El Mouradi Club Kantaoui — Hotel in Maghreb

Do not stay here. The good reviews on here can’t be genuine, because this is not a good hotel, and not a 4. This hotel is mismanaged, underfunded and understaffed. I know a UK 4 is different to a 4* here but I’m comparing it to the 4* Royal Kenz hotel nearby which we’ve stayed at previously.||- Check-in -|It was a disaster from day one, we arrived about 10:45 by private transfer and started the check in process, after taking our details and filling in some forms we were given our wristbands and told to come back at 13:00 for our room keys, then 14:00, then 15:00 and then at 18:00 after standing at the reception desk for 3 hours we got given our room keys but not even told where our rooms were so had to figure that out. Check in is advertised at 14:00 so I would say it was understandable but people were arriving after us and given their rooms long before us. There were arguments between guests trying to check in who had been waiting for hours and the staff behind reception because of the long mismanaged process. We managed to find out that the process is; guests fill out a details form, that form is then used to calculate their tourist tax, they’re given a slip of paper showing what they need to pay and when that’s paid the receipt is exchanged for the room key. But this didn’t happen, what happened (with queues and waits at each step) was guests were filling in the details forms and they were going in a pile and then the forms were taken off the top of the pile to calculate the tax but the forms weren’t being taken off faster than they were being added so the earlier people arrived the later they got their rooms. We complained during this very lengthy process and were told “this is a 4* if you want better you should book 5” regardless of star rating there is no excuse for poor service.|When we stayed in the Royal Kenz (a 4), we got welcomed with a drink, were sat down and given the details form and it was taken when complete, they came back to take our tourist tax, then gave us our room key and explained the basics of the hotel - where everything is, the meal times, what’s not in the all inclusive etc - then taken to our room. This took no longer than 30 mins with half a coach load of other guests.||- Rooms -|Once we arrived at our rooms we were so disappointed, we chose to upgrade as the holiday is for one our birthdays but we were miss-sold the bungalows as an upgrade by Love Holidays and adamantly told by their customer service team that they are in fact an upgrade, they aren’t. This has ruined the birthday. Love Holidays advertise a flat screen tv in all rooms, a minibar in all rooms, WiFi available in all rooms, daily housekeeping and we were explicitly told by Love Holidays that our rooms have private balconies/terraces. Our rooms had very old TVs one with a very staticky picture and the other which was all static no picture, there is no WiFi in either room, one room had an empty mini fridge not a minibar and the other had neither and when asked to change to a room with a fridge (because of dietary requirements the hotel can’t accommodate) were told it was 30DT a day; this was after several days of being told the hotel is “fully full full”. Only one room has received water once, meaning we’ve had to go out and buy some just to be able to have water in the room. Housekeeping has hardly visited one room, and when they did they didn’t even exchange the towel that was in the bath for a new one, this towel was used to mop up all the water off the bathroom floor because neither room has been given a bath mat making the tiled bathroom floors very dangerous and slippery. The one bathroom which is poorly lit with only one bulb, was not cleaned properly before we got it, there was urine on the toilet seat, dirty toilet paper stuck to the floor, the bath and sink are missing plugs and the dirty baths plughole is filled with god knows how many guests hair that it drains unbelievably slow. The beds are uncomfortable singles (one of which had an old apple underneath), furnished with singular thin pillows that are no bigger than sofa throw cushions and thin sheets instead of a duvet or blanket, now it’s a warm country so I wasn’t expecting thick duvets but we were expecting thin ones, we had to ask for a blanket and towels for one room which didn’t come until the next day. There