The hotel itself has great facilities. The room was spacious and clean. The first problem was with the restaurant. It is very badly managed. .When the cups are all used up at breakfast they are replaced by plastic cups. When I stay in a 4-star hotel I expect .the staff to treat me with respect. In this hotel I found the restaurant manager and his bar manager very rude and arrogant .If any complaint was made they ignored you and harrassed you for the rest of the stay. The Reception staff often would ignore you especially if you speak English. We had to constantly ring down to reception for shower gel etc. There is no courtesy room available if you have to check out early on departure day.The only positive thing was that the bar staff were friendly. I enjoyed Golden Sands and will return but not to this hotel. It has 4 star facilities but 1 star service.

Like many others on this site i was a little concerned upon reading some reviews of Helios Spa & Resort. However i can gladly say that those people must have gone to a completely different hotel to me. I found the hotel brilliant and was the only thing that made my time in Golden Sands enjoyable. The rooms are huge and are among the best ive ever stayed in while on holiday and are kept spotless by the cleaning staff, with the staff being really friendly and helpful, with the exception on one member of staff who was as useful as a chocolate fireguard. The restaurant is fine and although the food is a little repetitive it does its job in the morning. The facilities are good with 3 pools and also a gym area, which is basic but is still good as well as a table tennis area and a pool table which keeps you entertained. There are also activities carried out throughout the day such as football and volleyball which are good for both kids and adults.
The town itself is what is to be expected in a large tourist area and is devoid of any culture whatsoever, unless you view cheap tack and foam parties as culture in which case this is the place for you. I strongly recommend Varna as it is a beautiful city and was a welcome change from Golden Sands for me, and i didnt really experience any problems while there although it is always worth being on guard. But all in all i really enjoyed staying at Helios.

Having read a range of reviews on here I was a little dubious...but have been pleasantly surpised. We were on the second floor whcih I think was definitely a plus as there were a few people on the ground floor who weren't as satisfied as we. Our double room was spacious with a nice balcony and very nice bathroom with powerful shower. We were B&B, breakfast being eggs, sausages, fruit, salad, toast and a range of breads, cheeses, meats etc. After a week the choice was a little repetitive but fine to see us through the day.
The hotel has 3 pools - 2 outdoor and one indoor and is great for kids. We had a sun lounger and umbrella every day with no problems.
The resort is busy with lots of little stalls and shops and restaurants and bars. Party street is to be avoided unless you want to go to clubs and foam parties!! Suprisingly tho, you wouldn't have known that this element of the town existed until you wne tdown there!

We visited Helios Spa in Golden Sands,in Sepember this year.
My opinion of this holiday, if you desire a holiday with culture, stunning scenery, quietness, individuality, and a romantic atmosphere, please do not visit Golden Sands.
And now to discuss the hotel, in it's defence, it is clean and spacious.The rooms are extremely comfortable, and all sheets , towels etc, are changed regularly.However the dining room is very badly planned, it literally is a case of running to find a table each meal time and then placing any article you have with you on the table, while you collect your food on a tray.If there is not a table, it could be a few minutes before you find one, and in that time, you have to keep watching each table like an eagle , so you can pounce and be ready to sit down.
Thr food is repetitive, and although I understand that is the case in the " all inclusive" board basis, this does not give them a right to serve each meal ..' slightly warm' instead of hot.
The bar is strictly closed for " all inclusive people" after 11pm unless they pay for them.The nightclub, is not " all inclusive" and drinks are not " all inclusive." As there are several board basis, which are, "all inclusive", "full board," "half board" and "bed and
breakfast", each one of these people are wearing various coloured wristbands, all following different rules all very confusing.
On the subject of food, one thing the Bulgarians can do, is make delicious cakes. The atmosphere in the hotel is boring with very little entertainment.At the time of me visiting the hotel only about 10% of the people were British.

The staff were not friendly, mainly because they did not speak English.

Outside the hotel, the two pools were good, although the poolbar was confusing, it was also very difficult to get a cup of coffee after an evening meal, only on my last day di I realise where this could be obtained.

To get to the town in the ground of the hotel are 119 huge deep steps, these lead you to the cnetre of Golden Sands .A little train is available to the Beach/town, this runs hourly from 9.00 am until 3.pm.It is also possible to avoid the steps by using the adjacent hotel walking along several corridors and lifting and this will bring you down into the town.

The town Golden Sands is one huge stretch of , bars, shops, night clubs, and market type stalls selling the same merchandise.The market traders, appear tired, and are very grateful for anytrade they can get.
To eat in Bulgaria it is extremely cheap, and you do get value for money. Although I visited only one restaurant, the food was good, but with little variety.
There are just two or three roads running parallel to the beach, these ar identical, with four or five , very seedy looking hotels,
The beach is lovely, alhough crowded at all times.The beach chairs are comfortable with huge padded seats and umberellas and little tables are included in the price of 25 levs for 2 chairs.
The strecth of bars and shops and nightclubs and hotels seem to go on forever , I never got to the end of the stretch of bars.

After you have had, ice cream , and had dough nuts , and tasted pizza, and burgers, and watched artists painting, and watched children on blow up slides into the sands, and told the market traders you dont want to buy their merchandise, and looked at the thousands of cheap jewellery on sale, then there isnt a lot left to do.And the next day the only thing to do,is do exactly the same, and the next day, and the next.

If you like alcohol, and loud music, and fast food, and crowded places, and football T shirts, and cheap imitation watches, and nightclubs, and beaches where you are literally lieing next to some -one elses wife etc, then you will love this place.

As for day trips, the trips being sold in Helios Spa were three times more expensive than the trips to be had in the town.
I did visit Varna, this cost 45 levs for a 35 minute ride (One lev worth 30 pence of our money ) Varna is a lovely city, although I would advise any one to look after handbags or anything of any value, because my little handbag was cut off my body which was right around me. across my shoulders.luckily there was only a lipstick in the bag.
Varna is quite diverse, some parts of it are quite poor,and in some parts the architecture is quite interesting.The beach is Rather rundown, although I think it has a lot of character,although Varna is not a holiday place as such.
I really have to mention at this point the very beautiful Cathedral in Varna City.It is amazing.It is possible to take pictures inside the Cathedral for 5 levs, it really is an oustanding Cathedral.

I am glad I visited Bulgaria, although in all fairness I have not seen enough of the country to comment.

I do not like Golden Sands, it is brash and without character of any description.

In my opnion , it is rather like a very posh "Blackpool", and the Helios Spa need to take a more modern approach to the "All Inclusive " facility, and look at the facilities provided by other hotels.