I really doubt the hotel will be completed for the opening on 21st June, or even July !!!

The following info may be helpful of you who are booked to go to this hotel shortly. We are a party of 2 adults, a 4 yr old and a 1 yr old.

I detail below our story so far.

We booked to go to this hotel 1 yr 3 mths in advance to our arrival date of 21st July 2007.

In September 2006 (almost 6 mths after wed booked our holiday) we noticed on the official website for this hotel that they'd be doing re-furbishment work from October 2006 & the hotel would re-open in May 2007. This obviously concerned us, but not too much as we were to go several mths later after it was to open in July 2007.

In February 2007, I started to liaise with people through the net (people who either live or work nearby to this hotel). They kindly gave me updates as to the latest state of play at the hotel, including photos.

The photos from February 2007 looked like a "bomb site", I started to worry then that there was no way our hotel would be ready for 21st July this year.

Then as the weeks went on, I received further info from people in Limassol & further photos to the point that at the beginning of March I was really starting to panick. My photos of the hotel in March were still showing a "bomb site", the workmen had hardly progressed at all. To top this the official website for the hotel changed their wording to say it was being renovated from Oct 2006 and was now to open end June 2007, so obviously they are aware that they are behind with the works !

At the middle of March 2007 I visited my local travel agent with my photos & other evidence demanding to be moved to another hotel, but when they spoke directly to "Thompsons", who in-turn said to my travel agent that the hotel would be def ready for the dates shown on the official website (which is actually for it to re-open on 21st June 2007, yes this is only 3-4 wks away !!!). However "Thompsons" wouldn't confirm this for def in writing. I shouted & ranted to be moved f.o.c. but apparently "Thompsons" wouldn't accept photos from outside sources, they only take gospel from their rep out in the resort who visit's the hotel once a month. If their rep is told the hotel will be ready for the opening on 21st June, then is what they are to believe irrelevant of the photos/info I have. In the end the only way I could move to another hotel was to pay a moving fee of £35/adult (children don't pay this), then the additional money it would move to go to another hotel. So all in all they wanted £620 from me to move to another hotel.

Also if I was to move to another hotel, we were in the scenario that the "Atlantica" is apparently the only "all Inclusive" hotel in Limassol that accepts children, so we would have to move to another hotel in Pafos (as that's where our flight lands & really they needed to keep our flight in place as theyd struggle to book another one for the peak weeks we were going from our local airport).

In the end we decided to try & have faith in our Travel Agent & Thompsons & trust them that the hotel would be ready for our visit on 21st July. Two weeks later, we then in-turn handed over the balance of our holiday money to our travel agents.

That is all until 29th May 2007 when I managed to view photos of the outside of the "Atlantica". The place has hardly progressed at all. It is literally still a "bomb site". There are still holes in the ground, no swimming pool & the whole of the outside is a "building site". The builders have started to reface the outside of the hotel with stone cladding, theres the beginnings of walls being built, and presumably room for new restaurants etc.

I panick like mad, there is no way this hotel will be ready for the re-opening on 21st June, let alone 7 wks from now when we go on 21st July.

My "Travel Agent" liaises with senior people within "Thompsons" to get me moved to another hotel advising on the photos I have of the hotel for 29th May '07, but again "Thompsons" wont budge & still say it will be ready (and at that their own rep visited the hotel only a couple of days ago to state that !!!!).

I then in-turn rang through to senior people at "Thompsons" and attempted many times to liaise with the MD of "Thompsons" (who never returned my emails / messages).

I passed my info/evidence onto "ABTA" with the photos etc, but they say it will be a minimum of 2 wks from now until they can give me an outcome, and then it will more than likely be the same answer theyd get back from "Thompsons" as I had got.

Apparently "Thompsons" have said they could let us know a matter of days before were to fly out that the hotel will not be ready, when we get this info from then, only then can we get a full refund on our hols or "Thompsons" can try to find us another hotel.

But obviously as time creeps on & on towards 21st July, there will be less & less rooms avail in Cyprus all incl hotels for us to transfer to on our peak weeks.

So what do we do, wait till "Thompsons" let us know last min that our hotel wont be ready, and then there will be no hotels avail for us to switch to left. Or do we bite the bullet & pay the £620 to move to another hotel.

Well, today (31st May 2007) we rang our "Travel Agent" and they in-turn rang "Thompsons" to arrange for us to move to another hotel in Cyprus & we paid the extra £620 out of our own pocket.

Im gutted that its costs us so much, out of no fault of our own. But in the end with a 4 yr old & 1 old going on hols with us, we cannot afford to take risks of being moved last minute to another hotel which is say not a 3 or 4 star & is not suitable for the childrens needs.

All I know now is that I feel at lot more less stressed & happy now that I have a completed & nice hotel to go to, which will also be a safe environment for our 2 young children.

Even as a best scenario if they did ever sent anyone into this hotel in say even July, they would only be able to stop in the rooms only, as the outside is a bomb site & there would be no swimming pool, restaurants & bars not ready, and also I should imagine the noise of building works. Then that would be no holiday to have all of that would it !!

Sorry for the long story, but thought my experience may be of help to some of you going to this hotel in June or July this year.[/b]