This was our first trip to Turkey so wasn't sure what to expect, we had a fantastic time. The Alba Resort is a lovely hotel with plenty going on to keep you entertained for two weeks. It is a dolmus ride away from Side which takes about 20 minutes and cost 1.50 euro each way. When you get to Side you hop on the little train to the centre of town. Side has a pretty little harbour and lots of shops, there is a bit of hassle to get you to go in the shops but not too bad. I would be more concerned with the stall holder selling the nuts near the bus station, he charged us 20 euro's for a bag of nuts and as I'd already handed him a twenty euro before he made up a total, he kept my money and wouldn't give me any change or money back, not a mistake I'd repeat. You are also charged to use the toilet there so beware, even if your children just follow you in to wait for you, they will be charged too. Colakli itself has a strip with quite a few shops, stalls & a couple of bars, if you turn right out of the hotel carry on to the end and cross over the road, you will come to some more shops and bars.

Back to the hotel, we stayed in a one bed apartment which had plenty of space although I understand the studio rooms are a bit smaller. The balcony was pointless as we were on the ground floor and covered by trees. The fridge was stocked daily with juices and water (no charge). We did tip the staff member who did this on several occasions. There was a large pool for fun and games and a smaller quiet pool a bit further away where we tended to spend our time but still had great fun. The food in the restaurant was fine, typical all inclusive but there was plenty of it we always found something to eat and always found a table even though the hotel was full. The desserts however looked delicious but all tasted the same for some reason, there was also lots of fruit. We preferred to eat at either of the two bars at lunch time, they had burgers, hot dogs, chips etc the spicy Turkish flatbread was lovely and freshly made although they were a little slow to take your order at times. We didn't try any of the speciality restaurants at night as most people who had said they weren't up to much.

I agree that the Germans were always served their drinks first and with a lot better service, we were once waiting twenty minutes to be served whilst a waiter chatted to a table of guests, a quick complaint to reception soon fixed this. Drinks are served until midnight in the outside bar, you can order as many as you like at any one time, we would order for a table of twelve of us in one go without any problem as the whole place is All Inclusive. Drinks were fine a little bit weak, the wine needed a couple of mouthfuls to get used to the taste, but this is always the way on AI. The bar in reception was open 24 hours a day my son loved to order a hot chocolate at night on his way to bed.

The beach party night was good fun although it was on our first night so we didn't stay too late. The gala night was great fun too lots of things going on like archery & shooting,the food was a big barbecue on the football pitch and you had to queue at each of the stations so as there were 6 of us on our table we made a decision to go to one area each and stock up for everyone, the food was lovely, the wasps were a pain though, one family had cocktails and the wasps were swarming them, so my advice would be to avoid them until you go back to the bars. this is the night they have the Turkish stall holders in, they did charge the children way over the odds for items that cost only a few euros in the shops outside the hotel so make sure you go to the stalls with them. The camel ride was also a complete rip off to be honest, they tell you to get on to have your picture taken and then spook the camel to set off walking, this happened to a couple of our friend.

Ice cream was only available once a day for half an hour and the queue was so long it just wasn't worth it. The private beach was down a couple of flights of stairs but it was a lovely walk down and there was two bars on the way down if you got thirsty, a drinks machine on the beach and a lady making delicious savoury pancake type things (all included). The sea was warm and clean and you weren't bothered more than once a day regarding trips etc.

All evening entertainment was in German, even the shows but it wasn't really a problem as we had made so many friends we just put a big table together and enjoyed a good drink and a good laugh. There was also bingo and a couple of singers the odd night.

I have highlighted the negatives as well as the positives to give you a fair idea of what to expect as I always book my holidays going off the trip advisor reviews. I would say book this hotel, you will not be disappointed, what you get for all inclusive is very good value, the hotel is a lovely hotel, with hard working staff & a very helpful manager.

Me and 10 members of my family visited the alba resort hotel early this year for ten nights all inclusive! After visiting lots of all inclusive resorts before we wasnt sure what to expect from the alba hotel!

We arrived late at night and upon arrival the staff could not have been more helpful, the bell boys took our cases from the coach straight to the reception and with young children we couldn't have been more grateful for the help! Reception staff were lovely and friendly and assisted us with all out queries and questions! Food was even prepared in the restaurant which was just snacks but was nice after travelling! Bell boys again on form showed us to our rooms along with our cases! Staying in block 9 which was at one end of the resort was the perfect rooms to be in, even though it was 2 min walk to restaurant the block was very quiet and the rooms where top standard and couldn't of been any cleaner with a mini bar filled daily to help our selves too! Biggest suprise to us we're the rooms were interconnecting so we could open a door to go next door! Us being a large family it was perfect as we could just share rooms but the door can be locked at any time and you can have your own privacy! The air conditioning was very powerful in the rooms which was great and didnt make it unbareable! Bathroom was great with a powerful shower and Plenty of towels provided aswell as beach towels! Beach towels could be changed every day and the maids did a great job cleaning the rooms!

The restaurant made us spoilt for choice, there were platters of different foods to choose from which with rotated menus every night it werent just the same things and very rarely saw the exact same dish! The food accommodated for everyone and couldn't fault the service of the staff! The Italian was nice but not much on the menu to choose from and didnt fancy trying the fish restaurant!

The animation team were brilliant and made the most of our holiday! Us being a big family and keen to get involved saw us laughing pritty much all the time! Every morning they greeted you in a warm and friendly manner and always invited us to activities bein played! Thanks to all the members especially Joseph, Kemal, anya, Aaliyah, maylou and mehmet. They worked so hard to put on spectaluar shows every night without fail!
Mamma Mia ;) one to watch!!

