X Life Hotel

Not the relaxing holiday we were expecting

We recently stayed at X-Life Hotel in Sarigerme and, unfortunately, our experience was extremely disappointing.

On arrival at around midnight, we were given room 607. It is worth mentioning that room 607 is not in the main hotel building – it is in a separate structure underneath the swimming pool.

The room had a very strong sewage smell. When we flushed the toilet, wastewater actually came up through the shower drain. We immediately reported this to reception, but were told there was nothing they could do, there were no other rooms available, and to come back at 9am.

We therefore had to stay in the room overnight.

An electrician happened to be at the hotel dealing with an issue in another guest's room. After we explained what was happening, he very kindly helped us out of goodwill and temporarily stopped the wastewater coming through the shower drain. However, the awful sewage smell remained.

I then went back to reception and asked if someone could clean the bathroom because the smell was still horrendous. I was told there was nobody available to do it. I was given cleaning products and ended up having to clean the bathroom myself.

Despite this, the smell remained so bad that we didn't sleep at all that night and spent most of the night outside the room trying to get some fresh air.

The problem returned the following morning. We went back to reception at 9am as instructed and were eventually told we could move rooms after 12pm.

The original room also had exposed electrical wiring, loose flooring, dirty footprints and a television with no signal. There were also no smoke detectors or sprinklers in the room, which was particularly concerning given the exposed wiring.

Thankfully, the replacement room was much better, but this didn't undo the experience of our first night and the time and sleep we lost dealing with the problems.

There were also several other disappointments during the stay. Tea and coffee making facilities were advertised but weren't provided in either room. Entertainment and a disco were advertised but didn't take place during our stay. The "private beach" was not exclusive to this hotel, and what was described as a minibar was essentially a refrigerator containing two bottles of water in the replacement room.

Breakfast was another disappointment. Hot food such as beans and scrambled eggs was repeatedly served cold, some food appeared to be served again the following day, and the buffet dishes weren't labelled.

We also found the customer service disappointing. When we checked out, there were three members of staff at reception. We were barely acknowledged and, after handing over our key card, there was no "thank you", "goodbye" or "safe journey". I was left standing there unsure whether we had actually completed the checkout process.

To be fair, once we were moved, the replacement room was much better, and we did have some enjoyable parts of our holiday. However, the issues we experienced at the beginning of the stay significantly affected our overall impression of the hotel and our enjoyment of the holiday.

I would strongly recommend (if you can) checking exactly which room/building you are being allocated before booking, particularly if room 607 or the accommodation underneath the pool is involved.

This review reflects our personal experience during our stay.

The hotel is advertised as a 4-star, although personally I would rate it closer to a 3-star. That said, I came here on a solo holiday and had a really relaxing time, so I wouldn’t let the negative reviews put you off.

The views are absolutely stunning, and the pool area is beautiful. The cleaners work incredibly hard every morning to keep the pool and surrounding areas clean. There were some ants around the pool, but this really wasn’t anything out of control and is to be expected in a warm climate.

The food was a bit hit and miss. Some meals were really nice, while others were questionable. Breakfast had omelettes made fresh in front of you, although there wasn’t a huge amount else being cooked to order. The burgers from the pool bar, however, were lovely, fresh and definitely worth having. One thing I did think could be improved was how the food was kept once it had been put out, as there didn’t always seem to be adequate heating or cooling for certain foods, particularly salads. I also don’t have any allergies myself, but I could imagine the lack of food labelling being an issue for people with allergies or dietary requirements.

There isn’t really any entertainment at the hotel, but music is played throughout the day and they are happy to play requests if you ask. I actually quite enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere. The all-inclusive drinks were okay, although I thought it was a shame that the all-inclusive service finished at 10:30pm.

The staff were friendly and helpful. You could tell that many of them were doing multiple different jobs, but despite this they were always pleasant and willing to help.

My room was perfectly fine and the air conditioning worked extremely well. One night I actually got quite cold, but there was a duvet in the wardrobe, so I was able to sort myself out easily by adjusting the air conditioning. My room was cleaned every day by the maids, which was appreciated. The main downside was that the Wi-Fi only really worked in reception.

The hotel is situated on a very steep, winding hill, so walking back up from town isn’t for everyone! I was happy to walk down into town and then get a taxi back up. The town itself had a good selection of shops and bars. If you’re looking for fake designer clothes, Joe at the shop next to the Dolphin Bar had some of the best quality ones I came across.

One of the best parts of my stay was actually the other guests. Everyone was really friendly, and I made some amazing friends while I was there, which made travelling solo feel even better.

Overall, I’d say don’t let the reviews put you off. It’s not what I would consider a true 4-star hotel, and there are definitely areas that could be improved, particularly the food presentation, labelling, Wi-Fi and lack of entertainment. However, if you’re looking for somewhere with amazing views, a beautiful pool, friendly staff and a relaxed atmosphere, I had a really enjoyable and relaxing stay.

Just returned from a lovely week here with my husband and son. First time at this hotel and wasn’t disappointed. The reviews made us sceptical but decided to make our own mind up. So pleased we did. We had a fantastic week and would definitely return. Our room was lovely, no problems at all. Spacious and clean. Maids were in everyday. Great view of the pool and sea. We were on the 5th floor in the turret. Food was good and restaurant staff excellent. Pool bar excellent and if the drinks did run out they just fetched more which took a couple of minutes. Snack bar was good, always fresh and hot. All staff were excellent and worked really hard. No entertainment but music all day and evening. Bus service excellent. Beautiful clean pool area and grounds with amazing views. Met some amazing friends who all shared our opinion on the hotel. Lovely relaxing week away, wouldn’t hesitate to return.