Samokov Hotel, Borovets, Bulgaria
Hotel Information
Recent Price: £49
Hotel Class:
Hotel Description:
One of the top hotels in Borovets, the Samokov is ideally located in the resort centre, close to the nursery slopes and ski lifts. Among its considerable facilities is a night clubs, an unusual split-level restaurant, an impressive panoramic restaurant/bar at the top of the hotel, bowling alley and an indoor swimming pool. loading...
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Samokov Hotel Reviews
" dreadful holiday "
Submitted By: daniele
This was definately the worst hotel we have ever had the misfortune to go to. The staff were rude and the meals were undescribable. We thought it would be nice to be there for christmas - big mistake - worse christmas I have ever had.
Advice: it was very pictureques
Activities: the ride on the gondela
Good for: Ski
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- Date of Holiday:Dec 2008
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:Direct Holidays
" Rubbish "
Submitted By: Bevplant
Don't go to this hotel especially over Christmas The Gala dinner was eventually served cold at 10.30p.m. main course of turkey broccoli, potatoes, carrots, LETTUCE and gravy we didn't wait for the other courses absolute rubbish worst Christmas Dinner I had ever had. The food was cold at every meal and absolute rubbish so we ended up eating out which was expensive.
The reception is lovely and the kids enjoyed in the swimming pool but a bit cold and the ten pin bowling it was much more expensive than we expected and definately not a cheap holiday.The bedrooms are very basic and dated I would not recommend this hotel to anyone.
Prices in each bar of the hotel varied and beware nowhere here accepts credit cards and not all cards work in the cashpoints so you can't withdraw cash so have to do it in the hotel bank and they charge you £35 for the privilege of getting your own money.
The ski instructors were lovely especially Nick and the skiing was good. It was pretty when it snowed there was a good shop in the resort to buy cheap designer hoodies.
The reception is lovely and the kids enjoyed in the swimming pool but a bit cold and the ten pin bowling it was much more expensive than we expected and definately not a cheap holiday.The bedrooms are very basic and dated I would not recommend this hotel to anyone.
Prices in each bar of the hotel varied and beware nowhere here accepts credit cards and not all cards work in the cashpoints so you can't withdraw cash so have to do it in the hotel bank and they charge you £35 for the privilege of getting your own money.
The ski instructors were lovely especially Nick and the skiing was good. It was pretty when it snowed there was a good shop in the resort to buy cheap designer hoodies.
Advice: Much more Expensive than I thought even beer take plenty of money
Activities: Franco's restaurant and up the Gondola beautiful views
Good for: Ski
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- Date of Holiday:Dec 2008
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:Thomson
" What a [-] Hole "
Submitted By: noel555
I would not even give this hotel 1 out of 10 its just the lowest available selection on their drop down ratings dont go to 0 out of 10, it was so crap am not going to waste anymore time even writing about it.
Advice: Dont Go
Activities: When I landed back in Ireland looking out the plane window
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- Date of Holiday:Dec 2008
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:Booked Independently
" First time skiing 4 of us in party... "
Submitted By: Mr N K
First time skiing 4 of us in party
Samokov is so retro it is cool.. reminded me of 'the shining' but not scary! Rooms very clean Good size nice balcony - just a bit dated. Brilliant location next to Gondola, and close to bars restaurants etc. The food not as bad as some people say - what can you expect catering for so many people? Plenty of good restaurants nearby - although prices are a bit more than expected - still cheaper than UK.
Samokov Ski School was excellent - Our instructors George and Lexxy were fantastic, patient and helpful - don't forget to tip well as they need (and deserve) it.
I would definately come back and stay here again.
Samokov is so retro it is cool.. reminded me of 'the shining' but not scary! Rooms very clean Good size nice balcony - just a bit dated. Brilliant location next to Gondola, and close to bars restaurants etc. The food not as bad as some people say - what can you expect catering for so many people? Plenty of good restaurants nearby - although prices are a bit more than expected - still cheaper than UK.
Samokov Ski School was excellent - Our instructors George and Lexxy were fantastic, patient and helpful - don't forget to tip well as they need (and deserve) it.
I would definately come back and stay here again.
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- Date of Holiday:Mar 2008
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:First Choice
" Totally dreadful hotel. I have never... "
Submitted By: Mrs V Walsh
Totally dreadful hotel. I have never met ruder, more hostile people in my life, let alone in the service industry. The service was surly and aggressive, the hotel smelled of smoke everywhere, even the swimming pool. Everything was an extra charge, the men in the ski room only smiled on the day they thought we were leaving, when the tips box made an appearance. The prices in the resort were not cheap at all, leading one to suspect that the prices were being increased for the tourists, and up the mountain were a blatant rip off - the equivalent of £3 for a small bottle of water, and expensive yet terrible food. There were extra charges for the toilets, most of which were utterly disgusting, even in Africa I have not experienced anything like it. I will never go to Bulgaria again.
