Reviews of Bel Azur Hotel, Hammamet

Have just come back from our second time at this hotel, staff remebered us from 2 years ago. We had a great 2 weeks, weather was fab and would like to go again in a couple of years. Our 31year old daughter/11year old grand daughter are going out there again in October, this will be their 4th time.



It is a safe hotel, everyone if friendly and staff can't do enough for you. The only reason we have given a 9 is the hotel could do with a lick of paint in some places other than that a very clean hotel.



Animation Team are brillant, good fun and will try to sell you their CD/T-Shirts as it's part of their jobe but just say NO in a friendly way and they leave you be. The entertainment in the eveings is great and good fun.



It is very cheap out there and it is expected to give a small tip, which staff are very grateful for as wages are very low.



Would recommend this as a all round holiday.

Had a great time again at the bel azur,after all what you see and pay for is what you get with the bel azur,the rooms are ok,we had a sea view to die for, after all do you want to stay in you're room all day??.

Ok the food is a bit samey but the service was great,(tip ) lunch time pop up to the local sandwich place just outside the gates 4dinars for 2 people and drinks!!and bagettes down the road 100m then a right to Mirage local cafe, again they both cook fresh meats as you wait,really cheap again.

We had 2wks there and we did'nt have a nite without good company which says a lot these days,geordees,devon, irish,norfolk and many more....

We also went on the 2 day trip into the sahara...it was brill,if you go to tunisia you must try and go on the trip it was well worth it(about 70 pounds) yes it is 2 long days but it is something you will never forget,the highlight for me was going through the sahara in a sandstorm on a camel,stands along side swimming with the dophins.

all in all if you are going to the bel azur you will have a good time if you relax and try to chill out x

This hotel is in desperate need of new management and refurbishment. It looks like the hotel has not had a lick of paint since the 70's. The carpets are sticky, rooms are shabby and the bathrooms are just too gross to use they are covered in mould and tiles falling off the walls.

The Food was ok but nothing special and watch the cooked meats as a few people came down with food poisoning.

The entertainment was really bad and consisted of a few young men pestering you for money to buy CD's and T shirts while they danced about trying to impress you with some salsa moves. They were really overbearing and even annoyed you all day around the pool too, they really did spoil our holiday.

All in all I would not return to this hotel.

This has to be the worst hotel we have ever stayed had the misfortune to stay in. The hotel is no way a 3 star, I would not rate it at all. The reception area, restaurant and pool are in dire need of a good clean, it really was disgusting. The rooms were truly awful, our bedding was covered in blood stains, the bathroom was shocking, the bath was covered in horrible dirty marks and there was mould all over the tiles and tiles falling off, the air con did not work. We complained but got no where as the staff simply could not be bothered helping you in anyway, they just slagged us off in French which I happen to speak french very well so I knew what they were saying and they were calling us stupid westerners. They were quite happy to take our money though! The food was awful and was always cold so we stuck to salads and even then a few of landed up sick, obviously their hygiene is not what it should be. The entertainment was really bad it was worse than Butlins. You were constant annoyed by the "animation team" for money and drinks and they were always trying to come out with you at night, for a free ride. We also had a number of things stolen, do not leave your phone or camera on the table or it will disappear and keep hold of your hand bag at all times. The night life is not great and you are being ripped off all the time, one day the charge you one amount the next day it has went up 20 Dinar. Be careful in the British bar as the guys in our group were harassed by local working girls and even the girls were being propositioned by the young local men If we were after that kind of thing we would have went to Amsterdam. We would never return to this hotel or Hammamet as you get treated appallingly they are just after you money and they con you at every opportunity. All in all the worst holiday we have ever had.

The rooms were tatty to say the least, shower room disgusting, toilets un-flushable, no hot water, only cold tap worked, stained walls and floors. Four large bolts with nuts went through either side of the shower room walls these held the TV brackets in our and next doors room. Carpets were covered in paint from when rooms were last decorated probably (1950 circa). The highlight of the bedroom was brown threadbare under blankets on the beds.



