RG Village Crete

"We had high hopes for this hotel when we arrived. At first glance, it looked beautiful – it is designed like a small village on a hill with stunning views of the sea. Although the beach is a few kilometres away, the hotel provides a shuttle bus.Unfortunately, the shuttle service was one of the biggest problems. It ran every 30 minutes, but there were only eight seats available. Several times we were unable to get to the beach or return because the bus was full, so we had to wait for the next one.The hotel itself is clean and looks nice, but our overall experience was disappointing. We arrived late on Monday night, so we missed both lunch and dinner on our arrival day. However, on the day of departure, our wristbands were removed at 11:00 a.m. after check-out, and we were told that we were not allowed to have lunch, even though our transfer was not until 5:00 p.m. Since the hotel is located in a small village with no nearby restaurants, this left us without any meal for several hours.When we explained that we had already missed lunch and dinner on the day we arrived, the manager became very defensive and told us it was our fault because we arrived late. She said the food had been available and refused to help. We found the management to be rude, aggressive, and completely unwilling to show any flexibility or understanding.I have stayed in many all-inclusive hotels over the years, and this is the first time I have had my wristband removed immediately after check-out. In every other hotel, guests were allowed to continue using the facilities and enjoy lunch before leaving, especially when they had a late transfer. It makes guests feel welcome and encourages them to return. Unfortunately, that was not the case here.I would also like to point out that the housekeeping was very poor. During our week-long stay, our room was not properly cleaned. We constantly had to ask for fresh towels and toilet paper instead of these being replaced automatically. There was very little attention to the rooms, and we had to request everything ourselves.The only positive aspect of our stay was the staff working in the restaurant and the housekeeping team. They were always kind, friendly, and hardworking. Sadly, their excellent attitude was overshadowed by the poor management.Overall, this hotel left us with very negative memories. While the location and views are beautiful, the lack of customer care, poor housekeeping, limited shuttle service, and unprofessional management mean that we would not recommend this hotel and would never return."

"The hotel was spotless and the rooms were ideal and perfectly located with air con. All staff were friendly, helpful and very hard working. We are all vegetarian and managed to enjoyed a nice meal every day. I was also able to get gluten free bread when I asked the waitress every morning. The all inclusive drinks package was great and bar staff very patient and friendly. The amenities were brilliant and the free shuttle bus to the private beach was good. We enjoyed one evening meal at the beach restaurant which was gorgeous and views amazing. The snack bar at the pool was excellent and the choice of three pools including the adult one was a nice surprise. There were plenty sunbeds too and even music at the pool. Only small criticism was there was nothing next to the hotel really ie if you fancied a wonder for a drink or look at a shop, however a taxi was 23 Euros each way to the city centre which was definitely worth while. All in all a fantastic time had by us all and will definitely be returning!!"

