Lydia Maris Resort & spa

"The hotel itself is quite nice and the grounds well kept. Staff are great, they were the best part of the holiday they are all so friendly and welcoming. The entertainment team were great too they work very hard. The main downside to this hotel is the food and drink. The food is edible but it’s really not great and there wasn’t that much choice. Meat was almost always pork and not much Greek food either. I can buy much nicer Greek food here in London. The Gyros bar was good and the pizzeria did nice pizzas although they could’ve been nicer if the bases were made freshly. The drinks were terrible. I’ve never had such awful drinks at an all inclusive hotel before including the cocktails, beer, wines and spirits. Some people bought their own drinks from the shop to the hotel and even at meal times. The room was ok although the bed was very hard but they did put a topper on the mattress when I asked, which made it more comfortable. Some of the sun-beds had seen better days too but there were plenty of them to choose if we ever got a dodgy one. I don’t know who decides it’s a 5 star but in my experience it’s a nice 3 star and I suppose that was reflected in the price we paid. The scam here is that because it’s classed as a 5 star, you pay the top rate tourist tax. We will think twice about returning to Greece now because of the way hotels are graded and the tourist tax is charged accordingly."

"We booked a week stay at the Lydia Maris for a half term break - me, my partner and our 5 year old. Lovely hotel with great facilities. Plenty of space to relax around the pool. The beach was less than 10 mins away. There were a few local shops and restaurants but as we were all inclusive we didn’t really use them. Some of them had closed as it was coming towards the end of the season but there was still plenty to do if you wanted to. The food and drinks were great - plenty of options. It would be good if the food labelling was a bit clearer - I picked up some stuffed mushrooms that had meat in them and I’m veggie. Staff were available but busy so not that easy to get the info you need. The hotel itself was great. The room was perfect for our needs, the beds were comfortable. The shower esp was lovely. It was in need of some bits and pieces that needed improving but as it was the end of the season I would expect those to be done by next year. What really made the experience was the entertainment. Alex and Evelina were brilliant. The kids club ran from 3pm-5pm daily and Evelina was incredible with the kids with a great mix of activities - they made pizza one day and cookies another day. The mini disco was also on every night at 8.45pm which our daughter loved. They had sports activities on daily and as well as entertainment at night. They were great without being overbearing. Anyone who manages to get my partner up on stage dancing must be doing a good job! Things did slow down towards the end of the week as the season was coming to a close but we still had a lovely time. The weather was perfect for us - 25 degrees most days so plenty of sun without being too hot. We booked through Jet2 and had an absolutely brilliant time. Would recommend"

"We recently returned from a 10 day stay at Lydia Maris and the first time we have been to Rhodes too. I want to start by saying do not expect a 5* internationally recognised hotel. Perhaps the Greek star rating system is different from other places we have visited. Staff. All staff very friendly, welcoming, smiling and passing the time of day, especially Tsambika on reception. 10/10 Cleanliness. Room clean, grounds maintained. Pool clean, staff constantly clearing tables/glasses etc, reception welcoming. 10/10. Food. Repetitive! Pork served every day in various guises! Salads nice and varied. Always have a pasta dish, and grilled meat/fish. Chips on the breakfast buffet was a first! Omelettes made to order for breakfast was nice. Fresh bread and rolls were fresh. Always a good choice of desserts, but all very similar. We got fed up of the food a few times so didn't eat in restaurant some days. Our teens enjoyed the pizza and gyros. Felt sorry for the gyros chef as she had long queues and she was doing everything on her own in searing heat. Afternoon cakes served were very good. Never had a problem getting a table. If eating outside, be prepared to have smokers and vapers at neighbouring tables. Overall, 6/10 mainly due to repetitive nature. Drinks. A bit hit and miss. Sometimes fizzy drinks were fine. Other times very weak/watery. Shame they don't serve proper orange juice in restaurant at breakfast. It's more like a strong cordial. Cocktails OK. Very syrupy. Self service soft drinks, hot drinks, beer and wine near entertainment was OK. The disappointment was the bar in the lobby. This was rarely open so in order to get a drink during the evening you had to walk to the pool bar. Not the end of the world, but a shame not to have it open as it was a nice area to sit and chill. 8/10. Pool. Clean but soooooooo cold. Wouldn't have been surprised to see icicles! This put us off and we only went in once. Plenty of sun loungers, parasols table and chairs. I'd imagine it might be difficult getting loungers in peak season, but fine in October! We would have liked a bit more action around the pool like music, but that's our preference. 8/10. Room. Where to start. We arrived at hotel at 11pm. Shown to room 115. We were concerned when taken across car park and down steps to a room that felt like it was half underground. It was dark the hand rail was wobbly and we immediately had reservations. On entering the room, we were disappointed. The view was through an insect net onto a patio that had a view of a maintenance building and a car park that was about 6 feet above the room. You had to look up to it. See photos. Rooms were generally clean apart from one bed that had bugs and hair. Immediately went to reception to ask for a different room. Told non available till the next day. We were offered a better room (705) overlooking car park and main road, and still not the one we had booked or what is shown on website. On our check in paperwork, it stated room 318. We were never offered this room, which is odd. We are assuming that we were to have room 318, then maybe other guests had 115, complained and were given the better room 318, which we saw from the outside and looked nice with a large terrace, table chairs sunloungers and overlooking olives groves. We arrived late so had to have what was left perhaps. Beds were extremely hard, be prepared! Do not accept your room if you are not happy with it and avoid rooms on the ground floor in block 1. Also, for a pool or garden view. 4/10. Resort. Close to Eucalyptus Street for shops and restaurants. 10 minute walk to beach, which was pebbly and dark-ish sand. Water clear and warmer than swimming pool! Not good for anyone with mobility problems as paths very uneven and parts missing in some places, or just stops and turns into holes and gravel! You can see around resort some abandoned land and half built properties. 6/10. We suggest hiring a car from the lovely guy who has a desk in the hotels reception, they were far cheaper than other companies. Car was very new and clean 10/10. Highly recommend a trip to Tsambiki beach about 10 minutes from the hotel. Lovely golden sand, aqua sea, about 1kms long with bear restaurants, shop, water sports, bed hire. Large free car park. Think a bus operated there too. Beware of the nudist section at the far end of the beach! 10/10. Bus stop opposite hotel. Costs €4 per person one way to Rhodes Town or Lindos. Be aware that you can pay cash when you enter bus in resort but on the return you have to buy a ticket at the ticket office (cans or card OK), which is a bit confusing, but seems to work. Bus gets busy, so sometimes standing room only. 8/10. We didn't have any interaction with the entertainment team, so cannot comment. Guests seemed to be a high percentage of Germans and maybe some of the food was for their liking perhaps. We would very likely return to Rhodes to explore more of the island. With regards the hotel, not sure. We would stay for the staff, but food and room allocations would need to improve and pool heating! Once final note. On departure at Rhodes airport, make sure you allow enough time to get through passport control, which is upstairs in the departures area. It is confusing as on the first floor you see and walk pas tall the departure gates, so assume you are ready to board when your flight is called, but no, down the far end of departures, is a sign for passport control. We (along with most of the people in the queue) we not aware we had to go through this process or that the queue was so long. It took us an hour to get through. It was hot as no air con. Must have been 500 people in the queue and at times 2 members of staff stamping passports and 2 on queue control. There were a lot of near misses with passengers stuck in the queue when their flight was on final call."