Wow Topkapi Palace Hotel

We visited the Topkapi Palace during August and with the Facilities it promised it should have been a fantastic holiday for the whole family. The reality is that our 2 boys (14 & 12) enjoyed the holiday whilst my wife and I were left with a feeling of disappointment as it did not have a 5 star feel to the hotel. ROOM We had a family room, the concept of which is ideal. You enter the room where there is a bathroom and bedroom, in the hallway there is a staircase that leads up to a separate twin bedroom and shower room. The room is clean and bedlinen is changed regularly however the room is drab and feels very dated. Our room overlooked the adjacent Kremlin Palace hotel so our view was of one of their outdoor dining areas. We also had the pleasure of listening to the dustbin lorries coming and going throughout the early hours of the morning POOLS & AQUA PARK The pools are enormous and the slides are excellent. There is a small lazy river as well as a wave pool. The pools always seemed very clean though the wave pool was quite tatty. The sunbathing areas are reasonably well kept, but if you want a sunbed in a particular spot you need to be getting up at 6.30 a.m. with most beds gone by 9. ENTERTAINMENT The entertainment team were basically poor, they were not interested in their job unless you were 16 and had big -----. There was a programme of daytime activities but these were not at all well promoted and the entertainment staff seemed happy if 2 or 3 people turned up. We went to one of the evening shows put on in the amphitheatre and left after 5 minutes it was truly appalling ! There was an animator to specifically organise activities for teenagers but he was about as much use as a chocolate fireguard. The highlight of the holiday for our teenage sons being a weekly football matches against the Kremlin Palace the adjacent hotel. FOOD For my wife and I this was the biggest disappointment of all. Breakfast - was the usual assortment of fried eggs, pancakes or omelettes, which seem fairly standard fare in Turkish hotels. If you could be bothered to queue and wait there was also the opportunity to freshly squeeze your own orange juice. Lunch – Here you could chose from the main restaurant buffet, the ‘Sultan Sofrasi’ or the ‘Snack Bar’. The main restaurant at lunchtime was basically a repeat of the evening buffet. The Sultan Sofrasi and the Snack Bar both had a limited menu so it was difficult to satisfy the whole family in just one location. Dinner - The evening buffet was again pretty disappointing, whilst there was a large volume of food available there was certainly not the choice or indeed the quality we have experienced in other 5 star all-inclusive hotels in Turkey. On the whole you would never starve but we found the food to be bland and uninspiring. The wine served in the restaurant was truly awful. If you did not arrive in the restaurant by 7.45p.m. there was little chance of getting a table and it was hard work getting a free waiter to re-lay a table that had already been used. Speciality restaurants – There are Italian, Turkish and Seafood restaurants that have to be booked via an automated telephone system at 9.00am on the day you wish to eat. Despite other reports we had no trouble booking any restaurant. We tried the Turkish, which was O.K. We had a wonderful evening at the Italian and indeed we booked for a second time, as the first had been so good. On the second visit the comparison could not have been any greater, it was as if Basil Fawlty had suddenly taken over running the restaurant. GOOD POINTS The Champagne tower is certainly worth a visit to sit and look out over the hotel and the surrounding countryside whilst enjoying a few glasses of sparkling wine. Our teenagers enjoyed the games room (pool tables, table tennis, table football, electronic darts, internet room with around 10 PC’s, playstations) STAFF We found the staff to be friendly and helpful with most having at least a basic command of English.

THE GOOD 1. The pool is large and stunning 2. Bar at the top of the tower (but VERY limited drinks menu) 3. The snack "tent" 4. The a la carte restaurants 5. The games room 6. The hammocks on the beach 7. The water park THE AVERAGE 1. The main buffet restaurant - rather boring 2. The rooms - not bad but too many signs of dodgy workmanship 3. The beach - I thought that the Antalya coastline was meant to be pretty! I believe that it is, but not this part!!! THE UGLY 1. The attitiude of the reception - in our view, ABSOLUTELY DREADFUL. We were charged 100 Euro to keep an unused room available for 6 of us until 8pm. They made it crystal clear that there was no negotiation and that if we left the room after that time we would be charged for a whole night. This was despite the fact that our flight was at 2 pm the next morning, and was typical of the attitude here. 2. 3 of us picking up a food poisoning bug. 3. The wine in the restaurants - UGHHHH! 4. The way the ice cream parlour is hidden away in a corner and not mentioned on the main map!! 5. The unfriendliness of the staff in the main restaurant. Clearly too busy to realise that that customers are actually of some importance. If you require further details please Email me.

