Hotel Cettia Beach Resort

Cettia Beach Hotel was my third hotel in Marmaris and my eighth all-inclusive stay in Turkey. Unfortunately, this was the most disappointing hotel I’ve stayed at so far.

The location is excellent. It’s right on the seafront with its own private beach, and it’s a lovely walk along the promenade into Marmaris. Alternatively, it’s just a short taxi or bus ride to either Marmaris or the other direction towards Icmeler.

The pool was freezing, but considering how hot the weather was, it was actually quite refreshing. My biggest issue was the number of sunbeds. There were only around 22 sunbeds around the pool, which simply wasn’t enough. Every morning they were all reserved with towels by around 8:15am, and many people wouldn’t actually use them until after lunch. The hotel really needs to enforce a policy on reserving sunbeds, especially when there are so few available. There were plenty of sunbeds on the beach and jetty, but not everyone wants to spend the day on the sand.

For a smaller hotel, there was a reasonable variety of food, with different meat and fish options each evening. The salads were particularly nice, although they were the same selection every night. After a few days, the food became quite repetitive, so we chose to eat out on several evenings.

One of the biggest downsides for us was the number of cats around the hotel. They were everywhere – drinking from the pool, wandering around the outdoor restaurant, sleeping on sunbeds, sitting on the outdoor furniture and all over the beach. Both guests and staff regularly fed them, which only encouraged them to stay around the hotel. My partner is allergic to cats, and although I expected to see some cats in Turkey, I have never experienced anything like this. It honestly felt more like a cat hotel at times. The cats would jump onto chairs and tables while you were eating, expecting food. We often had to gently shoo them away so we could enjoy our meals. Ironically, when a small stray dog appeared, a member of staff quickly removed it, even though it caused far less disturbance than the cats.

Another major issue was the smoking. I’ve travelled to Turkey several times, so I know smoking is common, but this hotel was on another level. It felt impossible to escape cigarette smoke anywhere. People smoked while others were eating in the outdoor restaurant, around the pool, on the beach and in the snack bar area. Our bedroom also smelt strongly of smoke. We mentioned this to the bellboy when he first showed us the room and again to reception, but we were simply told that all the rooms smell like that. If you’re a non-smoker, I really wouldn’t recommend this hotel.

The room itself was clean thanks to the hardworking housekeeping staff, but it was very outdated. There was peeling wallpaper, poor DIY repairs and untidy building work that made the room and bathroom feel grubby, even though they had clearly been cleaned. The shower also felt old and in need of updating.

The bar staff worked incredibly hard and were always polite and accommodating. However, if you don’t drink alcohol, the all-inclusive drinks offering is very disappointing. Only one member of staff seemed to understand English well, and every time I asked for a non-alcoholic cocktail, I was told no. I even asked for a Sex on the Beach without the vodka, but they still refused. The only alternatives offered were soft drinks or juice. My partner did enjoy the beer and rum and cokes.

The entertainment was by far the weakest I’ve experienced in Turkey. There was one entertainment staff member, which is understandable for a smaller hotel, but every morning was darts and every afternoon was table tennis with no variation at all. Evening entertainment was equally disappointing. The Ethiopian acrobats were excellent, but their performance only lasted around 30 minutes. There wasn’t even a stage, so unless you were sitting right at the front, you couldn’t really see anything. During our seven-night stay, the exact same cocktail-making show was repeated on four separate evenings.

Overall, I personally wouldn’t rate this as a 4-star hotel. Perhaps I’ve been lucky with the other fantastic hotels I’ve stayed at in Marmaris and elsewhere in Turkey, but this one didn’t meet my expectations. The location is fantastic, the staff work hard and the hotel is kept clean, but the issues with smoking, the cats, lack of pool sunbeds, dated rooms and repetitive entertainment mean this isn’t a hotel we’ll be returning to.

Absolutely fantastic, couldn’t fault this place, writing this from the side of the pool. Great staff , food, rooms, beach, pool. Big thanks to photographer (John)) Ethan from the Spa & the dining room ladies & barstaff and also to yhe entertainment gent! Really great holiday, our first time in Turkey but not our last. Will rebook this place. 👏👏👏👏😘