Yasmine Beach Hotel

Having read the previous reviews after booking the Yasmine beach hotel my friend and i were a bit concerned. BUT what a surprise upon arriving late (22.30ish) there was a cold buffet available if we wanted. We were shown our room which was a large room overlooking the pool. Unfortunately as this room had a double bed not twins we asked to be moved, this was no problem and we were shown another room which was perfect. Each morning we woke to a delicious array of food for breakfast, yum yum. Dinner was even better, fantastic choice. I couldn't fault the food at all and seeing how some people piled up their plates im not alone! I can't comment on the pools at the hotel as we went to the beach each morning which was just a 2 minute stroll across the road from the hotel. The road is not busy and crossing wasn't a problem. Beach towels are provided and collected from the hotel pool area although they are only open at certain times. You can only get soft drinks at the bar on the beach. The beach is clean and there are lots of watersports to participate in if you want at reasonable prices. Lifejackets are supplied. The henna tattoo artist on the beach is fantastic and if you do want henna i'd recommend him for excellent tattoo's and good conversation. We both used the relaxation centre and enjoyed the treatments although there was a communication problem with some of the staff as most didn't speak English and our French is very limited. Saying that we muddled through. Staff in the hotel were very friendly and helpful can't fault them. The Medina i loved, bartering is the way here and if your strong you can get things at great prices. The shops here are open late which is great if you don't want to miss any sun! There are no tea making facilities in the room so take a travel kettle if you like a cuppa before going for breakfast. Only beer, wine, sambucca and brandy are available with all inclusive. We choose to get a cab from the airport as the hotel is a fair distance from Monastir. This cost us 80 dinar's (roughly £32) on arrival booked through the rep when we arrived and 70 dinar's (roughly £28) on depature booked through the rep at the hotel. I was told the coach takes nearly 2 hours. Our journey took just over an hour. Once through to baggage collection you can change money into Dinar's whilst you wait for your luggage. I would definitely return to the Yasmine beach hotel and recommend a visit.

I have intended since my Visit in March to put on a review but have only just got around to it today! I travelled with my 2 brothers for a week all inc at the end of March. The all inc isn't as comprehensive as most in that only limited snacks are available throughout the day (although we visited off peak and hence pizzeria was closed) and the drinks measures are small and so we were constantly queuing at the bar. The food itself was usually of excellent quality and the sheer amount to choose from was astounding. It is not classic British food, but then again this is in Africa and so a fry-up would be the last thing we would want! We were made very welcome by the bar and entertainment staff who all spoke English, we even went out to some clubs with the bar staff one night and with Thomas - the entertainer another night. The people could not have been more friendly or accomodating. The Safari trip with 4x4 ride is a must, but I would urge caution in the Medinas unless you like being grabbed!!! Overall, the hotel was excellent, but the nitelife was quiet, like I said though, we went out of season and so I am sure this would be different in the summer.

We booked this holiday last minute then like everyone else saw the reviews! I was so scared to go after reading them as myself and my partner were taking our 3 kids aged 7, 5 and 2 yrs old! Well, the hotel was spotlessly clean, the staff were very friendly indeed and couldnt do enough to help, rooms were comfortable and cleaned daily the maids could not speak english but all the other staff spoke very good english! I thought the beer was ok and who cares if its a smaller glass than we are used to when you are all inclusive you can have as many as u want! The quality and variety of the food was good although it was just not to our taste a good idea if there is nothing you like is to go to the pool snack bar (which is also free) and have pizza, lovely chips, grilled turkey breast etc! As for the evening entertainment, the kids shows and discos were in german or french but my kids didnt care they loved the shows and joined in happily. later on you didnt really need to know any languages because it would be something like fire eating or dances etc As it happens me and my daughter were very poorly and ended up in hospital for 5 days of our 10 day holiday but this was nothing to do with the food as the rest of the family were fine! when we returned to the hotel the staff were very caring. The bloke who walks round all evening taking pictures of people can be really annoying! If you take a trip to the medina with children a word of warning keep hold of thier hands because the shop owners really hassle you to go in their shop and try to make you buy something, and if they can get hold of your childs hand and pull them into the shop you have to go and get them and unless you are strong willed you cant leave untill you buy something! Also beware of people trying to put bracelets on your wrist, once its on you have bought it! So really this hotel is much better than the earlier reviews say, but remember hamammet is still developing so always bear that in mind, the hotel itself was being improved as we were there, a great holiday for relaxing by the pool or on the beach just over the road.

