Hillside Beach Club, Türkiye

There are resorts and then there are resorts! @hillsidebeachclub {ad review stay} has one of the highest rates of returning guests and guest satisfaction for any resort in the world, Harvard University even did this study on it. I’m on a mission to share the ins & outs of the best family resorts, the info that you can’t really find out when you’re researching trips unless you know somebody that’s been there to quiz! Here’s everything you need to know if you’re planning a trip there or wondering where to go this summer;

- Getting there; we flew from London Luton to Dalaman {out with EasyJet and back with Wizz Air, we just went with the best prices & times - Turkish flights are notorious for being in the middle of the night which isn’t ideal with kids so felt pleased to find some that landed at midnight meaning we could max out on a full day, especially as we were utilising the early May bank holiday to rush back for school} but you can book whole packages with EasyJet Holidays, BA Holidays or Jet 2. It’s just over a 4 hour flight and then around an hour’s transfer. If you book with Hillside the transfers include car seats and even a tv screen which blew our kids minds.

- It’s 2 hours ahead of the UK which is actually a really handy time difference to keep little ones on UK time to enjoy the evenings. A 7pm dinner is 5pm back home. Then they slept in a bit later waking up around 8/830 {630am usual time back home} for our first couple of days which was a big win.

- The Rooms; we had a ‘Superior Family Room with private terrace’ which most families will be allocated. It’s a clever design in that it gives you an interconnecting style room for children but with a beautiful shared balcony with a view. I guess it will depend on your set up as to how well this suits your family. For older children it would be great to give everyone some space {there were 2 beds in beds in there}. But our children were that bit too young, they’d given us one cot automatically in our bedroom and we actually ended up asking for another as we were about to do bedtime on our first night as just felt like they might be too far for us to hear easily if they woke in the night. So we all bunked in together haha. It actually worked out fine, my 5.5 year old fit in the huge cot {she’s always very happy to get to sleep in one!}, the room was huge and big enough to accommodate 2, they crashed out so fast every night after all the swimming/fun and we had a balcony to sit out on and watch the changing sky. But others we spoke to found that the extra bedroom worked perfectly well with their 2 year olds. One took a baby monitor with them but the hotel can provide them too.

- We actually arrived to pouring rain {which is very very unusual, apparently last year they only had 1 day of rain for the whole season!} so the puddled terrace was a bit of a pain to navigate with shoes on/off to get to the bathroom for the first day or so. You can tell they’re not designed for rain and that they hardly ever have any. So don’t let that put you off.

- It was fun to have a half outdoor bathroom with really lovely amenities, there’s no need to pack hair clips & lip balms, and the big comfy day bed with sunshades & a fan was perfect for some afternoon down time. It all felt super spacious and airy and I loved the walk in wardrobe area.

- Other room types; go for a Double Club Room if you’re not wanting a terrace or choose a Superior Room with a terrace if you don’t need the extra family space. They’re all cut into the hillside to give the best views possible.

- One thing to note with the resort being chiselled into the hills though, it is steep to get up to the rooms! Our room was on the first level up so only one set of stairs but you’d definitely be feeling your glutes if you had any further. Luckily there are some outdoor lifts/kind of funiculars to get you up and down to the beach & restaurant level and a couple of golf cart tracks so there were plenty of families pushing buggies around because it’s accessible enough. Our kids found these so fun to ride in. If you are coming with small children or buggies, try to request a low down room.

- Beaches; we couldn’t take our eyes off of the water. Crystal clear, the most idyllic palm tree lined calm bays exclusive to the hotel guests. There are 3 beaches: the main beach with plenty of loungers and beach service {you can ask the beach staff to reserve some for your room from 7am each day and they’re yours then until you give them up}. Then there are 2 path ways around the rocks to the left and to the right to 2 adults only beaches. Serenity beach which you can get to by a boat service or a 15 minute hike along the nature walk which has the most stunning views. When you get there there’s a shack kind of bar, beach restaurant that serves lunch & plenty of thick cushioned loungers to languish on. Or Silent Beach which is a 5 minute walk to the right of the main beach where there’s a mini library of paper where you’re encouraged to draw and to spend some time being mindful. There are sunbathing platforms along the way and if you judge a resort by the thickness of it’s loungers, this one wins by miles.