The food well that was just about bearable if you stuck to salad and bread, even then we had dodgy tums. The entertainment staff or should I say the hired gigolos are just out to dance with the women and show them a good time for a few bucks, classy!! Don’t worry boys if you need to buy attention there are plenty offers either in the hotel by the Working Russian girls, or if you fancy a local head up to the British bar where you can pick up an 18 year old Tunisian girl foe 150 Dinar. All good if that’s what you’re in too. It is not what we had expected of Hammamet and was quite disgusted by it all.



You may think I am being harsh but try it and put it down to one of the Ten Worst places to visit before you pass away. The lesson to be learned is book somewhere else or sleep in a garbage bin as you would be more comfortable there than you would in the Bel Azur.

I thought this holiday was brilliant there wasn't one thing I didn't like about it!



But I loved the animation team they was so friendly and treated you like family I could always have a laugh with them.



I must recommend this hotel or I will feel terrible, you have to go to this hotel its great I have no words to say how good it is!



The beach is on the hotel where there's lots of activity's to do there's that many that you wouldn't be bored.



xx

This hotel is really nice, it’s only a 3 star but the hotel itself is more like a 5 star. The only problem was the food, it doesn’t seem to cater much for the English, but if you walk out of the hotel and turn right there is a cafe which sells English food which is really nice.



The staff are all very helpful, 6 of us went, which included a 2 year old and they loved her. The animation team were brilliant, always talking to us and having us up to dance. The weather was very hot. The rooms in the hotel are very clean and the maids come in 3 times a week which is good!



Hammamet medina is very busy, we got stopped lots, but if you politely say "no thank-you" they leave you alone, remember they are trying to make a living out there, Yasmine Hammamet is a lovely place to go as is Nabeul market although that is also very busy.



Taxi's are very cheap, you can go a long way for about 4 dinars, the only complaint we had was the airport, it was crowded and you have to fill in Immigration cards which First Choice were supposed to give us on the plane but they didn’t, so we had to ask for pens etc when we got there, it was very hot.



We only went on 1 excursion as we were only there for a week and we wanted to see more of the sights so we went on the "zoo and zulu" excursion. It’s brilliant. The Zoo is fab and then you go and watch Zulu dancers and have a 5 course meal which was lovely.



Bel Azur is part of a complex. There is a nightclub called Jimmy's in Sol Azur which is next door, the decor is fab, its a must see!



Again we couldn’t fault the animation team they are so friendly, it was sad to leave.

I have just returned from staying at the Bel Azur hotel for a week. The hotel is quite dated with an 80s decor. When we arrived they took us to a room that had not yet been cleaned. We returned to reception to complain and after about an hour and a half we were given an upgraded room with a sea view.



The room was basic (we were expecting this considering what we paid), but it was very clean, including the bathroom. The chambermaids were very friendly and helpful and always cleaned our room thoroughly after we left. When we returned the room always smelt lovely.



We booked half board, however, only ate dinner and breakfast once in the hotel. The buffet was very basic, and the eating area was slightly depressing. There are plenty of good restaurants near the Medina in Hammamet and Yasmine Hammamet. I would recommend going self catering if you like to have good food!



The outside of the hotel was very nice, with a lot of palm trees and greenery. The pool was nice too. Walking around the grounds of the hotel was very pleasant. You can also use the facilities of the neighbouring hotel, The Royal Azur. The beach next to the hotel was also very clean with a lot of watersports going on.



This hotel seems to be popular with the French and Russian/Eastern European. So expect rudeness and staring! One woman actually slammed a door in my face.



The resort is quiet and clean. I would recommend visiting the Medina in Hammamet. There is a nice pizzeria next to the Medina called Dolce Vita which we visited every day. They do fantastic pizzas and you can sit outside with a view of the Medina and beach. The waiters are very helpful and friendly. I bought my tea bags and they were more than happy to supply me with hot water and cold milk so I could have a nice cup of tea!