is one singular curtain in the rooms, barely holding onto the few hooks holding it up, a curtain you have to keep closed to have any privacy because the only window is immediately overlooking the path other guests use constantly and/or overlooked by the balconies of other rooms. On the subject of privacy, the private balcony/terrace is nothing more than the narrow entryway to the room with a plastic table and chairs (though only one room had the chairs), no gate to keep people off so not at all private as there were kids on the “terrace” of the one bungalow that also had people knocking the window of and a window that didn’t close properly or lock. Other sites advertise in-room safes at the hotel, this isn’t the case there are safe deposit boxes at reception for an extra cost.|The Royal Kenz had moderately modern rooms, flat screen TVs, actual double beds featuring 4 full sized plump pillows and a duvet, and a clean bathroom. ||- Food & Drink -|Meal times are a nightmare, I refuse to call the buffet a restaurant it’s a canteen. A canteen full of rude greedy guests fighting for limited variety of food, pushing in front of other guests, taking serving spoons from other dishes and mixing them with others which is very dangerous for people with allergies and intolerances. There are constant queues at the live cooking stations because guests are allowed to fill plates with as much as they want instead of being limited per visit which is made worse by the amount of food that is wasted, we’ve walked past many tables full of food that has just been wasted by guests. There was a sports team here during our stay who got a cordoned off area in the canteen and food that wasn’t available for other guests. The canteen is just not big enough for the amount of guests in the hotel, they should split dinner time into slots and check rooms off on entry; there are other places to eat but we’ve not been told where these are or when they’re open; a simple guide in each room to inform guests of the hotel basics would do wonders, what restaurants there are, what time they open, if they’re included in the all inclusive, and just generally what facilities are available in the hotel.|Royal Kenz had a wide variety of food with no two serving trays having the same food and a different theme each night, though when we visited there was no description of what something was there was always a chef behind that would tell you what was in something if asked.||- Service - |Staff service is very hit and miss, more miss than hit. You’re confronted with rude staff, you’ll get ignored at reception or even laughed at when you’re trying to check in or deal with a problem, ignored at the bar with other guests who speak the language taking priority. The blame isn’t wholly the staffs fault as some of the guests are actually vile with how they treat other people, but if processes were managed better and guests weren’t allowed to get away with their greed and attitude the hotel would be better environment for everyone.|At the Royal Kenz during meals you were greeted and taken to a table then given drinks at your table. Around the bars waiters would remember your drinks and replace them with fresh ones without even having to ask, the bartenders would serve you in the order you arrived to the bar. The reception staff were so friendly and tried their best to help in whatever way they could. Sadly this isn’t the case for El Mouradi Club Kantaoui. ||- Facilities -|Love Holidays advertise an indoor pool for “year round swimming” but this is seasonal and was closed during our stay, whether seasonal means they open it when it’s too cold for the outdoor pools or out of tourist season I don’t know. Mini golf is advertised but it’s a dilapidated concrete course that doesn’t look like it’s been used in years. ||- Booked and too late to change? - |Bring your own cups for the bar, you’re served your drinks in tiny 6oz disposable cups.|If you’re vegan, have allergies or intolerances, you need to be careful, you may have to go to Carrefour to get alternate basics like milk and margarine, and visit other shops in hopes of finding zero sugar soft drinks.|Be prepared with in-room entertainment of your own because you won’t be able to unwind in your room with some TV.|Just avoid the whole chain in the future.|If you booked as part of a cheap deal be prepared to spend more...