- It’s worth noting that it’s a shingle beach, which is why the water is so clear, which is good and bad in terms of kids and sand. It’s great for not getting all sandy and for children with sensory issues around this. But doesn’t quite have the same appeal for little ones to play o the beach in the same way as sand & water offers. Our two still enjoyed digging in the stones & imaginative play with shingle juices and pizzas but if your kids do want a sand fix there are big sand pits in both of the baby & kidside play areas for them to play to their heart’s content.

- We spent a lot of time in the water, it was so heavenly and like you’re stepping into an aquarium with fish you can spot from the shore and even in the shallow water. It’s such a special beach, you really don’t come by many like that. The views out from here were stunning too.

- We don’t dive but there’s a dive centre as there are over 30 well known diving sites within a half an hour boat ride and they even run scuba dives for children. But even just the snorkelling {or to be honest looking in from above was impressive}.

‘We Design Happiness’ - Hillside

- The Food;

- The resort is full board so you get all of your meals included and drinks at those mealtimes. It’s not all inclusive, we personally don’t drink alcohol so didn’t feel like we needed anything else but maybe look up the drink prices in between meals if this is something important to you that you enjoy on holiday. The food really really sets this resort apart from others.

- Breakfast is served from 7am-10.30am in the main restaurant. It’s the most impressive affair with a huge array of: all of the bread you could imagine, fresh produce {set out like you’re shopping from a market}, unlimited berries {a rarity for most resorts. If you have toddlers you’ll especially appreciate this}, a pancake/french toast station, fresh honeycombs from the local area, egg stations whipping up anything you fancy, your choice of omelettes delivered to your table {no long omelette queues here like you often get at other resorts}, cheeses, a big hot counter, lots of Turkish pastries, chia puddings, all different kinds of oatmeal, croissants, unlimited nuts, protein powders, wellness bowls. In short, you go to bed excited to wake up for it to be breakfast again!

- If you’re a late riser there’s an additional 10.30am-12.30 light brunch everyday at Pasha. They cover everything. And I would say that the general vibe across the resort was late to bed, late to rise. We found the buffet busiest around 10am.

- Lunch is from 12.30-3pm in the main restaurant or you can order from the Italian/Beach bar. It doesn’t have a menu as such but has some staples and daily specials. We didn’t end up eating there as we felt nothing would compare to the buffet but you might want to if you’re set on eating alfresco. The adults only Serenity beach has a special alfresco authentic restaurant under the olive trees which looked amazing, again the menu changes everyday there but it’s for 12 years and over only.

- Long lunches from the main restaurant overlooking the bay became a real highlight of each day. {I know, it seems like an oxymoron with 2 children but they could happily wander to & from the buffet to get dessert once they’d finished which they enjoyed the independence of or we’d take some crafty bits for them to play with whilst we finished}. I’ll be dreaming of the chopped salads {there are 2 chefs whose sole role is to chop the most perfect salads for guests} or you can make your own from the abundant farmers market like selection or the super inspiring mixed salads. Then there’s the fresh fish to choose from, you give your table number & they’ll bring it freshly grilled to your table. The Turkish kebab and grilled meats section, the famous Turkish chips. Always some pasta and ever changing hot specials. Too much deliciousness to fit in. I haven’t even mentioned the desserts - oh the desserts - & huge baklava sections. We practically rolled back to our loungers after but also felt smug that we’d had our 30 recommended plants for the week in just one plate! I feel like it’s so rare to have such healthy yet delicious food in a resort.

- There’s also a whole baby weaning chef/station! Filled with steamed veggies for a chef to mix up whatever your little one desires. It would be such a dream to wean a baby at a resort like this. There are high chairs with unlimited bibs ready to go and kids sectioned plates/cups and a microwave for heating up any milk or baby food should you need it.

- Every afternoon they serve a little tea around 4.30pm by the main pool and bar with little cakes and bagels and then had a hot dog stand after, again included on the full board. You’ll never go hungry.

