"I’ll start with the positives. The cocktails were delicious, and both the evening bartender and the waitress/manager who looked after us during the morning and afternoon were absolutely lovely. Our room was cleaned daily and the towels were changed regularly, so we had no complaints there. The pool area is lovely, although we appreciate that, towards the end of the season, it was looking a little tired. The hotel’s location is fantastic, just a 10 mins walk from the beautiful old town, and 25 mins from the beachfront which is great, with reasonably priced sunbeds for hire.
Unfortunately, there were also several negatives that affected our overall experience.
The breakfast was very disappointing. The hot food was cold, and there was very little choice. After trying it twice, we decided to head into town each morning instead, where we found a delicious bakery called Sourdough. On the one occasion we stayed at the hotel for lunch, the only options available were pizza or Greek salad.
We completely understand that we were staying at the very end of the season and that the hotel was almost empty and appreciate that there may be fewer guests to cater for, but that should not mean the options and overall experience are reduced to such an extent.
Although the apartment itself was good, the bathroom was extremely disappointing. It was tiny and in serious need of refurbishment. Hopefully, this is something that will be addressed over the winter, as it really let the accommodation down.
The most disappointing aspect of our stay, however, was how the hotel appeared to close around us before we had even checked out.
During casual conversation, we had already been told that we would be the last guests due to leave and that the hotel would be closing for the season. We completely understood this and had no issue with it. However, we would have expected the hotel to continue operating its usual basic services until the we had checked out.
On our final evening, the night before departure, we went to the hotel bar for a drink before heading into town, only to find everything closed and covered up, including the breakfast area. This meant that even if we had wanted breakfast on our final morning, it would not have been possible. We had paid for B&B.
We had also arranged to keep our room later on checkout day, as our transfer was not due until 9 pm, and we were genuinely grateful that this was allowed. What we did not expect was to be left with seemingly no staff at all from the evening before checkout. The instruction was to leave our key in the room when we departed.
We absolutely appreciate that the end of the season is a quieter time, that staff need to prepare for closure and that a hotel cannot operate in exactly the same way as it does during the height of summer. However, closing down the hotel while guests are still staying at the hotel is not something we have ever experienced despite holidaying in October yearly.
As mentioned, the two staff members we dealt with throughout our stay were lovely, and we have no complaints about them what so ever. In fact we really enjoyed their company and conversation. I am sure that during the height of the summer, when the hotel is fully operational, it is a great place to stay. Unfortunately, our experience towards the end of the season left us feeling disappointed, particularly with the limited food options, the condition of the bathroom and the lack of basic hotel services before we had checked out.
We understand that we were visiting at the end of the season, but still expect some service onsite until our official check out time.
Thankfully, the experience did not spoil our holiday as a whole, and we will certainly return to Crete. We just hope the hotel takes this feedback on board and ensures that future guests staying at the end of the season still receive that holiday experience."
