Bars and pool bar staff were fantastic,very friendly service and joined in the experience of a fun time.

We tended to have a drink in the Veranda bar most evenings after dinner, and Christina was a joy.

but they are great quality and well worth the money (and less expensive than at a nearby bar and restaurant).

Very good location close to all the bars and restaurants on the strip.

Outside the hotel there are many bars and restaurants right on the doorstep.

The bar by the pool made a variety of amazing cocktails and we had lunch twice as well which was tasty.

A few nice restaurants locally, all within walking distance a couple of bars also, some with live music some that show sports.

Theres a few restaurants and bars just outside the hotel , no need for walking far or if you want to go to Gouves main town its €7 in a taxi or if you want more action Hersonnisis is a busy spot and €17 in a taxi.

The pools, bar and grounds were pretty, and with the beach 20m away over the road, it was a really nice setting.

Oh yeah and the entertainment in the hotel is boring best just going out to one of the cocktail bars the atmosphere is so much better.

Rooms are immaculately cleaned every day, Veranda and Stone Bar staff are very friendly and attentive and the food here is great.

Thankyou to all the staff who made our stay one to remember we loved it here the only disappointment for me was the Monday night rnb night being cancelled due to the dj being a no show and not being able to pay for drinks at the bar there and then

Numerous excellent bars and restaurants nearby many overlooking the beach. Lunches by the pool were very nice (one between two was more than enough!)

but would recommend going out of the hotel a few nights for a change of scene, and there are some very nice bars and restaurants within a short walk.

The men and women at the restaurant, at the bar and the great staff at the Spa Bathhouse: your smiles and genuine kindness brightened up our days.

The The Island Hotel is near these landmarks: Aquaworld Aquarium & Reptile Rescue Centre, Stalis Beach, Heraklion Archaeological Museum, Milatos Cave, Poseidon Diving Club, Ligaria Beach, Star Beach, Zervas Beach, Castello del Molo (Koules), Archaeological Museum of Archanes, Minoan Peak Sanctuary, Kretasurf - Water Sports Crete, Cave Of Zeus, Milatos Beach, Agia Pelagia Beach, Althaea, The Whisky Bar, Acqua Plus Water Park, Crete Safari, Winery Stilianou, The Natural History Museum of Crete, Panagia Beach, Psaromoura Beach, Petra Beach, Surf in Crete, Lychnostatis Open Air Museum, Amarillis Stable, Lyrarakis Winery, Mononaftis Beach, Gournes Beach, Labyrinth Theme Park, Slainte Irish Bar, Cathedral of St. Minas, Happy Train Sissi, Winery Sinadinakis, Ancient Apollonia, Panagias Keras Church, Rebekka store, Starbeach Bungy Jump, Themis Beach Bar, Cretan Thematic Park, Historical Museum of Crete, Sissi Mini Golf, ELA Quad Safari, Roman Archaeological Remains, Supermarket Dictamos, Koronekes, Sailingtrips Zuiderzee, Agios Titos Church, Peggy Gordon's Irish Bar, Quad Safari Peninsula, Irish House, Morosini Fountain (Lion's Fountain), Josef, Stay Wet Diving Center, Cycling Creta, Cretan Tennis Academy, Old Venetian Harbor of Heraklion, Idols Art, Blue Water Club RENT A BOAT, Fantasia Yachting, Evexia Spa, I Archana, Douloufakis Winery, Luxurious Furs, Horse Riding, Stefanos Bar, Domaine Paterianakis, Excursion Expert Agia Pelagia, Buggy Safari Motoxperience, Diver's Club Crete, HayTours, Loggia, Kera Bar, Seahorse Rent a Boat, Maria Sanoudaki Ceramic - Art Studio, Cretan Flavor, Kera Kardiotissa Monastery, Jewel Art, Katharo Plataeu, Whisper Music Cocktail Bar, Sunset Bar, Arion Stables, Passion, MYSTIC CRETAN ROAD TRIP, Crete Boats, Scalarea Estate (Boutari Winery Crete), Cretan Family, Hersonissos Cruises, Church and the Museum of St. Aikaterini, Ekklisia Analipsi, Heraklion Diving Center, Nemo Cafe Bar, Argo Rent Boats Yachts & Watersports, Solo  Brewery, Nail me up, The Crete Golf Club, Discovery Dive Centre, Vasiliki Agios Markos Municipal Art Gallery, HOTEL KASTRO, Aura Fashion Shop, Church of Agios Mathaios Sinaites, Paliokastro, Mystic Cretan Road Trip, Hatzis Leather, Palm Beach Club Restaurant, Vassiliki's Votanopoleio (Botanical Store), Scubakreta, AQUADIVE unique scuba experience, New York Beach Club Hersonissos, Star Beach, Diamantakis Winery, Y.O.L.O.

The pool bar is a good spot for lunch and after dinner drinks,

The bar men do an amazing job bringing you your drinks/food to you on your sunbed.

Yes the pools are nice and the beach and views over the sea were good. Downside is:
1.)

The hotel is unusual composition of scattered small buildings grouped around a pool, right in the beach, simplistic naturalistic design and incredibly comfortable and clean.

The beach is sandy (not pebbles) and is probably one of the best I've been to.

