Iberostar Ledra Beach Paphos

We have just returned from a week at the Iberostar Ledra Beach. If you have booked here, or about to, it is a good hotel, indeed parts of it are excellent! - but there are some things that left it down...

Arriving at the hotel was OK until we were shown our rooms - S20 &21 which are on the Pool level. This is the worst part of the hotel and needs working on. You walk along a corridor where there are damp patches on the carpet under each light fitting. The rooms were also not good - cigarette burns on the desks etc. I immediately went to reception and was given 2 rooms in the main building. They were identical in size but worlds apart in terms of how they looked. Much, much better, though bathrooms were a little small. Great sea views and always cleaned each day with fresh towels left etc.

Hotel Grounds and Vacinity: The grounds are pretty well kept and the layout is sensible and easy on the eye. I saw gardeners working most days. The childrens play area has a slide and a set of swings. The base of the slide which is sand was being used as a toilet by cats. My 14 month old tottered over and as they do, picked up some mess. I told reception about this and they too seemed horrified and said it would be delt with. I read a previous review which talked about a smell of sewerage - there is indeed a spot just to the left of the beach-side bar (as you look at the sea) which really seems to smell. Every day I walked past it and smelt it, but couldn't locate the source and it was so localised that I didn't worry about it at all.

Staff: With only one exception, the staff at this hotel are excellent!! I don't know how they manage to be so good as they are worked fairly hard and in a hot climate.

Pools: The main pool seemed a bit murky to me, though not enough to stop me going in it or playing water polo. The main pool is a good size. There is also a childrens pool to the right and a smaller adults pool to the left.

Beach: The beach is sandy, but with plenty of stones and rocks thrown in for good measure as you walk into the sea. The only nearly all sand path out to the sea is in a small beach just the other side of the watersports "jetty" to the left of the hotel. There is also a natural rock pool here.

Activities: There is a very active Animation team at this hotel. It can be a bit bothersome, if you dont want to join in and especially if you want to sit quietly by the pool as the music is played pretty loud (yes, they really do sometimes play Agadoo!). However all the animation team are pleasant and have good character. There is aerobics in the pool which seemed to be very popular, water polo, volleyball, football, archery etc. The only day off I think is Wednesday, otherwise every day is the same.

Restaurants: This in my opinion is the best part of the hotel and is run extremely well. The food is good, sometimes excellent for the standard of hotel and the staff are amazing. Plenty of them, descreet and always eager to please. The variety is good, though the (large) breakfast spread seems to be the same each day.

Outside the hotel: There is a bar/resturant directly opposite the hotel which has a nice traditional Grecian feel (photos attached) and a bar next to it which has a slick modern contemporary feel.

Cyprus Airport - is a bit of a nightmare. Arriving is not too bad - youy are immediately sent to a large baggage collection room. Exiting from this room leads you out to a small area where there are a copuple of car hire desks and then you are out onto the pavement. Taxis are immediately to your right. Departing was a bit of a nightmare. If your flight leaves during peak times expect to have to wait in long queues with little to no Aircon. Rushing through past Passport Control to Departures wont do you any favours either as, again there seems to be no air-con, an aweful lot of people and not enough seats. The coolest place to stand in the whole airport was under the aircon units which hang over each door in the entrance.

TAXI from the Airport is £15 each way, the journey takes about 15-20 minutes.

The Paphos WATER PARK is 10-15 minutes walk from the hotel. It's a good day out - I took my 7 year old Nephew who thoroughly enjoyed himself. Mind you, it was at a cost: Entrance £14 for adult £7 child - They give you a wrist band with a bar-code which enables you to walk around without having to carry your wallet. Our total tally for food and drink was the day was just over £16. This consisted of a Cheeseburger and chips, a Moussaka, a Greek salad and a couple of drinks. Although the food is expensive I was very impressed with the quality and attention to detail of the catering staff - something you definately don't see over here in an equivalent context.

There is a Coastal path that runs from the hotel to Paphos harbour. You can jog there in 15 mins.

