Mark Warner Phokaia Beach Resort

Phokaia Beach offers a wonderful family holiday destination with lots to do and great food, set within a spacious and stylish resort hotel. The Mark Warner team are enthusiastically helpful and proactive in ensuring you have a great time. Getting to and from the resort We travelled from Gatwick on British Airways – it is a charter flight for Mark Warner, so not quite to the standard I would normally expect with BA; the plane was quite old, and you are only served a small complimentary snack. There is a paid trolley service, but they ran out of pretty much everything, even cups. One stewardess admitted this was a regular issue with this specific flight. My advice would be to get a decent breakfast at Gatwick on the way out. You will find a Burger King, Popeyes and a sandwich bar airside at Izmir on the way back, but you don’t have a great deal of time between transfer and boarding, so best to give it one final binge at the resort buffet before setting off home. The coaches leave the resort at 2:30pm to catch the 6:20pm flight home. The transfer to the resort was not great. Rush hour traffic escaping Izmir slowed things down and the coach aircon only kicked in above 50mph, so by the time we got to the resort, there were some tired and thirsty kids. You are offered a welcome drink the moment you enter reception though before being ushered to the buffet. The return transfer was a much nicer coach, and they took the motorway, so my experience on the way there may have been a blip. Room We stayed in two superior double rooms in the main building. The rooms are not massive, but as it is just a place to sleep, that’s not a big issue. The beds and pillows could be better quality. There is a sensible traffic light switch by the door to inform housekeeping if they can come in or if you don’t wish to be disturbed. They clean the room meticulously every day and provide fresh towels. The aircon in the rooms is good, but you do have to remember to switch it back on if you open the balcony door. I did like the look of the garden rooms which open out onto the manicured lawns in front of the beach. The villas also looked very nice. Activities The waterfront is superb, offering sailing, windsurfing, kayaking and paddleboarding. The kids get to experience these as part of the kids’ club programmes, but they can also do proper lessons such as the RYA Sailing course as a paid extra. The resort is in a naturally formed bay, protected from the sea by a deserted island and spit – therefore the whole sailing area enjoys tranquil waters, but plenty of wind. Pickleball offers a less strenuous alternative to tennis and is good fun. There are three tennis courts and three pickleball courts. I never saw all of them occupied, but then it was 35ºC + for our entire break! The kids’ clubs offer a huge variety for all ages. My two are a bit older, but that didn’t stop them making friends and getting involved in all sorts of stuff. The bikes are really good and I went

We have just returned from a week at this hotel - 4 adults. Key takeaways: 1. Turkey is more a lot more expensive than our last trip. A glass of house wine is £10. A bottle of house wine is £35. A beer is £6; 2. the hotel is very nice, although the rooms are slightly small. All of the staff are excellent, especially the room service; 3. we found the the Spa treatments to be both excellent value and quality. We booked 3 massages and were given a healthy discount - £55 per 1 hour massage; 4. the bikes were very well maintained by Gary and Jason. Much better than at other resorts. The road cycling is not amazing - busy roads - but the rides are well led and it is nice to get off the resort; 5. we have never stayed anywhere with so many sun beds, cabanas etc; 6. the main pool is unheated and was super cold. I expect in July and August, this is lovely, but we all struggled to stay in for more than a minute or two; 7. the food is typical buffet style, with a good selection. However, if you are vegan or have allergies, you will need to be very careful. The chefs do not appear to have fully worked out the importance of food labelling. There is a "vegan corner", but that only applies at dinner time. The hot vegan selection was extremely limited with the same dishes produced each day. This became a source of some frustration. Overall, the hotel is really well run, and very pleasant, but felt expensive. There are also lots of other guests (not Mark Warner) arriving over the weekend when noise levels really escalate. We had a good holiday, but will probably not return here. There are other (smaller/exclusive to MW) resorts we prefer.

We have visited the resort on many occasions since Mark Warner took over the resort a number of years ago and have always had a great experience. Great site with lots of activities and normally fantastic variety of food, even for a vegan/vegetarian. We had visited Phokaia in June this year and had a five star experience as always but this time the food did not live up to previous experiences. The quality and variety of the food had deteriorated on this visit since the last visit. Unfortunately on this visit the staff didn't seem to understand what vegan/vegetarianism is and thought meat was suitable for vegans/vegetarians on more than one meal sitting. After many happy and relaxing visits the resort definitely deserves a second chance.

