Hotel Radina's Way — Hotel in Samokov

I don’t usually write reviews, but after staying here, I felt compelled to share my experience. Unfortunately, it wasn’t what we were hoping for.||Location:|The hotel is about a 25-minute walk to the main area, which, while scenic through the pine forest, can feel tiring after a long day on the slopes. There is a complimentary bus service, but the last pickup from the main area is at 17:10, which isn’t ideal if you want to grab a drink or some food after skiing (since slopes close at 16:30). After that, you’d have to make the walk back.||Room:|The room was clean, but very hot. We turned off the heating, yet it remained uncomfortable. Opening the windows helped a bit, but it was still an issue throughout our stay.||Service:|The younger reception and bar staff were friendly, but the older bar worker was often rude and seemed miserable. The waitstaff in the dining room also looked worn out and were not very friendly—no smiles, which is something you’d expect in a service-oriented environment. It’s not that they were outright rude, but the lack of warmth was noticeable.||Billing Issue:|A serious issue occurred when we ordered drinks and paid cash at the bar within the dining room, only to be accused the next night of not paying. That was very frustrating and unprofessional.||New Year’s Eve Dinner:|The hotel tried to organize a special New Year’s Eve event, but it didn’t go as planned. We were unaware that the usual dining arrangements would change. Instead of the normal buffet and dining time, we were expected to eat later and sit with other guests at assigned tables, which could be uncomfortable for people with social anxiety or other impairments. The starter courses were already set up with no choice, and fortunately, no one in our group had any allergies, but I can see how this could be problematic. The mains were buffet-style but not great, and unfortunately, our kids didn’t find anything they liked—just bread rolls after a long day on the slopes. There were no dessert options available when we left, so I can’t comment on that.||New Year’s Day Breakfast:|Breakfast on New Year’s Day didn’t start until 8:30, which was later than usual. We complained about the dining arrangements, and the reception staff pointed us to a tiny printed notice on the reception desk. It was easy to miss, and the information was insufficient. More visibility was needed, perhaps in the elevators or on the entrance door. When breakfast did start, there was limited choice, and it took another 45 minutes for items to be replenished. The staff seemed more focused on joking around behind the counter than attending to guests. Also, no toaster was available due to the New Year’s Eve setup taking up space in the kitchen.||Booking Issue:|We booked through Booking.com and provided our children's ages. However, the hotel had mistakenly selected a room option for two adults and two children under 1 year old, even though our kids are not babies. After three nights, on New Year’s Eve, we were told we needed to pay an additional 400 BGN. This conversation happened right outside our room while my husband was in his boxer shorts—completely inappropriate and embarrassing.||Conclusion:|Given all the issues we faced—from the room temperature to the billing problems and the poorly executed holiday meals—I would not recommend this hotel. It’s a bit far from the main area, and the service was lacking in several areas. There are likely better, lower-starred hotels closer to the main attractions that would offer a more...

This is a really great hotel, I started 4th-11th of March. Was still plenty of snow in Borovets and the slopes were great for a beginner like myself. |I stayed in this hotel, which is just outside of town (25m walk). It has a free shuttle in the morning/afternoons running roughly every half hour. I would have to be honest and say it doesn't run exactly on schedule so don't focus too much on the listed times, get to each time slot early as it can, and does, leave early/late. Didnt cause me any issues. It's a 5 min trip on the shuttle from hotel to slopes, and back. Drop/collection is outside the Samakov hotel, which is about a 2m walk from the bottom of the slopes/lifts, and also a 2m walk to the Gondola (do take this no matter your ski level, the greens are great and views stunning).||The hotel itself has:|Equipment room (not heated)|Spa - which was really great, 2 saunas, steam room, heated loungers, kids pool, "adult" pool, and jacuzzi, which is basically one end of the kids pool. The pools are smaller than they look in the photos but still good for relaxing or swimming some lengths|Gym - I didn't use|Massage service - I didn't use|Bar/Restuarant/lounging area ||I used the spa every day after skiing and it was great for relaxing before dinner. |My package was Half board so breakfast/dinner was included (I ate lunch on the slopes, reasonable prices a bit under the UK average). Food was buffet style but always plenty of choice and lots of it. I tended to each 2 lots of everything each meal so came away feeling full and enjoyed it. The only negative I would have here is drinks are included at breakfast but not at dinner, which I found odd. I took a water bottle in the evenings to keep costs down.||Staff - serving staff in the restaurant (3 girls) tended to keep their eyes down but were extremely efficient in removing used plates, usually plate is gone almost as soon as you put your knife/fork down. They were polite enough when thanked. The guy in reception (big bald guy with a big beard) was very helpful throughout our trip, answering tons of questions and also helping with a medical issue and checking I was ok before I left. He might look like a bouncer but he is a good egg.||Room - big enough for the 2 of us, including twin beds + an extra. The decorating was good enough and it had a nice bathroom with a good shower. Rooms cleaned daily and shampoo/shower gel/robe/slippers provided.||Overall I have no complaints about the hotel. Evening drinks, even basic ones, should be included with the meal but I'd still happily stay here again. My holiday plan was hotel to slopes to hotel (spa) and repeat. And I enjoyed it every day. The town isn't really good enough to want to be "in" town, unless you want to get drunk every night in the various bars. So if you want to ski and relax, this is a great...

I’ve just stayed at the Radinas Way for a long weekend with friends. We had a really good stay, the hotel was clean and the staff friendly. |We were on half bird basis which was excellent value. The buffet breakfast was great with yoghurt, fruit, fresh bread, bacon, eggs (scrambled or fried) amongst other things. They played pretty lively house music at breakfast which was ok but could imagine some might not like it. |Dinner was also buffet and we had a good salad with choice of pork or chicken with rice or fries and some limited vegetable option. It was tasty and we enjoyed it. For variety we did go out for dinner in town for two out of four nights even though we paid half board. Bulgaria is good value for money when eating out so this didn’t break the bank. It was good to have the choice.|The swimming pool and sauna, steam room, spa and gym were all excellent and really enjoyable after a day of skiing. In the room was a good quality robe that you can wear to the health suite. |The bar was comfortable with fire and TVs. There was also a games room with table tennis (small charge to rent the ball and bats).|Rooms were excellent with only one small issue - the heat is not easy to control and as with most Bulgarian places the temperature was on max. We opened the windows at night to cool it down and closed the bathroom door which had underfloor heating cranked to the max. After that the rooms were a comfortable temperature. |Transfer to ski slopes was punctual and we got a space easily, however it was end of season and quiet. Taxi to the slopes is 15 lev so not outrageous if you want to travel outside of the free shuttle times.|I would recommend this hotel, we really had...