Paloma Renaissance resort & spa 5* - Kemer-Antalya (Turkey)

This Renaissance hotel has been totally renovated since winter 2015 and is located in Kemer, near Antalya.

It is about a 50min. drive from the Antalya airport.

This luxury resort is recently taken over by the Paloma management and won back his greatness after the renevation. Beside the lobby/reception, this hotel looks brandnew.

The rooms are modern/stylish with nice furniture. Especially the beds are of high quality with all different kind of pillows (pillow menu available). 

We were lucky to have one of the duplex villa's in this resort.

Room:

The duplex villa is very large. On the ground floor there is 1 bathroom with shower/toilet & sink, a living room with flat screen and a kitchen with bar. And also a balcony overlooking the big garden.

On the first floor there are 2 bedrooms, one with a double bed (200*180cm)and one with 2 sperate beds (180*90 cm). There is also a more modern bathroom on the first floor with rainshower, toilet & sink.

There are wardrobes in both rooms and a    safe (free of charge). The beds are really of a very high quality and definitely the different pillows are great! 

There is a stone floor in all rooms, but unfortunately they put a carpet under the beds in both rooms.

The minibar in the room is complimentary and refilled on a daily basis with soft drinks.

I also had the chance to visit the standard rooms. Also those rooms are very spacious. You have the choise between 1 king size bed or 2 queen size beds, which is great for friends.

The rooms and bathroom have the same facilities as the duplex villa (toilet is also in the bathroom)

The junior suites are of course a lot larger and there the bathroom is integrated in the room. They have both bath and shower (unfortunately no rain shower). But it is very spacious and had a big terrace with sunbeds. 

Bathroom:

The bathroom in the duplex villa has a rainshower with a very good water pressure. There is plenty of amenities like:

- shampoo/conditioner/liquid soap/soap bar/ body lotion

- rental kid

- cotton buds

- shower cap

-make-up cotton

- shaving kit

- tissues

(Those amenities are refilled on a daily base).

There is also a large and a small towel + hand towels provided (we had 2 of each every day).

The hairdryer is of a good quality and is strong.

As there is a turndown service in the villa's every evening, you'll never have a lack of towels.

The toilet is in the bathroom, but as there are 2 bathrooms in the duplex villa, this does not cause any problem.

Restaurant:

There are 7 restaurants in this hotel, wherefrom 6 a la carte restaurants:

2 free of charge:

1. Sunset restaurant - fish restaurant at the beach

2. Seasons restaurant - international restaurant in the main building (with terrace)

And the others are with supplement:

3. Lotus restaurant - eastern cuisine

4. Santé fe restaurant - Mexican

5. Safran restaurant - kebab & Turkish

6. Steakhouse - BBQ

The main restaurant has a huge terrace overlooking the large garden and a wide range of food.

Bar:

The hotelbar is large and there is live piano music every night (inside). The bar had also a terrace with sofa's to relax and enjoy the cocktails.

The drinks are as well international (Bacardi, Martini, Baileys, Tuborg) as local (vodka,...). The soft drinks are Pepsi.

Breakfast:

Served from 6.30 till 11 am with a very large selection of food for all people. It's really way to mutch to name it.

But I do want to mention the fresh juices and wide variety of fresh fruit and bread.

The lunch is served from 12.30 to 2.30 pm in the main restaurant or can be taken in the Sunset beach bar (a la carte selection) - from 10 am to 6 pm.

Occassionally (when the hotel is busy) the smaller buffet with grilled food is also opened at noon in the safran restaurant.

Diner:

diner is served as of 7pm to 9.30 pm and  is always themed (international, Turkish, asian, Mexican,..) but always has a very large number of dishes.

This is really one of those hotels where you can always find something what is your 'cup of tea'. Next to the wide range of salads and cold dishes, there is several fresh fish, pasta's, rice, fries, vegetables with all different preperations and the different kinds of meat prepared on the BBQ. And of course there is several preperations of pizza.

Different kinds of fresh fruit and a variety of deserts is available.

Salad buffet

Main course buffet - with showcooking

Organic buffet

Fruit buffet

Bread & Pizza buffet

Fruit buffet

HINT: there is also a 'bakkery' which serves delicious cakes with all kinds of fresh fruit. THis is opened every afternoon to enjoy your coffee in the lobby of the hotel or on the terrace.
I'd advice you to pass by, as this pastries are even better then those served during diner and lunch time.

 Front desk:

Staff was not very friendly at our arrival, was a very quick check-in without any explanation about the hotelfacilities. Unfortunately the hotelmap was not very helpfull eather (to small) 

We've asked how to get to Antalya @ the front desk by public transport and it was as this was the first time someone ever asked this...  First of all there was a communication problem as most of them don't speak english very well. Second they where not familiar (I guess most of the clients just take a taxi - €40 to Antalya). By bus: €2,5 pp.

