Guest User
July 21, 2025
We stayed at Sol Nessebar Bay & Mare for 10 days with our child who has a milk allergy, and unfortunately, our experience did not meet even the most basic expectations for a 4-star hotel. Here's a breakdown of the issues we encountered: Food & Allergy Management – Extremely Poor • The hotel claims to be allergy-friendly. This is not true. • Allergen labels in the buffet are inaccurate (confirmed by kitchen staff). • The “allergy corner” includes only two plant-based milks—nothing more. • While they give you a allergy card in English and Bulgarian, it has no effect on actual food availability, and it is even hard to find person who would understand allergens written on the card. • It took five days and constant back-and-forth just to arrange a simple dish (meat without milk or much pepper). • Staff frequently confused milk allergy with gluten intolerance. • Many do not understand that butter contains milk. • Staff is generally uninformed about allergens and poorly trained. • No dairy-free ice cream or allergy-safe treats available (even margarine contains milk), not even to purchase. • We were clearly treated like the first guests ever with a food allergy, which is shocking. Room Conditions – Not 4-Star Standard • No toiletries in the room apart from hand soap (no tissues, water, or even glasses). • Only paper cups were provided; they disintegrated after one use and were never replaced – just after 5 days taken away, so you need to bring your own bottle or take paper cups from bar. • Tap water must be fetched from a shared dispenser in the hallway. • Bed linens were changed only after 5 days and multiple reminders. • We had cockroaches in the room. Hotel staff insisted they were “nature bugs just looking as a cockroaches” and offered just vacuum cleaning. We wanted to change the room, manager explained to us, that we are in nature so it is quite common that these cockroaches that just look as cockroaches are everywhere. • Balcony pooped by seagulls, never cleaned. Pool & Facilities – Misleading and Inadequate • Water in pools is only 20°C—too cold for kids. • Despite being advertised as one complex, guests from Bay & Mare are not allowed to use sunbeds or services at the Palace section (the only area with warmer pool). • Lifeguards do not supervise water slides properly—only police the sunbeds. • Sunbed availability is a daily race—by 8:00 AM, everything is gone (apart from Palace part, that is forbidden to use). • Towel kiosk hours are absurd (opens at 9 AM (when all sunbeds are already gone), closed at lunchtime and at 6 PM - so anytime it is natural to go there, it is closed), and it's often unattended as hotel is understaffed and kiosk service must go for new towels on their own. • “Lazy River” ride lacks inner tubes and rules, leading to arguments between guests. Not Stroller-Friendly • Access to the beach involves over 60 stairs in front of Mare hotel, no proper ramps. • No changing cabins, no toilets near the beach—must walk back to h