to choose from but there were still not a lot of things that I liked. They try to be too posh with the food for good presentation but they need to take the peoples interests into consideration and do a range of English foods for the large amounts of English tourists.
The other thing that let the hotel down was at the bar by the reception. The woman who served didn’t know how to smile. Okay, she was doing her job and serving us, but I would prefer service with a smile to help us feel comforted in the hotel.
Overall, I believe this is a good hotel and I do recommend it, but I suggest the hotel thinks about what food they are serving.
Thank you.

Overall, our holiday at Can Gardens (the Can is pronounced Jan) was better than we expected from a new hotel. The weather was great and there was a very eclectic mix of people, which made for a very friendly atmosphere.
The accomodation was excellent and the public areas always appeared clean and tidy.
The food was excellent, considering that the hotel is catering for many different tastes. The choice at times was quite amazing, and it was nice to have some of the dishes cooked in front of you on the grill and in the giant woks. We also liked the way that the senior hotel staff ate all their meals in the restaurant too. The restaurant staff were always friendly and nothing seemed to be too much trouble.
There are several bars which open at different times and the service is very hit and miss. You will soon realise it's quicker to get one of the ladies to get the drinks as the barmen tend to ignore the men. The Terrace bar is nice in the evenings but shuts at 11 and then it's a mad dash downstairs normally to find one person trying to serve everyone - on several occasions with no clean glasses available. There is also a lack of seats downstairs and if you want to sit up after midnight, take a torch as the lights are turned off.
The entertainment is dire and was totally inappropriate for young children. This is a major problem which showed no signs of improvement during our stay - if anything it got worse - especially if you've got bored teenagers to occupy. Be aware that older teenagers were getting alcoholic drinks for the younger ones and were swapping adult wristbands when leaving the hotel. If your kids are under 18, make sure they've got the right colour wristband on at all times. Also, make sure they don't get hold of an extra key as it can appear that they are in their room when they are not (a light is displayed outside when the keycard is inserted in the electric slot).
The beach was great and there was never a problem getting a sunbed. The snack bar provides a reasonable selection of food and the beach is only a 10 minute walk from the hotel. The minibus man will always come back if he knows there are more people waiting. Beware of the pervert deckchair man who was warned several times during our stay for innapropriate behaviour towards the ladies. Also, around 3pm each day the male hotel staff come down to the beach and terrorise any single women that they can. Please warn your daughters/girlfriends not to give out room numbers to staff as several females we met were called in the early hours of the morning by staff making suggestive calls. If you feel that you are being harassed then report it to the manager. The vast majority of the staff are as good as gold, but some have received very little training and do not know how to conduct themselves properly.
During our two week holiday the pool was closed twice, as people were developing rashes due to the wrong chemical balance. This seemed to be rectified fairly quickly, although the second time provided the best entertainment all the time we were there when they sent one of the animation team into the pool (equipped with a small phillips screwdriver and a pair of kids swim goggles) to open one of the drain plugs. For the next few nights the pool was partly drained at night and fresh water pumped in, however, I never once saw anybody cleaning the pool and it was quite dirty at times. The animation team play the most bizarre mix of music at high volume, presumably to ensure that you don't nod off and get sunburnt. The sunbeds have all gone by 8am, but the best place to sunbathe at the hotel is up on the deck of the 3 masted boat, which is one of the hotel's best kept secrets - there's a nice breeze up there.
Book your boat trips on the beach with Figo, and there are agencies in Side, like Ora, that will arrange other trips for a fraction of the price Thomson's charge. We went white water rafting for £15, compared to the £33 Thomson wanted.
You'll have a great time if you are in a crowd and don't need to rely on hotel entertainment, otherwise you'll end up going out of the hotel, which defeats the object of all inclusive. There are a couple of bars about ten minutes walk away, which always seemed to be full of Can Gardens guests. The hotel shops are excellent value and will take sterling, turkish lira or euros, as will most places in Side.
We've been to Turkey before and would consider returning to the Can Gardens if improvements are made to the entertainment. One last word, Pat the Thomson rep was great and nothing was too much trouble for her. Have a great time.

Hotel beautiful, rooms lovely. Food, always something there for everyone. Entertainment as stated by many holiday makers, very, very poor, which was a disappointment as we have two children and it got very boring for them.
Pool lovely but the beds were all taken by 8am. Would recommend the Turkish Bath at the hotel it was excellent, a bit expensive at £25.00 a go. Location was a disappointment, once you step outside the hotel you are on the main road, no pavements, so this can be a bit dangerous at night.
If you want a bit of hustle and bustle you need to go into Side which is about 10/15 mins in a taxi, the fare varied daily some times is was £7.50 at best and the worst was £15.00, it was always more expensive coming back. You can get the bus which was fun and for 4 people it cost around £3.70 each way (very reasonable).
Staff were a bit grumpy round the pool. Hotel reception staff were very helpful and polite at all times. Stayed 10 nights and the sheets in the bedroom were only changed once, you may have to go down to reception to get bath towels as the maids only left 1 a day for 4 people (strange). Free drinks in the room which was a bonus we did not expect. Rooms fully air conditioned which was lovely.
Overall we had a lovely holiday, been to Turkey many times but first time to this resort, probably would not go back as the travel agents comments of up and coming, means a few hotels in the middle of no where.