Swimming pool:
There are 3 swimming pools in this hotel:

1. the animated and largest swimming pool with 3 tubes
At this pool music is played all day long by the animation DJ. There is animation in and around the pool from 10 am to 12.30 and from 3pm to 5 pm. In the middle of the pool there is the bar (you can't drink in the pool itself unfortunately). There is aqua gym, aqua biking, darts, waterpolo,...
But into my opinion this pool is rather small for the n° of guests this hotel has in high season.
Luckaly there is a very large garden with sunbeds, so there is also a lot of people in the garden and at the beach.

2. the relax swimming pool
I haven't been at this pool, as it is rather a small pool ( I guess 3*8metres) and only a 30 sunbeds around.

3. the swimming pool at the villa's
This swimming pool is the smallest and only the size of a private pool with about 30 seats around.
As this pool is only accessable for the villa guests, it is always calm. But the advantage is the fact there is a butler serving you at the pool.


The beach:
The beach of the hotel is accessable via the beautifull garden of this hotel.There is sunbeds and artificial sand. As this is a 'rock beach', there are 2 "piers" to give acces to the sea. Of course there are also sunbeds and even bigpacks at your proposal.
When you're in the sea, the view on the mountains is amazing!

Sunset beachbar view from the sea

Animation:

When you're really looking for an animated hotel, this is not the place to be. There is an animation team, but they're not very motivated (at least not at the end of the season). They're not very pushy (which is good), but most of the plannen activities did just not take place. Once they started an activity, people joined. But they preferred to be out of the sun I guess. 

The evening animation is not very spectacular either. There is a theater and a programm every night. Most of the nights this is an external group (acrobates, Kenian dancers,...), 2 nights where done by the hotel animation team and this was really of poor quality. The mister selection was pathetic and so was the comedy night. This is the games where apparently made by a team that had a lack of inspiration (only 2 persons where laghing as they where dronk). After a whole season you would think they've changed things to make it worth looking at. But...

So the animation was a disappointment in this hotel (lucally we did not expect to much animation when we booked this hotel)

Hint: there is also a small 'relax' pool and there is the pool at the villa (with bar) to relax. This as there is always music on the bigger pool.

Advantages:

- very good price/quality

- overal very clean hotel 

- high quality beds & pillows

- very large villa rooms, especially for families a big plus (seperate bedrooms - to share with friends are children)

(But also standard rooms are very spacious!)

- wide range of food choise of a high quality level! (Also thanks to the different restaurants)

- fresh juices during breakfast!

- good WiFi in all public area's and rooms.

- very spacious hotel. Due to several bars and restaurants the crowd is spread over the hotel.

- very good follow up of guest relations!

(I complained about the dirty tablecloths (with nylon they only whipped clean) they used and the day after they washed them all and in the evening they used cotton as I proposed). Very satisfiing 😃

- All-inclusive formule of the highest quality! 24h drinks and food included.
- Beautiful  and very large garden. This hotel is really situated in the middle of nature and you don't even have the feeling being so close to the sea.

Disadvantages:

- carpet on top of the floor in the room (hygiene?)

- animated swimming pool is rather small for the number of rooms.

- front desk staff not really helpfull (very quick check-in, if we asked where are room was situated, somewhere on the end of the hallway to the right in the garden... (No clear roomplan available).

- the staff is not very well known with english, not even at the front desk!

- poor animation programm

- Waiters are only friendly when you tipp them.

HINT:

How to get to the old town of Antalya?

To go by public transport from the Renaissance hotel, you have to take one of the minibusses (by raising your hands in front of the hotel to the bus with indication 'Antalya'): € 2,5 pp or 5,5TL pp. Tell the busdriver you want to be dropped at the '5M Migros' (shopping center). There you can take one of the red busses with the number 'KL08' or 'KC06' direction antalya (cost 2 TL). You'll Benin that bus for about 15 min and will see the tramrails on the right (as the sea) and the old town in front of you. 

To get back you have to do the same bus switch, but this time you have to cross the big shopping street to the modern mall (away from the harbor). And in this big street there is a busstop and look for the same bus Numbers.

General conclusion:
This 5* hotel is really a very good value for money! I would advice it for as well couples that are looking for a high quality all-inclusive and families (due to the very spacious rooms and several options for family rooms with doors between the bedrooms). As I said do not have the highest expectations about the animation, as this is rather a 'soft animation' into my opinion (but guest relations promissed me to work on this). 
This hotel get's a 8,5/10 overall and this thanks to the amazing food variaty and high quality. And of course the brand new and renovated rooms and other common facilities.