Aulus Chania by Domes Resorts

"Where to start. I’ll start with the positives and there aren’t many. Hotel itself is beautiful and could be an amazing place. Tom at the pool bar was exceptional and is wasted in this hotel. I felt so sorry for him! Location- quite a fair bit away from chania €50 each way. We weren’t too fussed about this as we were there to visit our wedding venue close by.! There was barely enough staff, one person serving at the bar and having to queue, plastic cups left around the pool and no one around, I didn’t once see a cleaner in the whole trip. Our room 102 overlooked the sea and was beautiful and spacious but the bathroom door didn’t even shut and there was mould all over the floor and shower area with an awful smell. The chairs on the balcony were stained and this was the same for most seating and sun beds around the hotel. Our mini bar was never restocked without asking and the cleaning was basic. The pool toilet one morning had no toilet roll for over 2 hours, I looked for staff to tell and found a life guard who told me to go to reception. There was electrical wires exposed on the terrace area and the seating didn’t even have cushions to sit on, the ones that did were stained and dirty. We had entertainment (a violinist) on one evening. The service was poor in the al la carte, along with the food. We were told what was on the menu, not even given a menu, we walked out in the end. The snack bar (if you can call it that) by the pool bar had luncheon meat baguettes that i wouldn’t even feed to my child and plain salad with no meat. After arriving between meal times this was all we were offered. The restaurant food again, poor choice and always cold, it absolutely was not 5* dining and we came away hungry most meal times. I made an email complaint and had no response so went and found someone. My complaint was given to the manager who offered a 2 day refund, we were then asked to leave. We were only there for 4 nights and I ended up having a full blown argument with the manager in the reception area which brought me to tears. I did get an apology the next morning and asked to stay for the final night and offered a voucher to go to a nearby restaurant. I was told not to discuss my views with other guests but everyone felt the same and were speaking to each other about how awful the whole experience had been. I felt so uncomfortable and unwelcome for pointing out the fact this hotel was not fit to be open and as a full paying guest looking for a relaxing holiday it was tarnished and stressful with negativity from the very start! Sadly I would not recommend this hotel and I will not return."

"Having stayed at the hotel from 13th May for 9 nights, we both left very disappointed. This hotel is sold as a premium All Inclusive, but it simply isn’t. FOOD The food in the main restaurant was, at best, awful. There was no effort to create any theme, and the food was cold no matter what time you went in. On numerous occasions they ran out of main dishes. Overall below basic standard, and a very poor experience. As for the À la carte, the menu choice was extremely limited. With only one À la carte restaurant, you were given different menus on different days. The setting was lovely, but service was again slow. Waiting over an hour for a waiter to take your order is never acceptable. The Greek option was ok but very limited choices. The Asian/Peruvian menu — all I can say is that if anyone can tell me what exactly was Asian or Peruvian about it, you’re a better man than me. Food was poor, cold, and on some nights all I really ate was bread and grated carrots. I’ve been going to All Inclusive hotels for the last 10 years, and this rates as some of the worst food I’ve experienced. OUR ROOM We had room 2102 overlooking the gardens, and we were really happy with the location. However, nothing has been refurbished. The bathroom hadn’t been updated at all. There was mould on the tiles in the shower area, the shower was loose, and water leaked onto the floor. These issues were reported — some were eventually resolved, but it took over a week. A premium All Inclusive should fix issues on the day they’re reported. The small seating area had a couple of chairs, but one of the cushions was stained and clearly hadn’t been cleaned. This was finally sorted on day 7 — SEVEN days into our stay. Premium? BAR SERVICE Bar service across the hotel was very hit and miss. The pool bar opens at 10am, and I have to say Thomas and Yana were absolutely excellent. However, during our stay the bar ran out of beer, Baileys, rum, and ingredients for several cocktails. Out of 9 days, at least 5 days they didn’t have what was advertised. Pepsi Max was available in cans on 4 days; the rest of the time you were given the smallest glass imaginable with ice and Pepsi from a 2‑litre bottle. With only one bar open, Thomas needed more support. There was no pool service. Drinks should be available, and the bar should be restocked when it closes at 6pm. The upstairs bar was in a lovely location and opened at 6pm, but it needs to open earlier to support the pool bar. The resort is fairly big, and having only one bar open at a time is not enough. For either bar to run out of drinks on multiple occasions is unacceptable. If you advertise something as included, it should be available. To be clear, the staff at both bars were friendly and did the best they could with what they had. POOLS Only one swimming pool was open during our stay, which I did enjoy — the water was clean (cold, mind). Sunbeds were stained, old and uncomfortable, but they were replaced on day 8. Another pool opened on day 8 but had no bar or amenities. A pool with no bar at a premium All Inclusive tells you everything you need to know. NO THOUGHT Room service wasn’t good enough. Empty glasses were left, the mini bar wasn’t restocked, and coffee pods weren’t replaced until I complained. These are basics I’ve never had to complain about before. I’m sorry to say this, but this is a very honest review of the hotel. It was not ready, and in many areas it was very poor. Speaking to other guests, most had the same experience. Please read the honest reviews from genuine people who paid good money to stay at this hotel. Travel agents are shockingly promoting this hotel by showing the beautiful views, not the actual reality. Using suppy issues as a reason aint good enough. I appreciate teething probles over couple days however my experiences were that problems were never resolved. Hotel was more interested in getting travel agents in showing them what they wanted promoting. Didn't get the basics right"

