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Very unsuitable hotel, WWYD?

163 replies

GlamGiraffe · 17/07/2019 02:58

WWYD. please tell, it's a longish one

Booked a holiday, DH, DS(17), DD(2) and myself✈.
Explained to the travel agent i needed somewhere a suitable for both kid, in particular where DS could wander off and entertain himself alone some of the time whilst I could stay and relax with DD by a pool in a toddler friendly environment.

Committed a fair amount of money to having a nice holiday having had a dire stressful time health and work wise.
Arrived at hotel, over 100 steps, wound higledy pigbledy over cliff wihout bannisters, from property entrance to front door, virtually impossible with a buggy. No open spaces where a toddler can safely safely walk as everything is on a clifft top with no barriers or railings and sheer drops to rocks below.⛰🏞 The pool is small, is only deep, has no space around it in which to walk as it is stiffed full of loungers. A hotel with capacity for 950 has approx 200 loungers. And the poll is pretty packed with the poll from that many in. The suggested shingle beach is in fact a small concrete platform over more rock with ladders to the water. The "playground" is only suitable for kids aged maybe 8 years and is also surrounded by cliff edge drops.
Making matters worse, DD has serious dairy allergy, i checked in advance hotel had oat milk which was confirmed. The hotel have yried twice to pass hrt off with soya milk yo ehich she is also evtremely allergic- she could die. Despite this they ate oblivious. Despite caiming to stock the ost milk on the phone, on arrival they didn't even know what it was and I have to travel I hr to get it-i had space to bring it had I known.
We are totally restricted on what to do, we are at a loss. There is nothing resembling a beach nearby. We trekked to the nearest rocky scrap which is hopeless and without an inch even to swing a cat in.
Have contacted the agent explained the problem. She contacted the hotel who (surprise surprise said their hotel was totally child appropriate). There is even a hole the width of my toddler through the balcony wall-on the 9th floor.
Family is awfully stressull, I'm not in best health to be trekking in a sightseeg mission is really not what I need and that really unfair on a child who is only just 2.
There are 2, maybe 3 children we have seen here. The whole hotel, definitely the resort is catered towards the more eldery guest.
I know this is rambling. Sorry.

But WWYD?
We,re/I'm going a bit nuts; the stress is starts to show already😫😫.

OP posts:
WhenOneFacePalmDoesntCutIt · 17/07/2019 10:07

crustycrab
formula is one thing, you can rarely buy the exact same one abroad

Oat milk, after you ve checked that it is available locally, no it's not normal.
Coeliac sufferers don't take kilos of pasta, bread, cereals with them either!

Mind you, I have read that some brits can't travel with packs of tea and baked beans, so why not. Grin

Villanellesproudmum · 17/07/2019 10:08

Your 17 year old could go sea kayaking with one of the harbour companies

GlamGiraffe · 17/07/2019 10:10

Hotel Croatia in cavtat.
I have seen.nothingin the images which is representative of the experience. Obviously were aware we wouldn't be on the rocky cliff edge and had no intention of going there. There aren't any dreadful reviews either.

OP posts:

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LegoPiecesEverywhere · 17/07/2019 10:11

Do they have ground floor rooms? Can you ask to be moved?

MarthasGinYard · 17/07/2019 10:13

TBF

On trip advisor the picture shows it sits on a huge cliff.

Villanellesproudmum · 17/07/2019 10:14

That hotel is clearly on a cliff!

MarthasGinYard · 17/07/2019 10:15

Heaps of reviews on TA saying unsuitable for small dc.

rookiemere · 17/07/2019 10:15

That balcony is horrendous, between that and the incorrect milk you clearly should be moved and the fact that the travel company admit you were mis sold , I hope you will be.

Daisypie · 17/07/2019 10:18

Jesse that balcony is appalling.

Zaphodsotherhead · 17/07/2019 10:20

Never mind a toddler, anything could drop from that balcony! I wouldn't dare sit out on it for fear that my towel or hat or book might fall through the gap and kill someone nine floors (!) below.

And yes, pictures might show a hotel on a cliff, but surely that's not a problem if it's adequately fenced and contained and there's a gently sloping lane down to the beach that's the other side.

