TUI Blue Pioneer Beach, Paphos, Cyprus

TUI Pioneer Blue Hotel , Paphos Cyprus

Our journey began at Birmingham Airport, and once our hold bag was checked in, we headed via the fast-track channel to security, avoiding the lengthy queues. The new scanners implemented will save a lot of time once all the appropriate work is complete.

Our time from check-in to the Club Room Lounge was just 1 hour. The Club Room lounge is a table service lounge, serving a choice of hot food from the menu and a small selection of pastries if required. Once on board, we had chosen extra legroom seats with Jet 2 at the front of the aircraft. One thing as always to note is that your cabin luggage must go into the overhead lockers, and the front row only has a little space above, due to the crew‘s equipment.

After a 4.5-hour flight, we were soon in the terminal building with passport control being very efficient, as was the delivery of luggage. We exited the terminal and knew our onward journey to the hotel was only 15/20 minutes away, so grabbed a cab. This cost us 45 euros and we found out this should have only been around 35/40 depending on the time of day – clearly, the driver was trying to make a few extra at our expense.

On arrival, at Tui Blue Pioneer Beach, we were greeted in reception by the bell boy, cases taken from us and ushered to the desk where a cold glass of fizz was poured instantly. Greeted by Valia the hotel's room manager, with a beaming smile, very quickly gave us our room key, and hotel info leaflets, explaining the essentials we needed to get going.

We had been allocated Room 38, a Superior room on the Ground floor (this was street level from the front of the hotel, but the 1st floor looked out from the back of the hotel!) The room class was Elite category, and as such had been handed an Elite black card upon check-in to produce at all bars and restaurants. Walking into the room, the view straight through to the balcony and beyond to Paphos was beautiful.

The Pioneer Beach instantly gave me the sense of having a traditional feel to it, and it wasn't until a little later, that we saw the signage in the reception lobby saying, ‘Traditional meets Luxury’. The bathroom had all the amenities provided as expected, and there was a shower over the bath concept, in our room. Other room features were a very comfortable King Sized bed, bedside tables, plenty of wardrobe/drawer space, an ironing board, slippers, a safety deposit box, tea/coffee making facilities, an expresso coffee machine, hairdryer and a fridge/mini-bar (With the All Inclusive plan, the alcohol isn't replenished again during your stay – only soft drinks) Walking out on to the balcony, this gave us an uninterrupted view of the sea, the small church of Saint Nicholas nearby, the Regina A La Carte and Thalassa restaurants below, with its decked, are and babbling brook feature, the grounds with an abundance of sunbeds and manicured mature gardens. A table and 2 chairs were part of the furniture. Pool and beach towels were also provided and changed daily. Unpacked, it was time to explore!

The Pioneer Beach is easy to navigate with everything close by. Access for the less mobile is provided all around the hotel inside and the grounds, by either a ramp or by using the lifts.

The hotel has 4 restaurants:

Odysseas – Main buffet restaurant – No booking required – Show cooking – Chinese section with a different dish prepared every night. All diets are catered for including gluten-free.

Christiana Culinarium – A La Carte Restaurant – Reservations required 24 hours in advance – men to wear long trousers

Regina Italian – A La Carte - Reservations required 24 hours in advance – men can wear tailored shorts in the evening

Thalassa – A La Carte – Mediterranean - Reservations required 24 hours in advance – men can wear tailored shorts in the evening

There is a promenade that is flat (so very easy for mobility) that runs from outside the hotel, all the way into Paphos. It is regularly frequented by many doing their fitness walks and runs at different times of the day. There is only a small beach in front of Pioneer Beach, which is coarse sand. It is a rocky coastline so very limited points with which to enter/exit the sea, however, for ease, there is a platform next door at the Constantinou Bros. Asimina Suites, that goes into the water for better accessibility. Numerous bars are dotted around the property, from the Captain Cook Pool Bar, Sports Bar, Marco Polo Cocktail Bar and the St Andrews Rooftop Bar.

Depending on the season you are visiting in, the opening times etc may vary. Pioneer Beach also has a sizeable shop, selling suncream, medical provisions, tourist memorabilia to bottles of water if not on the All-Inclusive plan. Being a true Opacarophile (a person who loves sunsets), before dinner, we went to the rooftop bar to indulge in a couple of Aperol Spritz while watching the sunset over Paphos. As we were unable to make any reservations for a restaurant on our 1st evening, we headed to Odysseas. Greeted and escorted to a table, the waiting staff pointed out to us the various stations whilst immediately taking our order for drinks. The choice was huge and was certainly something for everyone, ranging from the salad bar, Cypriot food, hot food choices and the Chinese station, with the desserts station brimming with options.

One thing that stood out was the attentiveness of the staff – constantly clearing plates, replenishing drinks if needed, and just generally being there to guide us.

Heading back to the room after a nightcap, the maids had been in to do a turndown service, restock the amenities if needed and leave a bottle of water. 2 Bottles were left every night.

The following morning, it was back in Odysseas for breakfast. This time everything from cereal, cold meats, juices, omelette and pancake station, a variety of bread, the Cypriot table, Gluten-free corner and the hot food stations. On each table were 2 flasks – one with hot water and one with coffee. If you required tea, you could just ask or there was a teabag selection next to the speciality coffee-making machine inside. Ie Cappuccino, Mocha, Latte etc.

