Looking at the location on the map of Tunisia of the Magic Skanes Family Resort hotel, one involuntarily wonders if it is suitable for families with children. After all , Monastir Airport named after the first president of the country, Habib Bourguiba, is located only a kilometer from the hotel. We hasten to immediately reassure tourists. Since the opening of a new air harbor in Enfida, the number of accepted flights in the Monastir hub has decreased significantly. In the summer, the airport still accepts charters from Russia. And if you fly with just such a flight to the Habib Bourguiba Airport, you will be the first to be delivered to the Magic Skanes Family Resort Hotel.
Reviews of tourists never mention that the rumble of taking off or landing liners disturbed their sleep. In this article we will consider this Tunisian "four", oriented, as the name implies, to families with children. It has its own water park with slides, but this is not the only advantage of the hotel. According to European tourists, this hotel is among the top ten best resorts in the Monastir resort. What other advantages and possible disadvantages are hidden behind the glossy photos of the hotel, which are attracted by tour operators of Russian travelers? We carefully analyzed the reviews of those who had already managed to visit the hotel, and posted a short digest. We hope this information will be useful to you, and you can put it into practice.
Monastir and Skanes (Tunisia): the specifics of the resort region
In this North African country, the main youth center, famous for its entertainment and noisy parties, is Sousse. Monastir - like a fly in amber - froze in time. It preserved the sights of the times of the ancient Roman settlement of Ruspin. And Medina (Old City) with its walls and gates looks like it was built not in the Middle Ages, but last year. In Monastir, the main attraction is Ribat, a fort of murabitins - monks who can be compared with the Christian Templars. From the eighth to eleventh centuries, these monks led a life dedicated to God, and in between prayers they fought bravely, reflecting the blows of the enemy. Their fort - an amazing example of Islamic military architecture - is an intricate labyrinth of corridors, towers and secret passages.
And the first thing to do in Monastir is to climb the Ribat watch tower to see the whole city and the stretching area of the bird's-eye view. The second attraction of the resort are the lagoons in which residents evaporate salt. Sand spits separate them from the sea. And one of them is Skanes. A spit with a length of five kilometers and a width of only three hundred to five hundred meters is almost completely built up by hotels. Skanes Family Resort is the most profitable "four" in Skanes. Why? There is practically no entertainment on the spit - you need to go to Monastir behind them (which is what the three-ruble guests do). Guests of the chic five-star hotels enjoy quiet and relaxing thalassotherapy sessions. And guests of Magic Skanes Family Resort enjoy free water park services during the day and entertainment programs in the evening.
The territory of the hotel Magic Life Skanes Family Resort 4 * (Tunisia)
Reviews warn: this hotel often changes its name. Previously, it was called “Howda Skanes Monastir”, then “Thompson” and Skanes Palace. Finally, from two thousand and thirteenth, the name was decided. It translates as “Magical Life in the Skanes Family Resort”. On the facade of the hotel there are four stars - quite deserved, according to tourists. The hotel itself is one three-story building. It was built long ago - back in nineteen sixty-fourth. But, according to reviews, everything in this building corresponds to modern concepts of a comfortable stay.
The last reconstruction was carried out in 2009. But, in accordance with the requirements for a resort hotel in the mid-twentieth century, the building surrounds a vast garden of sixty thousand square meters. This green park, full of flowers, smoothly passes to the sandy beach. Hotel Skanes Family Resort owns its own enclosed area on the municipal shore. The center of Monastir is five kilometers from the hotel. This distance can be overcome by regular bus, the stop of which is two hundred meters from the gate of the hotel. And on the braid between the hotels electric trains run. Also through Skanes go loungers, horse-drawn carts and private tuk-tuks from Monastir to Sousse. Enfida International Airport, which receives the lion's share of flights to Tunisia, is located sixty-two kilometers from the Skanes Spit.
Where lodging hotel guests
The stock of guest accommodations is three hundred and twenty rooms, of which only six are excellent suites. But due to the specifics of the Skanes Family Resort hotel and its focus on families with children, it has a lot of family room rooms. Many rooms have balconies. Reviews mention that these are mostly double rooms. Families are lodged in rooms without balconies, which, in principle, is wise, since not all parents follow the children, who only strive to fall out of somewhere. But at the expense of the former veranda, the kids have a separate room where, reviews mention this as a definite plus, there is another plasma TV.
