Icmeler Online Holiday Forum & Reviews - Turkey

I have been reading on this forum and a few other forums about staff being downright rude to their customers. This particularly seems to be the case if we do not spend our time by their pools during the day buying snacks drinks etc and then at night many people have been intimidated by staff who query why they are not eating at the aprtment/hotel.

Now this has happened evry year however this year it seems to be a lot worse if the reports are anything to go by. I appreciate that the owners would prefer us to stay and eat at their place, however there is no need to be rude or ignore guest. This happened to me at the aprtments we stayed at but there are so many good restaurants to eat at in town that I try to visit as many of them as I can. The hassle is certainly down this year in the resturants to being almost non existant in my experience.

If owners are however rude/ or ignore guests they will hardly rush back to these apartments for future stays.

Dont get me wrong the vast majority of people in Icmeler are excellent there seems however to be a small minority mainly of owners apartments who may spoil it for the majority

Stewart

We stayed at the Kapmar 3 weeks ago and they never hassle you even when you are at the pool of a day they are very pleasant, there were people at the pool not staying there and they never got hassled

Hi stu........... I can echo your thoughts mate.
We have had a few things like this happen to us (lucky us )

I/we have respect for any owner of bar or hotel in Icmeler ... at the same time I can see a chancer from a mile off.
We have a private rent this year, so that takes away the chance of any dodgy owners ripping us of at the bar all day .. ( Tansas for us this year ).

I enjoy the banter of a night out... eat here eat here in Icmeler .

I/we have also heard ,seen and had the abuse +ugly side of Icmeler.. Death threats and all ,
,yet Thankfuly it is only one or two people and not the actuall restaurants that are to blame...

Give me Icmeler any day of the week

We too felt we were treated like his this year by the staff at the Devamli hotel. We stayed there 24th may to 31st may half board which meant we went down to the love boat restaurant every morning for breakfast and every evening between 6.30 to 7.30 for evening meal. The breakfast was typical turkish breakfast which we are used to, the evening meal in the love boat was a set menu for the half boarders, not very much to choose from, made you feel like they just wanted to get you in and out as quick as they could before the paying customers came to eat at the love boat, made you feel like second class customers really. They also have the Sports Bar that is connected to the hotel, we had a couple of nights there but we had friends that went on holidy at the same time and as you would we all met in the evening to go out in icmeler, because we did not spend all our time in the sports bar and did not go down to eat some evenings in the love boat because to be honest if you go half board at the devamli the evening meals are not very nice at all, we ate at other places after paying for half board at devamli we were ignored by some of the staff. Would not recommend this hotel for half board, was very nice and clean and for B&B would be ok.

we have just returned from a 2 week stay in the private hotel,,we were sick of being hassled by the young guy who runs the bar there,,he had a right go at another customer for not using his bar,,[ we were not around to see it,but were told about it by other guests ]..when he asked me "why you not come to my bar anymore,or eat here",,i told him the first time we used his bar [ the day we arrived,,he tried to rip us off,adding drinks ],he said it was a mistake,,we gave him the benefit of the doubt & ordered some lunch there on day 2,,i opted for the full english,,judy opted for the burger & fries,,my breakfast was a disaster,runny eggs,burnt bacon,undercooked sausage,& judy,s burger was about 3 mm thick & had no taste at all,,we tried to send it back but all they said was "what is wrong"...we decided after that episodes to go elsewhere for our food & drink ,,we found a lovely place just over the road called the jasmin,,excellent food ,,and good measures of spirits,,plus the guy from the hotel bar used to come out & see a load of us from the private, using the jasmin & you could see he was not pleased,,another thing he was trying to do was ,,he would lurk around the foyer of the hotel around 11-12.30,,trying to catch you coming back into the hotel,,he EVEN TRIED to get a couple in their 80,s to go to his bar after midnight,,they told everyone they were sick of him hassling them & were going to report him to the management..it did not spoil our holiday,,because i gave as good as i got,BUT if you are easygoing it could put you off & NOBODY wants that,,so BE AWARE......

