Minos Palace Hotel and Suites

"Excellent place. Best view, high standard highly recommended"

"Context We really like Agios Nikolaos and as we've stayed across the bay at Minos Beach, which is part of the same group, 5 times, including May, we thought we'd have a change of scenery. This inevitably means that I will be drawing direct comparisons between the two hotels. Summary. If you like space, an expansive food offer from different restaurants and a varied guest profile across age groups, go to Minos Beach. Location. Stunning views, but very exposed and so windy. We were unfortunate to be there at a time of horrific weather, but I know how windy it can be across the bay so it is unlikely the wind we experienced is uncommon. 40 mins walk to town is flat and easy with nice views most of the way. Getting around the grounds will be a problem for people with disabilities or those unsteady on their feet. Everywhere seems so cramped. The bar area is small with little seating. Sunbeds are very close to each other. I have no idea what the occupancy was but getting a bed could prove difficult, presumably because the guest profile is mainly younger people who want to sunbathe. Food offer. Pretty limited, with similar food on all menus. If you want to sit at a proper table for lunch, your only option is the large main restaurant which is pretty soulless when there is no-one in it. Service. Varies massively - some great who go the extra mile and some very poor. The major problems. 1/ Air conditioning I complained twice that regardless of the temperature we set it at, it never dipped below 22 degrees. They didn't respond either time. It is not uncommon for hotels to remove control from guests to save spend on energy when the weather gets colder and on the 3rd occasion, I told them I knew this. They never admitted it but after me pushing, they installed a separate control in my room that overrode the room control that was centrally restricted. Advice for management - (if I'm wrong I apologise) why not just tell the truth? Use the excuse that you are saving the planet. 2/ Continuously subjected to noise from mobile devices. While it is not directly related to the hotel, they are in a position to do something about it. Because the guests are mainly younger, they were all constantly on their phones, which wasn't a problem, except when they didn't use headphones and many didn't. Video calls being made in the restaurant, bar and on the sunbed 2 feet away. People watching videos on the bed 2 feet away. Advice for management - put signs up asking people to respect other guests and train staff to ask guests to refrain, so that other guests like myself don't get into arguments when we ask."

"First of all the positives. The staff are amazing, the cleaning staff, reception and concierge are all amazing. I was concerned due to a disability I have but they let me have late checkout and told me the day before. They also gave my fiance and I a free complimentary upgrade to a sunrise sea view room and to use the spa facilities. The swimming pool is amazing and sun loungers very comfy. The negative. The food is ridiculously expensive, breakfast was great but the problem is the menu is pretty much same for beach bar and restaurant and it is very expensive. Bottled water should be complimentary at lunch or dinner. They do give you bottles for the room. We ended up eating out every single night and going to the shop to get beer and soft drinks. The nearest shop is 10 mins walk away. The other thing which unfortunately really did have a bit impact is that the beach is not accessible. It is sharp rocks and slabs steep slopes and not always with handrail. I struggled to get to the beach, which is a shame as I love snorkelling. The hand rails need to go all way down but they don’t. It really is a big issue and many people said the same that due to the slopes and sharp edges of rocks it’s an accident waiting to happen. We ate out at KriKri but better options further down to town. We also ate out at Spinalonga restaurant which was nice and about 20 mins in a cab."