We have just come back from an excellent week in Foca. A MW rep was in Gatwick to ease matters and the trip was well organised. The flight was pleasant, and on arrival in Turkey we were met by a rep and shown to our coaches. The transit was 2 hours due to traffic but otherwise pleasant. Cases were taken to our rooms, which was a nice touch. The rooms were lovely, well situated in beautiful gardens, and a 5 mins walk to everywhere. The pool is huge and many beds and cabanas around it and in the grounds, No early rising needed to beat the neighbours! The food and restaurant were first class. Lovely Turkish and Med dishes, great coffee and excellent staff. I never had any problems being understood. We went straight to bar to get drinks having read other reviews and the team were very helpful. Learn a few Turkish words and they will do anything for you. Lunch and dinner had a charcoal BBQ and amazing flatbreads too. Amazing kebabs, and fish - it was wonderful. The water sports were superb - we had 4 days of cat sailing with a superb instructor called Cody - what a great guy, and instructor. The wind got a bit fruity and we went like the wind. I relearned so much sailing and he was only 19 but you’d never guess. Other reviews mention the booze prices. I think a little context is needed. We paid a £1000 for the week each and got 19/21 meals for that with amazing facilities and water sports. Other resorts are ½ board (14/21 meals provided). 5 meals would cost £60 each for a week. Our 4 adults that is £240. Turkey has high inflation and so foreign drinks will cost a lot. Our overall room / bar bill was £580 for 4 adults. We didn’t spend much more so I think it is reasonable. Booze prices in town weren’t much different and a bottle of duty free gin and some locally bought tonic smoothed the way. The spa - just wonderful. We had a free 10 minute taster and the masseuses spotted all of my old rugby injuries and one new injury immediately. The same for my wife. The came up with a programme to treat and I have never felt better. They sorted out a foot injury I could barely walk on when I arrived. They were absolutely superb. Prices were about half that of the UK. Entertainment was really good too, and the MW staff were all excellent. The local Turkish teams were too - really friendly. Some people have mentioned parties. There was a wedding whilst we were there but no different to any other hotel we have stayed in. Music and laughter were in evidence, but no boorish behaviour. Overall, we have had an excellent holiday and would throughly recommend the resort.

A very well situated resort on a nice beach, with good water sports, decent food and an excellent entertainments team. Very noisy at night, as most of the guests are Turkish and they love to party till all hours. After a lot of argument we managed to move rooms to a quieter area, and then it was fine. Good sailing and windsurfing facilities and beach crew. Mostly no problem finding a boat or a windsurfer. Well drilled safety procedures. Charming cycling team (Luke excellent) but it’s not a mountain biking resort as there aren’t any off road trails, and it shouldn’t be advertised as such. All the hills around the resort are within a military zone, off limits to the public. Lots and lots of food, good quality but a bit samey, would be a good idea to have themed nights for different cuisines. Drinks expensive, even water, but no one seems to mind if you bring your own water bottles and fill them up at mealtimes. Enthusiastic fitness instructor (Lucy). Fantastic entertainments team (Hiro, John and Alim) constantly dreaming up way to amuse the guests, including pétanque, water polo, volleyball, karaoke, dancing, fire shows and talent contests.

The resort is nice with good facilities. Staff are friendly food is ok. Rooms are fine and cleaned well. Main problem is that they have corporate events at the hotel which go on til very late- there were people singing in the pool at 2 am. Also bar prices are ridiculously high.

Third time at Phokaia with Mark Warner and our sixth Mark Warner holiday over a 15 year period. Phokaia has a beautiful leafy setting and you will be able to find a sunbed somewhere in the resort, either by the pool or along the beach. Nearby Foca also has its charm, whereas some of the other Mark Warner resorts felt more characterless and barren. However, this year we were hugely disappointed compared to our visit here last year. Whereas the saving grace was the teenage club for our boys run by Mark Warner, the part of the experience that did not work well, was the part under direct control of the Turkish management of the hotel. The biggest shock this year, was the spike in alcohol prices in resort compared to last year. Lame excuses are given of inflation in Turkey and saying the nearby village charges the same. Nothing excuses £20 for a small glass of prosecco in a buffet setting. Or £150 for a basic wine you can buy for £15 in a UK supermarket or £70 for a Turkish wine that should in theory be very cheap with the current exchange rate. Prices were at least a third more than the nearby village. (so Mark Warner's unsurprising latest marketing email saying you could get £50 bar credit for October bookings at Phokaia, will not go far!) Furthermore, the waiting staff in the restaurant no longer speak basic English and even though they use google translate which is annoying, they do not know the menu e.g. Does fries come with the steak? We were told no, and then ordered sides of fries, only to end up with fries with the steak as well. This leads me on the other frustrating matter. A few issues arose and any dispute on the bill, takes three days or more to resolve as no one in management can make this decision apart from the hotel manager, who hides in his office and bats things over to Mark Warner management, even though the issues that arose are directly under his control and jurisdiction. There were observations that Turkish guests are given preferential treatment and I experienced this when the Mark Warner guests filed in to watch a show with the understanding that the best tables are for those who arrive first. Two minutes before the show starts, a waiter whisks a table right in front of all the other tables and seats a Turkish family there, which completely blocked the view of those who had arrived early for good seats. This year they have also cut out the barbeque buffet they used to have at the beach restaurant due to increased costs. As we have been here before, we knew to expect the local weekend pass visitors, resulting in increased smoking around the pool and beach, the tacky pool party with loud music, but this year, we felt like the second class guests, the sitting ducks being fleeced. Whereas I do not blame the Mark Warner staff on site who gave their all, I do hold Mark Warner head office accountable for not challenging the hotel management's latest pricing decisions and for the lack of basic standard expected in the