The filling of double rooms and the "family room", in principle, is the same. Only room sizes vary. They have air conditioning, a safe, a fridge, a minibar (the charge of which is chargeable), a telephone, and a TV with satellite channels. The bathroom has a shower and hairdryer. Clean the rooms daily. Maids thoroughly wash the floor and porch, change towels. But the linen is changed twice a week. Family rooms come in two categories. "Kidsen" actually consists of two bedrooms - for parents and children, while the usual "family room" is one room. Reviews warn: the total area in both categories of rooms is the same - thirty-six square meters. Therefore, two rooms in the "kidsen" are very small. Standard rooms (20 square meters) have a separate subcategory - priority accommodation with sea views.
How to feed guests
Like many Tunisian hotels of high rank, the Skanes Family Resort 4 * hotel offers its guests to choose the type of food. Those who are thinking of traveling around the country and completely immersing themselves in the life of local residents will find the program “Bad and Brackfast” suitable. The time for breakfast, as the reviews assure, is quite long: from seven to ten hours, which will satisfy both the “larks” and those who like to sleep longer. Morning meals are served in the main buffet restaurant.
Those who plan to travel frequently on excursions (read about them below) will benefit from half board. There is another option for those who do not plan to leave the hotel for long. Full board, warn reviews, does not provide drinks during lunch and dinner, they need to be bought separately. And if you want to relax "to the fullest," it is better to order the all inclusive system, so beloved by the Russians. True, it does not provide for imported alcoholic beverages. But everything else, all-inclusive meals are beyond praise. In addition to three buffet meals, elite bracelet owners will be able to visit the à la carte restaurant once during their stay at Skanes Family Resort. There are three of them in the hotel: with European, Arabic and fish cuisine. To visit such a restaurant, you only need to book a table at the reception. In addition, guests staying at the all inclusive hotel can visit the pizzeria and Moorish cafes, bars in the lobby, on the beach and by the pools.
What do food quality reviews say
The only drawback of this hotel, independent travelers say, is the influx of Russian tourists. What does this have to do with food quality? The most direct. "Batch" tourists manage to arrange queues even for vegetables and fruits. They collect so much food for two people that they and ten people can’t take it in three days. It is clear that the dishes are scattered in the blink of an eye, and you have to wait until they bring new ones. But the waiters are very agile, and the cooks at Magic Skanes Family Resort are real masters.
Unlike most hotels where all-inclusive, mixed salads, which are often prepared from spoiled vegetables, are not practiced here. All ingredients are sliced separately, and they are offered about twenty sauces. For lunches and dinners always serve from three to five varieties of meat dishes, there is always fish and seafood. Satisfactory vegetarians also leave satisfactory nutritional reviews at the hotel. In the morning, the chef bakes donuts and pancakes right in front of you. During the rest of the meals there is a large selection of desserts. Baking is especially delicious. Leave a vacationer reviews and about three a la carte restaurants at the Skanes Family Resort 4. They highly recommend going to Tunisian. At least in order to taste the wonderful couscous. The fish restaurant serves grilled dishes and delicious seafood. Tourists with children (and there are most of them in the hotel) assure that the main restaurant has a children's menu.
Hotel Services
As befits a decent Tunisian "four", the Skanes Family Resort 4 * has all the conditions for a comfortable stay. Money can be exchanged at the reception. Reviews are advised to keep a receipt. If you still have the dinars, they can again be converted into dollars thanks to this document. The hotel has a conference room and a business center with the necessary equipment. The reception desk is open around the clock, and its employees are fluent in English.
Reviews of tourists note that in case of any breakdowns in the room, the plumber, electrician or locksmith came within ten minutes and corrected and adjusted everything. The hotel territory does not at all resemble an island isolated from civilization. There are shops, including souvenirs, and a hairdresser, and an excellent SPA center with a jacuzzi, massage room, hammam and sauna. Dirty clothes can be taken to the laundry room, where they will also iron them.
