Lion Bansko Hotel

Me, my fiancé and 4 year old boy stayed a week here during the February half term, bearing in mind how the star rating differs from UK I was pleasantly surprised at how lovely it was. Room- we were top floor so it got quite hot during the night but we just opened the windows. Clean, tidy, spacious and everything you need. Only negatives I would say is there are no tea/coffee making facilities in the rooms and the mattresses weren’t brilliant. Food- for us this was just incredible. We went with the half board option so breakfast and dinner. It was just faultless from the options of cold foods, dips, side dishes to the lovely various hot foods which had a few different cuisines throughout the week. Everything was cooked to perfection which they kept stocked up at all times during the busy half term period. The puddings were delicious and the waiting staff were excellent; very friendly, cleared our plates away quickly, kept everything clean, tidy and running smoothly. Free unlimited local wine and beer at dinner times too which was a bonus! Lobby- this part of the hotel was the focal point for a lot of people. It’s a great size with a bar, pool table, lots of chairs/sofas and a lovely big open fire in the middle. The atmosphere was great every night, people playing games, kids having fun and just a genuinely nice place to chill after dinner. Pool/spa - again, these pleasantly surprised me. Really nice sized pool with a shallower, smaller pool; loungers to chill out on; couple of really hot showers and the spa downstairs was very tranquil with steam rooms, sauna and the option to buy massages. It is a little walk (5ish mins) from the ski shops and gondola but the hotel put on a free shuttle bus quite frequently. We enjoyed the walk too/from most days through the lively town. Overall the hotel was friendly, very clean all over, great vibes for young families/younger visitors, great atmosphere and you could tell the staff work really hard. Would love to come back here again!

This review is based on my OVERALL experience of being on a winter holiday in Bulgaria . . . I will give the hotel 5 ⭐️ and my reasons are towards the end of review. Starting with the airport and on arrival, I was getting good vibes because the process was really quick from getting off the plane and picking up our luggage. Probably about 30 mins until we met up with cab driver arranged by tour operator. We expected to have a 3.5 hour transfer but it was more like 2.5 so that was a bonus as well! As we arrived in Bansko, there was literally NO SNOW anywhere except in the mountains and this was a bit concerning but there were skiers and boarders everywhere and the people I spoke to said that the snow was good up top. I have never been to a resort where you had to rely on transport to the mountain, I have always had ski-in / ski-out, so that was all a bit weird which is when things start to become apparent about the lack of infrastructure for this resort. The one gondola from Bansko had a que approx half a mile long which was 6-10 deep and was taking 2-3 hours! It opens at 8:30 and people were queuing from around 6:30 am! A few of the tour operators were able to provide fast track passes which is an absolute must at an additional cost to your lift pass BUT it’s money well spent and worth bearing in mind when planning the trip. The alternative was to take a mini bus which cost 15-20 lev per person, per day. It was the same in a taxi providing there was a group of you. I would recommend the gondola over taxi or minibus because it was carnage getting up there. One day, it took an hour and a half I appreciate it was half term week but I have never been to a resort where it was so busy, I mean it was heaving, which obviously meant long ques at chairlift. The ski runs themselves were actually really good and we were lucky to have fresh snowfall nearly every day so there was plenty of powder 🙌👊💪 If you wanted to buy food during the day, it was table service only, providing you managed to get a table! More often you were sharing with randoms coz every seat was taken and payment is cash only!! Basically, the resort has become so popular because of how cheap Bulgaria 🇧🇬 is but the infrastructure has not kept up with that. Something else I found interesting that I have never seen before at any resort I have been to, was just how ‘male dominated’ the restaurants, bars and venues were. By that I mean the staff, waiters, barmen etc and they all look like they want to kill you! Most of the locals were rude, never smiled and quite obnoxious to be honest and didn’t really make you feel welcome which was a bit disappointing. As for the hotel itself, I was quite impressed with 👍👍👍 The room we had was top floor and the same size as a small apartment which was great to have so much space. The pool was really good and the spa was good. Sadly the jacuzzi was out of order. Typical help yourself restaurant and I thought the food was very good along with th

We have previously stayed at the Lion Hotel in Borovets so had high expectations for the Bansko resort. We were disappointed that the bar staff just didn't seem to be as friendly or courteous, they refused to put drink orders on your room saying that it's 'broken' when it wasn't, so we were forced to continue to go get cash out. No cocktail menu like there was in Borovets either. The spa facilities are lovely, although the hot tub was out of order the entire time. Rooms are basic but clean, very very low light in the rooms & there's no ceiling lights only very warm yellow dim wall lights. I had to just put make up on in the bathroom & kept clothes in my suitcase because I couldn't see anything in the wardrobe. The best thing about the hotel was the food, it was great every night and breakfast was great too. The restaurant staff were also very quick with removing used plates etc too which was really appreciated. Free wine & beer is included in your meals too.

was forced to pay 130 LEV due to fake tan getting on a towel and robe. Although I apologised and explained it will wash out and that it doesn’t cost that much to replace a towel, they still said I have to pay as their laundry company does not wash out fake tan which gives the impression that they don’t properly wash their bed sheets or towels which is very concerning. I respect that I should have been more careful and would have paid to replace but having to pay 130 LEV is ridiculous I’m very disappointed by my experience and I haven’t heard of any other hotel which charges for this.

Great hotel not one rude staff. Infact they couldn’t help enough. Even the spa staff all very friendly . Cleaners always saying hello and polite did a great job on the rooms even after staying in the room and no clean needed she still double checked on us. My review on the hotel was overall pleased would stay here again. The food and drink was lovely from the bar area my children are fussy. Breakfast was great kids loved getting up and haveing the breakfast tea not so much but there was always something they could pick at. The pool table needs a good refurb ques Damaged wrong balls but this was something i feel could be fixed my kids love pool at night but for 5lev a game adds up with incorrect equipment that was my only fault. Room was huge 424 balcony was great kitchen area and a huge bed and 2 pull out chair beds. Never cold super warm. Mini bar was good came in handy overall great hotel and staff and would definitely rerun.

Nice hotel that's only 10 minutes walk from the gondola, or you can use their free shuttle bus that runs every 15 minutes. Food and drink is good. Room cleaning not so good. Rooms are very spacious but dark. Pool and spa is very good.. the massages are excellent. Would recommend this hotel. Booked through crystal ski as part of a package. Ski depot number 4 has really bad service, unwilling to help with very bad attitudes, and poorly maintained equipment. No measuring feet or weighing... its just here's some skis and boots and away you go. Definitely pay for the fast pass, about 100 lev, as queues were between one and a half hours to two hours.