Despite the increasingly frequent complaints about the Romanian coast, the HoReCa industry on the Romanian Black Sea coast is moving far too slowly compared to trends and expectations. The reason? Demand far too high compared to supply.
Although the Romanian coast remains a popular destination especially for domestic tourists, the experiences of those who choose to spend their holidays here are more and more often below expectations. The experience of some well-known vloggers in the Venus resort proves once again that the Romanian coast not only offers substandard conditions and services, but often charges similar or even higher rates than those in renowned resorts in other parts of Europe.
Faithful to the idea of presenting both the positive and the negative aspects of their vacations, through unfiltered vlogs, Florin and Alina, from Aventurescu, personally experienced what the Romanian coast at the Black Sea means, at the beginning of autumn. They left again disappointed, finding that the resorts have remained unchanged from 30 years ago, despite today’s prices. And they recently posted the experience on their social media channels (SEE VIDEO).
The Romanian coast conditions and facilities in the resort Venus Colaj video captures Aventurescu
“You get here and you hit reality”
“Let us tell you how big it is frustration. We go to the Romanian coast, to fill ourselves with bubbles. Why? Because you get here and hit reality. The reality is that the Romanian coastline generally looks deplorable, dusty. You don’t have to come to a specific resort. Many know that Venus is an ugly resort, but no one says so. We said to come to Venus because it is a quieter, greener resort, suitable for a family with children“, explained Florin from Aventurescu.
In addition to the fact that the resort is popular with families with small children, the Romanian vloggers chose the Venus resort also because they had a non-refundable reservation made two months ago and did not want to lose the money. In addition, they were attracted by the lower prices compared to other resorts, such as Mamaia. They arrived here just after an extratropical cyclone had “sweep” the Romanian coast.
Renovation and not much, at four stars and 100 euro room
They started the presentation of the resort with the place to stay. They chose to stay at a hotel “newly inaugurated”four stars – in reality, a renovated hotel. But despite the classification, the price and the “recent inauguration”they had unpleasant surprises, from the facilities, to the small details that left them with a bitter taste, such as the lack of water or the minibar in the room: “The bathroom looks semi-decent. It is very small. It looks like it’s been renovated, but I can’t say it’s renovated that well. It is quite dirty and dated, with some mold; the bathroom fixtures aren’t exactly brand new. The toilet, if you are a bigger person and want to sit down, you actually have no place. It is not a four-star bathroom. The room is comfortable, but does not have four-star conditions. It’s a renovated hotel, but to some extent, it doesn’t look like four stars.”
They also noted that the air conditioning as well as the pillow covers belong to the old hotel and requested additional pillows at the reception: “When we arrived, there was only one pillow per person, not two, as is normal in any four-star hotel. The maid, puzzled, asked us why we needed extra pillows. Then he went straight into the room to count how many people there were. It was a strange situation.”
“The hotel also has strong points”
However, there were also positive aspects mentioned, such as “comfortable bed” and the exterior in general: “I must mention that the hotel lobbies look very good (except for the double glazed doors). The bathroom at the reception looks much better than the one in the room. The reception is very nice and the terrace is very nice. The exterior is very pleasant. The hotel also has strong points, such as the inflatable playground and the very good breakfast.”
Another negative aspect reported was the paid parking – 25 lei/day: “It seems a bit excessive to pay extra for parking when you already have accommodation. In a four-star hotel, this should not be necessary.”
“It’s really expensive. In Greece, food and drink are much cheaper and better”
After presenting the accommodation conditions, Florin took a short walk around the resort to illustrate the reasons for his frustration: abandoned hotels, unfinished buildings, unpaved pavements and seaweed on the beach – non-existent in Bulgarian neighbors who use nets to prevent them. In short, a desolate landscape: “I did not come to Venus either to do negative advertising or to denigrate Romanian tourism. I find it frustrating, because the coastline looks so deplorable and unmaintained, despite the prices, which are not really low”.
Regarding the prices, the vloggers from Aventurescu presented the prices for food at the beginning of September in the resort that boasts some of the lowest prices on the coast: the menu of the day – 45 lei / 9 euros, a portion of anchovies – 35 lei , pan-fried shrimp – 62 lei, trout (100 g) – 17 lei, so approximately 51 lei/portion, profiterole – 30 lei, a coffee – 17 lei, and an expresso – 12 lei. “It’s true expensive. In Greece, for example, food and drink are much more cheap and superior quality”concluded Florin.
“The problem is how the resort looks overall”
They also wanted to show how the coastline looks shortly after the extratropical cyclone that hit the Black Sea coast: “The cyclone is not to blame for the way the resort looks. What is left after the cyclone is nothing to be afraid of. It’s not a disaster. The beaches are intact, you can go to the beach, taverns and restaurants are open. It’s not the cyclone that’s the problem, it’s how the resort looks in general – the roads, the hotels and the quality of the restaurants. It is in a deplorable state. When you come here with enthusiasm to enjoy the beach, you get disappointment. I find it frustrating to come to the seaside and get nervous. Probably, if we went to Mamaia, it would have been much better, but much more crowded and expensive. There are little chances to find accommodation in Mamaia during this period for 100 euros per night for four people (two adults and two small children – ed.)”.
In short: “Venus Resort looks just like it did in the 90s. Nothing has changed. To make a comparison, I think it looks similar to Batumi, a small town also on the Black Sea coast of Georgia. It is very similar to Romania, maybe even a little better”.
“The Romanian coast has no shortage of customers, no matter how bad you talk about it”
And still vloggers answered the question why it is not a problem that many resorts show “deplorable” and nothing changes: “Because many tourists continue to come to the Romanian coast, because it is very accessible. It has quite a small area and the demand is much higher than the supply. They are tourists, no matter what they look like. The Romanian coastline does not lead lack of customershowever bad you speak of him and however displeased they may be; there will always be more tourists willing to come and spends here. I think this is also the reason why not so much is invested. Throughout the summer, the coast is full”.
“With the money spent here in a week you can go to Italy, Spain or Greece”
And at the end, Aventurescu concluded with an important call: “I want to encourage all those who choose the Romanian coast not to limit themselves to criticizing, but to bring to light the real problems: the dirt, the lack of cleanliness and the shortages in the hotels. Make these shortcomings public, because that’s the only way something can be done to improve the situation.”
And, aware that he will also receive criticism for the presentation related to the Venus resort, Florin also drew attention to an important aspect: “With the money you spend here in a week, you can go to Italy, Spain or Greece and you will have much better conditions. Although I have said many times that this will be my last visit to the Romanian coast, it seems that I have not been able to convince myself. Despite repeated attempts, the changes are not visible. So this will be our last visit here. Next week, we’re heading to Mallorca for a week-long cruise.”