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- Date of Holiday:Mar 2008
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:MyTravel
" The hotel reception area and service... "
Submitted By: Mr D Bishop
The hotel reception area and service is fine, as is the ski and boots area. The hotel is just across from the main Gondala. We booked 3 rooms via Inghams, but the food was very poor standards and quality. I can eat almost anything, but we spent most of the week gojng out around the town, where you can find homely foods reasonably priced. The bedrooms were also very poor, just everything is past its sell by date, the sheets and covers felt dirty and grubby, even after a mid week change. The beds are simply worn out and need replacing, I am not sure even a tramp would want to sleep on the matteress's we had. All in all the skiing was good, but the button lifts for the main runs are long and really need updating to chair lifts- not for beginners. As they say you get what you pay for, it is a low cost hotel and resort, if you can afford a bit more go somewhere else.
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- Date of Holiday:Mar 2008
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:INGHAMS
" As first time skiers, we were unsure... "
Submitted By: Mr MJ Jordan
As first time skiers, we were unsure what to expect but Borovets didn't dissapoint.Big enough to eat and drink in different bars each night but small enough to make everywhere acesible by foot.Snowed whilst we were there which added to the magic.Samokov Hotel was a bit dated but we expected that.Rooms were clean and of a good size,plenty of bars in the hotel to choose from and lots of lounge areas.Pool was large and restaurant was ok.Some strage food combinations but something for everyone.Not always piping hot but microwaves available.Ski school was based in the basement and once we got past the first couple of hours being allocated skis etc it was a great holiday.Special mention to our instructor Angel who was patient,knowledgable and great fun.Would recommend to any first time skiers and yes,we will return.Probably use sofia though rather than Plovdiv(Closer and doesnt suffer fog problems as much)
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- Date of Holiday:Jan 2008
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:CrystalSki
" There was 5 of us in our party,all... "
Submitted By: Mrs Sl Galloway
There was 5 of us in our party,all skiing for the first time.
The hotel was well located, the Neilson staff (Chiris & Colleague) were very friendly, helpful and efficient. The resort was ideal for beginers, we had a fantastic time!
Special thanks to our ski instructors STOYAN and ANGEL. Regards Sue, Andrew, Sam, Don and Sharon.
Hello to Catherine, patsy, Martin, Judith, Emma etc........
ps. we'll be back!
The hotel was well located, the Neilson staff (Chiris & Colleague) were very friendly, helpful and efficient. The resort was ideal for beginers, we had a fantastic time!
Special thanks to our ski instructors STOYAN and ANGEL. Regards Sue, Andrew, Sam, Don and Sharon.
Hello to Catherine, patsy, Martin, Judith, Emma etc........
ps. we'll be back!
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- Date of Holiday:Feb 2008
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:Neilson
" This was our second skiing trip to... "
Submitted By: Mrs N Denning
This was our second skiing trip to Bulgaria (previously went to Pamporovo).
Borovets is far more suited to intermediates than Pamporovo, there are plenty of varied runs - the best ones being at the top of the cable car to the right where there are plenty of good red runs, and also to the left at the top of the cable car back down to the mid station - great views across the valley.
There were enough runs to encourage us to come back again whereas we were board by the end of the week in Pamporovo.
The hotel Samakov is a very big imposing building. The rooms are a bit dated & it's not really up to our 4 star standards, the bathrooms are small & the room lighting was terrible - but they were kept clean each day & the public areas are good.
The food was typical Bulgarian - don't go expecting a la carte & you won’t be disappointed, but if you venture out for food it's very good elsewhere.
For comparison we had a look in the Rila hotel & were disappointed with what we saw, so on the whole I think we choose the best hotel in the resort at the time (there was a nice looking new hotel called the Ice Angels being built right on the slopes which we may try one year).
There's lots to do in Borovets & we found a great bar/restaurant called the Salamander (just off the Iglika run) with a lovely Manager called Plamen who looked after us very well - we looked forward to our homemade apple pie each afternoon!
Don't worry too much about the reports of there being a lot of lap dancing clubs etc. it's not that bad - they are there but they're not that obvious.
We went with another couple (all in our mid thirties) & there was enough going on to please us from dusk till dawn if we had wanted it. We will go back.
Borovets is far more suited to intermediates than Pamporovo, there are plenty of varied runs - the best ones being at the top of the cable car to the right where there are plenty of good red runs, and also to the left at the top of the cable car back down to the mid station - great views across the valley.
There were enough runs to encourage us to come back again whereas we were board by the end of the week in Pamporovo.
The hotel Samakov is a very big imposing building. The rooms are a bit dated & it's not really up to our 4 star standards, the bathrooms are small & the room lighting was terrible - but they were kept clean each day & the public areas are good.
The food was typical Bulgarian - don't go expecting a la carte & you won’t be disappointed, but if you venture out for food it's very good elsewhere.
