Gardenya Hotel & Apartments

told her when she got there. She also cleaned her own loo and took out her rubbish from the room.

supplied on a daily basis they just come in and empty the bins. But on the whole its a good budget place to stay. Would I go back again no, but I never go back to the same place twice!

stayed in but probably the most pleasant. Who needs sea views with all those wonderful flowers and views of the hillside from your balcony.

(If you use the ladies loo in the Gardenya\'s bar area you can see the sea and the castle)

Everything about the apartment was clean and tidy....until my lot moved in that is.

Beds were made everyday and towels and bedding changed once during the week. On change day towels and bedding are arranged in various shapes and scattered with flowers.

The cleaners went well beyond their call of duty and we would return home to find the morning\'s washing up done and neatly stacked on the drainer.

Every other SC accommodation I have stayed in has provided buckets, mops and brooms. There was none of this and you felt that despite it being a SC holiday you really were expected to do nothing for yourself.

Everyday the cleaners left little bunches of flowers in a glass on the table.

Such lovely simple touches make you feel special.

The staff in general were brilliant and really went out of their way to help and look after you.

They were all completely mad! Especially the lovely Ahmed and the lovely John/Jan (?).

By the end of the week, my shy and sad (she was pining for her boyfriend) teenage daughter referred to Ahmed as \'my friend\' because \'he\'s kind to me\'.

I have given entertainment a 5, not because there was any as such but because we were constantly entertained during our stay.

There was no Turkish night during the week we were there but this was probably down to the place being quite empty of guests with it being the end of the season.

No matter. Whilst it would have been fun to see the lads in drag and doing their own version of the Dreamboys (I think the big local cabaret is called)who needed entertainment on top of the already entertaining staff antics.

We didn\'t eat in the hotel restaurant at all but the menu was incredibly cheap.

There is a small shop under the hotel. Not very well-stocked, possibly due to end of season running down. But it was fine for water, sweeties and toilet roll etc.

I also got a very good exchange rate on travellers cheques in there.

We didn\'t use the pool, preferring to swim in the sea but it looked very clean and well maintained.

The public areas, lounge, bar etc were looking a little shabby decor-wise but again I put this down to it being the end of the season and would expect that if (Oh! How I wish) we returned in May everything would be fresh painted.

Hot water was a bit of a pain. Its solar heated so if you had used the hot water in the evening it would be some time before it was hot enough to use again the next day. And the tank didn\'t hold enough for four showers.

We got round this by using the big plastic bowl provided in the bathroom and bathing old fashioned in front of the fire style. Without the fire.

Not the height of luxury....but do I look like I care?

On our last morning there the cleaners knocked everyone\'s door to say goodbye (collect their tips).

They embraced the ladies and handed us a small posy of flowers and shook hands with the gents.

They deserved every extra penny they earned in tips that day!

All in all, a fantastic place to stay if you like a holiday on the quieter side and without all the trimmings.

The Gardenya would without a doubt be our first choice of accommodation should we be fortunate enough to visit Turkey again.