Macaris Suites & Spa

"We had an amazing stay. The staff was super friendly and very professional, especially a young man named Thanos, who spoke English with a sophistication and always had an enthusiastic smile on his face. We had daily room service; the floors were mopped, and surfaces cleaned. We had a jacuzzi on the terrace, but that is extra; at your request, they can fill it up, and it costs 120 Euros for 4-5 days, so we didn't ask for it. The spa is a pleasant, chilling place with air conditioning; it can be relaxing after a hot day in the sun. The jacuzzi only had two hydro jets operating, so it wasn't very powerful; maybe if we had asked for it, they would have turned it up. The massage treatments are expensive. We had breakfast included in the price; it was from 8.30 to 11.00, very plentiful, with great variety; everything was delicious. We received a 20 % discount at the Pool Bar on our first drinks. The Sky Lounge offers a nice selection of dishes too, and the night view is breathtaking. Actually, all suites had fantastic views. The beach opposite the hotel is small and rocky; swimming shoes are a good idea, and if the water is still, some kind of seabrass start nibling at your feet, which is kind of unpleasant. A sandy beach is 6 minutes walk away. There is a lifeguard and flags indicating the strength of the wind. While we were there, the waves were very powerful; on the last day, it was prohibited to enter the water, we had to stay in the very shallows, and we could feel the immense sucking power of the waves. The hotel also organizes day trips; we went on one of the most popular outings, to Elafonisi and to the lagoon of Balos, which presented ( as our guide said) the fifty shades of blue. The prices were competitive, I think, compared to our offers at travel agencies. There was absolutely no noise coming from other rooms. If you opened the balcony door, you could hear the waves crashing against the rocks all night, and of course, the noise of traffic for a while because there is a road dividing the hotel and the beach. The old town is like 10 minutes walk away, and it feels like walking in Venice, as far as the architecture goes: narrow streets, lanterns, shutters, balconies, very romantic. There are lots of gift shops, bars and restaurants; everybody speaks a nice, polite, friendly form of English, no one is aggressive or offensive, and vendors don't pester you. There is a nice supermarket 5 minutes walk away from the hotel, towards the old town, we have never seen it closed, goods are cheap, a great selection of fruits and I have to mention this because we found it so great: The shop owner puts out the fruit and vegetables they no longer want to sell but that are still perfectly good, so anyone who needs them can take them for free. There’s even a plastic bag dispenser next to them, so people have something to carry them home in. I think it’s such a lovely gesture—and one that’s really worth following."

"Absolutely horrible!!! The pictures are extremely deceptive. The rooms and furniture are old and discussing. The furniture is ripped and the surrounding are is subpar. I would not recommend!!"

"We have just got back from a week staying in room 803. It was an executive 2 bed apartment but I do wonder if we didn't actually have the right apartment as some of the things we should have had (robes, sunbeds) were missing and the first two times I queried it, I was told that was only for certain types of apartments - but we were in one of those! We did get all that sorted, but also our balcony was considerably smaller than some of the photos suggested and we had clearly 'old' style patio furniture - so it was a little disappointing, however the apartment was very well equipped and having the additional separate toilet/sink (as well as toilet in the main bathroom) made it so much easier. The aircon is superb - probably best we've ever had abroad - individual units in both bedrooms and lounge. Nice to have a fully equipped kitchen. Wonderful views from the balcony. The pool is small and there are definitely nowhere near enough beds for the number of guests - we knew this beforehand so were prepared to not always be able to get beds. However on the Saturday afternoon, there was a really large group of around 20 people - 3 or 4 generations who literally took over the pool. They were very loud and not worried about their ball hitting other people - it was like we were in their own personal pool area. I then realised that actually most of them were not even guests. I queried it, as I just couldn't understand why, when the pool was already so small, the hotel would allow other people in, and was told that they do sometimes allow 'outsiders' in and all they have to do is buy some food or drink - which they did. However it just seemed totally wrong to me, when they were such a big group, using no fewer than 10 sunbeds, 4 umbrellas and tables and totally monopolising the pool! This would make me not return as nowhere did it state this. I can understand huge complexes with several pools doing this, and as a guest you'd probably not even notice, but in such a small pool area with so few beds and space, this was just not acceptable. We were further out than I realised - it was a reasonable walk into the old town which is just stunning! The 'beach' opposite is truly filthy. Certainly couldn't spend a day there (which was my plan if we had times where we couldn't get a sunbed by the pool) - it was not a nice beach at all, so if like me you are thinking you can just go to the beach instead, be warned that it is very dirty. Breakfast was very good, lots of choice and changed each day albeit with the staples always available. Overall we had a nice week, but there are aspects that would not make me return to this hotel - to Rethmynon yes, but not here."