Side Resort Hotel

I am writing about our recent 7-night stay at Calimera Side Resort, from 2 October 2026.

We chose your hotel based on its advertised 4.7-star rating and expected a good standard of accommodation, food and service. Unfortunately, our experience was a huge disappointment, and we feel the hotel fell well below the standard we expected.

Firstly, the beds in our room could not be pushed together properly, leaving a gap of around 6–8 inches between them. This meant there was no chance of sleeping comfortably together as a couple. Our room also had virtually no view, with a wall approximately 12 feet away being the only thing visible.

The cleanliness of the communal areas was disappointing. Tables around the coffee area were still dirty from the previous evening, and ashtrays were left full overnight. There were no coasters on the tables, resulting in lots of wet rings, and we hardly ever saw anyone wiping the tables down.

The service at the bars was also poor. On one occasion, a barman was actually on FaceTime with someone while making drinks, which we found incredibly unprofessional. Staff hardly ever collected empty glasses from tables, and this only happened once during the entire week we were there.

Generally, we found the staff very unwelcoming, with very few smiles or any real effort to make guests feel valued. One evening, we were watching a live act when staff began moving chairs and tables before the performance had even finished, despite people still trying to watch and enjoying their drinks. It made us feel as though we were in the way rather than guests who were there to enjoy the entertainment.

The food was another let-down. Some items were cold even when we arrived at the restaurant as it opened, with the worst examples being cold chicken kebabs and cold döner meat. The mashed potato also appeared to be instant rather than freshly prepared, which added to our disappointment with the overall food quality. We were also very uncomfortable with the number of wasps and flies swarming around the bottle tops used for making cocktails. This was unpleasant and raised concerns about hygiene in the bar area.

We were surprised by some of the additional charges and limitations of the facilities. Being charged €1 to change a beach towel was something we had never experienced at other hotels. The sauna also cost €10 per use, and there was no steam room. The bar closing at 11 pm felt very early for a holiday resort, and the fact that all the bars were outdoors meant having to go outside in the rain to get a drink. There was no indoor lobby or lounge bar, and the small indoor lounge only had seating for around 15–20 people, which was nowhere near enough for guests wanting somewhere comfortable to sit when the weather was poor.

Overall, we simply did not feel welcome or appreciated as paying guests. There was very little about the hotel that made us feel that customer experience was a priority, and the combination of these issues really affected our impression of the resort.

We picked Calimera Side Resort because of its reported 4.7-star rating, but based on our experience, we genuinely struggle to understand how it achieves this. In our opinion, the standard was nowhere near what we would expect from a hotel with that reputation, and we would struggle to rate the overall experience as even three-star quality.

We did enjoy the Side area itself, but unfortunately, the hotel was a complete let-down. We would not stay here again and would not recommend it to anyone based on our experience.

I want to make it clear that this complaint is directed solely at Calimera Side Resort. We have no complaint against Jet2, through whom we booked our holiday.

We paid for a holiday expecting a comfortable room, decent food, clean surroundings and friendly service. Unfortunately, we feel that these basic expectations were not met, and we came away feeling very disappointed with the hotel.

Ian Rogerson

We had a wonderful stay! The hotel was clean, comfortable, and welcoming. The staff were very friendly and helpful, and the service was excellent. Everything was perfect, and we truly enjoyed our time here. Highly recommended! We would definitely love to come back again.

We recently returned from a package holiday with Jet2. Overall, the hotel offers decent value for money, but our experience was a bit of a mixed bag due to room allocation issues, smoking areas, and a concerning health and safety incident.

​The Positives: ​Staff & Service: The staff throughout the hotel work hard, are naturally friendly, and keep the property clean and well maintained. Room cleaning was consistently thorough.

​Food & Dining: The food was generally good with a decent variety available throughout our stay. You need more croissants at breakfast as they had limited availability and couldn't get them most days.

​Value: Considering the price of the package holiday, the general standard of the hotel felt reasonable.

​The Negatives & Areas for Improvement :

​Room Allocation & Upselling Tactics: Upon arrival, before we had even seen our room, reception mentioned we could upgrade to a family room for an extra €11 per night if our room wasn't to our liking. This felt like a strange sales tactic until we entered our assigned "Comfort Room"—which turned out to be a very cramped box room with two single beds pushed together and almost no space for luggage. ​After raising our concerns with reception, we were moved to a ground-floor room (1115). While the room itself was clean and comfortable, it had virtually no natural light. Heavy trees directly in front of the balcony obscured the view and blocked all sunlight, making the room dark and preventing swimwear or towels from drying.

​Smoke Drifting into Non-Smoking Zones: While smoking is permitted in designated outdoor areas, smoke frequently drifted into spaces designated as smoke-free, such as the library area. Management should relook at smoking areas.

​Health & Safety Management During Storm: During our stay, a severe storm flooded the outdoor dining area. Management kept the outdoor morning omelette/egg station operating while both cooking staff and guests were standing ankle-deep in floodwater. Operating live cooking equipment in flooded conditions poses significant slip, hygiene, and safety hazards, and it should have been shut down immediately until cleared.

​Final Thoughts: This hotel has strong potential thanks to its dedicated staff and fair value, but management needs to address upfront room expectations, look at smoking areas and how the drifting smoke affects smoke free zones, and look at their health and safety protocols during severe weather.