the raw chicken was great, me and my wife had some and had food poisoning for a week, and spent two days in hospital on a drip, i will never go to this so called 5 star hotel again tip of the week if you are hungry get to the food before the russians

2 adults and 5 kids age 10-18 stayed a week early October, in one king, one twin and one triple room. Rooms: big, huge double beds a bit on the hard side, very clean room, but apparently the walls were not to standard as we could hear the neighbour snoring and his phone ring all the time. Minibar was OK stocked for sodas and beer, though we did miss some wine. Air-condition worked well. Safe in the room. We asked to change rooms, but what they offered were no better, so we could not be bothered. Pool/outdoor area: very pretty, great pool with fantastic water quality, though a bit on the chilly side. The kids loved the slides and the small aqua park. Grounds were well kept. Difficult to find pool beds after 9 am, apart from the relax pool, where kids were not allowed. The towel booth should not open that early. People tended to reserve a sunbed and go back to sleep and show up after lunch! Very, very annoying! Restaurants: the buffe got very boring in the end. One week on Turkish buffe is as much as most people can take. The chips were lovely and fresh, and every day there was a barbequed dish, tending to be the same for both lunch and dinner. The buffe wine is not drinkable. It tastes like nail polish remover. A huge disgrace! They could not even sell you a decent bottle! For the optimistic, some people did manage to survive on the rose wine. The beach snack bar has mediocre lunch dishes, and they never changed. They could have benefited from a daily special at least. The "Marine" restaurant was good for dinner. That was our best meal. Unfortunately one can only eat there one time. The Italian restaurant was a disappointment. Food was OK, the kids liked the pizza, but the wine was not anywhere near Italian, nor good. The service was a pain, and very slow. My son was 18 that day, and the Customer Relations lady had promised to arrange for a cake. It never showed, and nobody gave him any positive attention, not even when I discreetly enquired. That's not 5 star quality if you ask me. The Turkish restaurant was OK, but we only had a table there on the last day, and by that time, we are sick of Turkish wishy-washy food. We only managed to get a table after complaining to a very sweet girl in reception, as we could never get through to book by phone. The bars were OK, but the coctails were not drinkable. They usually did not have any known coctails, only homemade ones that were not really enjoyable, at least not until late night. The cognac was OK, and also the Martini Sec, if you could get hold of it. If you ask for a Diet Pepsi, be aware if you are a diabetic, as most of the times they give you whatever they have, and don't tell you that it is full sugar Pepsi. The bar snack at the Plaza bar was great, and the bar had a good atmosphere. Unfortunately they don't seem to serve at the sub beds or at tables, so it's a pain to queue up all the time, and then get a half full small plastic glass in return. Ice-cream café: to avoid kids eating the icecream we've actually paid for, they have hid the only place who serves it way back at the far end of the resort. Unfortunately for them, a long walk don't stop our kids, so they did get their share. Lots of people kept asking about the ice cream place. Having said that, the ice cream was probably the best we've ever had!! Entertainment: the team worked very hard. People seemed to enjoy it. They also took us on a fishing trip, for Euro 120.- for 3 hours. Another two guests were supposed to pay the remaining Euro 80.- These two never showed, so our trip was cut short to 2 hours, and they refused to give us a refund! Having enjoyed sea fishing all over the world, I can only say one thing: don't do it here! We were not given rods to fish with, only bottom tackle, and needless to say, we got 5 small fish that were smaller than the ones they serve on the buffe. A total waste and rip off! Internet: there were lots of internet Pc's available at no charge. SPA: we did the Turkish hamman service with scrub and massage. It was lovely, at Euro 50 each, which was not bad for 1,5 hours service. Hairdresser: the all inclusive price includes a "free" haircut. We had 5 cuts and they were all satisfied. I did wash, cure and blowdry, and paid Euro 30.- which is about the same price as at home. The guys are very sweet though, and they sell Kerastase products quite reasonably compared to home. Shop: very expensive. Missing a diet coke, I ended up paying euro 2 per can! They don't have a decent selection of postcards, only hotel cards. The candies and snack were all quite expensive. Guest relations: we asked for recommendation to go outside on our second last night, to a bistro for Italian/French unpragmatic food that the whole family could enjoy, and not too expensive. They recommended a place but could not make reservations for us. They ordered us two taxis who took us to Antalya center for Euro 35 each, return trip. They took us to a place that we later found out was not where we'd asked to go, and we had a more expensive meal than planned and were quite upset when they came back to pick us up. They could no longer speak English, naturally. We complained again to the Guest Relations, who was apologetic, and would make a complaint to the taxi company. She sent us a plate of fruit and a bottle of the same undrinkable red wine to remedy the situation - it did not help much, but it was a nice enough gesture. Other: I lost my mobile phone in the hotel on the last day. Nobody found it. Naturally. Would I go back? No. Not because it was a bad experience, but the world is full of good hotels, and I'd rather go somewhere else. It's too big for my liking...and too crowded. The small kids loved it, the older teenagers were bored in the end. It's like being in a Las Vegas hotel...or Disney world - all make-believe, flashy, plastic fantastic, with a few good elements such as the wonderful beach and pool!