For comparison we had a look in the Rila hotel & were disappointed with what we saw, so on the whole I think we choose the best hotel in the resort at the time (there was a nice looking new hotel called the Ice Angels being built right on the slopes which we may try one year).
There's lots to do in Borovets & we found a great bar/restaurant called the Salamander (just off the Iglika run) with a lovely Manager called Plamen who looked after us very well - we looked forward to our homemade apple pie each afternoon!
Don't worry too much about the reports of there being a lot of lap dancing clubs etc. it's not that bad - they are there but they're not that obvious.
We went with another couple (all in our mid thirties) & there was enough going on to please us from dusk till dawn if we had wanted it. We will go back.
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- Date of Holiday:Feb 2007
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:Balkan Holidays
" Party size - 8. This was 1st time... "
Submitted By: Miss V Liddle
Party size - 8. This was 1st time skiing, and 1st time to Bulgaria. People were very friendly, hotel was in excellent location. Facilities in the hotel were great.
The night club was excellent and the prices at the bar were very very cheap!
Rooms were good size, cleaned every day, and from the balcony the views were fantastic!! Food was nice, lot's to choose from.
We did ski school through the Samokov hotel and our ski instructor (Kiko) was excellent with us. He knew the best places for food. Francos was a great place for pizzas and drinks! Kiko made our week! I have never laughed so much!
We found Bulgaria a great place for our 1st ski holiday and we are looking to book again next year to same hotel.
The night club was excellent and the prices at the bar were very very cheap!
Rooms were good size, cleaned every day, and from the balcony the views were fantastic!! Food was nice, lot's to choose from.
We did ski school through the Samokov hotel and our ski instructor (Kiko) was excellent with us. He knew the best places for food. Francos was a great place for pizzas and drinks! Kiko made our week! I have never laughed so much!
We found Bulgaria a great place for our 1st ski holiday and we are looking to book again next year to same hotel.
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- Date of Holiday:Jan 2007
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:Inghams
" Great holiday! Food and drink very,... "
Submitted By: Mr S Field
Great holiday! Food and drink very, very cheap and at some places, high quality meals available. In the hotel Samakov the breakfast bar had a good choice of breakfasts such as full English, continental and cereals. Teatime was also good, with a selection of Bulgarian and English food. Especially good was the fresh red trout and the veal.
Out into the night and it was a vibrant place considering it’s not that big. Karaoke bars, loud nightclubs and an abundance of lap dancing clubs made for a great week for the lads, maybe not so good for the kids and missus like. I will add that there were some quieter venues scattered around and even a proper British curry house with an Indian chef from Leeds, so it is possible to have a nice, quiet one.
Now let’s get to the real reason your reading this review, the beer prices. Man it was cheap! I was paying 3 levs (about 90p for a conservative estimate) for a 660ml bottle of Stella, so it will be apparent to the lager swilling hordes that I spent mucho hours after the skiing propped against the bar nursing my battered body!
The skiing was great for our group as most of us were beginners. The lifts were directly outside the hotel and you could see the floodlit slope at night from our balcony. Top holiday!
Out into the night and it was a vibrant place considering it’s not that big. Karaoke bars, loud nightclubs and an abundance of lap dancing clubs made for a great week for the lads, maybe not so good for the kids and missus like. I will add that there were some quieter venues scattered around and even a proper British curry house with an Indian chef from Leeds, so it is possible to have a nice, quiet one.
Now let’s get to the real reason your reading this review, the beer prices. Man it was cheap! I was paying 3 levs (about 90p for a conservative estimate) for a 660ml bottle of Stella, so it will be apparent to the lager swilling hordes that I spent mucho hours after the skiing propped against the bar nursing my battered body!
The skiing was great for our group as most of us were beginners. The lifts were directly outside the hotel and you could see the floodlit slope at night from our balcony. Top holiday!
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- Date of Holiday:Jan 2005
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:Neilson
" First family skiing holiday so... "
Submitted By: Aj Ski Mum!
First family skiing holiday so beginners-had a brilliant time- all got in ski school at hotel, well worth it to get you skiing and to find your way round the various ski runs as a beginner.
Samokov Hotel good, friendly, relaxed atmosphere. Hotel like a pair of old jeans, slightly worn around edges but clean and comfy!! Ski department provided excellent equipment, some of it brand new!! And ski school at hotel handy! Will go back...beautiful area....
Samokov Hotel good, friendly, relaxed atmosphere. Hotel like a pair of old jeans, slightly worn around edges but clean and comfy!! Ski department provided excellent equipment, some of it brand new!! And ski school at hotel handy! Will go back...beautiful area....
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- Date of Holiday:Dec 2005
- Board Basis:Half Board
- Tour Operator:inghams
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Advice: place in general is pretty good, right on the edge of the slopes. good for intermediates
Activities: on the brief night we went out before illness struck buzz bar and chilli peppers were good
Good for: Ski