Ralitsa Apartments Reviews

The Hotel Ralitza is owned by a German Company so I would say it is at least 60% German and 10% Russian, so it was a bit strange at first but you got used to it.

We had to get up at 8 in the morning however to get a sunbed. There are two pools, one is the quiet pool where you can just relax and nobody bothers you and the other is massive with a bridge going over it. It really is lovely and great for children. Water polo is played here in the afternoon amongst other sports all day. My husband loved it especially as he is sporty Volleyball at 11.30, Water polo at 3.00 and football at 5.00. Also going on all day there are a lot of things for the kids!

The entertainment in the evening is brilliant very professional! The only thing that lets it down is the FOOD! Breakfast and lunch isn't to bad but the evening meals were terrible so the majority of the evenings we were eating out which was very cheap! Peters Bar and Poco Loco in Albena was great.Also lots of Designer gear sold here in the town at bargain prices! The hotel itself is lovely and clean but we found the room small for 4 of us.

They sell no English Cigarettes in the country and the duty free going back is tiny with not much choice so its best to buy before you leave at Gatwick or on the plane!

This was our second time in Bulgaria and we thoroughly enjoyed it!

before we went to Bulgaria we were quite apprehensive but there was no need to be because it is an amazing place.
The hotel we stayed in was excellent although at first it was quite difficult to find everything. The food is very good but it was also very repititive. The staff around the hotel were VERY friendly especially the animation team who turned our holiday from a good one to an excellent one, they put on excellent entertainment throughout the day and night. The Abba show is a must but the sketch show and puppet show are also very good.
The choice of spirits was quite limited and the beer was alright but this was the same throughout the resort!
This is an excellent hotel for families as there is lots of entertainment.

When you arrive in Bulgaria you will be pursuaded to go on excursions but the one that i felt was the best was the jeep safari- however i feel they should rename this excursion to the 'massive water fight in the hills', it was so much fun!!!!!
We would definately visit Bulgaria again because we had such an amazing holiday, dont be put off by the Germans, just ignore them.

We travelled with first choice and i highly recommend them as the reps were so friendly and helpful.
THE BAR TO VISIT IS THE TROPICAL BAR!!!!!!

I booked this holiday at the last minute so was quite apprehensive. However, there was no need to be, it was absolutely brilliant.

The staff at the hotel are very friendly and although english is poor. (This resort is still largely German, though I see this changing over the next season)

The all inclusive package is good and tries to cater for everyone, breakfast and lunch were fine. The evening meals were also fine, though I would not go too late as the choice inevitably reduces. The choice of drinks were fine too, though if you did fancy a cocktail or an imported drink they are only 4-6 Lev (£1.20-2) so they are really cheap.

The entertainment team do work really hard and the ABBA show is well worth a look, though the hall feels rather like a school assembly hall. However, on a Tuesday it was Bingo, and that was LOOONNNGGGG! Instructions in Bulgarian, German, English, French then Russian.

We went to the water park, very good and very cheap, only 28 Lev each and the security is fantastic. Well worth a look!
All in all, it was a fantastic holiday but dont go if youre expecting masses of discos, albena is a quiet resort and suitable for families.

Albena is lovely with a nice selection of bars, restaurants and shops, including craft stalls.The beach is very clean, with golden sand and a gently sloping shore into the sea - perfect for children.

The Ralitsa hotel covered a large area and had two lovely landscaped pools. One had the daily entertainment programme and the other was more peacefull.Although only a short walk of max 10 mins to the resort centre, a free courtesy bus comes every 30 minutes. There is also a train which runs around the resort and stops at the Ralitsa which costs 50p for adults and less for children! This runs approx every 15mins. The equivelant in Spain in december cost us approx £8 for 2 adults, a 4 year old and a baby!!!

The only downside really was in the drink package and the food. The'all inclusive' range of drinks was about a quarter of the size of the 'imported' drinks which carried a charge. No local equivalent was available for many drinks. There were also no diet drinks - no diet coke!!

The breakfasts were great with most tastes catered for. The lunches were fine, offering a large range of salads and breads among other things. However, the evening meals became rather monotonus with much of the same thing as the day before. The meat dishes contained more bone than actual meat. We decided to eat out in the resort on several occassions, which breaks up the monotony and costs only between £3 -£10 for a meal, with side orders and large drinks. Anything from a pasta dish for under £2 to a steak, salad and chips for £6 or less.

