Iberostar Waves Herceg Novi

Tonight is our last night here at the Iberostar Waves Herceg Novi hotel. I can honestly say that it is one of the best hotels we have stayed at in 42 years of marriage. Pros: Staff go the extra mile to make your holiday great. Friendly, efficient and speak English very well. Rooms were spotless, with beds and bathrooms made immaculate every day. Entertainment was great with something going on every hour during the day. Evenings had everything from classical guitar, disco, brass band and lively party nights. All good quality and something for everyone. Animation Team are brilliant. Very energetic group of young motivated girls and guys, full of smiles and inviting you take part in events, but not too pushy. Food is very varied and you will be stuck for choice of huge selection on offer. Each evening has a "special" such as Indian, Chinese, Moroccan, Mexican etc...best all inclusive holiday we had had for food quality and selection. Location: hotel is sited across bay from main town, accessed by small ferry boat operating hourly at cost of €15 for as many trips needed ina day. See photos. Cons: Only issue I would mention is the hotel is spilt on levels, reception being up top, three accomodation blocks, slightly lower, the swimming pool lower and the restaurant again on another level. Lower again is the beach bar and beach for access to the sea. There are plenty of steps/slopes between each level which is a pain if knee or back problems and issue. Despite aching knees and fatigue from steps it was well worth this minor issue. We loved this holiday and would return without a doubt.

I hardly stay at same hotels more than once unless I am on a business trip, but this was our 3rd long holiday stay at Iberostar Waves Herceg Novi. Improvements that we witnessed this time round: 1) They repaired all the tiles around the swimming pool and the buildings. 2) Prosecco was free-flowing, on the England vs Argentina match day, they left bottles out for us so that we could just pour by ourselves. 3) Food allergies were very well catered for this time. The chef even cooked something very special for my other half who hardly can enjoy dessert when on holiday. Thanks, chef, so much for making him happy. Hope the management treats you well and we can see you again next time. 4) Food in the restaurant were overall improved since last time. The Grill counter never over-cooked their fish. We saw a lot of very nice Moroccan food, and thanks to this unexpected experience, we even started to be interested in visiting the country in future. 5) Great team work. The most staff were working very hard with genuine smiles. As repeat guests, we received some nice surprises such as the receptionist who took very good care of us during our previous stay waited for our arrival and checked us in again. We did feel very much welcomed. Restaurant staff, even those who were setting and clearing the tables, were working tirelessly. We couldn't help thanking them each time. If I own a hotel or two, I would headhunt many of their staff from this hotel. Now negatives: A) We were looking forward to the all day at the beach life. But the beach hut food options massively declined when compaired to our last visit. They charge if you want hot meal, so we had to go up to the restaurant, it meant we had to change into dry clothes when our room is very far away from the main building. The provided snacks were not what we could eat because most of them were very sugary and had lots of allergens. I wished we didn't have to pay for lunches. This was the biggest disappointment and we felt quite gutted. B) Animation team was energetic but they were all very young, so we didn't feel like mingling with them. One of them spoke very inappropriately (in fact some human right issue) and I had to have a word with himbas he could lose his job on spot if he was in England. It maybe because of working holiday or they are cheap to employ, but it would be more ideal for us to have a variety of age group of staff with good life experience, too. C) Their spa treatment prices rose higher than what they are in London. So I didn't book any this time. D) Theft: the water taxi carries people from the old town, so there are non residents at the beach. I saw some people were grabbing our stuff on our sun loungers when we were in the sea, I quickly swam back and caught them. E) Price ... Gone up a lot. Overall, we would still like to come back to this hotel, but it would be ideal if they can offer Half Board because we couldn't enjoy lunch time and we could do without it.

The crossing at the boarder was awful but that was down to TUI. The location of the hotel is isolated but with absolutely stunning views across the bay. Our room was looking over the bay on the 4th floor of the furthest block away near the beach. The lift situation not ideal as you could not call it from the ground floor, you had to go up to the second floor. Rooms a really good size with plenty of storage & a good size balcony. Wifi & aircon both excellent too. Now the down side, the beds were very hard & the pillows too soft so I ended up with a bad neck & aching sides. Also the shower is over the bath & the screen is too small so ended up with water all over the floor. Plus there was no grab rail to get out of the bath only to get in, not ideal. There was a coffee machine but no kettle for tea drinkers. The pool area is large with plenty of sun beds and you could still grab one later in the morning most days. We are early risers so was never an issue even down at the beach. The sun beds are very uncomfortable and don't have many positions on them so were not great. Take sea/beach shoes as its very rocky getting in the sea. The food on the whole was good apart from the soup which was tasteless. The fresh cooking station needs to be moved to the end, so swap the cooking station with the vegetarian station so that when you get your veg its not stone cold. We always went for our meals as it opened that way all was fresh & the later you go the more hectic it becomes. The cocktails that are inc are not great only 5 I think & all sweet ones ! So I stuck to Prosecco most of the time. The roof top bar is a must for the great views & relaxed atmosphere, plus the bar man was very accommodating if you wanted something a little different. Would have loved an area with lovely comfy chairs/settees where you could enjoy a drink after your evening meal. All the bar didn't really have those kind of areas We didn't see much of the shows at night but the entertainment team were excellent, as were all of the staff who work so hard right down the cleaners of the rooms. The hotel should be very proud of them. All in all a great hotel for our 10 days hols but would be better with a few improvements. We loved Montenegro especially our boat trip to the Lady of the Rocks, Perast & the beautiful Kotor. Be warned lots of steps & steep walk ways but so worth it !!

Okay, so let's get the negatives out the way. Drinks watered down, limited choices. No lemonade, no pepsi, no coke, just their own local brands. Not to our taste sadly. No shop on site, this is a must given the situ of the Hotel. Very isolated. No bottles of water. Plenty water outlet machines tho? Steps, steps and more steps!! Not for the faint hearted. There is a water taxi to get you across the bay to all the shops, bars, restaurants, historical buildings etc.....but at €15 return each time it soon adds up. Entertainment is disappointing too, just not enough to keep you interested in staying at the Hotel in the evenings. Positives, absolutely stunning scenery surrounds you. Rooms are good. Cleaned and fresh towels every day. Food is good, plenty choices, freshly cooked meats and fish everyday. Amazing selection of deserts. Staff are very friendly, welcoming and approachable. We had a "cooler" in our room that was luke warm, it was replaced with a new one on the same day. It's a shame the Hotel doesn't have more facilities as this would have got 5*s otherwise

We stayed here for 10 days and had a fabulous time. Family with older children aged 17 and 22. The entertainment staff are exceptional. I would recommend this hotel.