Saturday, 25 January 2014

Cyprus Educational with Classic Collection 12-16May (Gill Mogg)


 

 Cyprus Educational

Classic Collection Holidays 12 – 16 May 2013

 

12-May

Easy jet flight to Paphos depart 15:10

Arrive 21:45

Transfer to Amathus Limassol and check in to a Sea view room

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13-May

09:00 Breakfast

10:00 Tour of Amathus Limassol Hotel

This Hotel has a lovely seafront position which makes the sea view rooms well worth paying for.

Inland view rooms do not have a balcony or terrace but can accommodate 2 adults and 2 children.

Guests staying on half board are entitled to eat in all 5 restaurants.

The hotel has a lovely Spa and wellness centre and a kid’s cub for children between 4 years and 12 years. Older children are also catered for with a club for teenagers 12+.
 If however you want some adult quiet time there is an adult only pool and sunbathing area
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11:30 Walking tour of old town with guide

13:00 Lunch was taken in a local restaurant where around 10 Tapas style dishes were provided.  

After lunch we then visited the newly developed marina area and although not complete will eventually provide apartments and many restaurants and bars for tourists and residents alike.

Return to Amathus Limassol

18:30 Depart for hotel visit Le Meridien and dinner

The Hotel is a large complex of main hotel building and small blocks of suites set around the landscaped grounds.

The 5 pools are all very different with the largest one landscaped with rocks and waterfalls. The main hotel and rooms did in my view require some updating as I felt it was a little tired. The complex has a great kid’s club and facilities for teenagers including bowling, mini football pitch, and games room.

Plenty of sports facilities for adults too and with a secure enclosed environment.
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14-May

08:30 Breakfast and check out Amathus Limassol

10:00 Depart to Intercontinental Aphrodite Hills Resort Hotel

Passing Aphrodite’s birthplace on route

Upon arrival at this resort the impression was of large open spaces around an 18 hole golf course with private villas set around the grounds too. Although not on the beach the hotel runs a shuttle bus which takes around 20 minutes.

There are plenty of restaurants with a village feel and the hotel will be offering all inclusive dining as an option
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After a lovely buffet style lunch here we then boarded the bus again to travel on to The Columbia Beach Hotel
This hotel also has a sister hotel next door The Columbia Beach Resort. These hotels are set around midway between Limassol and Paphos approximately 20 minutes drive to each.
The Beach resort is a five star property with the main pool area set between the buildings leading down towards the beach. The feeling is of a quiet, high quality hotel with facilities at its sister hotel that can be enjoyed by all. It has 4 bars and 2 restaurants but only 94 rooms with the standard room being a junior suite.
Its sister hotel next door has 116 rooms and they are set out in small blocks. Guests staying here are able to use the restaurants next door if they pay a small supplement.
 
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Depart to The Annabelle and check in where I was lucky enough to be given a studio suite with private pool. How amazing this room was, large airy room with separate sitting area and the terrace leading to small private pool with sea view.
The large bathroom was stylish with a separate bath and shower cubicle.
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This evening we visited the Asamina Suites part of the Constantinou Bros hotels which is a 5 star all-suite hotel and focuses on adult relaxation and service. The rooms with private pool are lovely overlooking the pool and sea. The hotel has a small private sandy beach and exudes peace and luxury throughout.
We then proceeded on to The Athena Royal Beach and Athena Beach hotels which sit alongside each other on the seafront on which you are able to walk to Paphos harbor in approx. 30 minutes.
Both these hotels are of a good standard and have great facilities including 18 rinks full size green bowls court, tennis courts and Elixir Spa. The Athena Royal focuses on adults but the Athena beach does have a children’s playground and waterslide. After a tour of both hotels we then had dinner at the Athena Beach where we were served the most delicious meal including sea bass and a trio of desserts.
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15-May
After breakfast we had a tour of the hotel Almyra situated next door to the Annabelle.
This hotel has a very contempory design decorated in black and white and quite minimalistic furniture in rooms. Very stylish hotel but unfortunately not to my particular taste.
The standard sea view rooms do not have a balcony so worth paying additionally for the balcony.
Beautiful spa area which can be used both by Almyra clients and Annabelle clients. They also have tennis courts with complimentary coaching available.
After a short drive on our coach we arrived at The Paphos Mosaics where we had a guide take us through the Mosaics which have been uncovered and preserved for visitors to see.
Following this we visited the Tombs of the Kings an interesting archeological site well worth visiting.
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Next door to this site is the Elysium Hotel which we then proceeded to visit.
This hotel is a very elegant hotel and one of my favorites. The lobby has a light and airy feel and wide corridors. The rooms are very elegantly furnished. There is a classy bar area and a well-designed pool area.
Paphos harbour is walkable in approx. 35 – 40 mins. We were treated to an exceptional lunch here and if the food we enjoyed is the normal then I would love to stay here on half board.
We returned to the Annabelle hotel where we had a small amount of time to enjoy its facilities including the beautiful landscaped pool area.
Dinner this evening was next door at the Almyra hotel where the restaurant overlooks sits above the seafront and you can hear the sounds of the waves lapping on the shore. The food again was of a very high standard.
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16 May
Following breakfast this morning we boarded the coach for a drive north to Ayii Anargyri hotel for a tour of this secluded mountain retreat.
A former monastery converted to a boutique hotel and spa resort this hotel has a lovely gentle feel around the public areas and the rooms although quite individual in style again have a relaxing feel to them.
Some of the rooms have the sulphur spring water which is believed to have healing properties.
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Leaving the tranquility of this hotel behind we continued on to Anassa hotel which is a member of the leading hotels of the world.
The entrance to this hotel is simply stunning.
This hotel has 169 rooms of which only 10 do not have a sea view. It has 4 restaurants including an Asian fusion restaurant that does not allow children under 12.
There is a Thalasso spa, 3 outdoor pools and an indoor heated pool.
They also have 2 and 3 bedroom houses with private pools.
We had lunch here in the open air with a mezze of dishes served to us.
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We returned to the Annabelle for our last few hours before travelling back to the airport for our Easy jet flight back to Gatwick.
Thank you Classic Collection Holidays for a truly memorable trip to see some of the most beautiful hotels on Cyprus.  For more information contact Gill on 01243377211
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

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