i cant believe it only 2 weeks today and i'm finally of to the riu helios bay....weather looks good out there at the moment.....2 weeks of relaxation.....has anyone come back recently from this hotel, as all seems quiet so far...is no news good news?........if anyone else is going please let me know any information you want to know, as i'll write a report when i get back.....hope someone has some comments before i go....bye 4 now [/b]

Just returned from a weeks holiday at this hotel 30/5/06 to 7/6/06, it's a fabulous hotel.
Spotlessly clean everywhere, food was excellent, loads of choices and well presented, and everything is labelled so you know what you are eating.
Hotel was full as guests who have booked into the Miramar are still being transferred to the Helios as the Miramar is no where near being finished. There were a lot of Germans staying there ( about 70%) and about 25% British.... get up early if you want a sun bed around the pool !.
We found water in pools to be very cold, but as it's the start of the season, it's got chance to warm up, even the indoor pool water was on the chilly side - the sea is warmer, though on our last day there were alot of jelly fish about so be warned. Weather was great, we only had a couple of cloudy half days, and there was usually a breeze there which keeps it cooler. We had a thunder storm one night with heavy rain but it was red hot the next day. If you are staying by the pool, the beach side is best, as the other is in shade in the afternoon. You have to pay for the sunbeds on the beach, price seemed to vary from day to day, but was about 3 or 4 levs per bed /umbrella, there were also pedalos for hire for about 30 levs per 30 mins, again price seemed to vary each day
The snack bar/restaurant is near the beach so you can still get your all incl drinks etc. The snack bar opens at 10.00 and serves continental breakfast, so you dont miss out if you fancy a lie in.

Only thing we could possibly find fault with was the evening entertainment, kids disco is first at 8pm, for 30 mins, followed at 9.30pm usually by some sort of show by the animation team, which we found a bit naff to be honest, but the team do their best and work really hard. Just our opinion, but we would expect a 4 star hotel of this calibre to have more professional acts on a more regular basis, we only saw some dancers and a live duo singing ( at least I think they were) whilst we were there.

Obzor is still a fairly quiet resort but more bars and shops were opening each day. The village square is very pretty - about 15 mins stroll from the hotel, Bedrock bar is there ( based on the Flintstones) is great for the kids and really cheap for drinks. There is a lot of building work going on in and around the hotel and village but this did not spoil our hol. In a couple of years this resort will be different again, at the moment it's quiet, def not for those looking for a lively hol, though we did see a nightclub there.

Would recommend a trip to Nessebar, really pretty and loads of places to get your holiday souvenirs, we also went to Sunny Beach, which is ahem..... very lively!

Thomson/Portland rep James is hilarious and we found him really helpful.

Just one word of warning, Bourgas Airport is tiny, passport control and luggage retrieval took about 2 hours, apparently Tuesdays are the busiest days as there's loads of Scandinavian flights so be prepared for a long wait, apparently other days are not as bad. Check in going home was the same, so we would recommend you take a drink with you, especially if you have small children. We got to the airport at 9.30 pm for a 0010 fllight, and we literally were rushed straight onto the plane from Passport control, there was no time for duty free or anything, as queues to checkin and passport control were so long and slow.

Overall, we had a great family holiday at the Helios and would definetely return in the future, it's a fantastic hotel.

To the lady who wanted to know if you could buy nappies there -the hotel shop stocked them, they stocked alot of useful stuff actually and there are some small shops in the village where you could get them. There is also a chemist near the village square if you need it.
If anyone wants to know any more, please ask via this website and I'll try to help

hi kimbo

sounds like you had a great time, and the hotel sounds great, hoping the buiding work isn't an eyesore?....i am going there next friday for 2 weeks, hoping 2 weeks isn't too long!!...could you tell me is there a bar area with t.v, so i can enjoy my all inclusive and watch the footie...gotta get our priorities in order..hehe.
also what roon did you have asnd how did you find it, is it a shower bath?
sure i'll be annoyining with more questions before next friday, but appreciate your help. i been looking at weather reports for obzor and seems to be about 23 deg..is that accurate or is it hotter?

