Worried about the negative feedback that I had read before my family and I travelled, I expected to have a really disagreable holiday. Not a bit of it! The hotel was clean, spacious and had a relaxing ambience.The staff were really friendly ( particularly the 'entertainers' and restaurant workers), the pools, both inside and out, sports and spa facilities were really good, and the catering was exceptional. And what a beach!! My family do not share the same attitude towards food, but we all felt the variety on offer was more than sufficient to accommodate our separate tastes. The rooms were very well appointed and the cleaning staff did an excellent job, and always with a smile! Although 5 Stars may be overstating the actual quality of the hotel, ( perhaps a good 3 or 4), I did not feel cheated in any way ( although it has to be said we did go out of season, the hotel was quiet and we benefited from a really good price deal). My attitude might alter if I were to spend two weeks in the peak season, but all in all, our experience was very favourable.

This is my second trip to Tunisia with my wife in two years. Last time we stayed in Port El Kantoui which is a considerably better resort in my opinion than Yasmine Hammamet. The travel agent advised us to book 4* or more which we did and I have to say there is very little negative remarks that I can make regarding the Vincci Taj Sultan. I don't think comparisons can be made with 5* hotels in the UK with those in North Africa. My holiday was £800 for one week for my wife and I, including flights. Let's face it, you'd struggle to get a weekend for that in a 5* hotel in England. My initial concern is always cleanliness and this hotel was fine as far as this was concerned. The food was also fine on my visit. The reason I go to Tunisia is no there are no Rose & Crown pubs, egg and bacon and MacDonalds!! I couldn't get BBC world news on the TV or an English Newspaper but this is only a minor issue. The location is good and there is no mad rush to save sunbeds as there were plenty to go round and only a few minutes walk to the private beach. As far as entertainment goes, we are not that bothered about this as in my opinion, no matter where you go, most entertainment in hotels is quite 'cheesy' anyway. I would recommend this hotel if you simply want a holiday chilling on the beach or by the pool. The only downside was the 10 hour delay coming home with MyTravel. They did provide us with a meal at the Sahara Beach hotel which was an awful place and provides a good insight to what a 3* hotel is like.

We have just returned from Tunisia - our stay at the Taj Sultan was mixed - five star it was NOT.
The food was dreadful and particularly on the Tunisian evening (for which we paid extra) when most of it went back to the kitchens. Incidentally our room overlooked the kitchens, bins and cats!!!
My daughter's telephone was stolen at the Spa - suspect an inside job although no proof so just beware.
The reception staff surly and the credit card machine was not working when it came to pay our final bill - meant we missed our last breakfast before the transfer bus arrived - probably no real loss considering fake juices on offer (real one - pay extra).

On the positive side - some of the staff were fun and we found the beach and the sea very clean and lovely - the pool was also a pleasure to swim in and the beds plentiful. (Towel collection not available for several hours in the middle of the day - a pain).

We would not recommend this if you are expecting 5 star treatment - adequate as a basic 2/3 star. incidentally, bring your own shampoo, soap and bath gel - definitely not 5 star provisions!!

We booked this holiday before checking trip advisor and after reading them and being horrified, we had low expectations!

However it was not as bad as we thought. We had a 3 hour delay so it was late when we arrived (midnight). We were the only couple dropped at the Taj, but it was at full occupancy. We had paid extra for sea view, and at first we were given a pool view, after an argument with the receptionist (who was trying to charge us extra) we were moved. It was now 1am so we crashed into bed. When we woke up we found our view was onto an apartment block and the headboard and wall was splattered with blood. We then went to our welcome meeting and Amanda our rep (who was really lovely) called her boss who got us sorted into a proper room.

The rooms are clean, but on par with a 2-3 star, the towels are awful (we complained and were told they were stiff and threadbare as they were 'brand new' mmmmm.....), the sheets clean but stained, and the decor needs a good freshen up. The stuff in the fridge was mostly out of date. The communal areas were probs nice a few years ago but now looking a bit scrappy and screaming out for a makeover. Certainly not a 5 star by any stretch of the imagination.

The staff are poor. Customer service levels terrible. The worst offenders were the reception staff - serving people from the back of the queue first if they recognised them which is plain rude! The chef was rude and grunted at me when ordering pasta/pancakes. The waiters were ok, unless you don't tip them and they will ignore you completely.

We went on the Tunis Carthage trip, very interesting, worth a look, as was the Nebul market and the Caberet was a hoot, with the drag queens, however do not sit in the front row - you will see why if you go!

Do not go any more than B and B at this hotel. The food is rotten. All freezing cold buffet. We had a look most nights and didn't like anything. This is not a problem as the food in Yasmine and Hammamet restaurants is good. The italian in the Yasmine medina is yummy as is the indian. The casino is good fun as well.

Travel by taxi it is so cheap, the most we paid was 5 dinars which is 2 pounds.

The watersports are lots of fun and very cheap - around £12 for 15 mins jetski, and the same for 1 hour catamaran.

The beer (celtia) is ok and the white wine ok both cheap enough, but the spirits were expensive. Buy some duty free...

Be careful at markets and medinas, I have blonde hair and the men stared at me, made comments, and frequently tryed to pull me into shops. They won't leave tourists alone, and don't let you look at anything. It was overbearing, and we would have bought a lot if they had just given us a moment to look. You can barter - one place wanted 120 dinars for 3 pairs of earrings - i got them down to 10 which is £4. They also make comment such as 'cheap as chips' 'asda price' 'come and have a butchers'. The first time it was funny then it just got boring/irritating!!! there are also children trying to sell flowers, one got really angry with us when we said 'no thanks' just be firm and polite or they will recognise you and ask you every night.

Couldn't fault the weather, and the resort was ok, just a bit unfinished especially the marina/harbour area and lots of half built hotels. Shops were closing down and we were still in season - our hotel was only one at full occupancy.
We spent a week just chiling - the beach was private so nice, and the pool area had plenty of sunbeds.

Hope you enjoy - we would go back but to a better hotel either in Hammamet itself or Port El Kantoui which was very pretty! x