Spent a week at wow with 4 girlfriends,we had a blast!!!The grounds were lovely,3 swimming pools,lazy river&wave pool.It had waterslides for kids&also waterpark aswell so the adults can have fun.We range from ages 19-26.The food in the buffet was lovely.The alarcarte resteraunts(turkish&italian)was beautiful,didnt eat at the fish alarcarte.If you want to book alarcarte make sure you ring at 9.00am on the dot to save seats or you will never get in.You need to ring at least 3 times,dont give up because you will get through after a couple of times.The reception staff are very rude indeed,dont go to them if you have a problem,see your rep.The animation staff are lovely,they work really hard.The champayne tower is a must,the view is fantastic,its nice to start the night off there.The village is alot of fun.The disco is great,the music is very loud but its worth it.Hi to sue&james if you gonna read this review.Thanks wow we had a ball.We loved turkey so much we off to the xanadu resort next year.The wow was perfect but the world is too big to go to the same place twice.Thanx again.Please feel free to email me with any questions.

We have just returned from the Topkapi Palace after 2 weeks out there. (dep.20 Sep 2005). Had a fantastic time with our 3 children 3,7 and 14. On arrival our luggage was immediately taken from us and delivered promptly to our rooms. We had a duplex room which has 2 spacious bedrooms. The lower floor had a hallway with plenty storage area for your cases. Just off the hall was the main bathroom with bath and shower and all your shampoo shower gels and the likes provided for you. The bedroom was extremely large leading out onto a balcony. From the main hall there is a spiral staircase which leads to another bedroom with an ensuite for the children. (shower) There is no balcony in this room which is great if you have children for the safety aspect. Both rooms had TV's and fridges which were refilled daily and included in the price. (Drinks such as Pepsi, Fanta and Tuborg lager and big bottles of water) All of the staff will bend over backwards to help you and the animation team are fantastic. They had some great shows on whilst we were there and there were no repeats of the programmes whilst we were there. Drinks are mostly name brands and measures are very large! The hotel is great even for disabled people as 99% of it is on the flat and there are ramps all over the place. The main restaurant (hunkar) has a wide variety of food and caters for children. We could not fault it. The main freeform pool is exceptionally clean and ther are life guards even at the childrens swimming pool are which has mini slides and water fountain. Dont bring towels with you for the sunbeds as you get them given to you at the hotel and can get fresh ones all the timeat the pool side. Set back from this is the main water park which has some great slides and a lazy river. The hotel has loads of other restaurants which are a la carte and you can book into each one of these once per week. You have to ring at 9 in the morning to do this. The beach is private and has great watersports (most of them included in the cost of your holiday). Plenty of sunloungers and hammocks and boardwalks (piers) which have rooms filled with scatter cushions with muslin drapes to keep you cool if you need them. There's a hairdressers where you get your hair cut and washed for free my husband loved this! We have been to many 5 star hotels and couldnt fault this hotel it was just amazing. Activities on all the time if you want them or the relaxation pool was great for adults wanting a pool with peace and quiet. It's mainly Russians and Germans at the hotel but we never had a problem with this as long as you dont mind putting your towels out early for the good sunbeds. However that said if you got up later the poolboys will find beds for you, you just have to ask! We did and we got them no problem. The kidsclub was great with varied activities for the younger children and for the older ones and adults there is Gameland which has full size billiards tables, a dozen or so computers with free internet access. Table football and table tennis and about a dozen playstations with games for young children and adults. Our children loved it and so did we. You can visit the sister hotel next door which is the Kremlin Palace if you want to but there was so much in our hotel we never had the need to. The only thing you have to pay for that we could see is if you wanted to use the laundry service or wanted a fancy bottle of wine at the a la carte restaurants - we didnt like the normal wine they served. Your safety deposit box in your room is free. This is definitely a hotel we WILL go back to and would highly recommend it from our own experience!!!!