"Our recent stay at this hotel was a mixture of positive experiences but several areas need immediate improvement given its advertised 5-star rating. To begin on a positive note, the hotel itself is beautifully designed, with superb views and an excellent overall layout. The setting and atmosphere are undoubtedly among the hotel’s strongest features, creating a relaxing environment for guests. Our check-in experience was satisfactory, with all three of our booked rooms ready upon arrival. However, it was extremely disappointing to discover that one of the rooms—a suite with a private pool that had been specifically booked—was unavailable due to what we were told was a computer glitch. Despite frequent stock shortages at the bars, including bottled beer on one day and numerous cocktail ingredients throughout the stay, Tom at the pool bar deserves special recognition. He remained consistently friendly, approachable, and apologetic regarding the unavailable items. His positive attitude and excellent customer service made a huge difference to our holiday experience, and he is a real credit to the hotel. The buffet restaurant offered a reasonable breakfast selection, although we frequently had to ask for filter coffee and cups were rarely available at the coffee machines. Lunch and dinner options were repetitive, and many dishes were often served cold. In the evenings there were ongoing long queues at the rooftop bar, which was the only evening bar available. Pool bar snacks were very limited, generally consisting of sandwiches and basic salad pots. The salads lacked variety and additional ingredients. Overall, this did not meet our expectations of an ultra all-inclusive offering. The à la carte restaurant was another disappointment. When booking the holiday, we were under the impression that there would be three different restaurant options available daily. In reality, there was only one small restaurant that alternated between Asian and Meze evenings, with Italian cuisine available at lunchtime. The biggest disappointment came on our second day when we attempted to book dinner reservations. As a party of six adults, we were informed that no tables were available for any of the evenings during our stay. Following a complaint, we were eventually able to secure two evening meals and one lunch reservation, but overall the food quality was average and fell well short of expectations for a luxury hotel. A major concern throughout the stay was the repeated activation of the fire alarm. On numerous occasions, alarms sounded during the early hours of the morning and late at night. No explanation or follow-up communication was provided by management, which was both frustrating and concerning. Another noticeable issue was the shortage of sunbeds around the only pool area available to us. Similarly, the terrace bar could benefit from additional seating. In the evenings, there did not appear to be enough places for guests to sit comfortably while enjoying the entertainment and drinks, limiting what could otherwise have been a very enjoyable part of the hotel experience. I would particularly like to commend Yiannis from the Guest Relations team. He was exceptional throughout our stay—always visible around the hotel, regularly checking in with guests, and genuinely ensuring people were enjoying their holiday. His professionalism, attentiveness, and enthusiasm were outstanding, and he is a true asset to the hotel. Housekeeping was another area that fell below 5-star standards. There was little attention to detail, with used glasses often left in rooms, coffee pods and minibar items not being replenished, and only one bottle opener available across the three rooms booked by our family. Overall, we enjoyed our time together as a family in Crete, and many members of staff worked extremely hard throughout our stay. However, despite the hotel’s beautiful setting and some excellent employees, the overall experience fell significantly short of what we would expect from a genuine 5-star property."