"Please fully read this review before booking this holiday — it may save you your money and your experience.
This will be an honest review with full details.
The hotel itself is rated as a 4-star by EasyJet, but in Greece it is classed as a 5-star hotel, so you have to pay the higher 5-star tourist tax.
We arrived and unfortunately had a rough start with a few issues and problems with the hotel complex itself. To be fair, the staff can only do so much with what they’re given. We were offered a reservation at the Summer Palace (more on that food later), and the staff genuinely did try to correct things, so respect to them for that. I actually felt sorry for some of the staff at times — they seem to be dealing with constant complaints and doing their best in difficult circumstances. I hope management higher up take feedback seriously.
One thing that frustrated me was being told that standards depend on the “budget people can afford.” I met a few families while staying there and spoke openly about prices. I booked through EasyJet and later realised we paid around 30–50% more than people booking through other companies, which was extremely frustrating.
For the money we paid, I expected proper 4/5-star standards. Just 4 weeks earlier, I had stayed somewhere cheaper with noticeably better standards across the board.
Why this is only a 3-star review
Location
One thing I genuinely cannot fault is the location and scenery.
The views around the hotel are amazing, and the beach itself is beautiful. The sea and surroundings are probably one of the strongest positives of the whole holiday.
The hotel is also around 3 miles away from the local town/village, which has some really nice bars and restaurants. We actually ended up going there a couple of times to eat and enjoy a better atmosphere away from the resort.
The Hotel Complex
One of the biggest issues with the Mitsis complex overall is that nothing is properly explained. You are not clearly told what facilities you can use, where you can go, or what is included depending on which hotel you stay at.
Family Village honestly felt like the lowest-ranked hotel in the whole complex, and at times it genuinely felt like you were looked down on for staying there. Walking around some of the other hotels gave off the impression that Family Village guests were treated differently because they had paid less.
The organisation and communication across the complex were poor. The maps provided are unclear, and staff often assumed guests already knew where they could and couldn’t go.
For example, my 14-year-old son waited around 20 minutes for a gyros at one snack bar, only to then be told he wasn’t allowed one and had to go back to “our side” of the beach. He’s 14 years old — come on.
The same thing happened to me later that day at one of the beach bars. Again, we had never properly had this explained to us beforehand, and the maps certainly didn’t help.
It’s not even the rules themselves that annoyed us most — it was the way it was communicated. A polite explanation would have gone a long way instead of speaking down to guests and making them feel uncomfortable.
Unfortunately, from our personal experience, not all staff across the wider complex were friendly or welcoming. While many staff members worked hard, there were definitely moments where we felt looked down on or spoken to in an unfriendly manner when trying to use different areas of the complex.
It sometimes gave the impression that because we were staying at Family Village, we were treated differently compared to guests staying at the higher-end sister hotels, which left a bad feeling during the holiday.
The Hotel Itself
The hotel rooms themselves also felt very dated and tired in places.
There were damp patches visible around parts of the room, and the mattresses were honestly like sleeping on bricks. To be fair to the staff, once we raised it they did provide mattress toppers, which helped improve things slightly.
The balcony furniture was also disappointing — just two old chairs, which really didn’t feel anywhere near what you would expect from a hotel marketed as a 4-star resort.
There were also maintenance issues in the room:
* Broken shower (although this was fixed quickly once reported)
* Cracked marble on the side areas
* The shower door glass was damaged and would never properly close, which honestly felt dangerous. We were worried it could potentially fall or shatter, so me and my partner ended up sleeping downstairs in case it caused damage or injury.
One positive again was the cleanliness. The cleaners were genuinely excellent throughout the stay and worked very hard every day.
However, overall the condition and presentation of the rooms is another reason why, in my opinion, this hotel feels much more like a 3-star experience than the 4/5-star standards it advertises.
Visit to Another Mitsis Sister Hotel in Kos Town
The hotel informed us that while visiting Kos Town, one of the Mitsis sister hotels there could be used by guests, so we decided to pop in and have a look.
Originally, part of our plan for future holidays was to travel around different areas of Greece, and because Mitsis is such a large hotel group, we genuinely wanted to see what their other hotels were like before booking with them again.
Straight away, the difference was noticeable.
The facilities looked much better maintained, the food selection appeared fresher, and there was a much wider and fresher variety of bread available compared to Family Village.
What frustrated us even more was that despite Family Village supposedly being sold as a 4-star resort (and classed as 5-star by the Greek government), there was no real offer or flexibility to book meals at the better sister hotels across the complex.
After seeing the standards elsewhere within the Mitsis group, it honestly made the differences between the hotels even more obvious.
The Hotel & Entertainment
The entertainment, apart from one night, was awful. Honestly, if you enjoy very basic “2-star Benidorm-style” entertainment, then maybe it’s for you — but it definitely wasn’t what we expected from a supposedly premium all-inclusive resort.
The Food
This was the biggest disappointment of the holiday.
Either many people have permanently lost their sense of taste after COVID, or the attitude is simply “it’s all-inclusive, you get what you get.” For the amount we paid, that just isn’t acceptable.
We genuinely ate out whenever possible or survived on snacks because the town was around 3 miles away.
The main things the children consistently ate during the holiday were the crepes/dessert bar and food from the beach area, which probably says a lot about the main buffet itself.
On arrival, at around 9:30pm, I asked about late-night food options and was told the only thing available was the crepe/ice cream bar.
I am Type 1 diabetic, so being offered only crepes or savoury crepes late at night really was not an ideal option for me. Even something simple like sandwiches or basic late-night food would have made a huge difference.
What made it more frustrating was learning that one of the sister hotels on the complex actually offered proper late-night food for late arrivals throughout the night.