Also, try and visit the Medina in Yasmine Hammamet in the evening. They do fantastic free shows and you can get your picture taken with all kinds of wonderful animals like a camel or baby tiger!



We had wonderful weather and I must say that the locals were very friendly and couldn't do enough for us. In regards to men staring; I didn't witness this, they seemed very respectful, however, if you walk around the town half naked, expect people to stare as they would in any country. The men definitely aren't as bad as in Italy (my friend got her bum pinched in Italy by a man in front of her boyfriend!).



Overall, we loved our holiday and will be returning again to Tunisia. We loved the friendliness of the locals and the culture of Tunisia. We hired a car for the duration and I would recommend this to anyone who likes to do their own thing instead of going on pre-arranged excursions. We visited Sousse, El Djem, Tunis and Sidi Bou Zaid to name a few.



We asked countless locals for directions when we got lost and they were all very helpful. No-one *ever* asked us for tips for anything they did for us. Most of Tunisians speak English.



There were also police everywhere in Tunisia and we felt safer than we do in England.

We have just got back from our honeymoon in Tunisia and we had a great time... we wanted to let other people know about what to expect so they can be better prepared for everything.



The Bel Azur is a nice, very basic hotel. There is a main hotel building and there also are chalets on the beach. Tour operators are allocated the main building rooms and other guests get the chalets.



The chalets are very nice and if you fancy one of these, it is best to fax the hotel directly and ask to have one of the chalets on the beachfront. These are very secure, lovely rooms and it means you can sit out front, overlooking the beach of an evening I you don’t fancy going out.



We paid an extra £4 a day to have a sea view, which turned out to be mainly trees and a very tiny glimpse of blue above that. If you fancy something that little bit extra, do the faxing thing and ask them for a chalet. The sea views aren’t worth the money. I know it’s only £4 but we were on a budget honeymoon and we could have put that to a few more drinks or something!!! *prioritise*



The wake up calls at the hotel are crap. You get them when you least expect them and not when you ask for them which can be really unhelpful...especially when you have to be up and out of the door for 6am on a desert excursion.



We forgot to take out mobile phone charger (so we can use the alarm on the mobile) so we had to rely on the front desk and it didn’t happen, which nearly ruined our honeymoon. So please don’t forget your phone charger and an adapter!



The food is a self service buffet style thing. There is something for everyone but mainly for eastern European people i.e.: sour kraut (the dish) and aubergines stuffed with cheese, creamed spinach, rabbit dishes etc. BE prepared for different food types, European people jumping the food queue.



Breakfast is much the same, but the hot food counter serves fried eggs or cheese omelettes.... which if you ask to be well cooked, can be quite nice. The Tunisians have a tendency to lightly cook there eggs which can be a be much for delicate tummies.



There are two types of water in Tunisia, Garci (fizzy water), and Safia (still). Both can be quite cheap and the Garci is really nice in the hot weather. You only have to pay for drinks at tea-time, which a waiter gets for you. They are very helpful, almost like concierges.



If you need anything, just ask. We were lucky, as an obviously honeymooning couple, we got seated at a two seater table but others had to tack on the end of another table, which wasn’t always cool.



The excursions were great except the three day 4x4 desert safari. You have the option to do a 2-day one in an air conditioned coach or a 3 day one in a 4x4 vehicle. Both trips have the same itinery for days one and two. The coach party goes home on the second day and the 3-dayers go onto another hotel.



Be warned: there is only one other excursion on day three and apart from that you are left to explore the crap town of tozeur (or tosser, as we came to call it) on your own. The hotel we were meant to stay at on the second night was awful: almost of a hostel standard. The couples on the trip were not impressed and after a very crap buffet lunch at the hotel, we decided we would like to return home that night other than stay in the borstal style hotel.



The guides were very helpful, professional, friendly, and considerate. My husband had an allergic reaction to sun cream out on safari and it blistered his whole back acutely. Our guide Ali not only came back to the hotel from an excursion with another group, he was able to liaise for a doctor to come and give a shot of anti-histamine to my bloke who was in total agony.



