Royal Marmin Bay Boutique & Art Hotel

"I had to write a review for this amazing hotel! I had 5 days here with my grown up daughter. Everything was amazing! If you can, book the pool rooms…what a treat! The gym was well kitted out and not too busy. Breakfast was what you’d expect in an amazing hotel. The staff were all very attentive and looked after our every need and more. We loved walking to plaka and elounda. There are some amazing restaurants in both places. The taxi back was €10 so good value. Defo take cash as some restaurants wouldn’t take card. We would definitely return to this fabulous place."

"We recently stayed at this hotel as part of a family holiday, in which we shared many of the same observations as others, but our main call out is that our overall impression was hindered, and this very much came down to the moment we checked out. Positives: The views are truly exceptional — among the best we’ve experienced anywhere. Every angle offers a photo-worthy moment, and the hotel’s design makes the most of its elevated position. The overall cleanliness throughout the property was also great. Rooms, public areas, and even the pool spaces were spotless and clearly well cared for (the beach could do with a little maintenance). For the most part, the staff were courteous and accommodating, and the facilities were modern and well-maintained. Early negatives — the devil is in the detail Before the checkout incident even occurred, there were multiple things that made us question the hotel’s five-star claim. These weren’t one-off niggles but consistent operational shortfalls: Restaurant & Food: The menu offered limited variety and many dishes felt repetitive. At times the kitchen and service were out of sync — items missing, delayed or not refilled — which left the restaurant feeling poorly organised rather than refined. Service consistency: While most staff were pleasant, restaurant staff often seemed one step behind demand. Basic service tasks (tables being set, drink orders taken promptly) needed chasing more often than they should. Evening entertainment: Lacked imagination and failed to elevate the evenings — nothing memorable that justified five-star expectations. These operational details added up and felt more representative of a 3–4 star experience than a true five-star stay. Checkout — what spoiled the finale Unfortunately, our lasting memory of the stay was marred by the checkout experience. Upon settling our bill (which totalled €1,135 for the two rooms alone, part of an overall spend of over £4,000 across our group for the week), the receptionist challenged us over two minibar items we categorically did not have. We were not disputing anything substantial — in fact, the difference was €9 — and we had only raised it to ensure the invoice was correct. It’s laughable to think that if we were intent on “working down” our bill, we would target €9 rather than any of the many €56 cocktail instalments we’d happily paid throughout our stay! What followed was a rude and confrontational exchange, where the receptionist loudly and repeatedly implied we were being dishonest. It was both uncomfortable and unnecessary, especially given the amount we had spent and the otherwise enjoyable stay we’d had. To make matters worse, after we shared this feedback directly when contacted post-departure, we received no response or apology, which speaks volumes about the hotel’s approach to guest relations. In summary: The hotel is beautifully positioned and the views are unforgettable. But for a property positioning itself as a five-star experience, the lack of variety, attention to detail and finally grace and professionalism at checkout was deeply disappointing. When you’ve spent over £4,000 and are accused of lying over €9, it leaves a sour note on what was already feeling like a lesser experience than anticipated upon booking. It’s a shame — as this is very much a “style over substance” situation. With a little more focus on finer details plus the service culture and guest respect, it could easily live up to its impressive exterior."

"Whilst the hotel is ascetically impressive and affords some amazing views (great if Instagram posts and impressing the folks at home is your thing) the devil is in the detail and those details are for me what separates truly 5 star hotels from 3 and 4 star which I would say is more representative of the service you receive at this hotel. Positives: Staff - are generally pleasant with one exception who I’ll come to… Service - pretty good in terms of response times, I’ll come to that too Hotel & Grounds - impressive and well maintained Negatives: Staff - whilst most are friendly and attentive the restaurant staff are poorly organised and so you find yourself chasing a response from most when you need something which is more often than it should be as such details (table being laid, drinks order taken etc) should be basics that are fulfilled Restaurant - poorly run and organised with limited choice and/or variations on the same base items.Nothing to wow you which you expect from a 5 star rated hotel/restaurant and that we have experienced from various other 5 star hotels in Rhodes etc. The food is as quite often missing or pending refilling which again demonstrates that the staff are one step behind the demand - again not really what you expect Rooms - as per other reviews the hotel is set into a steep hill and so bring climbing gear if you want to walk but otherwise the valet buggy service was good and a great view! We had a room with a private pool and wet room - nice but the wet room did not drain and so we raised and were moved to an alternative room. I’m not sure the wet rooms are the same in all rooms or whether this was an isolated issue but no attempt was made to fix the drainage so unless you’re happy padding around in water and for the water to overflow into the room, something to consider. We ended up with a shower over a large bath which was much better. One bottle of water for your entire stay and coffee pods charged when used is just a bit cheap for me unlike the cocktails which are around €15 each. Didn’t use minibar as similarly expensive to most hotels. However, what prompted the 3 star rating as opposed to 4 star was the really poor service and attitude we experienced on checking out. We were presented with our itemised bill for the two rooms we had booked which included two minibar items despite not using this. When raised we were practically accused of lying by the female receptionist who declared in a theatrical way as “strange that the items are on the invoice but you have not used the minibar” I had to reiterate that neither room had accessed the minibars in the rooms and that clearly this was a mistake only to be met with the same statement from the same receptionist. Ultimately she agreed reluctantly to delete the €9 with or items (yes €9!) but it’s almost as if we’d stolen it from her own purse. To be honest had we been so minded we might have haggled over some of the other items included in our €1135 invoice for our 8 night stay but merely pointed out an error on their part and did not expect such an aggressive response. Bear in mind too that we left €20 tips to each of the room maids and drivers so we are not looking to scam anyone and we’d be pretty rubbish at it if it were for a €9 gain! Anyway, as the saying goes “you pays your money and you takes your choice” and we will not be returning as this fell some way short of what could reasonably be expected and the finale just compounded matters."