Many hotels I’ve stayed at before have at least offered sandwiches or a small cold buffet for guests arriving late, and honestly, those small touches mean a lot after a long day of travelling.
Breakfast
We went three times.
* No fresh bread
* The scrambled eggs looked unappetising before even tasting them
* Beans were just left sitting there and never seemed to be topped up or kept fresh
Lunch
We only went once.
Evening Buffet
It honestly felt like food was being reused from earlier services.
Some examples:
* Fries were absolutely soaked in oil
* Most of the hot food was cooked in far too much oil
* The beef mince for the pasta bolognese was literally swimming in oil
* Beef lasagne smelled off — I didn’t even attempt to eat it
* Fish tasted days old
* Bread was stale with very little variety
* Lettuce in the salads was mostly brown
One evening they had grilled chicken, which was actually okay and felt like the safest option available.
The themed nights and different culture nights were also disappointing and lacked authenticity or effort. In fairness, the buffet overall lacked variety throughout the stay.
The desserts at the buffet were honestly awful as well and felt very low quality.
Overall, the buffet restaurant was a huge let-down. Giving the food a 1/5 would honestly feel generous.
À La Carte Meal at Summer Palace
We were offered an à la carte meal at the Summer Palace as part of trying to improve our experience. The service staff themselves were kind, friendly, and professional throughout the evening, so credit where it’s due.
However, the actual dining experience unfortunately didn’t live up to the expectations of what should be a higher-end restaurant within the Mitsis complex.
Drinks alone took around 35 minutes to arrive, which immediately set the tone for the evening.
To be fair, the pizza we shared at the table was actually okay and probably one of the better things we ate that evening.
What also stood out was seeing quite a few other tables leaving large amounts of food untouched. Considering the à la carte portions and desserts are not exactly huge to begin with, I think that says quite a lot about the overall food quality and guest satisfaction.
Starters
My daughters had bruschetta, and I had the arancini balls.
* The arancini balls were completely bland and lacked any real flavour
* The girls barely touched the bruschetta, which says a lot because they normally eat it everywhere we go
Main Courses
I had the lamb chops, and honestly they tasted no different from the lamb chops served at Family Village buffet — nothing special whatsoever.
My son ordered the same and said exactly the same thing.
My daughter had a chicken dish with halloumi-style cheese and ended up leaving over half of it because the presentation and texture completely put her off.
My partner ordered the pork belly, but around 90% of it was just fat, with very little actual meat.
Desserts
Me and my partner had the cannoli, which was probably the best part of the meal and was actually decent.
The children asked for brownie and ice cream, but unfortunately they had run out, so they were given a creamy dessert alternative instead — which they both left after a few bites because they didn’t enjoy it at all.
Overall, while the staff and service attitude were good, the food itself once again failed to match the standards you would expect from a supposedly premium Mitsis dining experience.
The Staff
This is honestly the main reason the review is not lower.
The Manager
Although we had a rocky start, I genuinely believe he is doing his best to keep the hotel running smoothly. A lot of the bigger issues — budgets, food quality, and overall standards — are probably completely out of his hands and decided higher up by head office.
What stood out was that he actually seemed to care. You could see he had passion for the job and genuinely tried to help where he could. That’s actually quite rare to see nowadays.
Honestly, I hope Mitsis either gives him a better management position in one of the stronger hotels or at least gives him the pay rise he deserves. He came across as a genuinely nice guy trying to make the best out of a difficult situation.
The Staff Overall
The bar staff were amazing throughout the stay. In particular, the Sunset Bar staff were brilliant — always friendly, welcoming, and hardworking.
I genuinely cannot fault the staff at all. Every member of staff we interacted with seemed to care and showed real passion in their work. If it wasn’t for them, I honestly think I would have hated the entire experience.
Positives
The beach pizza and gyros were actually decent and ended up being the best food options during our stay.
Mitsis Group Itself
I honestly think the Mitsis Group has failed its own standards with Family Village.
The hotel needs:
* Better food quality
* A bigger entertainment budget
* Better organisation across the complex
The pool area, snack bars, and buffet areas are simply too small to comfortably accommodate the number of guests staying there. During our stay it already felt overcrowded at times, so honestly, I dread to think what it must be like during the peak August holidays.
It feels like the hotel is trying to operate above the standards and capacity it can realistically provide.
I genuinely think the Mitsis Group should consider bringing in outside hospitality consultants or independent reviewers to properly assess the downfalls of Family Village and identify where standards are slipping.
Sometimes businesses become too used to their own systems and stop seeing the problems guests are actually experiencing day to day. Fresh outside opinions could honestly help improve the overall guest experience massively.
Because the frustrating thing is that the location, views, and some of the staff are genuinely very good — the hotel clearly has potential. But at the moment, it feels like the standards, investment, and organisation simply are not matching the prices being charged.
Final Summary
Go there expecting a 3-star experience and you probably won’t be too disappointed — but don’t arrive expecting genuine 5-star standards.
The easiest way to understand the difference is simply to walk around one of the sister 5-star hotels on the Mitsis complex. You quickly realise that Family Village feels a full level below them in both quality and overall experience.
That’s what made the whole stay frustrating for us. Financially, I’m fortunate enough to comfortably afford holidays in this price range, so this is not about trying to get luxury on a low budget. For the amount we paid, the standards simply should have been much better.
When you’re paying premium prices and 5-star tourist tax, you naturally expect the standards to match. Unfortunately, in our opinion, they simply didn’t.
Sadly, the overall experience has genuinely put me off using Mitsis hotels again in the future, which is disappointing because before this trip we were actually considering doing a tour around different areas of Greece using Mitsis hotels as part of that journey."
