More Traveller Reviews of Almond Holiday Village
A superbly presented, family run oasis!
from AndyP45
We stayed here last week as a base to visit our recently emigrated friends. The booking was on recommendation as other friends and relatives had used Almond and suggested we try them too. I e-mailed their general info address and got a superb personal reply. They helped out with every aspect, including transfers (we ended up flying to Larnaca and getting a taxi transfer) but Ercan would have been closer. Anyway suffice to Gulten's perfect English and approachability was hugely beneficial. The flight was delayed but the taxi driver was quite happy even though by then it was the early hours. When we arrived we were greeted personally (2 in the morning by then!) and they'd definately stayed up specially. Smiles all round. The villa was a 1 bed (with bedroom on a mezzanine level) and our son who was a last minute participant was on a very comfy sofabed. They do full 2 bed ones and there are, I think, 8 hotel rooms. The aircon was effective in 40deg heat and was rarely off. This is a family run concern and it shows. The attention to detail and atmosphere was fabulous. You should watch the sunbeds (of which there are plenty) being straightened up at night, military precision!!! The landscaping is gorgeous and the pool perfect. The breakfasts were good, with an optional full English being well worth it. Bar meals for lunch are tasty and the poolside area for eating just right and thankfully shady. I hadn't booked a hire car, but decided to and got a great little runabout for just £20 a day inc taxes. Let Almond do this for you it is so convenient and great value. There's the usual table tennis & pool table, but it was too hot for much of the former! I still beat my son though:-) All in all I'm struggling to fault it. Er.... no, I can't. I will use them again and would unreservedly recommend it to anyone thinking of going to Northern Cyprus. Andy P.
So relaxing
from goneholidaying
It was a last minute decision to take a holiday, we found the web site for Almond village, and read all the reviews. We were so glad.This was one of the best holidays we have had .We were spoilt by the service and attention from the family and staff.The food was excellent ,the accomodation ditto.We enjoyed it so much, we are going again in Oct 2008 with 4 of our friends. Jackie and Dennis Morley
Lovely place top marks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
from TravelbagSlough
We have just come back from holiday staying at this hotel and could not fault it in any way. Its very clean. The grounds and gardens are well maintained and beautiful. Very professionally run hotel by the family and staff. Most friendly people i have met in all my travels being ex British Airways staff. Mr Ali and his family are very proud of their hotel and the running of it and to give holiday makers what they want. A VERY HAPPY AND ENJOYABLE STAY!!!!!!!! Rodney and Valerie. BERKSHIRE.
Top marks for everything
from martin4fran
We simple could not fault this hotel, when you read all the other reviews it makes you think that they cannot all be true but they are. The Hotel is always spotless where ever you look, the grounds are kept beautifully and the family and staff are the most friendly we have ever encountered, bending over backwards to help with any needs you may have. We were at the Almond when they received a 3 star review, the family were mortified - at the thought that somebody did not have a wonderful holiday. Ali and his family are rightly very proud of the Hotel and indeed the reputation that they have built up over many years, and long may they continue to give the people on holiday--- EXACTLY WHAT THEY WANT Martin, Frances, Alan & John
Can't wait to go back!
from james700017
This must be the friendliest and helpful hotel I have stayed at, the family and staff just can't do enough to make your holiday memorable. Joanne and I flew into Larnaca airport on the Greek side of the island and collected a pre-booked hire car and drove across the border to Northern Cyprus. The boarder crossing was fairly painless and consisted of getting a visa stamped and paying 35 euros for a months car insurance on the Turkish side in all it only took about 5 mins. The drive to Almond village took about 1 hour from the airport but was very pretty as you approached the mountains. The food in the Almond Village is excellent; we went half board and had a fixed menu but there was always a choice of starters and if you didn’t fancy the main course you just let them know during the day and you could choose something else! Unbelievable! In addition you could always choose something of the al a carte and pay a small premium. The Villas are of a high standard and are cleaned daily with clean towels daily and sheets every other day. The pool was an excellent size and very clean and never got to busy. The grounds were excellent with the gardeners working morning, noon and night There are several beaches close by but the cleanest was experience beach but it was the most expensive at 15 lira a day for sun bed etc. Restaurants I would recommend would be the ‘Address’ and the Veranda and just past Kyrinea at the pretty village of Bellapais is the Bell Tower with lovely views and for the best views try St Hilarion Castle. We also drove to the Troodos mountains crossing the border near guzelyurt with picture postcard views all the way up and for a bonus no coaches on this side as its far to narrow. Can’t wait to go back and that’s not unusual as at least ½ the guests had stayed before….. A fantastic holiday had by us both thanks to Ali and his family…. Cheers guys and see you soon… Best wishes James & Joanne
Loved the setting
from HappyHolidayMakers62
Have just come back from a 10 day stay at the Almond Holiday Village and will certainly return.Ali his family and all staff were very helpful nothing was too much trouble.The whole complex was very clean and well looked after.The pool was a very good size with plenty of sunbeds and very clean.The Villa was of a good size.Breakfast as all food we had was very good and very well cooked.If you want a relaxing holiday in a beautiful setting I would throughly recommend it
Sorry to leave
from ckmmr
This was our second stay at Almond HV and it lived up to and far exceeded our memories. We were looking for a quiet week away just to recharge our batteries and the AHV ticked all the boxes. The owners and staff are genuinely warm and friendly and nothing seems to be too much trouble for any of them. They organised our hire car and airport transfers from Larnaca. We had booked on a bed and breakfast basis but, as the menu was so varied, with a daily special available, we decided to eat at the hotel for some of our evening meals. We did go out for 3 evening meals, The Verandah, Ambience and Di Figaro. My personal favourite was Di Figaro - overlooking the sea, excellent food and attentive staff. (Dont be put off by its grand appearance its very reasonably priced). We stayed in the hotel rooms this time round which were very spacious and kept immaculately clean by the housekeeping staff. The gardens and pool area are just beautiful and very relaxing. There is a supermarket close by, but its on the other side of a busy road, but thats about it, no touristy shops in the vicinity, thank goodness. There is a bus (dolmas) service which takes you to the nearby beaches, restaurants or the town centre (about 20 mins). You can walk along the road side but, it's busy and, it's dusty and, it's VERY hot. AHV can organise taxis as well if you dont want to hire a car - they do drive on the same side of the road as us!! We had a thoroughly enjoyable week away and will definitely be visiting again, and we have already recommended the AHV to friends.