On the whole the resort is great, with virtually no crime ever. The hotel is as nice as any 3 star anywhere and is certainly cleaner, covers a larger area with lovely gardens and pool areas. We, as a family would recommend Bulgaria.

This was our first and last visit to Bulgaria In the Hotel Ralitza
1 the rooms are basic but acceptable clean towels everyday and bedding once a week
2 The pool area was excellent with plenty of daytime entertainment
3 The food was awful we took two 2 tenagers who managed to lose 1/2 stone each over the 2 weeks and we ended up eating out most of the time
4 The evening entertainment was rubbish if you wanted to watch one of the evening shows you had to sit in a hall that had no tabels and was like watching a school play
5 The weather was not good and in July I would have expected much better out of 14 days we had 7 days with rain everyone said we had been unlucky and the weather is normally better but it is a very green country and the climate is not like Spain or Greece it was like being in England
6 We have never been bitten as much as we have in Bularia the wife was not happy.
7 the nightlife was not up to much everything seemed to close before 12 and getting a drink after that was not easy.
8 on a posative note Poco locos is worth a visit as is the waterpark and the oil
paintings that you can get done are excellent .
9 Overall Bularia is Ok but we would not go back they are very friendly and it is very cheap but it is a poor country and this shows in the standard of food , also there was alot of pr*stitutes hanging around at night .

Albena is a quaint little resort, suitable for families, couples and older people.
Going all inclusive for the first time, I was quite impressed with the hotel, and it's services (although the beer was poor, but this was general within the whole resort!!. Snacks readily availaible at two bars all day, and the food was average, if a little repetitive.

The big drawback for our party was the lack of nighlife, most bars closing at midnight, and not even a late bar at the hotel to retreat to. The only places that were discretely advertised till 5a.m were adult bars. Ladies of the night were hardly inconspiocuous!!

But on the whole the holiday was great ans highly recommended. Weather was also good, we were a little apprehensive before we went but it turned out ok.

We had a room in the newly renovated Ralitsa Superior building (formerly the Kiev Hotel)This is in the same complex and also has a state of the art entertainment theatre where evening shows are sometimes held. There's also a bar with large plasma screen TV. We were the first occupants of our room which was very tastefully decorated and comfortable. TV had many channels but most were German. English ones were CNN and BBC World News.

Restaurant which is in a separate building is shared by residents of all the hotel buildings. Large choice was available for all meals and good selection for vegetarians. We did not find anything overspiced as mentioned in other reports. Feta cheese and local yoghurt were excellent and plenty of fresh fruit available. Meat was mainly pork, chicken and a variety of sausages, hardly any beef. There was always a fish dish. Also able to have ";a la carte"; dinner once a week in separate restaurant. Tables were quickly cleaned by hard working staff. There's also a small place serving snacks - hamburgers, kebabs, pizza, pasta cakes and ice-cream throughout the day till 11pm.
The pool is great although rather cold at this time of year. People had resreved beds even before 7am and it can get quite jammed due to limited area around the pool. A new pool opens on 1st June so competition for sun beds and space should be less.

Entertainment team were extremely talented and professional, but acts were more orientated towards children and often similar during the show.
Staff were extremely friendly and helpful and although about 80% of clients were German, the staff spoke English as well.

In the town we found the shop/stall keepers very friendly and they did not pester you if you weren't interested in their goods. Lots of copy designer clothes and even a high class copy watch shop.
The hotel is set in beautiful woodland with mountain backdrop. It's a few minutes walk (or take the free shuttle which runs every half hour)to the wide sandy beach where you can hire sunbeds and parasols.
We took the trip to Nessebar and enjoyed the scenery en route as well as walking through the village and looking at at the old churches and timber houses.
We found the Bulgarian people to be genuinely friendly and were often surprised when we tipped for good service.
The whole hotel complex was very clean and tidy especially the toilet facilities. Drinks cup and litter were cleaned up throughout the day.

At Varna airport you should change back money before going through passport control as they do not accept Levs in the cafe and small duty free shop. Choice of drinks, cigarettes and perfume are limited so buy before if you want to be sure of getting your favourite brand.

In summary an excellent hotel in an interesting country where people are still genuinely friendly and not wanting to rip off tourists.