His English was excellent and was out translator during the whole event. We were completely impressed. Ali was not in charge of the itinery, and was very gutted when we said we wanted to go back to our nice comfy resort hotels 500km away. We all signed a group letter saying it wasn’t his fault or the drivers (Safid) so his bosses couldn’t give him any grief over it. Our recommendations is to go on the 2-day coach trip. You don’t get any extra value for the 3-day trip and you can do it in comfort.



There were six participants in a 4x4 vehicle meant for 4x passengers at the most. It was very very cramped and extremely uncomfortable sitting on a wheel arch for 150k at a time. We all took turns to do it but it wasn’t on. The tour operator who run the 4x4 didn’t think it was cost effective to run another 4x4 so we could travel in comfort and leisure that the price tag for this trip suggested we would receive.



The 2 day safari is worth going on though.... the camel ride in the desert was amazing.... dressing up as Lawrence of Arabia and riding on a camel for an hour was so fantastic! Others have the choice of riding in a horse & buggy if a camel isn’t your thing. Although there were some very early starts... watching the sun rise over a salt lake and the Sahara was the most beautiful sights I have ever witnessed.



The Red Lizard train was so cool, riding through the gorges where The English Patient was filmed. Spectacular. In addition, the excursion to El Djem coliseum was cool, although shorter than we imagined it would be. When you go underground to where the prisoners were kept, it has the most awful eerie feeling still, thousands of years from when the atrocities actually happened.... I can’t believe people were ever kept in conditions like that. You hear on programmes like most haunted that when you see little bubbles of light in photographs, it indicates a spirit.



Well, a couple of the photos we took down there have loads of these flecks on it... and some don’t. It wasn’t very dusty, either. Imagination working overtime or just a camera fault??? Weird stuff.....



Anyway, the markets were fantastic, lots of people on cons "hi, remember me, I’m your waiter from the hotel, I show you round the medina for £20 dinar", lots of very pushy sellers in the market place. The French people seemed to have it down to a fine art; they just waved the sellers away and ignored them totally.



Tunisians can spot a Brit from 100 paces... we are mostly mannered, smiling and extremely pale. They will offer to henna tattoo your name in Arabic somewhere noticeable on your body THIS IS A MISTAKE because it is a tool for other market sellers to bond with you and to get your attention. They will be crying out your name to get you to come to their shop "just look, no hassle" "very cheap, asda price". Be strong, be confident and slightly arrogant... and you will get away with it. Just say no. You won’t offend them but some people can’t do it, like my husband, who thinks that prices should be fixed and couldn’t deal with haggling, unlike me, who drove a really hard bargain every time. Ha-ha. Lots of fun.



I think the best bit about our holiday was the fact that we spent two days in the thalassotherapy centre on site at the Bel Azur. For £8, for the whole day, we were able to laze in open-air Jacuzzis and steam baths and whirlpools and jet streams that massaged any tensions we had into oblivion. So totally chilled out.



They also offer massages and algae applications, a hair salon, and just about any beauty service you require. Take lots of condition because the Ph of the water in the spa just turns your hair to straw. Also the hairdryer in the room is meant for blow drying your privates..... There is a whole bidet culture in Tunisia where you don’t wipe your bottom. In public loos they have a small hosepipe and no paper, so it is really important to take wipes with you!!!



If you want to get out and about, with a mish mash of different cultures (African, European, Russian) with a great basic hotel which the cleaners keep very clean, somewhere hot and not too far away to get to then Tunisia is you destination of choice. Very cheap, very chilled out, very very memorable.

This hotel had received good feedback on this and other holiday advice sites but we found the hotel to be very dated.



The hotel is not really geared up for the British tourist, more for the Russian. The people at reception re very laid back and no information is available on anything, you have to ask all the time.



The food was not very good, buffet food, it was basically the same every night with a different sauce. The queues for the food was like feeding time at eh zoo with people pushing and shoving with no manners - I hated this time of day.



