We went to Lara Beach Hotel for the first two weeks of the school holidays we were returning to Turkey after a lovely holiday at The Montana Pine Resort in Olu Denis last August.

We thought this hotel would be really nice as it was rated a 5 Star. This hotel is definitely not a 5 star by anyones standards it has a long way to go to reach that!

The staff in the main are excellent and hard working polite and friendly especially if you are not British! The room was pleasant although too small for family of four and a very small balcony and awful view of building works but then how much time do you spend in your room to be fair.

The food was dreadful, no we are not too fussy just have some standards, although the food in the a la carte Italian was wonderful and we left a good tip and personal thanks to the chefs - the best food we have had anywhere in a long time. This is a rather sad state of affairs when their chefs are obviously more than capable of offering some fabulous food but are limited within the all inclusive budget. My whole family were ill whilst we are away and this continued after we returned home with me actually having to visit my local A&E department with uncontrolable stomach cramps and it wasn't due to too much alcohol and too much sun as 1) I don't drink and 2) we were extremely conscious of the temperature and wore hats/stayed under parasols etc. It was definately due to the food/hygine of the food, put it this way my son took 4 chicken wings from the bbq as deemed cooked by the chef and every one contained blood.

The size of the swimming pool is fantastic beating ones we have been to in the Dom Rep however there were so many ungrouted and cracked tiles we saw numerous injuries to children, our own son cut his hand.

The slides are great and the lifeguard at the top does a great job and was lovely to all the kids.

The entertainment team work tirelessly and are always smiling - if you want to join in you can if not no pressure.

The evening entertainment was hit and miss - mostly miss if I am being really honest - cheesy and second rate.

Paragliding and jet skis were good fun but 1 pedalo for the whole hotel is just a joke.

There are lots of different nationalities at this hotel and although I am sometimes ashamed to be British when you see some behaviour on holiday and on the TV this time I most definately was not - the high amount of Russians here was almost unbearable and I am sad to say they are probably the most rude people I have had the misfortune to meet and I was not alone in thinking that and indeed I saw German families reacting exactly the same way towards them. The have no comprehension of personal space, the acknowledgement of thanks, queing and the icing on the cake is when a full lift reaches a floor and everyone is trying to get out they decide no you will let them get in first - many a row almost broke out.I am not a racist and I love other countries and cultures but I do not like rudeness from anyone - especially to my children and when I am on holiday!! Anyway once again in fairness to the hotel their behaviour is not the fault of the hotel but I feel Thomson would be better off removing this hotel from sale to their british clients.

I wouldn't go back to Lara Beach hotel and I wouldn't recommend it either in fact it has really put me off Turkey at all which is a shame but we paid a lot of money to stay here (school holiday dates don't forget ) and it just didn't offer us value for money.

So I guess what I am saying in my opinion and I realise that's all this site is just peoples personal experiences and opinions.... if you have booked take a DVD player to entertain yourselves with in the evenings and some snacks in case you hate the food as much as we did (the shop is quiet expensive but it has a captive audience) and make the best of it - if you haven't booked it yet then think again and look on this website for somewhere with better reviews!!

My husband, daughter and her friend visited this hotel for a week end of May/beginning Oct.

Very clean and on arrival treated like V.I.P.'s, the food was o.k but like many hotels much of a muchness, the Italian a la-carte was always fully booked but went to the Turkish one which made a change.

The location of the hotel is a bit of a let down as lots of constuction going on nearby but when all finished in a few years should be the turkish las vegas.

All of the staff where very hospitable and happy and did their best to entertain you, if you don't want the noise at the main pool the silence pool is good for a chill.

I would possibly visit this hotel again but in a few years as if you want to take a stroll you only have the hotel grounds at the mo. Lots of mozzies we all got quite badly bitten.

Overall good for the mony although had a bill at the end as the all inclusive finished at midnight and drinks got charged after then( who stops drinking at 12am on hols?)

If you are going to this hotel say hello to Borris the entertainments guy he is great fun and have a good one!

My family and I stayed in this hotel towards the end of July beginning of August.

On arrival we were impressed with the interior of the hotel and despite the late time the helpfulness of the receptionists. The hotel rooms were clean with good air conditioning. The hotel offers a wide range of food for breakfast and dinner in the buffet style restaurant, catering for all individual needs. The local brand wine and alcoholic beverages are all free, with extra charges for imported brands. Tthe hotel provides 3 eating areas for lunch from a fresh pizza tent, a grill bar, and the main Jasmine restaurant.

The hotel is based on the beach, with lots of covered areas for shade. the hotel has three swimming pools, 1 specifically for over 16's called the silence pool, one for young children with small slides and an extremely large pool for all the family, this area is where the animation team spent their time, encouraging people throughout the day to join in the many activities and games. Alongside this pool were 3 waterslides the white one being the slowest.

The hotel staff were extremely friendly and welcoming and they all work extremely hard. The animation team were excellent from the kids club to the day and evening entertainment. There are watersports available on the beach, you have to pay extra for motorised watersports, including the banana boat.

The food was good however by the 2nd week it was too much.

Hotel was very clean with staff cleaning all day around the clock.

Several places to get the food, however the drinks could have been nearer the pools.

The location is Ok

When we arrived we were really pleased with our choice we had made. The hotel was absolutely out of this world from start to finish. The Turks were very friendly, however, not many spoke good English. They had three beautiful glass lifts to take you to your room. We were made very welcomed. The only problem was if you did not put a towel on a sunbed about dawn it was hard to find one but apart from that it was FANTASTIC.