- If you do happen to get peckish late afternoon & fancy a sandwich or ice cream or milkshake there’s an ice cream parlour and coffee shop open that you can go to {as a paid extra}

- Dinner is from 7pm and if you’ve got children you’re limited to the main restaurant rather than the 2 a la cartes {although if you wanted to you could hire a babysitter or if they’re above 4, there are evening activities through the kids club}. At first we felt a bit miffed to miss out on the adults only restaurants but once you try/get a glimpse of the buffet I really don’t think you’d want to eat anywhere else unless you were here for a week plus & wanted a change one night.

- The dinner buffet changed bits up every evening but the staples stayed the same. I don’t think I’d have ever got bored of that dream spread, the most impressive selections. One night they were cooking up lobster linguine fresh in a huge Parmesan wheel, another they had Neapolitan style pizza, one night there was a huge array of the biggest prawns & sashimi, there’s a chocolate counter so fancy it’s like you’re in a patisserie shop {kudos to the woman I heard ordering one of everything!}, the desserts were all intricately made, a whole counter of ice cream {I’m a real ice cream snob/connoisseur and have been to plenty of luxury resorts where the ice cream isn’t worth eating but this, like everything else was another level}

- a note on the main restaurant too if you’re kid free, there’s a whole separate area for adults only dining which is a nice touch.

- Anyway, I could wax lyrical about the food all day. Go!! The food alone would be a reason we’d go back.

‘The Best Family Resort in the Mediterranean’

- Sports/activities. I think a huge part of why so many people come back every year are the sports facilities. Tennis courts, padel courts, a football pitch, teen basketball court, volleyball court, both an indoor and outdoor crossfit style gym, studios for a big range of classes which are all included. Freya showed a real interest in tennis whilst we were there so we booked the kids their first tennis lesson with an excellent coach!

There’s always something going on, when we were there it was the start of ‘Feel Good Week’ so they had famous wellness instructors come to take some classes but there’s also Watersport Week, a focus on Tennis, spinning on the beach for the summer challenge and a summer of BFI films being screened. If you want some more adventure there are local biking and hiking tours.

- There’s a daily yoga session included at 8am at the silent beach deck every morning - no need to prebook.

- Spa. I had a heavenly morning at the Sanda Nature Spa with a massage in the tree tops. It felt like you could be in Bali with the way it’s designed. Definitely worth trying to find the time to escape there if you can. Or there’s the Sanda Day Spa with ice baths and Turkish hammams. {at an extra charge}

- Water Sports; Kayaks are included, which we took out one afternoon. Then there’s a huge plethora of other kit you can hire for a fee, flite boards, hover paddles boards, knee boarding, hobie cat sailing.

- My husband loved the dedicated swimming lanes in the sea with distance markers. There’s a main pool but we didn’t actually see many people use this - the beach was so heavenly I think!

- Kids activities;

- For babies; there’s a really lovely, shaded circus style tented staffed area for under 3s. It even had a changing and feeding room with aircon in, books, plenty of toys - a lot of them wooden Melissa & Doug, a splash pad area with fountains, a table to stand up with a water play tap, a shallow heated pool with balls in {and plenty of towels/mini arm bands on hand}, a sand pit with some impressive trucks and mats for them to roll around on happily.

- For those 4 and up, there’s Kidside which you can drop your over 4s off to. Childcare is included for the over 4s, or you can hang out and join in any of the activities with them {you can also bring younger ones here too if you stay with them}. There are shaded Lego tables, water slides with lifeguards, a mini ball pool which our children didn’t want to get out of {the novelty of being able to stand up in a warm pool with balls in didn’t wear off}, a huge sandpit full of toys and plenty of activities that changed daily. In the few days we were there our children enjoyed making bracelets, making clay sculptures, painting fabric, exploring space art, making crowns and playing team sports.

- Most of it was in the shade, the team said in a couple of weeks the ball pool & main Astro turf activity bit will get covered with a big shade also.

- It was nice to get to experience it all with the kids, a lot of childcare settings don’t allow parents the option to stay. And bonus points for them having comfy bean bags for adults to sit on.

- There were evening movie nights for them, mini discos and a show they could rehearse for & join in with.

