Hotel Villa Mahal

Villa Mahal was good but there were definitely things that kept it from being great. Especially, when they have a Conde Naste award one expects the little things to be considered. First the good: the layout of the property is beautiful & really takes advantage of the stunning view. The beach club has all these nooks that make it feel private & like an oasis. Breakfast was good & they are happy to accommodate “off-menu” items. We had a delicious simit w/ bkfst. The boat transfer to & from town was fun & convenient. Each room seems unique & again…. the view. Now the not so good There was a “miscommunication “ with our arriving airport transport after several emails. Luckily, we found a friendly taxi driver to transport us from the more distant Antalya Airport. I don’t recall that being mentioned anywhere (tip-fly into Dalaman airport). That would have easily been forgiven had been any consideration for the bad start to our stay by the hotel. Such as a round of drinks on them or dessert/dinner…Yes, there were apologies but that was it. (Not a great start & again it is about the little things). Our first room could have been lovely if it were not above reception where there were early morning staff meetings, staff smoking outside our “private” balcony, & a broken shade outside our door banging against the wall all night long in the wind. Our second room was lovely & they could have done the right thing & not charged us the small upgrade fee but, they did charge us. We read in the conde naste book in our room about a private boat & tours available to guests too late. We were not told about these services upon check in or at all. Some of the nooks around the property that had swings or hammocks for guests to use were also used as storage- not a good look or very inviting. And, there was some rubbish around such as rags, hoses, & sunblock bottles. Again… little things. Finally, the checkout: We were asked to check out the evening before due to our 8am airport transfer (no problem). Unfortunately, when we ready to leave there was no one to help w/ bags (tons of stairs on the property) or to see us off. After repeatedly calling reception (no answer) sending multiple whats app texts, arriving at reception to find a dark locked office, finally a whats app call seemingly woke up a staff member who was sleeping in our first room above reception so we finally got assistance. About an hour into our ride to airport we received a text asking for us to pay a small tab that they had neglected to include in the checkout the night before. Again, the property is beautiful & you can really unwind here but, the service fell a little short. The old town of Kalkan is so charming & we had great meals & drinks there. Overall our stay at Villa Mahal was good when we were hoping for great.

Overall, the experience was a memorable one. It is truly amazing to see how one woman's vision came to fruition over the years to make this place a magnificent one. Bravo Ipek Hanim! The location along with the beautiful landscape and scenery are truly breathtaking. We would like to acknowledge some of the staff members who worked hard and were diligent to ensure that our stay is pleasant one: 1) Atakan was the first person whom we met and helped us navigate with our car to the correct location given the incorrect GPS directions. He also was the last person we saw as he helped us with our luggages, 2) Burhan went above and beyond expectations. He not only ensured that our breakfast needs were attended to but he personally checked that our dinner reservations outside the hotel were well coordinated with the boat transfers and ensuring that last minute changes were correctly implemented. He also facilitated with securing massage appointment and providing excellent recommendations for sightseeing activities. 3) Mehmet was wonderful and welcoming with his positive attitude. He took care of our well-crafted cocktails - very important task! However, there are a few things that need to be mentioned which would enhance future experiences: 1) Housekeeping needs to improve - having used towels left on the floor and folding them thinking that we will not detect that they are used is unacceptable. Not being attentive that we are low on shower gel and conditioner and other toiletries demonstrate a lack of attention and carelessness 2) Air conditioner that is not properly functional along with other signs of wear and tear in the room indicate that the rooms would benefit from a refresh. Atakan was helpful in ensuring that the Ac was fixed the next day but we lost one night sleep 3) Dinner quality can be improved in light of the prices. Also, a fixed breakfast menu does not address dietary restrictions; thus, a buffet style with more options would be more beneficial. A 2-hr timeframe for breakfast is not adequate. 4) Continuous hand-rails starting from the entrance of the Villa all the way down to the breakfast lounge should be mandated as it can be a safety risk. Ideally, the breakfast area should be located closer to reception or where majority of the rooms are as the views will be better and the location is more pragmatic (less hassle with stairs that don’t have hand-rails)

We went to the beach club last week. The location is really nice and chilled. It was probably our favourite beach club. However, be warned that they charge an extra 10% on every item bought - not just on the overall bill. This was very sneaky, the whole day ended up costing over £100 and that's just for beds, lunch and water.

My husband and I were here on our honeymoon. The setting couldn’t be more romantic, and our dinner server, Mehmet, was amazing. He made sure we felt exceptionally cared for during our time here. Additionally, the location was amazing- we swam off a beautiful swim dock, ate excellent food, relaxed, and slept so well every night . We will be back.

Lovely hotel. Great service. Amazing views. Lovely breakfast. We stayed in the cliff house which was really spectacular. The other rooms looked nice too but lots of steps to climb. Very relaxing stay, amazing staff (Burak made our stay very comfortable). Would recommend and can’t wait to come back.

Booked the Mahal sailing Yacht 2-3 months in advance, and was in touch with the team up until the day of travel to order food and drinks. During the week of travel, they kept pushing back the date, until they said the Captain doesn't want to travel at all this week due to weather. Weather is absolutely perfect. All other boats/tours are running. Unfortunately they gave us very little lead time to book another boat, as they were all fully booked. Don't bother :(

We went to dinner with our family. The place is beautiful but the service is terrible and the food does not correspond to the price paid. The person in charge of the restaurant for dinner was very rude and unfriendly. Only 2 dishes were good (Parmigiana and the beef fillet), but the rest were very bad. The risotto and the papardele were of very poor quality. We ended up paying 7,200 Turkish liras (200€) for 5 dishes. The worst place we have had dinner in Turkey, especially because of the poor treatment received from the person in charge of the restaurant for dinner.

Hotel Villa Mahal is a peaceful escape from the city, perched above the turquoise waters of Kalkan/Kaş Turkiye.