I felt compelled to write having checked (like everyone else) the reports before we travelled. We stayed here during the Easter school break and had a fabulous time. With 3 children aged 11,9 and 7years holidays can be tiring but with the entertainment and great amimation teams we never saw them. The hotel has started a massive refurbishment programme and will be finished by the main summer season. The staff in the restuarant and bars we very friendly and extremely helpfull. The pool was chemically checked daily and all areas of the hotel were continually being cleaned. The room was spotless and cleaned daily. The food choice was enormous and my children took advantage of this, they never stopped eating! We met some great people who also agreed the review must be prior to the management change, and all would come here again. my husband and I were sorry to leave, and we had to drag the kids on the coach kicking and screaming as they wanted to stay. I would recommend this hotal without hesitation.

We booked this holiday last minute then stumbled across this site and were really worried when we saw the negative reveiws, me my husband and three children 17, 12, and 10yrs old went for a week all inclusive and none of us wanted to leave!! The room was more than spacious and very clean, cleaners came in daily, Food was unbeleivable, so much so you walked around for ten minutes deciding what to eat, catered for every body and even the fussy ones were catered for, totally spoilt for choice, Entertainment was adequate but to be honest we did not go for that but the kids we never saw, they were well looked after and the animation crew were friendly and helpful, always let you know what they were doing with the kids and they were very trustworthy, None of us could fault this holiday and we have had plenty abroad, even when we left the entertainment crew came out and stayed with us till we left. Don`t listen to all the negative it really is fantastic!!!

the hotel is clean and spacious.the room was good overlooking the sea and beach.the staff were friendly and helpful.The food was not English friendly mainly catering for locals and the germans and french.Breakfast was the best meal fried and scrambled eggs cooked in front of you.We were all inclusive,the drinks were poor.a beer came in a glass which held a 3rd of a pint,spirit measures were the smallest i have ever seen,if you asked for a large measure they just ignored you.The hotel had mainly german and french guests thus all the entertainment was centred around them,all the entertainment staff spoke mainly german thus being english we were left out.Plenty of places to sunbathe and no problems getting a sun bed. The maids, bar staff and waiters expect you to give them tips

The food was great, esp the morning breakfast, supper was even better, loads of food, the staff in the bar, u couldnt ask for better, the check in staff more than happy to help. I am from canada, i stayed there from march 20 to April 19, three weeks. I heard those bad reviews, a bunch of nonsense, I would come back in a minute, the only prob was the disco downstairs only happens on saturday nightt when i was there, but the bars downtown, is worth the taxi ride, great time and safe. Dont forget to go to the desert, a trip of a lifetime. Before I go, there nothing wrong, with the rooms, cable t.v nice washrooms, etc a great place stay, I have traveled all over south america, europe, of course usa, canada and mexico, i would go again and stay , here at this hotel, next time i come.

I boooked this holiday for my family and I 24 hours before we flew..... Then I read the reviews. I was worried about the early reviews on this site. I should have gone with those who said it was good and value for money. We all had a great time, Hotel clean staff friendly and food... Well 1/2 a stone added to my weight and never spoilt for choice... I have a fussy 6 year old and he ate like a King... If you want 4 star entertainment... Don't go here... But if you want superb value for money, clean rooms, restaurant and pool area... Book it now... I will

