"Unfortunately, my stay at Mare Blue & Suites was far from the relaxing holiday I had hoped for.
On arrival, I fully checked in at reception, only to then be told that my allocated room had been damaged and that I would need to spend my first night at the sister hotel, Mare Village. I had actually read a review elsewhere from a solo female traveller who had experienced exactly the same thing, so this was particularly disappointing.
I returned to reception the following day as instructed to confirm that my room was ready. I was told to check out of the village hotel and bring my cases down to reception, which I did. However, around four hours later, and after three separate visits back to reception, I was finally taken to my room, which I was told was an upgrade.
On first impression, the room itself was lovely, so I was hopeful that things were finally improving.
Unfortunately, that was not the case.
The hotel’s dining and bar areas are almost entirely outside. This is probably wonderful during the typical Crete summer, but during my stay the island was experiencing exceptionally severe weather, including a red weather warning, torrential rain and very strong winds.
I fully appreciate that the weather itself was completely outside the hotel’s control. However, the hotel did not appear to be adequately prepared for such conditions.
After returning from an evening out, I found water across the floor of my room, including underneath the flooring. I reported this to staff and towels were placed down. Water damage continued throughout my stay.
The staff working in the restaurant and bar areas deserve particular praise. They were absolutely fabulous and could not have worked harder or done more for guests, despite being put in incredibly difficult conditions. At one point the area was flooded, guests were slipping, and eventually there was no electricity — yet the staff continued doing their best.
Following a particularly terrifying storm during which I stayed in my room for shelter throughout the night, I experienced further water damage.
Then came issue number three: as I went to leave my room the next day, the entire door handle came off in my hand. I reported this to reception before going out for lunch. I returned approximately 6 hours later and, disappointingly, nothing had been done. Then when maintenance did arrive the handle cant be fixed!
I want to stress that I am not blaming the hotel for the extreme weather. However, I do feel that a hotel should have contingency plans and appropriate maintenance procedures in place to deal with severe weather, particularly when guests are paying for a comfortable and safe stay.
My positive stars are entirely down to the restaurant and bar staff and the food. I genuinely could not fault the food. There was a great variety of choices for an all-inclusive holiday, and the staff working in the restaurant and bar area were exceptional.
Sadly, the repeated room problems, the initial accommodation change, the long wait to actually access my room, and the lack of response to the broken door handle left me very disappointed with my overall experience.
For me, the biggest issue was not the weather, it was how poorly prepared the hotel seemed to be for it and how some of the resulting problems were handled.
I was later told the room I stayed in is now going to be closed to guests due to all the issues. I hope this to be true, as I do not want others to have the same experience."
