Samokov Hotel

I was travelling solo and booked on the cheap, I really wasn't expecting much from the hotel or resort but neither of them failed to impress.
Although the room was starting to show it’s age it was still very comfortable, warm and spacious. Being on the front of the hotel the room had a balcony which gave me a great view of the resort and the surrounding mountains.
The hotel food was average but there was always at least one good choice on the menu, failing that there was plenty of fresh fruit on offer. The whole resort is packed full of cheap restaurants serving very high quality food so there’s no chance of you going hungry.
The ski school is located in the basement of the hotel and all the staff and instructors were very friendly. The instructors really worked hard to make sure we got the most out of our holidays including extra free tuition during the afternoons (Between other clients), guided bar crawls each night and organising trips into the local town.
The only real negative to the holiday was the other British travellers. Alcohol is (very) cheap and all night happy hours often resorted in British travellers trying to fight the locals.
It's certainly not a 4-5 star hotel but you can't expect that for one of the cheapest ski holidays in Europe. I'm certainly heading back there next year.

This was the worst holiday we've ever been on. The hotel room was disgusting. The beds lumpy and sheets itchy. One pillowcse was blood stained, and when this was reported to reception later on the news was treated with contempt. We had to ask twice for it to be changed over.
The food was horrible; very basic and always cold, giving us upset stomachs afterward. We eventually resorted to dropping into the dining room to grab a few bread rolls, then leaving and buying meals elsewhere on the resort. We also had the NYE Gala Dinner included and were not served until 10pm. We were also seated on the top level, so I cannot comment on the entertainment as it wasn't visible from our position. If you are going to brave this hotel and book it, do yourself a favour at least and book room only as the meals are disgusting.
The Spa treatments are amateur, and not worth the money. The attendants in the Spa are equally as rude as the Reception staff.
The bar prices in the foyer are a rip-off.
My fiance also developed a nasty Streptococcal rash that needed urgent treatment. The 24hr Medical Center onsite was convenient, but ridiculously expensive charging GBP400 for 2 dressings. We had to visit A&E when we returned to London to treat the condition properly.
Our ski instructor was great, and gave us tips on restaurants to dine at that were good value given our experience at the Samakov.
The locals working the bars and restaurants on the resort were also really friendly.
The Inghams reps based at Borovets were great; very welcoming and helpful. Inghams luckily offered many non-ski activities which were good value and fun, given it did not snow while we were there and the existing snow dried up by Day 3 of our weeklong stay.
Unfortunately, I have nothing positive to say about the Samakov hotel. Perhaps if you're looking at Borovets for a resort, consider altertnative accommodation to increase your chances of a good holiday.

2 readers found this review helpful

The food was amazing- the problem is that many of the reviewers are from the UK and wouldn't understand the meaning of good food. There was plenty of fresh food (salads & fruit) along with wholesome other courses and delicious cakes etc. That leads me to the next major issue: Brits... being one myself, I'm deeply ashamed of "our" culture. I'm not surprised that the poor people who have to put up with the great British working class have become hostile and rude. If you have to endure exposure to these low-lives, you'd be the same!
The hotel was old and falling to pieces... everything else about average- what you'd expect from a bargain holiday (less then £250 inclusive!).

3 readers found this review helpful

visited samokov hotel 30/1/10 6/2/10, I was apprehensive after reading some reviews, however I found the hotel to be warm and clean, its not 1st class but its fantastic value for money. The food was good we had no complaints. Ski school was great, reps great. The resort was fantastic overall brilliant holiday for a family we will be booking for next year!

3 readers found this review helpful

1st time to Bulgaria and 1st time to Samokov. Never again - Reception area was about the best part of hotel but the rooms were awful - totally 1 star only - curtains didnt draw - howling wind through windows - room too hot even when heating turned down - pillow!!!! well i have thrown away better - i was covered in bed bug bites when i returned - one blanket on bed that was covered in dust - never been cleaned. Staff rude - go to reception to ask about Spa and you are just told its nothing to do with them all dealings have to be with the spa - spa are the rudest people i have ever met - no towels were given even though they should have been - we were greeted with " no change" as every thing has to be paid for but they never have any change - they only point to where the items are you want - one lady took 30 minutes to find the sauna which is in the corridor of the mens changing room!!! The food is the most basic i have ever eaten with people in our ski party getting bad stomachs from the fish - everything expensive - twice the price of England in some bars coffee was 5 leva which is equal to 2.50 which is large caps in England not cold small cups in Bulgaria. if you go into the town via a little mini bus across the road coffee is 1.30 Leva what a difference !!!! No Snow and lots of wind so no skiing and no lifts worked. Only good thing was the activities to entertain us whilst we were there - table tennis - pool - shooting - bowling but of course everything was to be paid for but luckily nice poeple ran those activities so that is where we spent most of our day. The nicest and best place to go is White Magic across the road - fabulous people run that and very very funny good food and good company. All in all our 1st time and our last - never never never again.I will say our skiing instructor Julian was amazing - best instructor of them all and he tried everything to entertain us even though the nursery slopes where rammed as nobody could go anyway as lifts didnt work - he even took us out for a meal which was exceptional - Julian saved our holiday.

1 reader found this review helpful

think the title says it all really...both myself and my partner were extremely ill due to food poisoning and confined to our room for 4 days out of 7...might I add we ONLY ate the "food" they dished up in the hotel restaurant. So all in all....a great place to lose weight in fabulous proximity to the beautiful slopes, but thats about it! thank god for the emergency medical centre on site who administered IV drips and other medication, clearly this is probably the best investment made by the hotel! Admittedly i did read a few reviews about poor food etc etc before choosing this hotel, but as we pretty much eat anything, wasn't concerned as i assumed this was probably just people moaning, but NO - it really is that bad!

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.

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.

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.

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.