Completely agree, havent been this year but we're going AI but planning on going out and about because we're near the beach this year, we'll explore bars I've never been to.

But last year we only ate at our apartments at night about 3 times, but the kids had chips and odd drinks at dinner time. But the owner pulled us and said why aren't you eating here. The answer was 17 year olds and 13 year olds dont want to listen to the piano man song at 11pm when there werent any younger children about and we wanted to go different places. Then he played Dean Martin on repeat in the afternoon and the waiters were loath to go and change the music over.

Yet the year before we were his best friends because we had booked apartment directly with him and ate there about 10 days out of 14.

the moral take a lot of it with a pinch of salt and you can vote with your feet and wallet. So i'd say thats a different type of hassle verging on harrassment.

Bev

Ok - I would just like to add to this thread re Devamli hotel. It is and i am sure always will be a nice place to stay, have a drink and subject to taste enjoy a meal at the Loveboat. I must commend the new girl on reception who could not do enough for anybody. Similarly the Sports Bar changes are very minimal and two staff there need to be commended for the way they treat people Hakan and Shami truly lovely people as Mustafa has always been. The overall impression i got there this year is as above a little too much like a business, unhappy if they dont have your business but VERY unhappy!!!! The bar always does well as does the hotel and the Loveboat and there is absolutely no need for the type of behaviour on show from some of the staff this year. It didnt spoil a great holiday (review to follow) but it sure does not make the hotel as credible as it has been in the past. Please dont ruin what has always been a great hotel/bar and restaurant. I will continue to return to Icmeler albeit at a different hotel in the future.

reading various posts on this subject ,its about time the local council sent out letters to every hotel owner explaining that they will only stop people visiting Icmeler if they continue with this haressment.I am visiting for the first time and if we are continually haressed like you say I for one will not return.You go on holiday to relax see and do new things not spent it in the same hotel for a fortnight.

To an extent I can understand why they hassle you at the apartments. The bar staff I would assume are on low wages and probably rely on tips and commision, so if you eat there all the better for them. If however I get hassled I simply make a point ofnot eating or drinking there, there are soo many good palces to eat and drink without the hassle. I think it has always been there but for some reason there seems to be more complaints this year. This is perhaps surprising as I understand Turkey is quite busy this year

Stewart

I agree with Stewart, you have to feel sorry for some of the staff, as they're being told to try to get people into the bars or restaurants by their employers. It can be off putting though, and I think it's also counter-productive, as like Stewart says, some people will do the opposite and avoid places which are hassling them.

hopefully the penny will drop one day that the more we are hassled, the less likely we are to spend our money - be it in a shop, restaurant, bar or the accom where we are staying.

fair enough that some of the workers if not all are on a low wage and probably only have several months in the year to earn it, but I'm sure I'm not alone in not being on a particularly high wage so every penny counts for me like others and more importantly, I reserve the privilege to spend it where I choose - and certainly without hassle

feel better now for getting that off my chest

Sometimes it's harmless jokey banter which you can cope with, other times it's more serious and gets on your nerves to the point you try to find alternate routes to avoid people like this.

We, as guests and customers, have paid good money for our holdiays wherever we stay - be it in an apartment or hotel. It is entirely up to US where we eat because it's OUR holiday.

I have been going to Icmeler for many years and so, as with many others on this forum, have my favourite places to eat/drink/sunbathe etc, so just becuase I may decide to stay somewhere different for a change it doesn't mean I will feel I must eat at whatever restaurant is attached to the accommodation on a regular basis.

I have had occasion to say this to a waiter who was annoying the hell out of me on one of my trips to Icmeler - he didn't speak to me the rest of the holiday... which was, really, his loss as I may have eaten there just to say I'd tried it, but instead it made me even more determined not to spend even half a lira there.

Be strong people, don't be afraid to tell them in no uncertain terms that it's YOUR holiday, YOU'VE paid for it and YOU'LL spend your money where YOU want to!

