A review on: The Regnum Carya, Antalya.
Our visit to the Regnum Carya. Price £££/£££
Image: Jet2
We decided to visit Turkey this year after much deliberation on what country we were going to visit for our summer holiday, I had always heard mixed reviews on visiting Turkey, but everybody who I have spoken to who has visited before has spoken so highly of it, the wonderful weather, hotels, Turkish people and food. I asked for recommendations on Twitter for hotels to visit and one hotel was repeatedly mentioned in my replies. This hotel was the ‘Regnum Carya’ in Antalya. I did my research online and after seeing glowing reviews and many videos and photos online, we decided to book. I will split this review into sections for easier reading so you can read up on each area separately.
On arrival at the hotel we were absolutely blown away by the grandeur of the entrance alone, it is simply stunning with high ceilings, modern classic décor, so many staff offering to take your bags, offering a drink for guests, none alcoholic or a glass of fizz- (which I will never turn down) there was also chocolate.
We were welcomed and given a map of the hotel resort and our room keys and we headed up to our room.
Room
I have been fortunate to have visited some absolutely incredible hotels world wide and I have to say our room at the Regnum Carya was definitely one of the most luxuriously stunning rooms I have ever stayed in. It wasn’t the traditional ‘holiday hotel room’ that you would expect in a hotel in Spain/Greece and other European destinations, it had more of feel of the type of hotel rooms you would get in a hotel in Vegas, Miami or Dubai. The TV was set behind a mirrored wall on one side of the room and the bed was massive and comfortable. There was a cot set up for our daughter Evie with lovely welcoming childlike bedding for her which I found was a lovely touch for toddlers.
The bathroom was equally as stunning with a walk in wardrobe, robes and slippers supplied for us all – even Evie! The bathroom was completed with a marble finish, his and hers sinks, a massive bath and separate walk in shower. It really felt like nothing was overlooked when designing the hotel rooms and this made me realise that this hotel was going to be like no other in terms of attention to detail, decor, service and quality.
The balcony was huge and safe for Evie with a glass front, really lovely modern clean furniture and a view over the stunning enormous main swimming pool.
Food
As we were late arriving, we decided to order pizzas to the room, the prices in the room service menu are relatively high, not crazily expensive, but more than you would pay to eat a pizza back home, the pizza was amazing though and the prices on the in room dining menu is understandable in a hotel of this type, I would not have expected it to be cheap. The hotel is also all inclusive and I’m 99% sure there is a late night place available to get food for night time arrivals to the hotel, this was pointed out as we arrived but as we had Evie and we had had a long day, we decided to opt for room service. That was the only time in our stay we ordered from the in room dining menu as there are so many places to eat and drink we couldn’t have possibly fit any more food in in our stay!
Breakfast- We went down to have breakfast the next morning and were in amazement at the food, cleanliness and size of the breakfast buffet. As we entered the restaurant we were again offered a glass of fizz, soft drink or detox smoothie type drink, you can guess which one I had!
The food was so diverse & fresh with many types of bread, salad, meat basically anything you could imagine. I couldn’t find any criticism about anything we ate on holiday and the service from the waiters was INCREDIBLE.
Fish night in the buffet
The outside restaurant on the beach was amazing for lunch and at night it turns into a seafood restaurant in the evening.
The A La Carte restaurants were all superb for evening meals, food was incredible and again, the waiters were a really really highly trained standard. Cleanliness was top priority and efficiency, friendliness and service was also such a very high priority for the staff, they remembered Evie’s name and gave her a lot of attention which is really nice as parents to see, we ate at the a la carte restaurants every night during our stay as Evie was only 21 months we found it easier than being up and down individually at the buffet – which did look incredible with its different themed nights.
Friendly & helpful staff made mealtimes exceptional
The Brazilian steakhouse was incredible, there was an additional charge for this restaurant but I would definitely recommend it, its outside and the food and service were incredible.
Swimming and facilities
The daytime swimming facilities are listed below
Waterpark with lazy river and wave pool (usually open May-Sep)
Two large outdoor pools (one heated in winter)
Adult-only pool (open from Apr, min 16yrs)
Indoor pool
Kids’ pool
Sunloungers and parasols by the pool and on the private section of the beach
Pool/beach towels
Two piers (May-Sep)
We mainly used the waterpark area in the mornings because they have a great area for toddlers and also some great slides and a river with kayak type boats which is a fun activity. In the afternoons we sat by the large swimming pool. What I absolutely loved about this hotel is there was always space around the pool, we visited in June and at that time it didn’t feel over crowded and the “reserving your sunbed with a towel” issue was none existent, it was a great relaxed atmosphere. There were girls on roller skates serving drinks and the all inclusive alcohol included many premium branded drinks and also many none alcoholic options. The cocktails were all really good and served as you would expect in a top bar in the UK.
The main pool at the Regnum
Entertainment
The entertainment was at set times in certain parts of the hotel, so it’s there if you want it but if that isn’t your thing then you wouldn’t even know it was happening. On one night of our stay there was a peace and love party in a ‘forest’ area, it was amazing, the props, setting and music were fantastic, we couldn’t believe they had set it all up in one afternoon! The kids entertainment was great with nightly shows in the amphitheatre including this show with animals…
Overall I would definitely recommend this hotel if it’s within budget and you are looking for luxury, quality, and entertainment. It is definitely on the pricey side of holidays so definitely shop around for offers or off peak travel.
The Regnum Carya was great for us as a family holiday but would also be perfect for couples, they have all angles covered and we are hoping one day we can visit again!
