Cornelia Resort Hotel - Belek - Turkey

We should have been going to the Paloma Perissia in Side but having found out it was not Ultra All-Inclusive we changed the holiday to the Cornelia Deluxe. We are so pleased that we did this!!

The Cornelia surpassed all our expectations which were high!

We love the 5 star Barut Lara and thought we would be comparing it constantly to that hotel but in many ways we enjoyed this holiday more! I never thought you would hear me day that!

We arrived in the early hours and we were shown to our room and could not believe our luck! We had booked a standard room for 3 adults but had been given a Family room, which had a separate bedroom for us and our son was in a huge lounge area with a very comfortable long bed settee! Next morning we went WOW!! we had a panoramic view of Belek from the lounge with a window floor to ceiling that must have been almost 30 ft wide! Our room had a King size bed but had no balcony but had a raised patio door 3ft off the floor and also had a wonderful sea view! In that room was the fridge and a desk with free internet connection via a cable from reception for our laptop! I was doing my live reports from the hotel with the curtain drawn back and looking out to the lovely sea view! The 24 hour included Room Service was excellent and a fair choice on the menu, the food came hot and hygienically covered! Even the Cutlery came in a paper bag! The fridge was filled daily with a good selection of soft drinks, water and 3 beers! We like diet coke and put a note in the fridge to ask for this instead of normal coke and got this!The room was very clean and maintained that way daily and the towels were nice and fluffy and bathrobes and slipper were available ! Extra pillows were brought promptly!

I will start with the slight negative and the only thing that we were not quite so thrilled with and that is the Buffet Restaurant. It did not have the same choice of food that we have had at the 5 star Lara beach hotels! Theme nights could have had some decorations to say they were say a Turkish night! The actual food was okay but lacking in choice and presentation!
We were very lucky and had 9 al a carte bookings and the Florian Restaurant was simply superb and the service excellent! Every attention to detail and nothing to much trouble! We also loved the Hedera Restaurant and because it was a short walk away near the pool Villas it felt like a real night out! We had a very nice waiter in that restaurant called Selcuk who was a credit to the hotel ! I do not know the names of the waiters at the Florian but they also gave fantastic service! The food was very good and the musican that played was a nice touch! These two Al a Cartes are the best we have experienced in Turkey by far! Unfortunately they have changed the system and for our last few days we could not book them again! The system now only allows you 1 visit per week per restaurant.
The breakfast was nice and the usual turkish style but what a surprise!! If you got there at the right time we even had BACON !! yes and something we have never had before in turkey! It was hit and miss if you got some but nice when you did!
Lunches at the daphine snack bar were cooked to order and a very good menu choice and we never got bored with it! There were 2 piping hot Cauldrons of soup daily with nice bread and a salad bar!
We are used to having Ice cream at the 5 star AI but none was available when we got there, I was told it was to cold and makes children ill ?? This may seem strange to us but when the Turkish people still think april is winter you can understand the logic! Anyway that evening we were told by an animator Yasar that he had mentioned this to the Chef and tomorrow it would be at the daphine bar, Sure enough next day 2 flavours of ice cream were available all day! By the second day there were at least 6 flavours! How is that for customer service? Every where in the hotel the service was excellent and the staff pleasant and attentive and although we have had great service in other hotels in turkey this was the best we have had! A special mention to Elif a lovely waitress in the lobby bar for super efficency but it seems a shame to single her out because we had such great service everywhere! One tip is something we only found out about near the end of the holiday and that is you can order sandwiches at the wonderful Pattissera late afternoon. They had club sandwiches and toasties!
Animation was a new team and very eager and enthusiastic! and the entertainment was low key but again we asked for teen activities and next day they had arranged this! Our 16 year old was wishing he was at the Barut lara for the first day or two but then the holiday turned around and he enjoyed this hotel so much! Thanks goes to YASAR from the animation for all his efforts to get the teens to mix . The Animators even gave up their free time to arrange a football match for the teens!! Yasar used to play table tennis with him etc and was very good! Although all the animators were very good but not intrusive!
We really likes the Lobby bar at the Cornelia and it had a good atmosphere with live music several nights a week. Sunday they had a great group on called Golden Oldies and they were the best! Music for all taste but not for the age range the name suggests! AC-DC was in their repertoire !!!
Drinks at this hotel were great, everything was available at all bars, and a good choice of cocktails if that is your thing! All freshly made and not done on mass!! International brands like Smirnoff, Gordons Gin. Several whiskies including my favourite Johnnie Walker Red and Black label. Bacardi, and a baileys type drink! You need to ask for them by name but all are on view to see!! After a day or so they staff get used to your tipple and you get topped up quickly! Fantastic bar service even at the pool and Olea bar! There is even a Citrus bar for fresh juices in the games/ spa area! Free pool tables to use and a nice small games arcade with some free Play Station 3 consoles!
Bowling is 5 euros but while we were there you could go for free with the animation at 4.15pm but that is a winter season game so has now finished!
Pools are beautiful at the Cornelia and we used to get our sun beds near to the infinity pool which had a wonderful view, and was near to the Olea bar! It was a suntrap and we thought a prime spot, so my husband did got to secure our spot! You need not get up early unless like us you wanted a certain area! There were plenty of beds and more were being put our daily! The good thing is that many guests are off playing golf so the hotel never feels crowded! The pier had just been decked out and the beach canopies put up and it was shaping up for the summer season!
Just one thing I feel people need to know and that is if you go in April the hotels are getting ready for summer and you may see the odd bit of work being done and things gearing up for summer and all restaurants outdoors will not be open! We heard such comments but you would pay almost double in summer !
We think April/ easter is a great time to go!
There are the most beautiful manicured grounds at the Cornelia and I think a special thank you should go to the gardeners for making the grounds so visually appealing! The drive way/entrance is stunning and there seemed to be an army of gardeners tending these gardens! There are also many people doing the jobs you do not notice like the cleaning of windows and you saw them on ropes and pullies and dangling cleaning the glass lifts etc at a great height and this was a full time job because of all the glass!

The guest service staff are very good and have an office in the foyer of the hotel! if you ask they will give you a map of the hotel.
If you fancy a trip out to see the Cornelia Diamond you can go to them and they will arrange for you to go to see it at 4pm daily! The transport is provided there and back! We even got to see the beautiful Cornelia golf course! My husband was green with envy!!!
We thought the Diamond a beautiful hotel but to dark for us! The rooms are simply stunning but the lobby was very impersonal we thought! We would choose to return to the Cornelia Deluxe!
Outside the main entrance of the Cornelia is a golf course opposite which is the Gloria course.From the beach after the Sillyum now a Joy hotel there is a nice area that the locals use with some bars and restaurants and a public beach! There is a huge yellow and blue domed tent type building being built and my son and friend went to explore and it houses a huge astro turf pitch and the workers let them try it out! There are swings etc and a huge area of grass and it was nice to see the locals enjoying their time off! I think in a few weeks it will be fully up and running!

I think you can get the Idea now that we loved the Cornelia,

I would just like to point out that we noticed that not many brits give the odd tip here and there to the staff! The staff work their socks off to make you happy and I feel some people just take it for granted!

We think Belek is perfect for the type of holiday we like and is so lush and green. we intend to return many more times and cannot believe we left it 6 years to return!

A big thank you to everyone at the Cornelia!!

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