Just finishing a week at TUI Magic Life Plimmiri. We've been here before, about 5 years ago, and we've been to 3 other Magic Life venues multiple times since then, so have a basis for comparison.
Firstly, timing is important, we visited at the end of the season and during German school holidays which was a massive mistake. There are kids everywhere, many of them are loud and irritating. Unfortunately there is only one adults only area and this is the roof bar which only opens at 6pm.
Being the end of the season, many staff, understandably, seem tired and are openly counting down the days until they go home.
There aren't as many activities here, or they don't happen as frequently, as they do at other clubs. The shuffle board area is in a main walk way and the equipment is falling apart. The boccia balls are rusty and they'd lost the jack, so were using a pebble. The darts area is in a damp area next to the pool with no seating. We used the wet floor sign to stand behind.
All activities will book up very quickly.
The mini triathlon was a lot of fun and well organised.
They have 6 tennis courts here which is great, but one of the staff was quite unfriendly and rude. The court booking system via the qpp is painful and you need to be quick. We played in the tournament which was a shambles. Very poorly organised such that we didn't get to finish. Courts were also double booked during the tournament. Most courts also need some repairs.
On a positive the food is pretty good, although the layout of the restaurant area is poor. Sometimes you will have to queue to get in.
The bookable restaurants are nice, although there is no veggie main course in The Flavour. Also, don't expect all options on the menu to be available.
Table service in the adults only bar is incredible and the staff are brilliant. Elsewhere, don't expect table service, and more often than not you will have to queue to get a drink, particularly in the evenings.
The evening entertainment is predominantly for children, there's nothing really for adults.
They won't give out bottles of water, not even as a one off, I was told to go to the mini market and buy one. They're saving plastic, which is admirable, so you have to bring or buy your own bottle and fill it at a water station. Except the water stations (and coffees and soft drinks) started to taste heavily of salt mid week and were shut down. Water bottles were then being handed out freely.
There seems to be enough sun beds around the pools, but you'll have to get in early for a good location. There aren't enough sun beds on the beach, you may struggle.
It's not the cleanest magic life. I think the kids contribute to most of the food and drink spillages and left behind trash.
We were in a family room which consists of a separate bathroom and toilet, a main bedroom and then another smaller bedroom room separated by a sliding door and some slats. The small bedroom contained two small single beds. Unfortunately this area doesn't have any sockets for charging devices and the sliding door and slats allow sound and light to pass between the bedrooms. It's pretty poorly designed. Our room was cleaned a few times during the week, but not particularly thoroughly. Our TV didn't work for half the week, not that we wanted to use it.
The resort is quite stretched out. We were right up by the farm and it would take nearly 10 minutes to get down to the beach.
They have a farm on site which is nice to visit. Hardly anyone goes. I got a private tour from the farmer.
Most guests are from Germany, as with most Magic Life hotels, but the staff communicate in both German and English.
There's nothing much to do around the hotel, it's very isolated. I would highly recommend leaving the resort and walking into the nearby hills to explore the ruins and appreciate the views. The bus to Lindos takes about an hour and is only 3.50. There's also a bus in the other direction to the island. Both worth a visit.
There's a dive centre in the hotel. Staff are lovely and the wreck dive was brilliant. It's private diving, i.e. one guide per person, but this makes it expensive. €150 for a single dive, but I had the glass bottom boat to myself and did a full hour on the wreck.
Weather at the end of October was 25 degrees and sunny each day. Sunsets at 6:30 though and it's chilly in the mornings/evenings. Sunset from the roof bar was perfect every night.
In summary, it's my least favourite Magic Life resort. It needs some investment to bring it back up to standard. Solid 3/5 currently. Personally, I would like more adults only areas, but that's because I don't have kids. I'll definitely be checking German school holiday dates before booking in future. I imagine if you have kids then it's probably a good choice.
Rob D2024-10-19
