La Blanche Island

Let me just start by saying this isn’t a 5 star. This is 3, with some 4 star services. This is a long one so strap in. I’d first like to start by saying what a beautiful area the hotel is in. Surrounded by breathtaking beauty, the views are amazing and the sunsets are perfect. That however really where the praise for this hotel halts. The pools were nice but weren’t ever clean. The kids pool was full of stones and dirt and the other pools unfortunately were covered in black mould in the pool drainage channel. The pools were nice to be in due to the amazing weather but that’s it. The hotel offers lots of food choice through the snack restaurants dotted around the hotel grounds. These are a real godsend otherwise my whole family wouldn’t have eaten the whole week. The food was cold every single dinner and tea time. We went for dinner right at opening time and every item of food, completely cold. This wasn’t just a one off. This was every single meal time, breakfast, dinner and tea time. The food was the same pretty much every meal time and was bland at best. The snack bars however were really nice, hot food and a variety of different foods which you will find are a treat when staying at La Blanche. The drinks situation is somewhat diabolical. I asked lots of questions before going, questions about alcoholic drinks and cocktails. Not one of the cocktails was done the same and every single cocktail that myself and my family had was pure syrup and they tasted nasty. The hotel boasts about having mixologists but not one member of the bar staff could make me any cocktail I asked for. I also shouldn’t have to be telling a “mixologist” how to make a pornstar martini. It’s not hard work to train bar staff properly. Whilst we are on the subject of staff, I think in the week stay I might have encountered 5 positive interactions with staff. And they came from only 3 people. Sergey, the entertainment team member. Boritek at the pool snack bar and Yunus or Younis at the coffee La Blanche. This isn’t acceptable when paying the price we payed and when you’re meant to be a 5 star resort. On the first day we were looking for frozen cocktails (who doesn’t on holiday?) and we were told not available, only at the beach bar. When we arrived at the beach bar we were not greeted, we were ignored by 3 members of staff. I stood at the bar and 2 members of staff were looking down at their phones. Looked up and then carried on looking at their phones. When one member of staff did greet me I asked for 4 frozen strawberry daiquiris, with their one ice blender that was available on the whole island. The attitude and response I got from asking for those drinks were despicable and really set the tone for the rest of the week to how we were going to be treated. And it was true. Every day we attended the beach bar for the same drinks and we got eye rolls, sighs, even one day refusal to make because the machine was dirty to which I said I was happy to wait for them to clean. This is not acceptable. The rooms were ok but not great, really dated and a little dirty but ok. The beds were comfy. The whole hotel you wouldn’t believe is only 12 years old. I think it looks older. This hotel has the opportunity to be great but it needs proper trained staff and staff who quite frankly can be bothered. It needs a better management team and someone to tell the chefs to cook food that actually tastes of something. The kids club was laughable. The place looks like it’s been trapped in time. It is possibly the worst kids club I’ve ever been. And the staff in the kids club who just sat on their phones with the mardiest face going should just get another job. It’s literally up to you what job you do. A shoutout to the Asian à la carte as this was really good in comparison. The Italian à la carte however was absolutely shocking. I refused payment as every meal for 5 people was cold and we had 4 courses.

If you’re thinking about going to La Blanche island I’d only do this if you’re paying under £1000 a person, otherwise you’re going to be annoyed. It isn’t good value for money and you’re better off booking a holiday on the fethiye strip or somewhere in Antalya, better value for money and actually good places.

I'm not sure whether the people who wrote some of the less complmentary reviews actually stayed at the same hotel as we did, but this was our second visit having also been in September last year, and we thoroughly enjoyed it. Comments about the food are of course subjective, but if you know you are going to an all inclusive resort with one a la carte option ( you can upgrade at a cost if you want), then you should expect the majority of your meals to be in a large buffet restaraunt. To say there was a wide choice of foods at all sittings (I have never eaten fried vegetables for breakfast, but it obviously suited some guests) is an understatement and as far as breakfast was concerned, the hot dishes were perfectly fine, particularly the scrambled eggs, they could have perhaps been a little hotter but it needs to be remembered that if the serving dishes are too hot, the food dries out and there has to be a compromise. The Sunrise Snack Bar on the main level next to the pool is in fact more like a small restaurant with online ordering, great pizzas, decent burgers and kebabs, quick service and ample drinks options. So we tended to eat our daytime meals there as you aren't restricted to the restaurant opening hours and you are just a few minutes back to poolside. We ate our a la carte in the Pulcinella Italian Restaurant and we were well fed with an excellent beef tenderloin steak as the main course. My only gripe is that if you want something other than the house wine, which is okay, the prices they charge are a bit silly so we declined. I would suggest lowering the prices and they would sell more, simple business strategy. My wife and I had a large room, probably meant for family use, with a very well appointed bathroom (shower actually), a sea view, decent bed, the mini bar was checked every day by a very polite young man (who was tipped) and the room was always clean and spotless when we returned to it, sometimes even after we had been to breakfast. Comments about cleanliness are misleading, staff are on the go all the time so how people can complain about that is beyond me. The swimming pools were as clean as you like, fresh towels available daily and the pool bar on the first level down does a great job with a very polite and helpful staff member. The lobby bar was a busy place and you could have a bit of a wait whilst cocktails were being mixed, but the guy who seemed to be the main man (sorry I forget his name, but left a tip) worked really hard and knew what my order was after one evening, also when ordering a gin & tonic he would make sure it was Bombay Sapphire rather than Beefeater which went into the gin cocktails. The Coffee Blanche coffee bar off the lobby is a nice place to sit if you want a change and you have waiter service there. I note that some people have said "no entertainment". Across from the reception lobby are some external escalators which take you down to a beachside stage platform and every evening there is a different live act. Not everyone was to our taste but it has to be varied, however we visited every night for a couple of drinks and some perfectly good shows. I can't comment on facilities for children, there were a few kids there but I didn't sense any discontent amongst the families, sometimes your little darlings just need to be less indulged perhaps. The waterpark isn't huge, but there appeared to be plenty of slides and chutes, the kids area looked clean and well equipped, I would happily take my three grandkids there and I know they would love it. I could go on but it would be just affirming what I have said, that it's a great hotel, Jet2 give it 4 Stars plus, which is about right, there are two neighbouring hotels which would cost probably double or more, the difference being more a la catre facilities and the like, but you are still under the same sun. The one complaint I must register though, is that at the bottom of the metal staircase leading down from the coffee bar (Coffee Blanche) there is a stone step which visually blends in with the ground and is not easy to see. I descended the staircase on our first night after arriving and missed my footing, falling and grazing my knee and stinging the palms of my hands. I am 71 but pretty robust, however someone older or frailer could have suffered a nasty injury. Fortunately I was wearing trosusers, but nevertheless, a bright yellow luminous painted edge is needed to make the distinction between the step and the ground beyond. We are actually considering a family holiday at La Blanche next year, as I said I know my grandkids would be in their element and I would recommend this hotel to anyone with the budget we had.