We grabbed a couple of sunbeds on the beach to get a breeze from the sea – and ventured to the pool to try it out! Oh man, it was freezing so maybe a little too early in the season to expect it to be like bath water!! A beach service for drinks is provided, and dotted around the grounds are Private Cabanas. These are free of charge for Superior Deluxe Category rooms and above, with your specific one being advised upon check-in. You can hire them for a day subject to availability for 40 euros. (May2024)

Lunch for us was in Thalassa, where a selection of more snack-based food, ie pizzas, jacket potato, chicken, salad, fish, and paninis could be chosen. Wet Swimwear is not allowed for obvious reasons, so only dry beachwear is acceptable.

Another visit to the rooftop bar sadly didn't produce a sunset as good as the night before, but the drinks were perfect! Our evening dinner, we headed back to Thalassa as we had made a reservation 24 hours previous. You are handed a menu, which isn't by any means extensive, and advised what the chef's special dish of the day is. The food was exceptional – beautifully presented and tasted delicious.

The following day, I wanted to try Culinarium for breakfast. This was A La Carte. Again, greeted and seated very swiftly, I found the selection to be less than Odysseas, (still very good choices though) with the biggest difference being that you are waited on. Tea/Coffee, juices etc were brought to the table as required and not in flasks as in the main buffet.

The Constantinou Bros has 4 hotels in their Paphos portfolio – Pioneer Beach being one, and the others being Asimina Suites (next door), Athena Royal and Athena Beach (a 5-minute drive/15-minute walk). I wanted to see the other hotels, so arranged to meet the Sales and Marketing Manager for site inspections.

I left hubby on the beach for a couple of hours making full use of the pool, beach and bar...

2 Hours had passed and back in time for lunch and Thalassa was calling – this time a Greek salad, chicken, and a swordfish steak were sampled, washed down with a bottle of vino, whilst admiring the stunning views – again!

Dinner was to be in Odysseas that evening which coincided with the Cypriot night. Traditional folk dancing kickstarted the evening for those arriving early followed by a local band playing traditional music. As well as this a market stall was also set up outside to sample even more local food and Cypriot coffee. In the main buffet, the traditional fayre of Tsatsiki, Greek salad, Moussaka, Gyros Kebab meat, Lamb Kleftiko plus more, along with plenty of vegetables were laid out.

We could not let the Cypriot night go by without an ouzo or 2 sitting by the pool whilst listening to the bouzouki music.

The next morning, it was back for more food and breakfast at Odysseas... Seated outside, as an added choice to the buffet, the hotel had their Fruitopia event where they use delicious fresh fruit and Cyprus-made yoghurt and honey to make smoothies and offer fruit plates. Beautifully presented whilst a singer/guitarist played subtly in the background.

Today we were heading for Paphos itself, walking along the promenade which started outside the hotel and hugged the coast.

To get into Paphos and the harbour area, the walk itself took around 45 minutes, but at a flip-flop pace! As previously mentioned, it is very accessible to those in mobility scooters and wheelchairs. Along the way, we passed very familiar hotels to me, so my hotel radar was on, and a few independent water sports companies, offered paragliding, jet ski and banana boat rides etc. Once in the harbour area, we walked up to the castle and had a mooch around, with a much-needed frappe (iced coffee) watching the world go by.

Next, we wanted to go to the Tomb of the Kings, so time to hop on the bus! The buses here work very well indeed... Your journey will cost you just 2 euros (May 2024) from the time you get on to the time you get off and run regularly on certain loops around the area. Our bus dropped us at the local stop we needed for us then to continue 10 minutes walking to the entrance.

The Tomb of the Kings is a UNESCO World Heritage Site. 7 tombs can be explored, and the entrance was just 2.50 euros per person ( May 2024). The site is exceptionally well preserved, although most of the treasures buried with the bodies have been whisked away by grave robbers almost before the occupants were cold! It is spread over quite a large area of land so make sure hats and water are in your backpack. There are toilet facilities on site.

Once we had grabbed a quick bite of lunch at a local café, we headed straight back on the bus to the hotel, which dropped us across the road from the entrance, so very convenient.

Back in the room, we had been left a lovely bottle of chilled fizz, which is standard on your last day.

Another visit to the rooftop bar in the hope of a great sunset, and then on to Regina Italian A La Carte for dinner. The antipasto buffet was inside the restaurant building offering salads, cold meats, olives – everything you would expect Italian-wise. We both chose 2 different steak dishes, served with pasta, and both were delicious.

Hubby suggested a nightcap in the Marco Polo cocktail, however, walking back towards the main building, I saw red/blue lights, and then remembered the rep telling us about the silent disco! I convinced him somehow that we should go! 2 different channels, playing different styles etc. With ouzo in hand, we soon found our groove and I ended up wailing ( I cannot sing) with other guests who kind of joined in!

The next morning, you guessed it – back into Odysseas and then a day of leisure spent on the beach soaking up the vibes.

Our checkout was 6 pm, due to one of the Elite Class benefits (subject to availability), so once all packed, we headed up to the rooftop bar one last time, and then back down to Odysseas for a ‘last supper’ dinner before our taxi back to the airport.

Reception called us a taxi that came within just 5 minutes.

A fantastic insight into the Paphos side of Cyprus, and one day we will return for a little longer!

Everything about the hotel and especially the staff made for a wonderful stay at Pioneer Beach in Paphos.