"We have just returned from a two-week all-inclusive stay at this hotel, and overall we had a fantastic holiday. We wanted to leave an honest and balanced review that highlights both the positives and the areas where we feel improvements could be made. The first thing you notice about this hotel is how beautiful the grounds are. They are exceptionally well maintained, with lots of greenery, and the whole resort genuinely feels like a little village rather than just a hotel. It is a lovely place to walk around and relax, and the setting is definitely one of the highlights of the resort. There are five swimming pools spread throughout the hotel, including an adults-only pool for those looking for a quieter atmosphere. The pools were always a lovely temperature—not too cold but still refreshing in the heat—and we really enjoyed spending time around them. There were plenty of sunbeds available throughout our stay, although there could definitely be more parasols. If, like me, you burn easily or prefer to relax in the shade, you do need to be quite selective when choosing where to sit, as not every sunbed has an umbrella nearby. Our room was clean, spacious and well equipped. The air conditioning worked brilliantly, the shower had excellent water pressure, and there was plenty of storage with a large wardrobe, shelves and space for suitcases. We also had a large balcony with a beautiful view, and having a fridge, TV and safe included was a nice touch. The on-site shop was another positive. It stocks almost everything you could need during your stay, which is extremely convenient. It is slightly more expensive than the local supermarkets, but this is understandable for the convenience it provides. The only aspect of our stay that consistently let the hotel down was the food. We genuinely aren’t fussy eaters, but we found the quality to be quite poor overall. We also felt there wasn’t enough choice for children during the main lunch and dinner services. While the snack bar regularly served pizza, we felt the main restaurant could do a much better job of catering for families. The staff were, for the most part, lovely. We had some really positive experiences with members of the team and would especially like to mention Nick and Pete, who drive the resort buggies, as they were always friendly and helpful. Penny in reception was also fantastic, as were the other reception staff we spoke to. We would also like to give a very special mention to Despina, who works at the coffee shack. She was one of the kindest, warmest and most genuine people we met during our stay. She instantly made us feel welcome and was a real credit to the hotel. Unfortunately, there was one experience with a member of reception staff that we do feel is worth mentioning, as it was the only time during our holiday where we genuinely felt let down. We stayed in one of the hotel’s Basic Rooms, and it is worth mentioning that these rooms have a bar seating area directly above them. Most evenings we could hear chairs being moved, people walking around and the general noise you would expect from guests using the area. While we personally managed to get used to it and it did not stop us sleeping, lighter sleepers may find it frustrating. The only time it became a real issue was one morning when we were woken at around 7am by staff cleaning the seating area above our room. The scraping of chairs and cleaning noise was loud enough to wake us, so we went to reception to explain what had happened. Unfortunately, the receptionist we spoke to (not Penny) was extremely dismissive of our concerns. Rather than acknowledging that we had been woken so early or apologising for the disturbance, she simply explained that the area was outside and needed to be cleaned. When we tried to explain why we were upset, she responded by saying, “I don’t know why you’re getting upset.” We found this response quite upsetting and felt it came across as condescending. We were not expecting anything unreasonable; we simply wanted our concerns to be acknowledged and understood. A simple apology and some understanding would have gone a long way. Instead, we left reception feeling as though our complaint was an inconvenience, and it unfortunately put a sour note on what had otherwise been a fantastic holiday. Thankfully, this was an isolated experience and the rest of the hotel team handled things much better. The hotel acted quickly and offered to move us to another room, which we appreciated. After viewing the new room, we felt it was a downgrade from our original Basic Room, as it lacked some of the features we had previously enjoyed, the bathtub was not particularly clean and the air conditioning had a damp, musty smell. We explained that we would actually prefer to return to our original room despite the occasional noise, and the hotel moved us back straight away without any complaint. Nick was especially helpful throughout this process and made what could have been a stressful situation much easier. One thing that surprised us as all-inclusive guests was that complimentary bottled water was not provided. Instead, there are water refill stations around the resort, so unless you bring a refillable bottle with you, you will need to buy bottled water from the shop. The self-service drinks were also fairly limited, with mainly fizzy drinks available and very few juice options. Although the grounds are beautiful, the resort is built on a hillside with lots of steps and inclines. Guests with limited mobility, pushchairs or elderly visitors may find getting around more challenging. The hotel is also quite remote, and our biggest piece of advice would be to hire a car. Unless you are happy spending most of your holiday on the resort, having a car makes a huge difference. We absolutely loved exploring Crete, visiting different beaches, villages and Rethymno, and we genuinely feel that having a hire car made our holiday even better. Laundry services are available, but at around €15 for a small bag of washing, we personally did not feel it represented good value. Instead, we bought washing liquid and a bucket and hand-washed essentials ourselves, which worked perfectly well for us. Wi-Fi is available throughout the resort, but we found it unreliable. Our devices disconnected regularly, and because there was very little mobile phone signal around the resort or in the rooms, we were heavily dependent on the Wi-Fi. One thing we did find concerning was seeing some tables around the pool area near the sunbeds being cleaned using water that appeared visibly dirty and brown. Hopefully this was an isolated incident, but it was not particularly reassuring from a hygiene perspective. There were also a couple of things that were not necessarily negatives but are worth mentioning. The mattress was quite firm, although we personally slept very well throughout our stay. Housekeeping also is not automatic—you need to book a cleaning slot through the hotel’s website. This was not a problem for us, but some guests may find it less convenient. Before leaving, Penny from reception took the time to sit down with us and ask about our stay. She asked about the positives but also specifically asked if there were any areas where the hotel could improve. We really appreciated this, as it showed that the hotel is willing to listen to guests and make changes to improve future stays. One final point we feel is important to mention is the hotel’s five-star rating. While we genuinely had a brilliant holiday and there are many things we loved about this resort, we personally do not feel it meets the standard of a five-star hotel. The grounds, pools and overall appearance of the resort are beautiful and there are certainly areas that feel high quality. However, in our opinion, some important aspects fall below what we would expect from a five-star experience. The food in particular feels closer to a three-star standard, with limited choice and quality that we feel needs improvement. We also feel this is worth mentioning because the tourist tax is based on the hotel’s advertised category. As the hotel is marketed as five-star, guests pay the higher tourist tax rate, but we do not feel the overall experience consistently reflects a five-star property. This is something we believe should be reviewed. If we were rating the hotel based on our overall experience, we would personally place it closer to a three-star rather than a five-star standard. This is not because we had a bad holiday—we genuinely loved our time here and would happily return—but because the expectations created by a five-star rating are very high, and we do not feel every area of the hotel reaches that level. Overall, we genuinely loved our holiday and would happily return. The beautiful grounds, the village-like feel of the resort, the fantastic pools and the majority of the staff made it a memorable experience. However, we would not personally return on an all-inclusive basis. We feel the food is the one area that lets the hotel down, and with the money saved by not choosing all-inclusive, you can enjoy some fantastic restaurants in Rethymno and the surrounding areas. We will be returning next year, and we really hope the hotel has taken on board some of the constructive feedback from guests and made some positive changes. This is a beautiful resort with so much potential, and with improvements in a few key areas it could genuinely become the five-star experience it is advertised as."