Acanthus Cennet Barut Collection

Hotel is very good, entertainment, restaurants, yoga class and Pilates, made by Derya, were fantastic!

This was our third consecutive year at the Acanthus and I would firstly say that the hotel is beautiful. The food is amongst the best I’ve ever had in a continental hotel and the staff are all incredibly friendly. But sadly it continues to let itself down in one area that is so unforgivable that I can’t continue to give it a 5 rating. There was also another issue that was hugely disappointing for what I consider to be a loyal customer. Firstly, the main issue I have had for the three years that I have been to the hotel is the drinks when you are at the bar downstairs watching the entertainment of an evening and also the little outdoor lounge where the entertainment continued after 10.00pm on some nights. There were three of us on the trip…me, my wife, and my 19 year old daughter. If I say that, between us, we had cause to return drinks on 50 separate occasions I wouldn’t be exaggerating. The reason..? The mixers. If we have a drink in the upstairs lounge - my drink of choice is vodka and coke, my wife’s is gin and tonic and my daughter is pink gin and sprite - we are given a nice iced glass with a slice of lemon and the mixer in an iced cold bottle. However, it seems that every time we are served a drink downstairs you can see as soon as it’s put on the table that the drink is flat. And on the occasions I’ve had to go to the bar personally rather than rely on telling the waiters (many of whom don’t understand what ‘flat’ actually means in relation to the drink) it’s clear why. On the majority of occasions the ‘mixers’ are being poured from large plastic bottles that are just left standing unopened in the metal trays which whilst still may be cold they will almost undoubtedly be flat. It’s not clear why they weren’t even using the ‘pumps’ that drinks are poured from in the afternoon if you sit at the bar and have a drink. This might sound like a minor gripe to many and if it was a one off I could understand it but when you are returning almost every drink you are given it becomes unacceptable, and is clearly not what I would expect from a 5 star hotel. I can understand the bar not wanting to give out bottles of mixers to sunbeds during the day for safety reasons but there should be no reason why a supply could not be available int he evenings. It’s not good enough. I would also say that the entertainment was not as good as previous years. In the past couple of years we have seen Michael Jackson and Madonna shows as well as Moulin Rouge. Sadly the Moulin Rouge show was showing on our app as being in the 19th June but it didn’t show until the day we left. The ‘Four Icons’ show was excellent but should have been on longer. Sadly this strange arrangement still exists where you have 45 minutes on the main stage and then have to scramble down to the lounge in the hope of getting a seat to see the next singer in an area where seating, by comparison, is very limited. The other disappointment on this particular trip related to our room. We had previously stayed in the side sea view and pool view room but for some reason I had made a mistake with our tour operator and only chosen the side sea view room. To be fair you can barely see the sea anyway because of the trees being in the way and these rooms just overlooked some residential flats….not a great view at all. But in advance of the trip I contacted the hotel and asked if there were any pool view rooms available. In advance of doing so I’d checked the Jet2 website and could see that if I’d booked the pool room view it would have been around £300 more expensive for the period we were there. But the hotel replied saying that there WAS availability but that it would cost me an extra 90Euros a night….just short of £900 for the period we were staying. They also offered me a family room which was around £3000 more expensive…! I declined and felt that they must be full and so were assuming they could fill any vacant rooms. However, when we arrived at reception I asked again if there were any pool view rooms available….and was told there were but it would be 90Euros a night..! For a loyal customer I thought this was extremely poor and it reflects badly on the hotel’s feeling towards me as a customer. The only difference to the hotel would have been us being in a different room….there was no extra food or drink involved. They simply weren’t prepared to offer us the room at anything close to what the brochure price would have been. It has left a slightly bad taste with us and whilst I wouldn’t say it had put us off ever coming back it certainly won’t be for at least the next two years because we have already decided on alternative holidays. But the hotel really needs to address things like this, particularly the drinks, because it will be in danger of becoming complacent in what is already a very competitive market. I did mention how brilliant the staff were and I want single out Hasan in the buffet area that had my orange juice and coffee ready for me every morning at 7am….and also Ali the towel man who made sure he laid all my towels out for me and set up my beds and umbrellas every morning. Brilliant service from both.

Had a lovely time at the hotel enjoying all the facilities! Food is amazing with so much choice but at times not many vegetarian options. However, when we asked the chef to make something, they always obliged and it was never an issue. Everything is well looked after, the rooms are clean, the gardens are impeccable, the hospitality is amazing. The hotel was busy but there was always space by the pool or beachside and the staff all over the hotel are amazing. A special mention to Monika in the kids club for being brilliant at her job and a true shining star, and all the catering staff who really looked after and accommodated our needs! We would love to visit the hotel again soon and would recommend to anyone who is visiting Side.

The hotel is very good with excellent staff The only let down is the sun loungers are always taken or have towels on them reserving them.

