Marina Bay Hotel

"We had booked and paid for a suite with a sea view, but upon our arrival, we were assigned another accommodation. Only after repeated insistence, after three days, were we finally able to get the room we booked. It was explained to us that the suite had been assigned to other guests because they were staying more days than us: a reason we found absolutely unacceptable, given that that room was regularly booked by us. The cleanliness and room service were also very disappointing. We found cobwebs, unmade beds, and a general lack of care. Towels were changed every three days, a frequency I consider inadequate for a hotel stay, especially considering that we deliberately chose a hotel and not a studio/apartment, precisely because we expected more complete hotel service, with greater attention to daily room cleaning, bed making, and linen changes. The breakfast situation was even worse. It is important to specify that the management of breakfast and dinner was entrusted to staff external to the hotel, but for the customer, these services are still part of the overall stay experience. The buffet was often practically empty, food was missing, and the breakfast area appeared poorly maintained and disorganized. Out of a six-day stay, we only had breakfast at the hotel on the first day. For the following five days we preferred to skip breakfast, even though it was included in the booking, due to the poor availability of food and the general state of the service. It is a real shame, because the property has potential and the location is pleasant, but the room management, cleanliness, level of service, and organization of the catering were clearly below what we expected and what we had paid for. Based on our experience, we cannot recommend it."

"We have been visiting this hotel for more than 10 years, so this review comes from a place of having genuinely loved it over many years. It used to be a real family-owned gem. The service was excellent, the location was fantastic, the simplicity worked perfectly and the prices were extremely reasonable. Mr Dennis, the former owner, used to greet us with a smile and often a complimentary round of drinks. There were no holiday operators in sight, no TUI, no Jet2 and no mass-market feel. We used to book directly via WhatsApp, and Georgia, the former manager, would ask for a small deposit and we would simply pay the balance when we arrived. On occasions, we even paid at checkout. That level of trust created a completely different experience and was a huge part of what made the place special. Sadly, this year the experience was very different. We were told that the hotel has now been taken over by the Mayor of Kefalonia, although I cannot confirm whether that is actually the case. What I can say is that, from a guest’s perspective, the hotel seems to have lost much of what made it special. To be fair, the reception area has been renovated very nicely, and there appears to have been an effort to tentatively uplift some of the rooms. However, the service levels have deteriorated considerably. Most of the staff were disappointing, with the exception of one lovely lady who is, I believe, the last remaining member of the older team. Unfortunately, I cannot remember her name. The pricing was another major disappointment. €9 for a bowl of chips is difficult to justify. A pint of Eza was €5 when we first arrived, then became €6 a few days later. We were told this was due to taxes and a change to the till system, but even the staff seemed unsure about how the pricing worked. For context, chips at Anemos, a beautiful restaurant nearby, were €6.50. There is simply no comparison in terms of the overall food and dining experience. The towels also were not replaced particularly often. Breakfast has never been the hotel’s strongest point, but it seems to have gone backwards rather than improved. Last year there was a better selection, including more fruit and nuts, which made the breakfast considerably more appealing. This year it was largely poor bacon, quiche-type dishes, eggs which were actually quite nice, some salad items, toast, fruit and yoghurt. The positioning of the toast is also bizarre from an operational point of view. In fact, on most mornings we decided to go into Skala for breakfast instead. The shop used to be open and convenient. Now you have to find someone at reception to open it, and quite often there is nobody there to do so. There is also a lovely bar at the top of the hotel which, as far as we could see, is almost never open or being used. It feels like a huge missed opportunity. And that is perhaps the biggest frustration with the whole place. This hotel could be an absolute goldmine in the right hands. The location is fantastic, Mounda Bay is beautiful and the hotel has enormous potential. It really would not take that much to turn the place around. More reasonable pricing, better service, improved food and a little more attention to the guest experience would go a very long way. It feels as though the focus has shifted towards extracting as much revenue as possible rather than creating an experience that makes people want to return. Ironically, doing the opposite would probably generate far more revenue in the long term. After more than 10 years of visiting, it is genuinely sad to say that we would now recommend staying in Skala and hiring a car to visit Mounda Bay rather than choosing Marina Bay as your base. You need a car on the island really anyway. Mounda Bay itself remains a lovely place and is absolutely worth visiting. For us, however, this was an extremely disappointing experience, particularly through TUI. After so many years of returning because of the family atmosphere, trust, simplicity and value, it is difficult to see the hotel we once loved in the same way. I sincerely hope someone takes the time to look at what made this place special in the first place. There is still an exceptional hotel here waiting to be brought back to life. Don’t visit marina bay and stay there."

"My family and I have been coming to Marina Bay for several years, sadly this will be our last visit. When we first came back in 2013, it was a family run establishment and it wasnt perfect by any stretch, but we fell in love with it. Mr Dennis would greet us with a big smile and a wave and Georgia was always on hand to help if anything was needed. Now Mr Dennis has retired and leased the Marina Bay to another company. Sadly the place has lost its soul. Staff don’t care, no one on reception, shop closed and a price hike on food and drinks. It is more expensive than the super quality in the area, for example we bought a portion of chips for our grandson, 20 minutes and 9 euros later they arrived. Yes 9 euros!! My daughter in law ordered a tuna salad, god knows how much time later and 18 euros later, a bowl of lettuce arrived with two spoonfuls of tuna mayonnaise dumped on top arrived!! Bless her she wanted to send it back, but wouldn’t because it was her first time here and didn’t want to offend anyone. We never ordered any further food and from what was being sent to other guests we made the right choice. It seems like the place is being run down on purpose, who benefits from this I wonder? We are not the only ones who have said the above. Another very nice family we met on the beautiful Mounda beach said the same and now stay in Skala and travel to the beach. My advice, come to the Marina Bay, don’t expect a lot of, don’t eat in the restaurant, be organised and shop in Skala, rent a car and enjoy the beach. I don’t like writing negative reviews, but it saddens me that such a beautiful place is being ruined, I hope that this review helps, thanks x"