This is a family orentated place very much like Butlins. If you've got kids under 14 and can put up with boring bland food, always the same day after day, wishy woshy turkish alcohlic drinks(they actualy remove the alcohol first)jostling with hundreds of people for poolside space and a sun lounger, then this is the place for you. However,if you like genuine 5* hotels with fine wine and beers with a little personel space..........FORGET IT!!!!!!!!!!!!! Feel free to email me.............i have lots more to tell you.

We went on this holiday for the first time in October(Scottish school hols) in 2003. 2 Adults and 4 kids aged 15, 14, 11, & 9yrs. We all found the place excellent - so much so we returned at the same time in 2004, and intend to go back in October this year. We were able to explore everywhere in the large complex which suited our family as it gave the children a bit of independence that we would not normally have been able to give them until they were a bit older. Our initial thoughts on the rooms were that they were of a very good standard - cleanliness could not be faulted - the size of the rooms for a family of four was of the standard expected in a Hilton equivelent back home and the beds were 6ft wide and very comfortable. Mini bar in room was a welcomed extra included in the price - only draw back was getting the time to use the contents. I would say, however on our return visit the following year the rooms allocated looked as though they could have done with being upgraded but not so bad that it would ruin our holiday - afterall how many hotels redecorate every year? Everything around the complex is on a map - take time to familiarise yourself- Staff were very pleasant even if no tip! Go for tuition for watersports its free! Excursions worthwhile if u want shopping - food choice brilliant - use a la carte facility- phone at 9am - everyone else does - europeans tend to get up earlier thanEnglish people - relax and tolerate other nationalities there are lots of sunloungers and there is absolutely no chance of going hungry - animation team work really hard day and night with lots of activities for everyone - no broadway shows but enough to give light entertainment - excellent place for all ages- having gone abroad to all standards of accommodation over the last 20 years with and without kids I think this is hard to beat - they agree! If you want waited on try the Gloria Golf Verde - you can have a private butler - or the Xanadu - available in Uk from Thomas Cook - 24hr room service. Cant wait to go back to Topkapi Palace this year.

Hello, we have just returned from Turkey (26.09.05). The place covers 85000sq mtrs and has 908 rooms. The buildings and grounds are very good and it has its own beach with some free water sports, if you book, you can find all the details at the pier. The down side is the waiters have the face on all the time if you don`t tip them and they let you see it but when you have paid all inclusive you don`t want to be carrying change around with you to tip every time, you have a meal or drink, you would be tipping at least 20 times a day. The drinks are ok, Tuborg beer and weak but palatable spirits. Their are plenty of things to do and a small Aqua park for young and old. The pool is enourmous and I mean enourmous. The meals are more for the Russians and Germans but you can find something tasty if you look around, including chips. Dinner (1900-2130 hrs)is a wash out if you don`t get there first, not enough waiters to clear tables and get ready for the next diners, I was always having to get my own cutlery, glasses and water, it`s chaos at meal times, every body walking one way and looking another way, nobody got an upset stomach and we had ice in our drinks all the time. Take some insect spray. especially for the night time, I missed using it on the last night and got bit 5 times in 20 minutes. The place is good but the Russians and Germans spoil it with their bad manners, every day somebody always walks past people in a queue and goes striaght to the front and orders drinks as if nobody else is there. You can find some sunbeds around the pools till about 10.30 and there are more at the beach plus hammocks. You can go on a diving trip but they don`t tell you, you`ll spent 4 hrs getting to the dive site and 4 hrs back, for 1 hrs diving. They take Euros as much as new Turkish Lira and they have some shops on site but be warned you`ll pay through the nose for every thing you buy. The Topkapi Palace is good but the people let it down but the same type of people will be at other hotels in the region, our standards and respect for each other are going down hill, I`m sorry to say. Topkapi Palace great, sorry to say waiters,Russians mostly and Germans spoil it due to bad manners. If Russians and Germans take offence to these statements, then please show some respect and stand in the queues like the rest of us. Then we can all have a good holiday and get on with each other.

not a 5 star,quie for everything.rooms r terrible.food is horrible.really dissapointing