Both pools were lovely, clean, and the beach was very warm and sand would become unbarable on foot! Beach bar and pool bar did a beautiful selection of food for dinner and great choice for the kids! Ice creams were available everyday!
We didnt have a problem getting sunbeds but I wud reccomended saving your beds with towels early just to be On the safe side!

Our holiday was absolutely fantastic and would definitely recommend! Sharon was our Thomas cook rep and she was brill she answered all our questions and found us the right deals and Prices! I would definitely recommend a massage whilst staying there as it was a very good relaxing experience!
When leaving the hotel we were all in tears and very sad to go! Bein back in the uk only 4 days the alba resort hotel was book again for 2 weeks!!
Cannot fault!!! ;)
Ava Joyce

Well I am an incredibly fussy holiday-er as they go so I always spend forever researching these places before I go. My partner (26) and I (22) had never been to Turkey before but we'd heard good things so we decided to give it a go! We eventually decided to stay at the Alba Resort in June 2011 and we weren't disappointed. The hotel is spotless, the staff never seemed to stop cleaning indoor and out, the waiters were very friendly and helpful at all times, the atmosphere in the hotel was very welcoming and relaxed, the beach was lovely and very clean in the section belonging to the hotel. The food was great, I'm a vegetarian but my partner isn't and neither of us had any trouble at all finding something to eat every night. The standard of the food was very high for an all-inclusive and the variety was wide and changed from day to day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner were all very good with none being inferior to another as is often the case with all-inclusive deals. The presentation of food was always amazing with wonderful carved decorative fruits and vegetables on all the tables. The mid-afternoon ice cream was also great, really really tasty and a very welcome part of the all inclusive deal! Drinks were good too, the bar staff on all the bars were really friendly and any requests for a drink they may not have on the menu were dealt with happily.
The entertainment team were good, very very enthusiastic with endless energy and make huge efforts with all the guests to ensure they enjoy their stay.
The hotel itself is very attractive, you feel as if you are in a little oasis away from everything else most of the time except when the adjacent hotel plays their music too loud and it intrudes into the atmosphere of this hotel. The pools are great, we preferred the smaller quiet one as it was away from the hustle and bustle of the main pool but we did spend a couple of afternoons there when we wanted to be a part of the action so to speak!
The bar by the beach is great for more simple food and getting drinks for the beach and the view is really amazing, so serene!! This bar also becomes a disco most nights which is a good laugh, but you can always sneak off if you've had enough and have a relaxing lie on the sunbeds listening to the sea lapping on the tide under the stars...very romantic I have to admit!
My one negative is the location of the hotel. When you walk out there is a rather seedy strip of shops that all sell a slightly different version of the same thing and just the odd rather unappealing restaurant or two. It definitely isn't somewhere you can enjoy a nice evening bar hopping along the strip or going for a meal outside the hotel grounds. However if you are content to remain within the hotel complex and you manage to get a room looking inwards rather than out then you really can remain unaware of the outside 100%.
The watersports on the beach were really good fun, we had a go on the big sofa inflatable and bought a disc of the photos at the end - would definitely recommend this if you don't mind being bombed about as it is a good laugh and the people who run it make sure you have a good ride!
The guys offering photoshoots can be very very annoying but they do take some lovely shots. We put them off until the very last day and they had the cheek to ask for 600 lira for all the photos on a disc which - not a single print, which as you may imagine we were not going to pay and flatly refused. Half an hours bartering later on the part of my partner we managed to get the whole disc for 35 lira!! So don't back down, they will try it on big time at the beginning and at least barter a little - it's a huge part of the Turkish culture!
Overall it was a really really enjoyable holiday and we would very much recommend it to anyone looking for a relaxing all inclusive week, we certainly have very fond memories of our time there.

Stay during September 2011 as a family group (only 4 travelled from the UK) ages ranging from 12 to 72 for a family holiday, this hotel catered for all.

On arrival at the hotel it was approximately 3 am. We were shown our rooms only to discover they had no sea view. The views we could see were the rear and roof of the buffet and Italian restaurants, and the kitchen. Prior to our holiday we had pre booked and paid extra for a full sea view room. We also requested a high floor and quiet room but were placed right next to the main lift, staircase and kitchen with the associated noise of clattering crockery and extractor fans. We immediately raised our complaint to the hotel receptionist who explained they were fully booked and advised us to wait until the morning when other guests would be checking out.

The following morning were shown a few alternative rooms which were still not proper sea view either and were worse than our original rooms with regard to noise and outlook. We therefore decided to keep our original rooms. We then managed to speak to the manager and he showed us quieter rooms with a view of the pool which we accepted. Note it is not worth paying extra for sea view rooms as the hotel is set a good 5 - 10 minute walk from the beach and none of the rooms have true sea views.

There was a wide selection of food within the main buffet restaurant but the food was cold almost every night. Some of the selection was warm but never hot. In fact on one occasion the mixed veg from the ‘hot’ food counter was ice cold! Three our our party felt ill for a few days.

The buffet restaurant is also rather noisy and chaotic and not for a quiet meal. The Italian was quite nice and the pool bar and beach bar were the best for lunch. The service in the beach bar is quickest and the freshly cooked breads from the pool bar are wonderful..

Now for the good points

- There is plenty going on in this resort for everyone
- It's spacious and the grounds are lovely.
- You can always get a sunbed by the pool or beach.
- The beach is great and you can walk for miles
- The Haman is great but expensive as are all the spa treatments.
- It's close to shops and bars

I wouldn't stay here as a couple but for a family it is great.