The food was truly one of the highlights of our stay. The buffet offered fresh fruits and vegetables every day, with a wide variety of salads and appetizers. What impressed us most was the quality of the meat dishes. Every day there were different oven-roasted meats, all cooked perfectly, tender, and full of flavor. The grilled dishes, hot meals, and mezes were consistently delicious. The snack restaurant also provided tasty options throughout the day. The dishes we tried at the Safran à la carte restaurant were especially memorable. Overall, the freshness of the ingredients, the variety of choices, and the excellent food quality made our holiday even more enjoyable. We would gladly come back again.

Just got back from a wonderful holiday at this hotel. Loved everything about it, the staff, the food, drinks, entertainment, rooms everything was 5 star. Great location just by the beach and decent walks to the shops , to walk off the food. The food was one of the best I have ever had at an all inclusive hotel, loved the sushi bar at Lunch time. The staff are great and can’t do enough for you. You can scan a QR code and they will bring your drinks to your sun lounger by the pool and beach. Special mention to Ferhat and Melike who really made our holiday. They couldn’t do enough for us, knew what drinks we liked after a day and would recommend lovely cocktails. They are full of energy and are always positive and smiling. Because of them I will becoming back, hopefully in September. It would be nice to see them getting a promotion.

Another fabulous time here at Acanthus Cennet. The staff are all amazing. Fabulous memories made again. Shout out to Derya for the fabulous yoga and water aerobics classes. We will back

Our 5th time at the Acanthus Cennet Barut and the Hotel delivered again! I have nothing negative to say. The Aircon was good ( we asked to have it lowered to 20 degrees which was done almost immediately), the food was tasty, pool was clean, rooms were very comfortable. The waiter service was excellent. Minibar was always stocked. The cats in this hotel are looked after. They all look well. A special thank you to Mr. Bahri, the food and beverage manager. Emeğinize yüreğinize sağlık. Çok teşekkür ederiz. We are already looking forward to staying here again in November. Simon and Deniz

We visited as 4 couples, all around 50yrs old. The hotel is immaculate and the rooms are of a high standard. Plenty of storage room and an iron and ironing board in each one. The grounds are really well keep as is the very large pool. There is enough beds but only just if you want to be pool side. They do allow people to reserve beds, so late risers be aware. The food was the high point for us. The main buffet is a really good standard, if not exceptional but the specialty restaurants definitely stood out. We ate at the seafood, Italian and steak restaurants and were blown away by all of them. I've included pictures which hopefully do justice. Drinks are on balance of a good standard. I say on balance because the pool bar , which does the heavy lifting during evening entertainment, is a little rough and ready. On the first floor however there is an excellent cocktail bar which is open all night and I do mean all night! If you want premium brands then you're paying but given the cost of this property I think that's fair. The gym is very decent and the free sauna and steam roof were a nice extra, not that you really need them given the weather! The staff are excellent, with Fatima our housekeeper and Mustafa the late night cocktail mixologist being stand outs for us.

My holiday got off to an excellent start with a complimentary upgrade to a Pent Suite. The room was spacious and luxurious, with a large balcony and hot tub, double sinks, a walk-in shower, and thoughtful welcome treats including a bottle of wine on arrival. The food was lovely, with an incredible amount of variety throughout the stay. The buffet never felt repetitive, with themed evenings including Turkish, Asian, Italian, international, and fish. As someone who doesn’t usually eat much fish, I found myself trying and genuinely enjoying several of the seafood dishes on offer. Maison Plage was a lovely alternative for dinner and was pleasantly quiet when dining around 7:30pm. It also offers beautiful views of the sea, with the sunset visible through the trees. I didn’t get the chance to try the Italian restaurant, but I did dine at Safran and would highly recommend it. The pumpkin soup was delicious, and the Chateaubriand steak was easily a 10/10. There was always some form of upkeep happening at the hotel whether it was watering of the lawns, laying seeds, cleaning the paths etc which was nice to see and the grounds are evidently kept pristine. The pool is kept clean and never busy. I did find the majority of sunbeds were taking by 0730/0800 especially the ones that got sun first thing or most of the day. Only thing I didn’t like was the smoking areas were directly next to the non smoking areas which made the non smoking areas kind of pointless. It’s a beach facing hotel so there’s always a wind blowing the smoke back into the non smoking areas. One point worth mentioning is that, like many hotels in Turkey, there are several cats on the grounds. I tend to stay away from them as I’m not a cat person! Unfortunately, one had been sleeping on my bag by the sunbed and when I reached for the bag, thinking the cat had moved, I was scratched on the hand. This was purely accidental which is why it’s not effecting my rating. The response from the on-site medical team was excellent. The doctor cleaned the scratch, arranged transport to the hospital, and ensured I received the recommended tetanus booster and rabies vaccinations as a precaution. They also organised follow up appointments, transport, and all documentation needed for my insurance claim and continuation of treatment in the UK. The care and support from the medical staff could not be faulted. However whilst I understand the hotel’s policy regarding cat scratches and bites is that they don’t take responsibility, I was surprised that no one from the hotel checked in on me afterwards, particularly as I was travelling alone. Even a brief welfare check would have been appreciated.