Tourist experts decided to help the tourist understand the Turkish “fours” and “fives”, why they are so different, as well as what to pay attention to when choosing a hotel. According to their estimates, there were many disputes and myths about Turkey in the “old days” about the “inconsistency of the level of the hotel with its stars”, and sometimes the matter reached court disputes between tourists and travel agencies.
First of all, the experts cited the latest Turkish document, which defines the criteria for passing the classification and assigning “stars”. This is the “Regulation on the Regulation of the Classification of Tourist Facilities”, signed by President Erdogan, published and entered into force on 01.06.2019. According to him, there are not many “official” differences between 4* and 5* – and mostly not where tourists look for them.
Let’s say, in terms of the number of rooms, a 4* can have up to 10 rooms, a 5* has at least 60, the recommendations regarding the kitchen are almost the same – one or more restaurants, which together can simultaneously serve at least 30% of the estimated number of guests – and, note, no regulations on what to serve on the table. Internet, necessary for tourists, must be available in public areas and rooms starting from 3*. In the “four” in the bathroom, in addition to the minimum requirements, there should be at least 10 types of additional amenities – can be a bathrobe, accessories for brushing teeth, shaving, nail care, disposable slippers, a sewing kit, a brush and shoe cream. a shower cap, foam, gel, body lotion, conditioner, cotton wool for removing make-up, hygiene bags, etc. In the top five, there are already 15 such types, plus a separate telephone in the bathroom, etc.
Among the additional services for qualification level 4* should be something from the list: on-site/beach cafe, bar lounge, bar, pastry shop, a-la-carte restaurant, indoor pool, outdoor pool, water park, shop, outdoor entertainment complex open-air with a stage/amphitheater, hairdresser, medical staff room (doctor), night club/disco, relaxation areas, SPA center, gym, game room, kids club, bowling alley, conference hall, movie concert/banquet hall, amusement park (amusement park ), sports infrastructure (tennis courts, golf courses, paintball fields, etc.). The requirements for 5* are almost the same.
As a result, according to experts, the requirements allow a lot of variabilities. According to the expert, two criteria are of primary importance. To be awarded the “5-star” level, the hotel must already exceed all minimum requirements for 4* level hotels by its characteristics, and “stardom” must be confirmed by a commission of auditors (experts), which will assess to what extent the hotel complies with the requirements. And a lot has been paid for by the same notorious common sense of expert auditors. “Experts believe that for a large family five-star hotel in Antalya on the first line, not only a beach bar but also a swimming pool (or even two) and a children’s club will be required as a minimum: this is required according to the “client profile”, allows “location” and “characteristics”. But from a city “five-star” in Istanbul, located in a historical building, no one will demand a swimming pool (especially an open one) or a children’s club in principle – the client’s profile is not the same, the location and the territory do not allow it,” the experts deciphered. So that the “five” can be (contrary to popular opinion) without a full-fledged indoor pool – it can be successfully replaced by a SPA center, even a small one.
On the other hand, the same variability means that some 4s in Turkey may have better infrastructure than some 5s. “For example, one of the four beach hotels in Alanya has an a-la-carte restaurant, a bar, its water park, a children’s club, attraction rooms, a rope town, a tea station in every room, and bathrobes. But the owner probably does not see the point in raising the status to 5*: the hotel is in high demand, the prices are at the same level, and hanging a telephone in every bathroom and laying out sets with threads and needles in the rooms for the sake of an extra “star” seems a little strange in the sense of economics “, the experts explained.
They also dispelled another popular tourist myth – you cannot judge the “stars” of a hotel in Turkey by the variety and level of food: Turkish official documents regulate in detail a very large number of things related to the organization of the kitchen, food storage procedures, sanitary standards, etc., but just not its assortment offered to tourists, the menu always remains at the mercy of the owner and management of the hotel, and complaining that the food is not the same as in the “five” is pointless and useless.
As a result, tourists were given three recommendations on how to choose a good hotel in Turkey. Regarding the expected:
- Not trusting reviews – the problem is not even fakes, but human psychology, experts assure. Satisfied people write reviews very rarely, dissatisfied people “burn with the desire to take revenge and are more likely to spend time writing negative reviews.” “Therefore, it may very well happen that out of 100 people who visited a particular hotel, 95 people are satisfied with their rest, and 5 are dissatisfied. But you will not see this picture on the website. And you will see 1-3 positive reviews from 95 satisfied customers and all 5 negative – from all 5 “offended”, – they assured.
- Therefore, we expect the following advice: to contact an experienced travel agent, who most likely saw the “goods face to face” personally on a promotional tour, understands what to sell to someone, and has fresh feedback – because hotels change. In addition, experts assure you, the travel agent needs the tourist to return to him – and he will not offer you a bad hotel.
- The third recommendation is the same with the same arguments: see the recommendations on the tour operator’s website. It is also completely unprofitable for him to promote deliberately low-level objects in terms of service, it threatens problems.