We went to breakfast early just to avoid this where if you were lucky you might get an omelette for breakfast, otherwise it would be the rolls from the day before.



Our room was very basic although on arrival we did get a fruit basket (4 apples and some plums). The towels were threadbare and for the first week we didn't even have hand towels. The bathroom smelled as well.



Seeing as we didn't pay very much for this hotel we were not too surprised but a lot of people had paid double what we had.



We were disappointed in the hotel and would not go back. When we were leaving it had changed to high season in Tunisia so the maintenance people were out painting and decorating and getting rooms fixed - including our smelly sink! If only they had done this before we had arrived!

Weather was fantastic, hotel excursions were excellent and you could use any of the other two sister hotels (Sol and Royal Azur) facilities (pools and entertainment). All staff were very friendly.



Few negative points to raise, bedrooms are basic but not very clean. Marks on the bedroom walls, dirt on the bed frames and scruffy bathroom interior.



I also experienced delays in waiting for crockery at meal times as well as people pushing in the queues while waiting to dine.



Yasmine Hammamet was very intimidating especially inside the bazaar.



Taxi's very cheap.



Holiday overall was excellent value for money.

I have just come home from staying at the Bel Azur for 5 nights with my friends. I thought the hotel complex itself was quite nice with a good size pool and terrace area.



I never found being round the pool too crowded, however, like most hotels, we had to reserve sun beds whilst we went to breakfast.



All of our three rooms that we had were of good standard and fairly clean as the maid attended them every day. Entertainment around the hotel was available as the 'Animation Team' offered a range of activities during both night and day.



Just be warned that when you are sunbathing around the pool you may be approached a few times to either go on a boat trip or ride a camel.



We went half board which was ok as there was plenty of food to choose from, however being a buffet, it did feel at times it was like watching a herd of cattle moving around.



Also during breakfast time, the tablecloths from the dinner before hadn’t been replaced which wasn’t the most attractive site to look at. For the price of eating out, I would highly suggest doing so. My and friends and I had meals out a few times and the price was about half the price we would of paid at home.



The location of the hotel was really good, as it was situated right on top of the beach and near a few shops. The medina was only a 15 minute walk away which was handy and is definitely worth a visit.



Also, we found taxi's around the hotel quite often so it was easy to travel outside the main complex. We took a taxi to Yasmine Hammamet which again, is worth the visit with many restaurants and shops/markets. (Side note: be prepared for taxi drivers to argue among each other as they all want your custom.)



All in all, the service at the hotel was good and the weather was beautiful so I would definitely consider going back.

The hotel is very tired and could desperately do with upgrading or even a lick of paint, but was reasonably clean. The majority of the staff were helpful and polite with the exception of the entertainment staff.

Came back on Sunday 10th June 2007 staying at the Bel Azur. The service was good and the staff were very friendly.



The only down side was Lack of cups and Plates and soup bowls. We was waiting for 20 mins for crockery in the evening. The restaurant was unable to cope there was lots of pushing in at meal times.



There was cats running about in the restaurant and the guest where feeding them from the table.

The hotel is 3 star but is on a complex with a 4 star and a 5 star and you are allowed to use the facilities of all three. Right on the beach and a 20 min walk from the resort centre.



The service is fantastic, the bar staff regularly come to the beach and bring drinks on request. The hotel is clean and comfortable, nothing is too much trouble for them, from welcome drinks on arrival to fruit platters in the rooms, its all done for you.



The food is buffet style and can get a bit samey night after night, but there is plenty of choice to suit all tastes. The reps were fantastic, very helpful and knowledgeable. There wasn't a question that they didn't have the answer to.



The only slightly negative comment I would make is that the bathrooms didn't quite match the standard of everything else. They were clean, but a bit shabby. Not a huge problem, just a surprising slip in standards.



All in all, I would definitely recommend this hotel (and the resort) as a good base to relax and explore Tunisia.