My Wife & I visited The Yasmine Beach Hotel without having seen the reviews at all. We are glad we did because when we arrived, we were made most welcome by the General Manager Hicham and the Food & Beverage Manager Mohammed. Given that both only reached the Hotel a week before our visit, to take on a massive responsibility, discussions I had with both of them brought positive feedback. In fact, before we left on 2nd April, painting work had already commenced on the outside of the structure and far more is to follow. The faultless service by all personnel must be emphasised. Many visitors were told that if there was anything they wanted, that they could not see, they only had to ask. I can assure anyone that this is a sincere desire on the part of the Management to show what they can do. My impression was that these two men had been brought in to rectify the position reported by some correspondents to these reviews. Indeed, I know that the Owner and the Quality Director were resident during our stay and I had conversations with all but the owner - he owns some 23 Hotels and the Quality Director,Lotfi has taken a great deal of trouble in conductiong a thorough trawl of all departments. Yes, there is room for improvement - in the Reception area - the part that is the 'shop window' of the Hotel. There are two stains on the ceiling, water damage from the pool above - a paint job. There are dowdy tables and wearing sofas - a simple task to remedy. Glass to be replaced - again a simple job. Perhaps some of these items have been dealt with already and my utterings are out of date but rest assured from two travellers who have 'made it' to most world destinations, with the G/M coming from a very prestigious hotel group and the F & B Manager from a very well respected Cruise Line, the future for the Yasmine Beach is very positive. These two are working 15-18 hour days at the moment to 'lick the place into shape'and they will succeed. Reports about cleanliness and the food are positive and yes, there were occasions when things looked a little different to normal, but all was tasty and wholesome. The entertainment was not brilliant but the possibility of sharing acts with other hotels was suggested. The Fakir was tremendous. We saw his act twice, due to the length of the holiday and met him afterwards. How did he do it? Ah! Trade secret. The Five Star Rating? Give the new Managers a chance here. It was their predecessors who let them down. This will be rectified promptly and as cosmetics are inexpensive, I have no hesitation in my judgement. We will be visiting the Yasmine Beach Hotel again. My E -Mail address for any confirmation of this message by potential visitors is : cruisers@hughmorganjones.com I would be happy to 'fill in' any blanks! Hugh