- I was super impressed by the staff there in how kind they were. All of the girls and then Anri the super cool manager who swept us all into his fan club, he came 9 years ago only wanting to do 2 seasons and is still there! Such a legend. They have suncream and hairdryers and swimming costume drying machines. Towels, lockers, plenty of water and armbands too. It just makes travel with kids so easy!

- For those over 8, there’s a separate activity area with a basketball court and again a whole schedule of activities that changed daily like remote control car racing, football tournaments, DJ practice.

- You could see how much families with older children/teens loved the independence they could have, we saw lots going to lunch on their own in between joining in different activities. There’s nightly group football games. Definitely the kind of place where everyone can be happy with something for all ages.

Top tip - don’t miss the free library service to borrow games and books in the Guest Services office under the main restaurant. We loved Uno and Jenga.

- The resort is immaculate. The grounds full of leafy banana palms and tropical birds of paradise. There’s no shortage of staff.

- There’s a shuttle into Fethiye, the pretty local harbour town just 10 minutes away. I’d definitely recommend going, it’s great for shopping and has a mini souk, gorgeous marina and pretty bougainvillea lined streets and some very design led coffee shops. We went in one rainy afternoon & ended up getting a taxi back as the shuttle has quite big gaps in the schedule but it was only €7.

- Sunset boat trip. Go and see the ‘Outside team’ to look at the boat trip options, they run a sunset boat trip a few times a week which is meant to be amazing. We had booked to go on the Saturday night but unfortunately the weather had other plans so it got cancelled & we weren’t there long enough to go on the next one.

- Luckily the sunset views from the pool & beach on our last night made up for it.

- I read that they run a boat trip to Fethiye market which is meant to be worth a visit every Tuesday.

- I liked the fact they had friendly photographers going around the resort day & evening to capture kids taking part in activities or to ask if you ever want family photos taking but in a really non obtrusive way. There are screens in the main bar area where you can have a look at them and purchase if there are any you like.

We thought it was the perfect sized resort and enjoyed the fact you can do as much or as little as you like, whatever energises you most. Their motto which is everywhere is ‘feeling good’. And it’s definitely the kind of place where life really does feel so very very good indeed.

Things to be aware of;

- I think the only things that let the resort down are the reception area, it’s a little dated, nothing special and doesn’t fit with the vibe of the resort. But let’s be fair, you don’t spend anytime here other than for check in and the staff crucially were so helpful anytime we had a query about anything. There’s another guest services down where the main bar/pool/shops etc are.

- not having childcare included for under 4s meant we couldn’t make use of the adults only beach areas together. Not a complaint, just something to note if you do have under 4s. Or we could have hired a babysitter. At first I felt like I wished we’d waited and came after Raffy turns 4 this summer but my husband & I traded up some time and we were all having far too much fun & such a brilliant time to feel like we were missing out.

- The live music noise can be loud from 10-midnight depending on where your room is. I was worried after reading reviews so took ear plugs but think we got lucky on where our room was located and it didn’t keep us awake. I could only hear some on our last night faintly. Maybe specify this on booking if you are worried. {our room was 557}

- We didn’t get to see any of the shows sadly because the first night we were shattered, then it rained. But I’ve heard great things, they’re meant to be West End worthy productions.

Dress code - Aside from no swimwear allowed in the restaurants, there didn’t seem to be a dress code. A lot of people are very sporty so bring your workout gear/tennis clothes if that’s something you’re into. I’d also recommend bringing your own tennis racquets to avoid a hire fee if you do play. But the evenings were as relaxed or as formal as you want them to be.

Definitely get the Hillside app if you’re planning a trip & to use when you’re there. You can see the daily schedules, make bookings on it and it has a QR code to order drinks to your sunbeds etc. I couldn’t believe how much was going on everyday, boccia tournaments, bingo fun, even a night bazaar around the pool one evening.

I can 100% see why so many families, and couples, come back year after year. It’s a resort that offers incredible value for money, luxury and almost guaranteed weather. I know for sure our kids will forever be campaigning until we can return!

You can find out more here.

Let me know if you’ve been or if you’ve got any questions if you’re thinking about booking a trip.

* I was invited to Hillside Beach Club but all opinions are my own.