Mazz

I think that's it in a nutshell -we all work hard all year to be able to afford our holiday or holidays, and we shouldn't feel pressurised to eat in any one particular place. I try to be firm but polite, but if I feel I'm being hassled, I will vote with my feet and simply eat elsewhere. Like I said though, I do feel a touch of sympathy for some of the staff, who've even apologised but said they're being told they HAVE to ask people to eat them, and get into trouble if they don't. Bar and restaurant owners need to realise that hassling won't work - it will simply drive people elsewhere. One of Icmeler's main charms is the warmth and friendliness of its people, and it's a shame if some people, especially first-time visitors, get the wrong impression because they get hassled in a few places.

we had a bad experience with one hotel in icmeler around 4 years ago,we were actually asked to bring receipts back from wherever we had eaten for the hotel manager he claimed they were for tax reasons but i suspect they were for checking up on how much we were spending elsewhere.His wife did the rooms in the mornings and asked how much my ghds had cost,and could i leave them as a leaving present!!!!my partner had been unable to join me as he had started a new job so i had taken a friend on the last minuite instead,i was asked by the arrogant a***e behind the barwhy iwas going out and why did i wear high heels and makeup was i after a turkish man in the absence of my husband,and it was not said jokingly!!!we arrivedhome one night at 2.am which ithink is a reasonable time to find we were locked out luckily we were able to go to a friends who lives there and sleep in her spare room.my friend who was a turkey virgin had a blow out on the market and when we returned to the hotel the staff rifled through her bags and demanded to know the cost of everything she had bought needless to say she was flabberghasted and soon cottoned on that their interest was in how much spending money we had and how much they were going to get of it.my friends parents have a place in spain so she couldnt get her head round this behaviour and sadly it put her off turkey and has never returned

i now know exactly what is acceptable and what isnt and i am pleased to say there are many bars/hotels who are happy for your custom whatever you are spending.But i think with the current price rises the staff in a lot of places will be out of pocket come oct as people will be less eager to tip and money will be spent with greater caution as we dont have as much of it to go round.So greedy hotel and bar owners beware

Hi Blondie, gosh the waiters must be under a hell of a lot of pressure if the poor sods have resorted to asking people to eat them

Its about time that the penny began to drop for these Turkish establishments that persist in dealing out the hassle and then revert to rudeness and insults that the more they go on the less chance they have of getting people in.
I for one respond to a polite approach far better than being shouted at from across the street and once my NO THANK YOU has been given to continue is pointless and registers a complete veto against them.
Keep on Walking

I know this topic is about rude staff but how many times have you been in places and someone else has made you cringe in embarrassment with their behaviour towards the staff and others?I know there has been few times in the last couple of years I have felt like that and they are not just from this country.

sueles810 wrote:Hi Blondie, gosh the waiters must be under a hell of a lot of pressure if the poor sods have resorted to asking people to eat them

Lol, never noticed that typo!

But yes, although there may be some rude staff, I personally think they're in the minority, and the majority of lovely, welcoming, friendly people in Icmeler more than make up for them! I've personally encountered far more rudeness and staff who're just after your money and nothing else in the likes of Spain etc, so it's Turkey for me every time!

yep blondie you have hit the nail on the head there.The difference being in spain workers are paid decent wages and the standard of living is on a par with ours,they dont need to hassle for our custom they are not on commission based wages apart from the bar touts time share touts etc and we all know what a pain they can be.I have never found the spanish to be this ignorant rude race people suggest ,i have a few friends who have both lived and worked in spain and the general opinion is once you get to know the locals properly they are quite an amicable bunch,and compared to the damn russians that seem to be infiltrating turkey and most european holiday spots downright charming.Most turkish resort workers rely on tips and comission and are left vunerable to some greedy bar owners so some of the hassle to be expected and in all fairness if taken in good humour fun.However when hotel owners monitor your every move,become possesive and jealous about you then i am sorry this is not normal behaviour,if you were in ibiza,majorca,tenerife,etc and the bar staff at your hotel wanted to know where you were going every night and then ignored you for days because you had been into town for a meal/drink you would think they had gone mad.