We checked trip advisor before visiting this resort and thought that despite the mixed reviews, at just over 300 quid for a weeks all inclusive in a 5 star resort, this was worth a go. We were not disappointed and I would recommend it to other travellers who want a different holiday experience from your run of the mill med resort! What follows is my 'bones and all' review and I'm reviewing the hotel, the resort itself, our flight with My Travel and our experiences with their local accommodation & transfer provider, Med Hotels. I've listed the holiday as 'above average' as the hotel itself was lovely, however the flight company and Med Hotels were at best average. HOTEL ----- We had a warm welcome from the Food & Beverage Manager who met us in the Restaurant and he came, along with many of his staff, to say goodbye to us all and stood to wave off the transfer coach. Where else would you get service like that? As you are probably reading this and trying to decide whether or not to 'chance it' at Yasmin Beach, let me tackle some of the other reviewer's gripes: 1) food. Let me start by saying we have a respected local restaurant in the UK and my husband is the Chef, so he is better qualified than most to judge food quality! We found the food good, it isn't 'rehashed' the next day as some have implied, there are several freshly cooked specialities to choose from which change daily plus certain speciality dishes and sauces that tend to be served every day (like a spicy tomato sauce). There's a massive choice of salad dishes, at least one type of potato dish (often freshly cooked chips or saute potatoes), varied meats, two choices of pasta every day and sometimes pizza. There are also freshly made rolls, croissants and pastries with a baker who bakes them in front of you in the corner, as well as a varying selection of ice creams, petit fours and cakes. My only gripe food wise was that the mid afternoon snack savouries were not partcularly plentiful and went more or less as soon as they were put out, although the sweet stuff was always available. We liked the fact that everything was freshly prepared, whereas in the UK many restaurants shove everything in the deep fat fryer or the microwave. Oh, and by the way, much of the food was cooked in front of you while you waited (sometimes there was a small queue for things like omelettes and crepes because the chefs could only do one fresh at a time). So, no, there were no burgers, steaks, no english cooked breakfasts etc., but a great selection of freshly prepared food which wasnt nearly so unusual as I expected (cous cous, meatballs in tomato sauce, beef casserole, cauliflower cheese etc). I don't go on holiday and expect the restaurant to serve food from my culture. Service in the restaurant was excellent, we did not wait long for drinks at all and the staff spoke english, although saying thank you in arabic, pronounced 'chokran' was a way to raise a warm smile. The staff were friendly and the drink sizes were roughly 1/2 pint for beer (inc head though) and 125ml for wine, so not that small. They also do some nice cocktails, Alize was my favourite. We were not 100% sure about the descriptions of some of the meats though, although they tasted nice. The hotel was immaculate throughout, the room was cleaned every day and NOBODY we encountered complained of food poisoning or anything similar (not at our hotel OR ANY OTHER) and the hygiene standards of the catering areas (at least what we could see) were certainly adequate and acceptable by UK standards. Another gripe I've read concerns the decor and dark corridors at the hotel and I would have to acknowledge that the corridors were dark. Lighting was at floor level to create an intimate atmosphere. The style at this hotel is not 'plush' as its theme is like a safari lodge, with beautiful greenery flowing down the middle, white painted walls with black iron fixtures and a beautiful ornate lift which had some traditional african carvings on the door and surround. Not what you'd maybe expect as the '5 star luxury' implies, but certainly enjoyable and very different. Our initial room on floor 5 was not perhaps as comfortable as I'd have liked, but when we spoke to reception we were upgraded to a junior suite on floor 3 which was at least as nice as the one I stayed in at the Hyatt Carlton Towers in Knightsbridge. No complaints there from me, however if you are booking make sure you ask for a double bed in advance if you want one as the traditional double rooms have twin beds! I also took advantage of the Spa facilities in the hotel and really enjoyed both a traditional and a shiatsu massage, pressure was nice and gentle and I floated for the rest of the day, Im a qualified massage therapist and was impressed with the luxurious treatment rooms, they are nicer than any I've seen in the UK. We had no problems whatsoever all week with drinks and service, we did tip the odd dinar as it is considered polite to do so and for goodness sake, a dinar is less than fifty pence, tipping means you won't always need to walk to the bar, if a waiter spots your empty glass he'll refill it! AIRLINE & MED HOTELS --------------------- We booked with My Travel, who use Med Hotels for the accommodation and don't really have any major complaints, especially given the low price. However we do feel that the Med Hotels Rep could have been more helpful, the hotel staff were wonderful by comparison. The welcome meeting was more about selling tours than introducing us to the area, we (and most of the other couples our age) were not bothered by this but for many people this is an important thing to consider when booking. We were not given a time to vacate the room and so the first we knew we had to leave by 2pm was when reception rang us, even though our coach did not leave until 5.45. A normal situation, but advance notice would have been nice. Likewise, nobody told us that you need to keep your original money exchange voucher to change your money back into sterling at the airport. These are things