The nearest all sandy beach is Coral Bay/Beach. It's about 20-25 mins drive. You can get there via a bus that stops almost outside the hotel (walk out the hotel door and turn left until you hit a layby). Although the beach had your stereotypical fine sand and the sea seemed a bit warmer than at Paphos, it was packed!!! Probably ok if you like people watching - a dissapointment if you don't. We left after about an hour, managing to get a mini-bus for £10 to take our party of 6 back to the hotel.

Conclusion: This holiday was "OK" for us, nothing better, nothing worse. We picked a busy week and probably suffered because of it. The hotel seems to be more popular with those seeking a higher quality than they would normally be used to, rather than those who hope it will be good enough. Plenty of Beer bellys, tattoos, and thats just the women :) But all seemed to be on good behaviour during our stay. I would bet that the whole atmosphere and experience of the hotel would change for the better either side of peak season.

Note - all Prices are quoted in Cypriot Pounds.

Just returned from 2 weeks all inclusive at the Ledra Beach. Went with another family and we spent a lot of time at the hotel.

Food - fantastic choice, well cooked and presented, never had a bad meal, the jewel in the hotels crown. The packed lunches for day trips were a little dissapointing - however given the heat it is not surprising the bread goes hard!

Animation Team - Hard working and enthusiastic, some shows were very entertaining more than half - some like the MR(s) Ledra Beach were simply awful. Lots of activities and they do not pester you, they politely ask and are not upset if you do not join in.

Kids Club - We kept a close eye for the first few sessions and found the kids were having a great time, they went reguarly after 8 or 9 days of having fun in the pool.

Location - near enough to walk into Paphos - 30 minutes - minutes drive from the Waterpark - which is a good day out. We also hired a car and went off to the Troodos mountains.

Weather - Fantastic climate - hot no humidity

Accomodation - basic but clean and tidy, everything worked.

Sports - we enjoyed playing a lot of table tennis and Tennis, which equipment was supplied by the hotel.

Pools - The indoor and outdoor pools were fine, and well maintained, however the management should ensure that users should not be allowed food or drink in the water as was evident in the indoor pool area where kids were left unsupervised to have food fights with chips and ice cream.

Drinks - were OK plenty of variety

Value for money test - we had 1 meal out of the hotel and it was relatively expensive and poor quality so we think the all inlcusive package at this hotel represented good value for money.

Overall - a good mix of English/French/German and odd spanish and local guests enjoying the facilities - suitable for all ages and not too noisy. - You can sleep by the pool for a few hours in the afternoon...

Firstly, Cyprus is quite an expensive holiday in the first place for some reason but we decided to try it after numerous recommendations from friends who are repeat visitors and who are themselves going again this year. After quite a lot of research we decided on the Ledra beach. We live a few miles from Blackpool and wanted somewhere that had enough to interest our two kids but wasnt overdeveloped so chose Paphos rather than Protaras. We also wanted to try all inclusive as the cost was only marginally more than B&B.

I have to say that on the coach transfer, we were wary as it seemed so remote but once we were at the hotel, we were very pleased. The location was ideal, neither too isolated nor too overdeveloped. I had previously emailed the hotel asking about the possibility of upgrading to a seaview as we had only been able to book an inland view. I fully expected to pay a supplement but we were given a wonderful room with probably one of the best seaviews in the hotel. There was also a huge bowl of all kinds of fruit and two bottles of wine in the room. It was a quad room which can often mean playing sardines but this room was more than adequate. Clean and kept well by the maids. We came back each day to the towels made into swans, hearts etc which tickled my daughter no end. I truly think that if you dont leave your room too trashed the chambermaids appreciate it and are prepared to do little extras plus have more time to anyway.

The beach area was good, a little pebbly as you first enter the sea but ok plus there is a great watersports place right at the edge of the hotel (We tried jetskies, paragliding, banana boas etc) but it is not intrusive at all.

The pools were lovely, the main pool has a jacuzzi which was great and the grounds are well maintained. It was quite busy but it is a family hotel, the children were not rowdy and I think it is a sad state of affairs when people object to the laughter of kids. I am a teacher so you might think i would want to escape but i had no problem at all.

There is an inhouse entertainment team who organise pool games, archery, aerobics etc but they did not hassle you at all. In particular, there was a youngish lad (Patric) who looked after the older juniors (12-15) and he was wonderful. Whenever we spent time in the hotel, he would say hi to the kids, remembering each and every one by their names and organise stuff for them. My son even played football in 35 degree heat (madness)

The evening entertainment was either good or diabolical, it is the only area they need to attend to.

