Houda Golf & Beach Club Hotel

1 reader found this review helpful

1/ bedrooms dirty ,dark, small and well dated,asked to be moved to a better room ,was told we had the BEST!!!!!!!!!!!!
2/FOOD well if you can call it food,and we are not fussy eaters ,but there was nothing edible,unless you want to live on pizza and omelettes.
3/ very noisy,not able to sleep
4/animation team dressed as young tarty women with balloons up their tops,rubbing them in guests faces,we did not find it amusing.
only positve things the staff were friendly and the pool and beach were okay ,left the hotel and got a transfer to another hotel after 12hr .If you are looking for a chilled out holiday ,then dont bother going to the houda
This was the worst hotel we have stayed in .Save your money and go to a different hotel

My husband,myself and 3 kids stayed at the houda resort last august,it was the best holiday we'd had,they entertained my 15yr old son my 12yr old daughter and 8yr old daughter.
The animation team were great and the kids club were great too,lots to do every day and night.
We only recomend that you go out of resort with one of the organized excursions though as this is safer,we went on a pirate ship which my daughter and husband loved jumpin off and swimin amongst dolphins,i took my girls on a 4 hour camel ride and the team were very entertaining and funny whilst my husband and son went in2 the desert on a 2 day trip 2 see the star wars set which they said was great.
The food was ok,lots of choice in diner and at pool side snack bar.
We are going again in 8 weeks and this time we are taking my husbands son plus my mate and brother are coming aswell,we carn't wait 2 see every1 and probably some new faces 2,we wud recommend this resort 2 every1

10 readers found this review helpful

We booked a week at the hotel Houdas two weeks before depature and it came recommended from our travel agent. We had not been to Tunisia before were happy to give it a go. My wife and I travelled May 16th and managed to get there without problems (Volcano).
This is the first time I have reviewed anywhere but feel that anyone reading the other reviews ( like I did ) may be disapointed as its really not that good,sorry.
You need to know how it really is for the disconcerning traveller and not blinkered by the super animation team reviews as there is much more to a holiday than that.
So, here is my honest opinion of our week at the Houdas for a couple without kids in tow.
The arrival was very promising as the drive up to the hotel is very impressive, long drive and beutifully kept gardens ( This is throughout the complex ) the walk into the reception area is equally impressive with lots of marble and pillars all squeeky clean.
You will be asked to fill in (another) form before being led to your room by a tip hunting porter (always keep a little change on you). As we made our way to our room we were still impressed with the hotel until we came upon the room.
Our room was without doubt clean and kept clean throughout our stay but was nothing short of dire. Very out dated and desperate for revamp. No fridge, kettle or even a dressing table. We had a mirror on the wall, a floating shelf and a a lot of ingraded mossy remains on the wall which couldnt be removed.
The bathroom was desperate for redevelopment or even just a re-grouting of the tiled areas, they were awful. Our bed was a mattress plonked on a concrete and tile base with slats and covered in awful heavy blankets althought the sheets were clean. No bedside cabinets either so be ready to live out of your suitcases.
There was a distinct lack of info and we had to find our way around and how to get food / drinks etc ourselves.
The Thompson rep was worse than useless and we only saw him twice. Once, lying on the beach all morning in uniform cuddling up to a girl, and secondly being told his duty started at 8.30 as he swandered in at 11.00am.
Staff at the Houdas are very friendly without doubt and the legedary animation team really are good not just with the kids but adults too. Expect the team members to turn up and sit with you for a while for a chat and a laugh or two.
The grounds throughout are immaculate but be aware that the water slides are not at the main pool area as displayed in brochure but out front away from the main part of the hotel.
FOOD. Our biggest disapointment. Having been all inc. many times at three star rating this was the worst we have encountered.
I can eat anything normally but struggled to find any variety and ate the same thing most meals most days. My wife, fussy eater, struggled big time.
You will struggle to get anything at all that resembles an english breakfast but you can have rice pudding with cabbage. Or stand in a long queue for an ommlette!!!
The cafe area, and thats what it is, is utilised for three sittings so you can only visit at appointed times for lunch and dinner and at times be prepared to queue and wait for dishes to be replenished. Not too bad while we were there but can only imagine the nightmare at the cafe when the hotel is at capacity.
You will also have to queue for all drinks at all times as the bar, at all times while we were there, had one barman and if someone asks for a beer you will wait longer while the draw from the slowest pump n the world.
That said, the beer is ok as opposed to the local spirits which all taste like lemonade and have very little if any alchohol content.
Take a bottle with you and just use their mixers is my advice ( YOU CANT BUY THERE, WE ENQUIRED ABOUT A BOTTLE OF BACARDI AND WERE TOLD THAT WE WOULD PAY £45).
All drinks at the Houdas are served in very small plastic beakers and are awful. We visited the night club twice and were the only punters one night and part of a crowd the second visit ( there were 7 souls there).
Drinks were dictated by the barman as both nights there was very little choice and the beer ran out, with seven people there????
The club is also prone to flooding so be aware and there is always a distinct smell of diesel fuel and when we enquired were told that they store diesel for there fire show. Suspect I think so be careful.
The pool area and the beach are really nice but beware the miserable sun lounger man. Just sort yourself out its easier.
Ther is no way that this can be classed as three star unless you have never experienced a good three star hotel elsewhere, we have, many times and the hotel Houdas just does not fall into this category.
Thomsons need to re-evaluate the Houdas without doubt.
If you are looking for poor food, poor drinks and very poor accomadation in really nice souroundings then you will enjoy the Houdas, thats exactly how it is.

