Cyprus - the year round island
Cypriot hospitality is legendary, and you’ll be given the warmest of welcomes in Cyprus.
As we flew out to Cyprus for our second visit to the 5 star Le Meridien Limassol Spa and Resort, we were resigned to the fact that our holiday could not possibly measure up to our previous stay there two years ago. How wrong we were.
We flew out on a night flight and had booked the airport lounge for a nice relaxing start to our holiday. After a pain-free check-in and a good flight there, we arrived at the hotel at 5.30am, to be welcomed by Dimitri at reception, who remembered us from our previous visit. Now that's customer service!
We were delighted to find our room was exactly the same as our last visit, overlooking the waterfall and one of the swimming pools, with lovely views of the Mediterranean from our balcony. After a short nap and refresh in the power shower, we went to sun ourselves, and then had lunch at the superb La Promenade Terrace (see the photos) overlooking the sea, where we were greeted by our lovely waitress, who also remembered us from our last visit.
On this visit, we made even more use of the hotel's facilities. We dined out at the Le Vieux Village (the staff made it such a wonderful experience) and the Trattoria. At these restaurants, we could eat authentic Greek and Italian cuisine in the open-air next to the sea. One night, we ordered room service and ate on our balcony, when we were running out of time to cram all our activities into one day.
We went to the gym when the heat got a bit too much, and also enjoyed the jacuzzi and indoor swimming pool. The health and fitness club also has a sauna, whirlpool and steam bath, as well as aerobic and yoga classes. We also played tennis and ten pin bowling. This was at Leisure Land, specially designed for teenagers and adults with four tennis courts, basketball and volleyball courts, football pitch, mini golf, pool tables, table tennis, archery, badminton, table football, air hockey, bicycles for adults and kids, as well as the unique four-lane Atlantis Bowling Centre and Fever Disco. The hotel had a wide range of activities taking place during the day, including family football and golf.
We didn't use the supervised "Penguin Village" which is free for children ages 3 to 12 years or the crèche for 1 month to 3 year olds. However, they're a real asset for parents wanting some "me time" occasionally.
Most nights we dropped in at the open air Theatro Entertainment Piazza and thoroughly enjoyed the shows, which included Grease and Mamma Mia. The children loved these shows and sat in a row at the front, barely able to stop dancing in their seats.
We had breakfast each day in Le Fleuri restaurant. This poolside restaurant and terrace serves the Le Méridien buffet breakfast which is really good. The opening times for breakfast are very generous, so you can usually fit in a class at the gym or swimming, before or after breakfast.
On the relaxation side, there was plenty of space, and some days we sunned ourselves by one of the pools, on other days we went on the lawn, nearer the sea where there was a lovely cool breeze. At 6.30pm we'd generally treat ourselves to an aperitif, before getting ready for the evening.
This time, we did not book spa treatments. However, on our last visit, we'd enjoyed the indoor/outdoor thalassotherapy spa - the only one of its kind in Europe. It features four outdoor and three indoor seawater pools, each with a different salinity content and temperature along with a hammam and two saunas.
As we flew home, we realised that our second stay at Le Meridien Limassol Spa and Resort was even better than the first visit. The staff are professional and friendly, the room was perfect and the space and freedom to relax, eat and try out different activities was wonderful.
Whether you prefer to experience the lap of luxury at a five-star hotel right on the beach with every amenity, including health centre and spa, or if you choose a hotel apartment or villa with pool for independent flexibility, or even a quiet hideaway in the hills in a simple family-run establishment for a back-to-nature experience, you will find what you want on the island. Contact me now to find out more.