EleanorofCastile · 17/07/2019 10:20

The hotel is owned by a group with quite a few hotels- I would be requesting a transfer to a more suitable hotel in the group!

NoBaggyPants · 17/07/2019 10:26

Find something to block the gap in the balcony, I'm sure the hotel will help. It's not ideal but it makes it safe.

There is a buggy service if you can't manage the steps.

GlamGiraffe · 17/07/2019 10:27

@MarthasGinYard

I honestly can't see the child unfriendly reviews. Clearly blind.

I know the hotel in on a cliff on one side. We have stayed in many that are situated like that. the other sides are normally accessible and that's what we were lead to believe. This has just been appallingly designed without any real thought. It should have been done properly. In a 5star that's what you'd reasonably expect.

Our room isn't on the cliff side.

OP posts:
MarthasGinYard · 17/07/2019 10:30

Put 'children' or 'toddler' in search bracket on the property and it brings them up.

NoBaggyPants · 17/07/2019 10:31

You can get Oatly milk in the supermarkets there, also DM health stores.

GlamGiraffe · 17/07/2019 10:33

@NoBaggyPants
Buggy service a complete red herring.
One golf buggy up and down a very long, ridiculously steep series of hills with extensive queues at each end waiting. It's not always in action either. Its a fib!

OP posts:
NoBaggyPants · 17/07/2019 10:39

It's there if you want to use it, even if you do have to wait. Perhaps two of you could walk and toddler plus one use the buggy? I'm sure others wouldn't mind letting you go before them if they're not infirm themselves.

Your choices are to find a different hotel, to come home, or to find solutions to your issues.

Villanellesproudmum · 17/07/2019 10:45

Some of the reviews mention a separate children’s pool.

You have chosen a Cliff side hotel in a harbour location so some of your complaints could have been avoided with a bit of research. The hotel has been built many years and likely refurbished post the war, the country was financially on its knees until fairly recently. The hotel reviews are overwhelmingly positive.

You’re in a beautiful area with lots of places to explore by bus or boat and you have an indoor pool to avoid the hottest part of the day with a toddler. You need to change your mindset and appreciate what is around you, the balcony is very poor, others have put pictures of similar of trip advisor. I’d block it or ask to move to a ground floor as another poster suggested.

How long are you there for?

WhenOneFacePalmDoesntCutIt · 17/07/2019 10:45

sorry OP, but looking at the photos, HOW were you expecting to find a beach there? Confused
TUI does state there are access to 2 beaches, but nowhere does it say direct access or can you see any photo.

It looks as un-child or teenage friendly as possible, and even the modern balconies have clear gaps between the plastic/glass/whatever material on the balconies!

Who could have sold you that as a child friendly holiday, that's beyond belief. It looks nice, but the reviews are not so great. You can see how huge the building is, and how little sun beds there are too.. not even a splash pool in sight either?

crustycrab · 17/07/2019 10:50

The resort itself is clearly not an ideal teenager destination. The reviews do say it's not for kids. There are no photos in family/play areas either.

Recent reviews mention having the buggy transfers on "speed dial". Are you sure the people just standing queuing (including you) are using the system correctly?

Most reviews have outlined the sun bed situation too.

I'd use the balcony photo and the milk and ask for a move though and do my research next time!

hormonesorDHbeingadick · 17/07/2019 10:58

"No one carries packs of milk in their luggage"

I take small cartoons of alpro soya milk and suitable snack for my CMPA child. You can request extra luggage allowance for medical needs but we have never needed it so haven’t done so.

WhenOneFacePalmDoesntCutIt · 17/07/2019 10:58

I never understand why people are surprised by the lack of sunbeds when photos show a building with hundreds of rooms and 25 sunbeds around the pool.

There should be a way to book the ones you need, but it's obvious there's not enough for even a quarter of the rooms there.

Soola · 17/07/2019 10:58

Next time let your husband book the holiday

ChihuahuaMummy1 · 17/07/2019 11:00

Always trip advisor the life out of a potential holiday

Screamanger · 17/07/2019 11:30

Oat milk fast and is simple to make. We make it from scratch every day. see if you can find a shop selling oats

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