"The visit
My friend and I (both in our sixties) spent a week here in early October 2026. With the season winding down, the hotel was pleasantly quiet and the weather still lovely. I'd avoid high summer, though, both here and on Rhodes generally.
Value – 4/5 (as part of a package)
As part of a package holiday it was good value, but I'm not sure I'd pay full price for the hotel alone. It's billed as five-star, but it's less about luxury and more about a relaxed vibe, popular mainly with young couples from all over. It aims for a chilled Ibiza beach-club feel. The reality is a little more down-to-earth, and all the better for it.
Amenities – 4/5
There are three restaurants (two outdoors but covered), three bars, two outdoor pools and a small but decently equipped outdoor gym. The main pool looks Olympic-sized, so keen swimmers will be in their element. Its bar can get a bit loud, but the music is good. We preferred the second pool, which is smaller and quieter. Both were kept nice and clean. Reserving sunbeds with towels is officially banned, but, as many other reviews point out, nobody enforces it. That's another reason to skip high season.
Room – 4/5
Our standard "deluxe" room wasn't especially luxurious. It was a bit snug, especially the bathroom, and short on storage, but nicely put together, with comfy twin beds. There was no kettle or coffee maker, but there was a small fridge and a safe. The TV had few channels, no streaming and a temperamental remote. The room was cleaned and the beds made every day: efficient, though mostly focused on the floor (and not under the beds). The air conditioning worked fine for the few hours we used it.
Food and drinks – 4/5
We were on bed and breakfast, and the buffet offered good variety and quality. You help yourself to the food, and waiters bring the drinks. Service was fairly quick, though peak season may be another story. The three on-site restaurants (Asian, Greek and Italian) serve solid, well-priced food. Choose carefully and you can eat even better, if more expensively, at some local restaurants. You can also order from room service and have it brought to you by the pool. The cocktails are good, if a little pricier than outside. Try the Zombie.
Service – 4/5
The staff looked after us well, with a few minor niggles. We arrived late on our first night, at 22:30, and they kindly found us some food. It turned out to be a small, sparsely filled tortilla wrap cut in half, plus some nachos, but it was appreciated. No drink was offered, though a bottle of water was waiting in the room. Sadly, that was a first-night treat only.
Our first room was right by the big pool and its bar, and we arrived to a disco in full swing. The volume dropped after 23:00 but didn't stop, and the soundproofing is minimal, so we asked to move. The staff obligingly moved us to a quieter room the next day.
One small gripe: ask for information or a menu and you're pointed to a QR code. It's practical, but a little tiresome.
Bear in mind the staff had been working 12-hour shifts since April, so a little patience goes a long way. Given that, I think they did well.
A real plus: on our last day we could keep the room past the 11:00 check-out for €10 an hour, so we stayed put until our coach left.
Location – 3/5
Kolymbia is a cluster of big hotels around a small strip of shops, bars and restaurants. It's not the most charming of places. Nor are many of its beaches, including the one nearest the hotel, which is more pebbles than sand. For better a beach, walk 20–25 minutes to St Nicholas Beach. Alternatively, take a 10-minute taxi or drive to Tsambika Beach, on the far side of Tsambika (or Tsampika) Mountain, the rocky hill behind the hotel.
I did a three-hour hike over that hill, from the back of the small nearby beach to the back of the neighbouring Casa Cook hotel, and loved it. A few warnings, though:
- Bring a good map. I used the Komoot app, but mobile signal is patchy.
- Wear sturdy shoes.
- Keep your expectations of the path very low. It's barely a goat track, and at times not even that.
- Go for the views rather than the Panagia Tsambika Monastery at the top. It's a tiny building with a couple of icon-filled rooms, not quite what I'd pictured. You can also drive up to it.
The hotel sits at the very edge of Kolymbia. The main strip is a 25-minute walk or a 5-minute, €10 taxi ride (local taxis are pricey). Handily, there's a small supermarket two minutes away that stocks most holiday essentials.
Cheap coaches to Rhodes Town and Lindos stop outside the supermarket. They were fairly full, especially on the way back, even at the end of the season, so they may struggle in high summer. Car hire is easy and reasonably priced, and you can rent all sorts of other vehicles too, including e-scooters.
Waterproofing – 0/5
The weather was good apart from two stormy days. The first storm lasted a couple of hours. The second started in the middle of the night and carried on well into the next day. Both exposed the building's biggest flaw: water coming in.
Our room (52) was on the ground floor of a three-storey block built against the hillside, which rises about 1.5 metres above floor level at the back. In both storms, water seeped down the back wall and into the room where the wall meets the floor.
During the second storm I woke at 4:00 to find the back of the room under water. I fetched extra towels from reception, mopped up and went back to bed. At 5:30 I was up again, mopping with our last towels. By the time we'd finished breakfast, the water had crept almost to the front of the room. The hotel had run out of towels by then, so the sheets and bedspread had to stand in as mops.
The second storm was admittedly violent, but the first wasn't (at least not by local standards), so the building clearly has a problem. To be fair, the staff rose to the occasion and did their best to help. But I won't be going back to Cook's Club Kolymbia - hence the overall 2 out of 5 score."