The food was excellent all round and people were not going overboard with the drinks just because it is all inclusive.

Out of the hotel, I would recommend hiring a hard top jeep with a/c to get around rather than organised trips.

We went to the adonis falls which was magical, and were glad we made our own way as an organised trip arrived and only got 10-15 mins to enjoy it which isnt enough.

We went into the Troodos mountains right to the top which was good.

We tried two waterparks, the one in Paphos and Waterworld in Ayia Napa. I think The Paphos one was better really.

Coral bay is great for a day but we were disappointed by Latchi beach. Incidently, the Aphrodite baths by Latchi beach is not really anything at all. There were a lot of bemused tourists looking at each other as if to say "Is that it?"

We did try Fig Tree bay when we went to the Ayia Napa end of Cyprus and it was beautiful but did not like that general area at all (Protaras) as it is just like an overdeveloped British seaside town.

We would go to Cyprus again, and even this hotel but probably just for a week.

Although we had an enjoyable 2 weeks at this hotel it turned out to be a bit rough.Our room was at best only average,the door would not close properly and had to be slammed shut,as did our neighbours.Our patio door was too stiff to be opened by my wife.The adult pool was full of kids and the pool side toilets stunk.The pool bar was frequently out of soft drinks and the beer was disgusting.On a positive note the food was good with plenty of choice and the staff were very helpfull.I would not recomend this hotel if you are looking for a quiet,relaxing holiday.

stayed there last september, every thing was excellent, 'classy' feel to the whole place, good food, drinks and professinal entertainment. Soooo we went back in june, I'm affraid the hotel has 'dummed' down we were pestered all day around the pool by animation reps, the evening entertainment had resorted to usuall dross night in night out. Quality of all inclusive drinks was now poor. The adult only chill-out pool full of kids. the rooms are also looking very drab now. We also do not like being petserd during dinner by clowns persuading us to play bingo afterwards!

will not return!

My husband and i stayed at this hotel in january 2005 for 6 weeks, i found the hotel to be very clean and lived up to a 4 star rating. The food i found was always hot and breakfast had more then enough choice, but i did find that the evening meals became tiresome but then again we were there for 6 weeks and was to be expected. However the one and only down side i found to the hotel while we were there was the entertainment, the hotel was run by their own entertainment team and we found it to be rather amateurish. But other then that i would certainly return again, parhaps not in the winter again but certainly in the summer.

Lovely hotel, great area, staff and hotel management very, very helpful, everything done with a smile. The rooms are a wee bit tired looking and could do with general upgrading, but still had a great time and would return.

booking as a large party was looking for a hotel with something to suit everyone and all ages and this hotel did just that. Great beaches with an abundance of watersports, plenty of sunbeds and a great little cove with free canoes, pedlo boats for kids. Quiet spots for the book readers and great pools with poolside activities eg. aerobics, water polo. Food was excellent for all inclusive, great variety all the usual (chips, rice and salad) but loads of different dishes including fresh fish carvery, steak and chicken dishes. Great snack food at poolside restaurant. Evening entertainment again something for everyone. Inside different bands, singers while outside typical carabet/kids show in ampitheatre. Nice beach side bar for quiet drink (it was october though) The harbour is a 5 min taxi drive or 20 min walk. Rooms were well equipped but would request sea view rooms ( ours was at the side of the hotel overlooking gap between ours and next hotel) would of paid extra for poolside room had one been available as you can sit on your terrance on groud floor while kids in pool. Lovely staff and the a la carte meal at poolside is a nice touch included in price. Having been to Cyprus before and seen the sights didnt really feel the need to leave hotel as everything we wanted was here but then we were in a large group.

Ive just returned from this hotel, Hubby, 3 kids and me loved it so much will go back next year, food was excellent and hotel clean and staff couldnt do enough to help. Spectacular sea and plenty to do

We went to this hotel last year for 2 weeks. It was wonderful, relaxing, friendly staff and the food was 1st class. The best hotel we have stayed in in Cyprus.