Well, where to start? We arrived at the hotel after an early flight, so we were not surprised that we were unable to check in yet (it was around 11am). We were told that we could leave out luggage in the room by reception, and that we should come back after 2pm when we would be given a room. Meanwhile, we were given our wristbands and told we could get lunch once they started serving. So far so good. ||We grabbed a drink and parked ourselves in the reception area for a short while, the plan being to find our bearings and decide where to go first. Immediately we noticed that even within about 20 feet of the reception area, we were unable to connect to WiFi. I checked that there was no password required (there wasn't), and was told that "there is probably a problem with the WiFi", and that we might be better trying the "bazaar" downstairs. We relocated, and were interested to note that in the "non-smoking" area downstairs, we managed to connect (sporadically) to the Wifi, although the connection was pretty poor. EVERYBODY in the "bazaar" area was smoking, despite it being inside, and, according to the signs at least, non smoking.||We returned to reception at 2pm, to discover that there must have literally been 100 people jostling for position, 90% of whom were young, male Algerians, none of whom seemed prepared to wait, making it a very uncomfortable situation. Fortunately for me, a lady in a different uniform (who I later discovered was the Guest Relations Manager), picked me out of the crowd and attended to me first, telling me that first I had to pay the tourist tax, get a receipt, then I would be able to collect my key. I "queued" up to pay (nobody else seemed to bother with a queue) and then got my key. We were then escorted to the bungalow by the porter, who was very nice and obviously happy to receive a tip for his trouble. ||The bungalow was a decent size, with a brilliantly efficient air conditioning unit, and was prefectly acceptable as a base for the week. We were also lucky that we were right down at the bottom of the complex, very close to the beach (of which, more later), which meant it was very quiet.||Next - We found the "dining room" (canteen), and immediately realised we were going to struggle. Once again the groups of Algerian guests, who seemed to have little or no understanding of etiquette and manners, were pushing to the front to grab food whenever it was placed on the serving area. The simple fact was that there were too many people and not enough food available, leading to crowds waiting for the next food to be brought out, which was then unceremoniously grabbed by those nearest to be able to. This made the whole mealtime "vibe" quite stressful and not something to look forward to. Breakfasts were slightly better, but lunch and dinner were really not much fun.||I spoke to the Guest Relations Manager (Rebeb?) later regarding this situation, and she was good enough to write us a slip that allowed us extra visits to the A La Carte restaurant. We visited this restaurant, but were disappointed to discover that there was only a fixed menu, with a single choice for each course. This is NOT "A La Carte", this is table d'hôte! Each course was OK, albeit not very warm, but when a meat-based main course came out, I attempted to explain (in French) to the waiter that I don't eat meat, they took the plate away and didn't offer a replacement, so I sat with nothing to eat for that course!||Evening entertainment was OK, in fact better than OK, some of it was very good and well put together by the entertainment team. Again, we found it very busy, including the bar area, with some of the young men behaving in a very predatory way towards English (and Tunisan) women, who clearly did not want this kind of attention. This was something we saw repeatedly throughout the week, and it appeared to go unchallenged by the staff.||The beach area was really nice. The sea was warm enough to swim in, and was shallow enough not to be concerned by currents. The weather, particularly the wind, changed through the week, so I was glad I grabbed a swim early in the week when the sea was much calmer! There were always plenty of (free) sunloungers and sunshades, and there was an option to pay for a matress for a nominal fee (can't remember how much, but it certainly wasn't much). We walked down the beach to the port itself one afternoon, and had a couple of drinks at one of the restaurants there, which was very pleasant!). I would guess it was a little over a mile, and at a leisurely pace it probably took around 30 minutes or so. ||So, to summarise;|The hotel grounds are really nice, espcially all the flowers. There are some bits that need some attention, but generally it's OK. Rubbish was an issue in the public areas, but that's as much down to those who caused it as anything.|The Wifi is effectively non-existent. If you're reliant on Wifi day to day, forget it!|The staff are really good, and I think they are also frustrated by the behaviour of some of their guests.|The hotel is TOO busy - One of the reception staff told me as I got my key that there were "about 2000 guests" expected that day. To have around 4 or 5 staff dealing with this behind reception is always going to fail.|Food - The "restaurant" feels more like a works canteen, and whilst any food you do manage to grab is pretty good, albeit not warm enough, it's the whole process, and the excess of people, that are the problem, making it something you HAVE to do, but really don't want to. (There a restaurant, I think unconnected to the hotel, on the beach called Coconut Island. We ate there twice at night and 1 lunchtime, and every time the food was absolutely superb. Not expensive either, costing around £60 for a 3-course meal for 2, with a bottle of wine |Beach - Excellent. Very clean, loads of loungers, very nice place to spend a few hours. Local traders will try to sell you stuff, but they are not pushy and security always have an eye on them.||Would I recommend the hotel? No. The taxi driver that took us back to the airport was a local tour guide, and said "why have you come to an Algerian party hotel?" - I answered honestly, and told him that obviously Love Holidays don't mention this when you book your holiday with them! I complained to Love Holidays, and gave them the option to repsond before I posted this review, but both messages I sent them were just closed without any reposnse, so...