Heavenly Holiday
from EstherSussex
My husband and I have just returned from a two week stay at "The Almond Holiday Village" and would like to thank Ali, Dervise and their family and staff for a truely wonderful holiday. The cleanliness, excellent food, helpful, friendly staff are all a credit to the hard work and thoughtfulness towards their guests that they have achieived. We spoke to other guest staying there and almost all of them said that they had stayed there before, some many times, this in itself is high recommendation for how well it is run. There is a good sized, well maintained pool with plenty of sun beds, a very nice changing and toilet facility by the pool. A nice little secure childrens garden area. The gardens are a paradise, a joy to walk round. We found it quiet and peaceful, and the bar area closing at around midnight. We highly recommend " The Almond"
We shall return
from LooRad
We booked a three week stay independently with the help of the family who we found to be very helpful regarding car hire, and airport transfers and accommodation. From the moment they pricked us up at the airport to the moment they dropped us back we had a wonderful relaxing and carefree holiday. We used all the facilities at the complex and found the resturant to be very good with an excellent choice for breakfast, lunch and evening meal together with poolside snacks. The family and staff could not do enough to make our stay any more relaxing and trouble free they were always there to answer any questions you had regarding the Island and its many beautiful features. We stayed in a one bedroomed villa which was tastefully decorated and spotlessly clean, and serviced everyday. We over looked the pool area and gardens which again were extremely well maintained and beautiful to overlook whether it be sunrise or sunset. We will definitely recommend the Almond to all of our friends and family and will be returning in the near future. We would like to say a very big thank you to the family and all their very hard working staff for making our stay so special.
Almond Holiday village
from greengate95
Having just read a review about the Almond Holiday Village in Northern Cyprus posted on 8-6-2008 and I am somewhat confused by the content and I feel that I must add our impressions to clarify this review. Having stayed at the Almond Holiday Village several times over a period of years, we have always enjoyed our time there and received a warm & friendly attention from the family & Staff. We found the accommodation comfortable & clean and suitable for both a short or long term stays. Over the years the owner and family have made many improvements to the Holiday village, especially for children and with the new villas added recently most families can be suitably accommodated, as can be seen from photos posted by other reviewers. The food is always up to a very good standard and there is a very a large variety to suit most tastes, and the chef will always do his best to cater for special requests. As to the point made about “breakfasts being boring” – we have never had this problem, and if the large variety available is not enough, you only have to ask for something different. My wife is an avid sun bather and has never had a problem ‘moving her sunbed or sun umbrella’ around. It should noted that to the rear of the pool there are nicely laid out lawn & gardens, which would allow uninterrupted sun bathing for most of the day if that is what you require. In the review there was no mention of whether the reviewer went with children, but most of the families with young children we have seen holidaying at the Almond Village seemed satisfied with the childrens’ pool , pool table, table tennis and play area. Whilst I agree that not all children may be satisfied with this, within a few minutes walk/drive there is an aqua-park which is always well patronised and a complex which has many attractions for older children (and is enjoyed by some adults as well) There are also several beaches nearby with water sports available if this is required. Addressing the final point made in the review, I can only say that Kyrenia (or to give it its proper name – Girne) is very busy with both pedestrian and vehicle traffic during the day and noisy into the night, whilst the Almond Village offers a peaceful and welcoming environment to enjoy your holiday. Having read other reviews about the Almond Village this is the only one on which I have seen any negative comments, and we have seen many guest come back time & time again, I can only assume that The reviewers were looking for something different in a holiday. Both my wife & I can thoroughly recommend it.
3 readers found this review helpful
My husband and I chose to celebrate our silver wedding anniversary at the Almond Holiday Village and the hotel certainly exceeded all our expectations. We received a very warm welcome after a rather long and eventful journey! This family run business is both caring and... more