I would have expected a good rep to convey. Overall, I think there could be more support and english information in written form to help tourists in a new area, the little booklet provided with our tickets covered Tunisia rather than Yasmin Hammamet, there was far more info available about tours outside our area than the area itself! Furthermore the medhotels transfers for the return journey turned up 45 minutes late and everyone was grouped together so people leaving at 9-ish like us checked in late, whereas others not flying until midnight had hours to kill at the airport. To add to the frustration, the flight number initials for the return flight changed from MYT to VZ which understandably confused many people when it came to an already late check in. However, the saving grace for Med Hotels was Ben, the rep from the Sahara Tour who was excellent and gave us good guide prices, warned us when 'real crystals' were painted rocks and advised us what we would expect everywhere we went. A real gentleman and a great host, we learned loads from him and I'd recommend his tour to anyone. Our flights were with My Travel, the airline staff were fine but leg room was very tight (and Im only 5ft). Seats with more leg room cost £15 extra. You also had to pay for headphones and drinks, and the meal was quite small, fine for me but I'd imagine most guys would be left hungry (my guy had my roll and dessert as well as his own!). The truly awful background music was at times so loud you could hear it over the headphones while watching the in-flight movie, I wouldnt play that instrumental monstrosity in the toilet let alone subject someone to several hours of it, I was grateful for the in-flight briefings as that was the only time it wasnt playing. THE RESORT AND TUNISIA GENERALLY -------------------------------- Yasmin Hammamet is a tourist resort which is very clean and pretty, but everything is geared up to tourists so its not for those wanting an authentic tunisian experience. The Marina is really beautiful and well stocked with unusual fish. The medina is not terribly cheap but it is an experience. We found the constant hassling by tradesmen outside the hotel quite funny, everyone will tell you 'I am a waiter at your hotel, its my day off, look in my family shop', 'Asda Price', 'Cheaper than Tesco', 'you promised me earlier you look', 'no hassle', 'just look, you make me happy' and in a very convincing cockney accent, 'hey mate 'ave a butchers in me shop'. This will literally be at more or less every shop, every stall, and at every opportunity outside the hotel. (And even inside some salesmen will try and badger you to go on trips or to book a three day package in the spa) Practically every shop sells the same stuff, fluffy camels, 'original berber silver' jewellery from Taiwan(!), nice pottery, fake designer bags, leather bags, shoes and - best of all - magic camels - I won't explain, go in and ask! By the end of the week we kept getting called 'chaiky bouggars' because every time they walked up to us, we'd say to them, 'hey, aren't you the waiter in our hotel'! If you can get into the spirit, it can be good fun, but girls cover up for God's sake unless you like being very obviously ogled! If you are buying gifts, stick to the hotel shop or the supermarket unless you don't mind haggling. The prices are usually cheaper than the medina even after haggling and the guy in the hotel shop is a sweetie! Other than that, its buyer beware, Tunisian traders will tell you anything to sell - the tatty necklaces sold in the medina come from Hong Kong and China - they are not berber silver, however every salesman will tell you how the berbers hand make them! The rule is if it looks too good to be true it probably is. Haggling - unless it says 'price fixe' the sales pitch will start at 'is normally 300 dinars but for you I make special price, I do 200 dinars as you are not like germans', you will say your price and its 'you make me bankruptcy', eventually he'll come down but he'll expect you to go up too, so start below what you want to pay. However one guy on our sahara tour was asked to leave a shop for offering too low, we were impressed and wanted to award him a medal as everyone else seemed desperate to get us in!!!! I'd have a look in a price fixe shop before buying anything so you get an idea of what its worth, there are a couple of fixed price shops in the medina but not many. We had some brilliant experiences during the week, we did the 2 day sahara trip where we saw far more of the real Tunisia, encountering berber villages, troglodite houses, the roman amphitheatre at Elgem and the three different deserts (salt, stone and sand), watching the sunrise over the flat salt desert was a real experience. We also rode camels in the sahara and had a brilliant jeep ride which cost extra but was worth every penny, the jeep thrill ride up and down the sand dunes also included a trip to the star wars set for Tattouine in the middle of the desert. And yes, even in the middle of the desert, there were traders running down sand dunes alongside the jeeps and the camels, desperate to sell their wares to the travellers despite the boiling heat! Warning though, if you do this trip, remember to put sunblock on your feet if you wear sandals for the camel ride and take plenty of mosquito repellent. If your idea of a holiday is just a British holiday with mediterranean weather, you'll be comparing Tunisia unfavourably to Benidorm, (and many of our fellow UK travellers were) so do yourself and everyone else staying at your resort a favour by booking yourself into Benidorm instead! Its a great place and deserves to be viewed in its own right, you wouldn't compare apples with oranges. Holidaying in Tunisia is an experience and if you want to enjoy yourself, get into the swing of it and have a good time, you will really love it, its one of those 'one off' experiences everyone should do at least once. I hope in summary that you'll follow in our footsteps and have a puff on the chicha for us!