I recently stayed at Club El Kantaoui in Sousse, and unfortunately, my experience was largely disappointing. I feel it’s important to share my honest review to help others make an informed decision. 🚫 Room Conditions The rooms are in serious need of renovation, especially the bathrooms. Instead of a proper shower with a glass enclosure, there’s an old, moldy shower curtain that does nothing to prevent flooding. It felt unhygienic and uncomfortable. Most of the lights in the room didn’t work — only one was functional — and the air conditioning barely cooled the room, which was unbearable considering we faced temperatures between 38–42 °C. 🚫 Poor Hotel Management- Overall, the management of the hotel is extremely lacking. The heat in Sousse is intense, yet drinks were always served at room temperature with no ice available. In an all-inclusive resort, this is simply unacceptable. 🚫 Staff Attitude Many of the staff seemed to believe they were offering complimentary services, forgetting that everything was prepaid under the all-inclusive plan. This attitude led to multiple uncomfortable situations. The staff need proper training in customer service and hospitality. 🥵 Bar at the Pool – Rude and Inflexible - One of the worst moments occurred at the pool bar on the first day. I politely asked a young bartender named Yousef (who was, to be fair, very friendly and smiling) for a Piña Colada. He agreed, but an older, bald bartender rudely stepped in and refused, saying the only cocktail I could have was Sex on the Beach. He wouldn't make anything else. I was embarrassed and accepted it, but the drink was disgusting — warm and tasted like medicine. 🍽️ Main Restaurant – Awful Food and a Disturbing Incident The food at the main restaurant very disppointing, nothing catered to Europeans. To make use of our prepaid plan, we tried eating there at least once a day, but most of the time we ended up spending extra money dining elsewhere.One deeply upsetting moment involved my 7-year-old grandson. He patiently waited in line for ice cream for 10 minutes and asked for bubble gum flavor. The server refused, saying children weren’t allowed to choose flavors and was only serving vanilla. My grandson returned to the table crying. When we approached the staff, the server rudely repeated his stance. Only after speaking with the restaurant manager, who argued with the server in their local language, was the bubble gum flavor finally served. Many other children returned to the line to receive the flavors they had originally wanted. 💸 Hidden Charges in "All-Inclusive"- Freshly squeezed orange juice at breakfast came with an extra charge. In the afternoon, popcorn was also not included and had to be paid separately. There were two snack carts by the pool — one for sandwiches, another for crepes — which supposedly served until 5 PM. When we arrived at 4:30, the sandwich cart had run out, and the crepe server refused to serve us, stating he would only serve the four people already in line. We had to leave the hotel and go to a shopping mall to buy food because my grandchildren were hungry and there were no snacks available. 🏊‍♀️ Pool Closures & Unacceptable Behavior with Children - Closing the pool at 6 PM in 40 °C heat is absurd. The indoor pool is closed and unavailable for the guests to use. One day, my 7-year-old grandson was playing football near the pool bar with other kids and accidentally kicked a plastic cup. A staff member grabbed him by the arm and physically pulled him aside. This is absolutely unacceptable — no one should ever lay a hand on someone else’s child. If a child misbehaves, speak to the parents — but never, under any circumstance, touch the child.

Despite all these problems, I would like to thank Makram Lalai at the main restaurant, who always served us with kindness and professionalism. Also, Yousef, the 16-year-old bartender, despite being scolded in front of me, was a joy to interact with. a heartfelt thank-you to all staff at the beach bar and restaurant, who were always welcoming and friendly,...