glad you had a nice time

andy

Hi,
Weather was getting warmer by the day, I dont know what the temps were only that it was too hot to walk on the beach with no shoes so pretty hot I'd say.
Rooms were fabulous, very spacious, loads of storage space, with a fridge and hairdrier, and safety deposit box but you have to pay extra for that,you can also have a mini bar too if you like, can be arranged with reception. We only had a shower but it was really big, no bath but dont know if there were any rooms that did have a bath.
Building work never a pretty sight as you know but it honestly didn't spoil our hols, a few uneven roads/pavements makes the pushchair hard work in places though. Around the hotel are lovely gardens and the beach so they more than make up for the "work in progress" bits when you go outside the hotel.
I didn't see a TV in the bars but each room has it's own. We didn't use ours so I dont know what channels there was or if you would get the footy, sorry. I would think somewhere in the village one of the bars would have the football on, drinks are very cheap anyway even if you end up having to pay for a few. The hotel may even set up a tv in one of the bars for the footy fans once it all starts.... you never know. They aim to please their guests and there will be loads of people wanting to watch it too.

thanks kimbo

thats a great help...is the mini bar part of the all inclusive, or are they charging for that?

Hi,
Dont know if it's included in the All Incl or not, but I would probably guess not, as a member of staff would need to come each day and re stock it. There is a lobby bar on the second floor though which is close to the lifts to all the rooms , you could get a few drinks in beforehand and take them back to your room, and you've got a fridge to keep them cool.

hi just read your note on rui mimamar hotel bulgaria and if you know any more info on it i am worried as i am taking my mother and father in law with my husband on 23rd june 2006 and hope it is ready i wonder if any of you lot of travelers have been or are going rose

Hi,

We were at the Riu Helios Bay last week, and at that time guests who had been booked into the Miramar were being transferred into our hotel as the Miramar was not finished. I dont know how "unfinished" it is though.
You can always give Thomson/Portland a call to check and see what the up to date position is.
If you get transferred into the Riu Helios, you will have no need to worry as it's a fabulous hotel.
Is the Miramar in the resort of Obzor?

hi

we have a late flight when we come home, could someone confirm that we can hire our room out later than 10am, as we have a small child who needs an afternoon nap, this will be usefull to know,

many thanks

Hi Becks,

Yes you can keep your room on after usual check out time, if you see reception two days before you leave to arrange. it costs about 10 levs per extra hour roughly.

Have a great hol

looking for info on the hotel any help most welcome wots close by/trips anything like that fly on 18/07 carnt wait how mutch spending money will i need 4 2 weeks 2 adults 1 child
many thanks

we have reviews of the hotel here. Looks good!

Hi Cutty,

stayed here last year. Great hotel. Posted review in hotel section. I'm assuming you're all inclusive, in which case it's totally up to you how much spending money you take. You essentially don't NEED any. We ate out in resort occasionally as it was so cheap. Didn't do any trips though. You'll probably want to take advantage of the really cheap fake designer gear they have over there. Have fun. Hope you have better weather than we did last August.

I was wondering if anyone is just back from this hotel,we go on the 4th July for 2 weeks with our 2 kids age 4 and 10.I have heard that the riu hotel next door is still not compleated and all guests were using the riu helios , and this was making it very crowded especially around the pool area.
Any other comments on this hotel and town would be apprieated.

Thanks in advance

Hi Gail,

Recent reviews HERE.

Baldur

Hi Gail
Welcome to HT!
Have a look here at the two most recent reviews- no mention of overcrowding.

Edit to add
Baldur- I see we posted at the same time!

we also have a fairly long thread here where I have just noticed one of most recent ones did mention having to get up early for sunbeds.

Thank you for the fast reply,the link was very useful.will be checking out again just before we go,and the hotel is right on the beach if it does get a bit crowded.

Thanks again

i have just got back from 2 weeks at this hotel, and can confirm everything is great there......i will write bigger report in hotel reviews, bur if anyone is going and like me had lots of things they needed to know, please just ask and i will answer your questions for you.