Две недели волшебства Two weeks of magic

Just got back from vacation and thought I'd leave a review. Maybe useful for those who are planning a vacation this summer. I want to say right away that all negative reviews about this hotel left before 2010 can be considered invalid! In 2010 there was a change of owners of the hotel, and everything changed dramatically. Now it really is a 5* hotel!
So, everything is in order. It so happened that I was forced to go on vacation at the end of April, although it was planned for me in June. I was going to go with the child, as always, to Bulgaria, as this is the most economical vacation (besides, my husband has always been against Turkey). But in April you won’t go to Bulgaria, and you need visas to Greece, so there was only one option left - Turkey (we were afraid of Egypt). The agency Rosting, through which we always travel, offered a couple of options, and I chose Asteria. I liked this hotel for its green and large territory, and the price was excellent (cheaper than Bulgaria in June)! At the last moment, they even took our dad with them (a very favorable price for three) and flew off. We were very afraid for the weather, but we were lucky. Only the first day was rainy, and then cloudless sunny days. During the day, +25-28 degrees in the shade and +30-35 in the sun, a pleasant breeze from the sea, very comfortable and not hot. The evenings are cool, you don’t look like short sleeves, they put on sweaters (about +18), in the morning at 9.00 it’s already over +20. The water in the sea was cool (+20), but we swam during the day, the water in the pool turned out to be warmer, so our child did not climb out of it. In short, we are happy with the weather!
So, we arrived at 12.00. The first impression upon entering the hotel is WOW! Everything is beautiful, green, well-groomed, flowering. The territory is huge! Everywhere cleanliness and absolute order. After Bulgaria, where hotels have practically no territories, we were pleasantly shocked by such beauty.

We were met by a very nice young man at the reception, Ernest, who seems to be of Russian origin. They immediately gave out bracelets and sent them for a walk and lunch (lunch from 12.30), and then they told me to come to the settlement. By the way, bracelets for adults are green (ALL ULTRA), and for those under 18 years of age, they are yellow (ALL without alcohol). This is so that teenagers are not poured. We walked to the sea, turned into a bar and went to a restaurant. The second WOW happened to us in the restaurant! Sea food and it is very diverse. Immediately, of course, they remembered Bulgaria and realized that again, the latter was losing. There was everything here: a sea of ​ ​ various greens, vegetables and fruits (chic strawberries, delicious oranges, pears, apples, medlar, bananas, and watermelon for dinner), all sorts of meat (beef, chicken, pork, lamb) and cooked for everyone. I have never seen soy meat. There is a zone where they cook right in front of you: in the morning scrambled eggs, scrambled eggs, pancakes and bread in egg and cheese; afternoon kebabs, liver, chicken or other meat; fish or meat in the evening. Lots of salads and appetizers. Separate dietary table and children's table. Well, desserts can sing a special song! Two huge tables: one with oriental sweets, the other with European ones (jelly, mousses, cakes, profiteroles, cakes with strawberries, bananas, kiwi, oranges, raspberries, blackberries). Every day we ate something new. In general, a paradise for the sweet tooth! You will not find this in Bulgaria. And, of course, a very rich selection of pastries (bread and rolls) for breakfast. Such delicious buns I ate only in Paris. The overall rating of the food is 10 points! After dinner we went to check in. Here it is necessary to tell that the hotel consists of one large main building (the price for it is higher) and 7 three-story bungalows (or, as they are called villas). Each bungalow has 36 rooms, and each has its own name (Petunia, Sardinia, etc. ). We had a voucher for a bungalow, so I immediately politely asked Ernest to settle us closer to the main building so as not to go far with the child. Believe me, we didn’t give him anything and didn’t promise to thank him, we just asked politely with a smile, and we were settled in the nearest bungalow. This is for those who say that Russians always settle in the worst rooms. Just do not be rude, but behave like a human being and then they will speak to you accordingly. True, at first we were settled on the 1st floor, it was cool, so I again went to Ernest and again politely asked to overpower us higher, again without offering anything. He picked up options for us for a long time, and then said that he would not want to move us to more distant bungalows, so he asked us to wait 1 night and the next day he moved us to the 3rd floor of the same bungalow. Well, a very pleasant and helpful person is Ernest!
The room is ordinary, medium in size, freshly renovated, good new furniture and beds, an extra one was brought for the child. The only downside is the tiles on the floor. In summer, this is even a plus when it is hot, but at the end of April it is still cool. But as it became warm, we did not notice this small inconvenience. The bathroom is good with a bathtub. Free bar and safe in the room. The bar was replenished with non-alcoholic drinks constantly. Cleaned well, towels changed every day, linen every 3-4 days or as you ask. We occasionally left tips of $1 and they cleaned us up nicely. But in Bulgaria, even tips did not help much, they cleaned mediocre. And our maid on the last day of our stay, as a token of gratitude for the tip, left a bouquet of carnations near our door. Oh, it was nice!
There are 4 pools in the hotel. Everything is clean and doesn't smell of chlorine. One of the largest, consisting of 3 parts, is located near the main bar. It has one section for children (1.10m), where 3 slides are placed, the remaining 2 sections are deeper (1.40m), water gymnastics is carried out there, etc. The pool is located around a large bar. The second super children's pool is near the mini-club (40 cm), the third one is near the bungalows and the fourth indoor heated one. All sunbeds and towels are free. At the entrance they give a plastic card for beach towels, you give it to the point of issue of towels, it is returned to you when you return the towels. Unfortunately, Russian tourists often lose their towels (when drunk), and then start stealing them from each other. It was disgusting to watch, to be honest. And in general, if you can find a minus at the Asteria hotel, it is the presence of a large number of Russian tourists (about 2/3 of the hotel). Well, some Russians do not know how to have a cultural rest, they are rude, swear, they are indignant with or without a reason, they are always dissatisfied with everything, they offend bartenders. It's disgusting to look at. And then they write in their reviews that they treat Russians badly. So how to treat such "Russians"? ! I'm not saying that all Russians are like that. Of course not! But this nasty minority spoils the impression of the whole nation. My child's swim sleeves (the most favorite) are missing. A day later, I saw them on another child, approached, asked politely. To me, honestly stroking my eyes, they said: “Well, what are you doing! We have just arrived at the hotel! ” And they themselves lie on the hotel towels at 11.00, which are issued only after check-in, which means not earlier than 12.00. So how do you explain to a child? They reassured her a little then, I had to buy new ones, but she still remembers those. Well, okay - this is a trifle. Still, this episode did not spoil the impression of the rest.
In the middle of the rest, we went to the dolphinarium in Alanya. The tour was offered by our guide and it cost us 80 dollars for three of us. By the way, the receiving operator works perfectly here. They meet immediately, the buses are modern, with air conditioning, the drivers are professional, they drive carefully. On the bus, Russian-speaking guides will tell you everything and warn you about everything, the hotel has its own guide, who is there all the time. For any questions, if they arise, to him, everything will be resolved immediately. It also offers a sea of ​ ​ excursions.

