Forest Nook Hotel Apartments

I just spent 5 nights at Forest Nook Aparthotel in Pamporovo and I was very pleasantly surprised by this hotel. I say surprised because we booked it for a very good price (about 40 Euro per night including breakfast and dinner) and for that price I wasn’t expecting much if I’m honest. I’d seen some good and bad reviews too so I went along with an open mind and thought I’d see for myself.

The hotel is located on top of the mountain, about 4 kilometres from the centre of Pamporovo. This shouldn’t put you off though as firstly the views from up there are spectacular and secondly, the hotel has so many facilities that you don’t always need to go out! They also offer a free bus to and from the slopes so you don’t have to pay for taxis if you don’t have a car. If you are driving, there is plenty of free parking, just take it easy on the drive up though as the roads are quite icy. You’ll find this is the case at all of the hotels here as none of the smaller roads are gritted in Pamporovo.

Our room was perfect, it had two single beds and one additional sofa bed. There was a nice balcony overlooking a baby slope where kids (and adults) could play on sledges and rubber rings and the view was beautiful. There was also a TV, kettle and fridge and a nice bathroom with a powerful shower!

Personally, I’m not much of a skier, I’m learning but I’m not the person who is rushing out at 8am to get to the slopes … I was quite happy to also spend some time relaxing at the hotel. This is another reason why I was happy with our choice as there was plenty of facilities to allow me to stay at the hotel alone for most of the day and enjoy it! The spa has a pool, sauna and small gym which you can use for free and a steam room and jacuzzi which you can pay extra for to use (about 5 leva). The best time to use the spa is around 9am when it opens. I did this for a few days and it was heaven, I had the whole place to myself. They also provide you with dressing gowns for a fee of 5 leva (which is for your whole stay) and you can book for massages and treatments.

The other important thing to mention is that this hotel is very family friendly. There were so many children who were having a great time here. In the spa in the late afternoon the kids would come back from the slopes and have a swim or be in reception playing games. There’s a cinema room with lots of comfy sofas and a big projector screen and a games room with billiards and foosball and of course the slope right outside perfect for young children. It really felt like it would be a great place to be with a family. Also, the hotel has a VIP bar (a cosy place for drinks) and it’s own nightclub called ‘Underground’ so if you are with children you can go for a drink with the adults without leaving the hotel.

Lastly, I’ll mention the food. I had been a bit worried about the food because it was an all inclusive deal that we had booked and often these are not so great, but I was happy! The breakfast every day was hard boiled eggs, cereals, sausages and cold meats, cheese, tomatoes, yogurt and bread. You could also have tea and coffee and juice and everything was good. Dinner was even better, each night there was a choice of 3 main dishes, always traditional Bulgarian food, and they were accompanied with salads, rice and potatoes. Drinks were an extra cost but very reasonable at 3 leva for a beer or glass of wine. I also had lunch on the couple of occasions that I spent the day at the hotel and this was also very reasonable at about 8 leva for lunch and a drink.

The staff at Forest Nook are also friendly. Most of them speak English although some of the cleaning staff don’t, but they will go out of their way to make sure they understand what you need so it’s not a problem at all.

If you’re looking for a nice, friendly, comfortable place to stay in Pamporovo which is fantastic value for money then I recommend Forest Nook.