We arrived back 2 days ago, and I must say it was an excellent 1 week vacation. The hotel is good quality, not western 5*, but look at the price, dont expect genuine western 5* for the price, I would say it is western 3.5* - 4*, the lobby and pool areas are very nice, impressive when you first see them. the rooms are a bit dated, but are clean and have everything you need, we had a sea view room and the view was stunning! The staff are good, their English is a bit poor and they seem a bit clueless (slow etc but that seems to bit Tunisia all over) but they are friendly and as helpful as they can be (Mahdia is a sleepy small place so the locals who work at the Hotels cant expected to be fast paced in their manner). The food is mixed, as always with all inclusive it gets a bit repetitive, but the quality was quite good, certainly better then Mahdia's finest restaurants, 2 of which we went to and they were very low standard, go to them for the experience of a Tunisian restaurant but dont expect much! for breakfast they made freshly made omlettes and pancakes (among many other things), as good as you can have anywhere, so fresh and made to order - as good as you will get in London if not better. for lunch and dinner it was mixed but included freshly made pizzas, to order, they were really good, better then say Pizza Express, so fresh, very nice! The beer in the hotel is good, tastes nice and not watery, the wine is not so nice, the cocktails were good, not great, but good. The other guests were slightly older then us (we are 26 and 31), which was fine as the atmosphere is mature, respectful and peaceful, not a party place, a place to really relax which is what we were looking for (it is in no way chavvy or clubby). The hotel is right on the beach, which is nice, clean, not busy and the water was really clean and nice, there are locals selling the usual rubbish on the beach but the hotel security control it very well, the standard of the staff is generally quite high - this is a beach holiday and we were impressed by the beach. Mahdia itself is nice, not very commercial, small, slow, sleepy, perfect for a relaxed break. The locals are fine, they seem to relaxed to bother you (other then the ones trying to sell you stuff - but this was less then other places we have been), there is no drinking in Mahdia (other then very few places) which made it really nice, no drunk people anywhere, it was nice to go out of sat night and be in very comfortable coffee places around younger people talking peacefully over tea and coffee - not getting drunk! we went on a day of excursion to 3 other cities/towns, which was great, really interesting, educational, safe and fun. On the whole I highly highly recommend it (until you can afford to go genuine 5* to Maldives this is perfect!), no its no genuine 5* (but have you seen the Dorchester on Park Lane London which is 5*, do you really expect this to be the same standard from the pictures and the price!?!?) but its good, comfortably and relaxing, lots of food which is good quality, drinks are good and the city center is interesting and pleasant - no beggers by the way, they all seem to live ok lives so nothing to make you feel guilty about being on hol (like India for example!). Really, please dont be put of the odd bad review - if you go with the right expectations you will be impressed and come back happy as we have...... enjoy!

Because of the uncertainty in the region, tourist numbers have been down this year (Oct 2011). So they were pleased to see us, and the prices were very attractive! It is very much business as usual at the El Mouradi and the least safe thing we did was travel in a taxi - they like driving on each others bumpers and waving to all their friends rather than keeping their eyes on the road!!!

Interesting mix of German, French, Russian and Brits - 20s to retired couples and groups of girls: quiet and restful rather than party-central. The animation team work hard to encourage participation in waterpolo, salsa class and volleyball during the day. But the evening enterainment was, how shall I put this, "not to my taste" (dire).

Only a few young kids (it was school hols so no over 8s at all) The hotel was about half full I would guess, which meant that one of the coffee bars wasn't open. But it did mean that there was plenty of room on the beach and round the pool. I imagine it can get quite congested in high season, with many reserving sun beds at dawn, despite the notices saying not to!

Service in the bars and at the pool-side BBQ was very attentive - learning our preferences very early on which was flattering. The weather was variable in the first two weeks of October - with some spectacular thunderstorms as well as some fine clear sunny days. We lost perhaps 3 days to rain.

Pool and beach were lovely, the hotel itself perhaps a little tatty (we lost water in our room for two days). The lunchtime BBQ was simple and tasty and beautifully positioned. The canteen was pretty good I'd say, but after 2 weeks got a little samey: omlette cooked to order, fresh pizza, a good international selection including a little local cuisine. The beer was OK, the local wine just drinkable - but the shorts and the tea were painful.

Mahdia is £2 taxi ride (free shuttle) and a relatively authentic small Tunisian town with bustling market on Fridays. The locals can be quite "insistent" on the streets but it is just "cheeky". But we stayed in the hotel pretty much except for a visit to El Jem - which is an extraordinary Roman arena (a mini colluseum) on the edge of the desert (40 mins drive) and well worth a visit.

In May 2011 our entire family entourage of 8 went to the El Mouradi Mahdia and had a good time.

The hotel itself is not what we would call a 5 star but for Tunisia it just about was.

The rooms were very good, large spacious modern and clean and you could not fault them with good views overlooking the sea.

Never a problem getting sunbeds (a tip to the pool side waiters always ensured you were looked after) and the food was OK in the main, always plenty of choices but not 5 star food, maybe 4 at best and the speciality restaurant was OK but it was only open 3 nights a week and the menu never ever varied, it was a set menu to start and finish and you only chose between chicken, beef and fish.

Where I think the hotel lets itself down is the drinks, the alcohol was awful, the wine does not taste like wine and neither do the spirits, as a brandy drinker let me tell you it was like nothing I have ever drunk before.

The indoor pool also has large amounts of the roof flaking off and this needs looking at but the outdoor pools are very good.

Service was always good wherever you were in the hotel and the kids club was fantastic for my grandson, he loved every minute of it.

With all of the issues in Tunisia you felt safe and that was important, you could go shopping with no issues and when you got a few minutes from the hotel the prices came down a lot so if you are going to do quad biking, excursions or car hire etc do not get them from the hotel as they are too expensive.

All in all, the weather was good, the hotel was good and a good time was had by all, but the hotel does need to step up if it is to say it is a 5 star and get drinks in that actually taste like what they say they are.

We have recently returned from a last minute week at this hotel. I can honestly say that the hotel was very clean, the staff were very friendlty and helpful and the food was very good with plenty of choice!!
We arrived very late and were shown to our room which was spacious and on the ground floor overlooking the pool. Our first impression was that it smelt a little 'musty' and after mentioning this to reception the following morning and we were switched, without fuss, to another equally spacious room with a sea view.
Mahdia, a short taxi ride away, was quite unspoilt and a taste of real Tunisian life. We found the people very friendly and also found some bargains in the Medina.
All in all we had a great time and plan to return next year.