If you leave Tunisia late, you can, after releasing your room, put your luggage in a free left-luggage office and continue to use the entire hotel infrastructure. There is a paid early check-in service at the hotel. Some rooms are equipped in such a way that people with disabilities feel comfortable in them. Great attention at the Skanes Family Resort 4 * hotel (Tunisia) is given to children, especially small ones. They are subject to big discounts. The toddler's restaurant has high chairs and a cot is available in the room upon request. At the reception you can rent a car.
How tourists are entertained
Hotel Magic Skanes Family Resort reviews are called a family hotel with a water park. Basically, it is chosen for the sake of children. Waterpark - reviews in this matter are unanimous - just wonderful. It consists of five slides of various configurations. They are jointless and very safe. They let them on without age qualifications - at least from the age of three. For the smallest, by the way, there is a slide. What kind of entertainment is available in the hotel, in addition to the water park? From morning to evening, a close-knit team of animators entertains guests. They conduct exercises, water aerobics classes, offer team games, and in the evening arrange all kinds of shows and discos. But independent tourists have a large selection of entertainment. They can play a couple of sets of tennis on equipped courts, ride a horse, shoot darts, etc.
For those who want to keep themselves in shape even on vacation with the all-inclusive service, there is a fitness room with modern exercise machines, where you can lose kilograms gained in the restaurant. There is an animation program for children. A child can be recorded in a mini-club, where professional educators will be engaged in it. Reviews assure that young travelers are not afraid of the language barrier, and they get along well with their peers. For very young children, paid babysitting services (baby sitter) are offered.
Beach and Pools
Even those tourists who visited Thailand were amazed at the quality of sand on the coast of Skanes Spit, where the Skanes Family Resort 4 * hotel has its own private territory. Reviews assure: sunset at sea is ideal for children. The sand is white and fine, like fine flour. The beach is carefully cleaned by the hotel staff. Private coastal space of one hundred and fifty meters is full of a sufficient number of sunbeds and umbrellas. All of them are intended for free use by guests. On the loungers installed soft mattresses. But they don’t give out beach towels at the hotel, and this must be taken into account when traveling to Tunisia. Skanes Family Resort is located on the first line, and you need to walk a hundred meters from the hull to find yourself on a strip of sand.
On the beach, vacationers are waiting for various entertainments. You can go water skiing and jet skiing, test your nerves on parasailing. On the beach there is a bar with soft drinks and snacks. You can relax at the Magic Life Skanes Family Resort Hotel all year round, as in addition to two outdoor pools, there is one more indoor heated. You can take sunbaths without visiting the beach. The pool area is lined with sunbeds and umbrellas. Occupy them at five in the morning is not worth it.
Location of the Skanes Family Resort hotel (Monastir) relative to urban infrastructure
According to reviews, there is no entertainment outside the gates of the hotel. Even residential areas. This scythe is at the mercy of hotels. Monastir itself lies on the other side of the lagoon. But near the gate of the hotel there is a bus stop. A taxi to the city can cost about five to ten dinars. Yes, and walk to Monastir can be reached in fifteen to twenty minutes. Many tourists called this location on the spit an advantage. Obsessive merchants do not roam the beach. In the city, many hotels are located in the maze of the old city. They are, of course, closer to historical sites, but far from the sea. And for nightly entertainment, tourists are advised to go to the neighboring city of Sousse. But Skanes has something to do. Although the orientation of the sand spit to the north brings the excitement of the sea and, as a result, muddy water, there is a diving school. The hotels are well guarded, and no suspicious persons enter the territory of Skanes Family Resort (Tunisia).
Excursions from Monastir
But you don’t even have to sit on a Skanes braid yourself. Tourists say that traveling in Tunisia is quite safe. Reviews are called Skanes Family Resort a convenient starting point for trips around the country. From here you can go to the noisy and cheerful Sousse and spend an unforgettable evening there. Or in ancient Carthage. The same distance moves Monastir away from the Sahara. Just a stone's throw to El Jem, where you need to visit the "Roman Coliseum". In Monastir itself, several ancient mosques and the mausoleum of Habib Bourguiba attract the attention of tourists. Shopaholics will be satisfied by visiting the four-story shopping center Yasmina. If you have not paid for the all inclusive service, tourists advise you to have lunch or dinner at one of the fish restaurants in the yacht port.