Lovely hotel, particularly likes the Spa and Indoor Pool (Turkish Bath highly recommended). Rooms modern & clean.
Found the drinks to be very watered down which is quite annoying really when you have paid for it in the package, the red wine was very hit & miss ranging from palatable to toilet cleaner.
My 8 year old daughter had a fantastic time at the pool and waterslide area in fact I forgot what she looked like!
The entertainment was rubbish and very pulled together but the kids seemed to enjoy it. The female entertainers were very good, one in particular dragged lots of people in for water polo and pool aerobics twice daily and always had a smile on her face.
The staff were very hit and miss with a particularly grumpy character called Tuner at the pool side bar.
Overall I would recommend this hotel but it needs to sort out the watery drinks and entertainment first.

Just got back today. Had a great two weeks. Its true what everyone is saying! The entertainment is not very good. But this really didn’t stop us having a good holiday. I had read all the reviews before I left and had a few concerns.
I found all the staff very good and very helpful in fact nothing was too much trouble from the bar staff to the cleaning staff. The pool is great! Nice and large and not cold at all.
There is also an indoor pool (which is cold) and a pool with two slides which my son loved. (12 years old). The beach was fantastic! Only a short walk away or jump on the courtesy bus that’s always up and down. The water is warmer than the pool and the beach bar serves a great lunch. Spag bol, cheese burgers, chicken, pizza and salad. All very nice.
During the day the animation team have water polo, darts, volley ball and football and games now and again which are all good fun. I didn’t have a problem with the drinks, there not that strong but they do get you drunk in the end and hey! They don’t cost
anything so you can have as many as you like! I only drink beer and vodka so I can’t really vouch for the other spirits.
The food is good with so much choice you wont find it hard to have a nice meal everyday. I didn’t like the breakfasts, I normally had fried eggs or boiled eggs on toast. no bacon or sausages. But you can make up for it at lunch time believe me! There isn’t much around the area but you have to go to jeehans. You go out of the hotel and turn left, walk 400 yards and its the first restaurant on the right. The head waiter is so funny! He not only speaks good English but he has learnt all the different accents. Great food and drink there and cheap too. I promise you a great night and you will go more than once. I don’t think this is the best all inclusive hotel I have been to in all honesty but it was still a very enjoyable holiday. Turkey is a lovely place and maybe we got lucky but all the Turkish people we met where the nicest people ever.
One last thing! Don’t worry about what currency to take, the Turkish will take anything. Just tell them what you want to pay in and they will get the calculator out and price it in any currency you want. Enjoy your stay.

Just returned from Can Garden Resort. The Hotel is beautiful and the food is good(no English breakfast though). There isn't much outside of the hotel but a few bars and shops about 10mins up the road.
I wouldn't bother taking Turkish Lira as everyone seems to prefer Euros or pounds. I was disappointed with the lack of choice of spirits behind the bar. If you don't like Gin, Brandy, Raki or Vodka then you'll have to stick to beer or pay for local spirits, at 6 euros for Malibu I got a taste for Vodka. The bar staff were very abrupt but I think this was because they were understaffed in the second week when the hotel was full. The bar on the terrace was lovely at night but closed at 11pm so if you want to sit outside you have to keep going up and down stairs for drinks.
I would recommend the Turkish bath in the hotel and the white water rafting is great but don't book it through the rep as it's cheaper outside.

Just got back so I thought I would tell you about the Hotel. Overall before I start, I can recommend this hotel to anyone visiting Side in Turkey. It is top quality.
Rooms - Outstanding, Cleaned daily, A/C no charge works off key Card. Safe charge 1 Euro a day. You have a Fridge that has a 2 Ltr Water in, 1 ltr Sparkling and 1 Ltr Pepsi (These are free and get changed every 3 days. If you want more water just take it to a fountain and top up your bottles free).
Pool - Great pool, If you want a bed get up early before 9am or you will be on a chair. There is a bar next to the pool and it can get slippery on the tiles so be careful when walking by the bar.
Bars - Not being a spirits drinker I thought the beer was fine (Efes). However everyone complained that the Vodka was not very strong, not watered down just weak. The spirits are limited to Brandy, Vodka and Gin you will have to pay for others if you want them and they are 6 Euros, but I would recommend you take your own if you want different drinks it is cheaper and stronger. The Terrace bar closes at 11pm because it is outside (Bit of a bummer). You then have to go inside which is clammy and hot but the bar is open until 12 each night.
Waiters- In general they are nice. They seem a bit narky at times but they are also under pressure due to the lack of them. In the restaurant I would recommend you take a drink in with you as if it is busy they do not get you a drink apart from water.
Thomson rep- Pat, nothing is too much trouble. Very helpful and mature.
Food - If you like a great variety then the certainly have lots. Breakfast is a bit limited if you want hot. Fried Eggs are available also toast with lots of cold meats. Lunch was the same every day Burger, Pizza, Chips, Salad at either pool bar or restaurant. Dinner was the most important though and got better over the week. They are limited on hot meats at Night which improved after feedback. They had Mash, Chips (Only at the kids bit but everyone went there). Potatoes. Fish in batter, grilled Chicken, Nuggets in Crimb. Soup always for starter. Desserts were a great variety but lack taste.
All inclusive - Snacks are not served all day also no Ice Cream for the kids.
Entertainment - Bad only went once but the amphitheatre was not built so on plastic chairs, Bingo was awful. They seemed to lack ideas and it was away from the main part on hotel which was disappointing as it split up people.
Overall - Hotel excellent, Standards superb, best hotel I have been in. Seemed safe but do not trust waiters if you have young girls. (Same everywhere we went though ). If you went here there are far more plus points though take your own Vodka. Some people only paid £350 for a week bargain, book late on Thomson website.