We had a fantastic time at Phokaia Beach Resort, with plenty of water and land-based activities to keep us entertained. We enjoyed sailing and windsurfing during our stay. The equipment was in good condition, and we always had access to boats like the Zest (for double handlers), Pico, and Laser (for single handlers). There was only one instance where we had to take out a Quest, a slightly larger boat, as the Zests were unavailable, but it wasn’t a big issue for us. As a beginner in both sailing and windsurfing, I found the designated areas safe and clearly segmented, making it easy to navigate where we should and shouldn’t go. The space is ample, allowing us plenty of room to enjoy our activities. The safety boats were always patrolling, offering help whenever needed. The food and entertainment were brilliant. I don't eat meat or cold foods (like salad), and I was pleased with the variety of vegetarian options that suited my palate. My fiancé absolutely adored the desserts! The kids' club also seemed amazing, with so many activities to keep the little ones entertained. I joked with my fiancé that they probably had more entertainment than the adults! The staff, both Turkish and British, were incredibly friendly and helpful throughout our stay. We loved our room, which had a small balcony with a stunning view of the grounds facing the sea. We also went on a couple of excursions, organised by a lovely man named Huseyin. The trip to Ephesus was particularly memorable, although we would have liked to spend more time there instead of visiting the carpet and ceramic shops. We also took a sunset cruise one evening. It was lovely to see the Siren Rocks and visit Foca. Foca is a charming little town with plenty of restaurant choices. We had a lovely walk around the fortress after dinner before taking a taxi back to the resort, which only cost around £3. Special Mentions: 1. The flying yoga teacher, Nejmeh (apologies if I’ve got the name wrong), was absolutely amazing! She was so patient with us, especially as it was our first time trying it. 2. A big thank you to the cleaning lady in the lobby. I accidentally left my phone in the toilet, and she kindly handed it to lost and found. I’m so grateful for her help. A Few Areas for Improvement: 1. It would be great if the resort could adjust the drink prices, as they are quite steep—comparable to, or even higher than, London prices. 2. Although a complimentary bottle of water is provided with each meal, considering how hot the weather is in August, complimentary water in the rooms would be appreciated. 3. As a 5-star resort, I feel the Turkish staff could benefit from improving their English language skills. While we didn’t mind using Google Translate, better English proficiency would help the resort attract more international guests. In summary, we had a brilliant time at Phokaia Beach Resort and will certainly consider returning, especially for the windsurfing and sailing activities.

Having been to this hotel a number of times when run by Neilson we were interested to see the differences between them and Mark Warner. The hotel has been really well updated - gym, spa, bars, new beachside restaurant etc. However a lot of this seems to have been done in order to make the hotel a more all year around resort and to attract more Turkish guests for short breaks. We missed the "community" element of the holiday as often we felt very out numbered by non Mark Warner guests which also put a big strain on the hotel and the overworked staff. In terms of Mark Warner we were disappointed in the activity planner and felt a little bored at times. Tennis was run by the lovely Taylor. However the cost of tennis sessions is at an additional cost (not so by Neilson) and didnt have the social element of the group sessions. However Taylor kindly gave me private lessons as I was the only beginner so he did improve my tennis greatly. Fitness sessions were not very inspirational and we only took part in a couple of them. In terms of watersports MW advertised wakeboarding courses on their site which I confirmed with HO by email. However when we got there the staff knew nothing about them so we had to go with tows with little/no tuition. As a result my son had the wrong technique and ended up hurting his arms and having to cancel some of his sessions. They also didnt arrrange the PADI trial sessions as promised. We were told the SUP boards were broke by one member of staff and to use windsurf boards which another member of staff said claimed were hybrid. Bikes run by Jason and Luke were great and we did a really nice easy ride around Foca. Entertainment by MW was virtually non existant and we didnt see any MW staff at night. Some of the entertainment by the hotel wasn't to our taste (fire eaters and girls on drums) but the Tikki Bar always had good music and entertainment and it felt much more lively than a Neilson holiday. Food is great quality if a bit repetitive throughout the week but thats to be expected. Really enjoyed the beach restaurant run by Hussain, the food was really good quality in great setting. In summary we concluded that MW is a holiday with activities and Neilson is an actual activity holiday so in the end it depends on what you are looking for. Personally we prefer Neilson so it is such a shame Neilson has left this hotel as it would have been a perfect holiday.