1 reader found this review helpful

I was worried about going to this resort after reading some of the reviews, as it was a family holiday and i was 25 weeks pregnant.
We loved it! Can't wait to go back. The children loved it, they are aged 5 and 8. My husband was like a big kid again on the water slides. The water slides were great fun. Holiday was fantastic, best holiday ever.
The reason i haven't given the rating 10/10 is that i did find a couple of faults. The reception staff are alittle arrogant. The life guards by the pool are too busy eyeing up young girls. My husband saved a young boy from drowning, life guards didn't even notice!!! The food is just ok. There is always something to eat. The pizzas and omlettes were nice. Rooms very basic, but we didn't mind as we weren't in them much, just in room to wash, shower, change and sleep. We didnt like the miver on the beach from locals selling things, so stayed away from beach.
Cleaners always cleaning round hotel. Hotel was very clean.
The animation team are fantastic! Memo was great. They work long hours and are great with kids, very entertaining. The quad bikes were great trip out. Kids found it exciting.
Weather was gorgeous and very warm.
Really would recommend this resort and like i said before we are going to book to go again.

6 readers found this review helpful

Me, my best friend and our 4 year old girls went here for a week at the end of may... One word.. AMAZING!! We had the best time ever.. the animation team made our holiday so so good. they are amaing and I can't wait to go back.. travel agents here we come!!!

4 readers found this review helpful

After reading all the different reviews i didnt know what to excpect. when we ( me and my boyfriend) got there it was more than what we excpected. the drive up to it was beautiful, as soon as we sat down we had drinks on the table. When we got to the room wich we was shown to by a hotel worker, we was suprised at how clean it was. We then went to the restaurant wich all the food wa beautiful and a very wide selection. we then went at mididay to sunbath wich we easily found a sun bed. The animation team are the best i have ever seen and are never moody, they work very very very hard for little money. The hotel in all was worth more that the three stars it was rated, it was very clean.

4 readers found this review helpful

I've just returned, with my husband and 12 year old son, from this hotel. We had booked AI for a week but stayed for two because of the volcano fiasco. We had a great time. The staff are friendly and hard working. The food is fresh, but a little bit "school dinners" . The pools are great and the slides are such fun for all the family. The entertainment team are a must-see and try and join in the daytime games; what a laugh. The only real downside are the rooms. They are cleaned and tidied every day by the maids, and are absolutely spotless. However, they are a bit run down. The bathroom could do with re-tiling and the plaster on the walls has blown.

6 readers found this review helpful

Lets get the bad point point out of the way.. the food may not up to everyones taste, esp vegetarians as we are. But you might just about get away with it for a week!
The evening entertainment is a hoot, but again it may not be to everyones taste. The entertainment team have no shame in flirting with the girls/ladies, yet still have a laugh with the blokes and they are great with kids. The facilities are great for kids. Free table tennis, tennis, football, boules, archery! We didn't see our two for the whole week.
The room is basic but clean and the staff are v.friendly.
Visit the Market in Souss and the Medina in Monaster and Port el kantaoui, very nice. In the Markets prepare to haggle. We bought a silver necklace for 6 Dinar on sale for 45!

9 readers found this review helpful

Had read alot of reports about this place and wasnt sure what we was up against, but had a fantastic time the animation team were brill, food was good alot of choice, rooms were pretty basic but you dont spend much time in there anyway. It was very hot when we went and the beach was beautiful, definatly recommend the afriacn dream trip it was amazing, the whole hoilday was a great pleasure and have even booked to back next year(2010).

11 readers found this review helpful

This was supposed to be a long awaited dream holiday,paying quite a bit more for all inclusive,nearly £2000.... What a joke and what a waste of our hard earned money.My husband,daughter and myself arrived on a Sunday and were home by the Wednesday.
We have never been so ill in all our lives,the rooms were absolutely disgusting and the stench of raw sewage as you walked down the corriders was vile.The food if you could pronounce it or work out what it was supposed to be was unedible and covered in flies permanently,you basically have to live on pizza for a fortnight if you last that long.The doctor,if thats what he says he is,sits smoking in a dirty tunic and wants money off you for the injections that he insists you need,what happened to basic hygiene and travel insurance.We paid over £600 just to get out of the country and had to bluff our way at the airport in looking well enough to get on the plane,we have had no money offered back to compensate us for our holiday from hell as we left of our own accord and had no medical evidence to back us up...my advice is dont ever go to this hotel and put your family through the absolute nightmare that we experienced.