We chose the dolphinarium because my daughter is very sick and this trip is not long. Dolphinarium is awesome! It cannot be compared with any Crimea or Bulgaria. A real show with huge and smart dolphins. It’s hard to tell, you have to watch, so I advise all families with children. True, it is not clear who got more pleasure from dolphins - the daughter or my husband and I. There you can also take a picture with a dolphin (I think $20) and swim with dolphins ($140, but it's worth it).
Separately, I want to say about the animation team. It's big, maybe 20 people. 5-6 people work during the day with children. Half of the animators are from Ukraine and Russia. So there are no problems in communication. And interestingly, the same animators work during the day, playing games on the water (water polo, aqua aerobics), on land (beach volleyball, bocha, archery and rifles), entertaining children (painting T-shirts, collecting beads, making sand paintings, bake cookies, have picnics by the sea, and much more). By the way, you don't have to pay for anything. Who rested with children in Bulgaria, he will understand me. And in the evening the same animators participate in the evening show. They sing and dance amazingly, and they arrange comedy shows, and the chief animator is even yoga! He lay on the glass and showed various other "horrors".  Every evening a different show. At 20.45 mini-disco, and at 21.30 evening show. Musicals, comedy shows, Miss Asteria and Mister Asteria evening, Turkish Night (with professional dancers), Western shows, etc. Liked by both adults and children. And at the end of the show, all the spectators and animators must dance the Asteria club dance, very groovy in Latin American rhythms. So during the rest, tourists and animators become practically friends!
Special thanks to all the staff of the hotel!! ! Rudeness is absolutely excluded here! Well, if you do not spare a dollar to the bartender or restaurant employee you like, you will be rewarded in full! You will not need to say anything at all when approaching the bar. They approached - and everything that you ordered last time is already there, only they opened their mouths in a restaurant to order drinks - and they are already running towards you with a tray with these same drinks! Or they can joke (as the Turks love it), and bring gin tonic in proportion: gin, gin, gin, tonic. In Turkey, they love children very much, so the attitude towards all vacationing children is simply amazing. Already on the first day of my stay, my daughter asked: “Why is everyone winking at me? ” In short, only positive emotions! And if they ask me if I would like to come back here again, I will answer without a doubt, OF COURSE!
And, in conclusion, I want to compare my vacation in Turkey with a vacation in Bulgaria, where we were 3 times. Undoubtedly, Turkey is Better! Bulgaria has only one plus - a sandy beach and a gentle entrance to the sea. But this beach, unfortunately, in Bulgaria is always polluted with cigarette butts, because it is impossible to find urns there. There are no such large sandy beaches in Turkey, but everything else is much better! Unless, of course, you end up in a good hotel like ASTERIA ELITE RESORT.