The breakfast was just right, enough selection of food and the view was stunning every morning looking out onto the beach.

Good access to the beach directly over the road with free loungers for hotel guests.

Lovely beach across the road with free sun beds .. on site shop good value for money .

The 3 large pools serving different needs are surrounded by Bali beds and umbrellas a plenty and with the beach as a back drop you can’t ask for anything more.

Wouldn’t recommend going to The Island Restaurant up the road on the beach front either staff was disgusting in there and the food was gross.

The dining area is right beside the beach, eating dinner while the sun sets was gorgeous.

The convenient door to the beach meant you could be on the beach in minutes

The views from the hotel restaurant to the beach are breathtaking!

Beautiful hotel, excellent beachfront location with free sun beds on own beach.

Hotel is very clean, 3 lovely pools, nice size gym and fantastic location right opposite a pleasant sandy beach.

The private beach just across the road from the hotel is a lovely bonus.

The hotel and rooms are spotlessly clean, the staff are incredibly friendly and helpful, and best of all it’s a few steps across a quiet road to a gorgeous beach.

Pros / +: Lots of food choice at the hotel, staff are excellent (especially Eni at the main pool), love the DJ beets around the pool on some days, great small private beach, great location €30 taxi to airport.

It’s been so relaxing, we loved the day beds, chilling by the pool and heading to the beach in 1 min to have a dip.

We had B&B package, and the breakfasts were excellent.

The food was delicious, the staff were super friendly, and I loved every minute of our time there.

but the breakfasts and the lunches we had were a delight.

but there’s always a choice even after breakfast time.

however, after the Island Hotel's buffet I am completely converted - the food was amazing and different every day; the breakfasts were rich and with a wide variety of choice.

There is a restaurnt open in between morning and evening buffets, (Stone restaurant).

The staff were friendly every morning walking to breakfast and arriving.

Breakfast was fine, plenty of choice for everybody and cooked fresh.

Other than that, the buffet food was nice (not more than that) and the Wi-Fi was no good, disconnecting half of the time.

Breakfast and lunch options were fabulous and plenty to choose from.

Breakfast was good with plenty of choice.

When we booked, we booked as bed and breakfast as we are vegan and unsure how the hotel catered for it.

We had breakfast and dinner included with our room.

We stayed on a half board basis and were especially impressed with the buffet breakfast which had everything you could imagine.

* Buffet style breakfast and dinner in the hotel, good choice

We ate in the buffet  the food was delicious.

The breakfast was outstanding with lots of choice and nice view across towards  the sea.

Breakfast also great, and the fresh cook pastries, pancakes and croissants were lovely.

but it’s of an okay standard, 

Activities - very very poor, most of the classes etc get cancelled or no instructor turns up, charge to use the sauna (that’s if you can get in, needs pre booking months in advance, ha ha)

Pool area - good, no concerns around this.

Little things maybe to improve was poor wi-fi throughout hotel .. 
And water not always hot in an evening ..

- Peaceful hotel without children 
- Good selection of English TV channels 

Con’s
- poor WiFi signal
- Don’t expect to get a sunbed by the pool unless you leave your towel on the bed before 8am.

We researched the reviews before we booked and didn't expect such a poor service.

She then continued to PHYSICALLY kick the poor animal out the restaurant.

One poor chap who had had recent knee surgery got into the pool

The air conditioning was pretty poor - we had to leave it on at all times so that when we returned in the evening the room was cool.

The dinner itself was poor, not a lot of choice with some food dripping in oil and others undercooked.

We also thought the entertainment was generally poor and there was no atmosphere in the evenings.

Finally the evening entertainment (in October ) was poor.

The waiter service around the pool during the entertainment is slow, and the guy mixing the cocktails does a poor job - a bit amateurish, especially when served in a plastic cup!

some negatives the room had poor air con we did report it and it did improve slightly.

Another poor thing was, that the hotel is located in the entry lane of the airport, so we experienced that there are many planes which fly to kreta.

but some of these failed to meet expectations as well, for example, Yorkshire Pudding was served with poor quality roast pork as a substitute for beef.

Sometimes the entertainment was outside and other times in the bar due to the poor weather when we were there (but it was almost at the end of their season).

but avoided the largest pool because the resident DJ selection of music was poor.

The surrounding area was very poor with little to offer, so very disappointed and a good reason why I would not return to this lovely hotel.

The hotel chefs and their team were very efficient in keeping the food replenished and hot.

apart from that side of it the hotel Is fab and the food  was excellent every day .

Stone Restaurant - 
Great for drinks and snacks during the day.

The staff, the services and the food - superlative.

Gouves itself is nice, lots of little restaurants along the front.

We ventured outside every evening to try all the different restaurants.

The location was pretty good - lots of small bars and restaurants from 1 to 20 mins walk away.

Great hotel for relaxing ,close to airport .Hotel & grounds are kept immaculate .. 
food was of a good standard with good service .

we payed the hotel extra to move up to half board and the food was beautiful with many options every evening.

There is a beautiful Greek Orthodox chapel,  a range of places to eat and relax and a mini market with prices comparable to the those on the adjoining strip.

We had asked about a voucher for the restaurant

The Island Hotel

poor

restaurant

beach

it was an all inclusive so plenty of good food particularly the fish to thoroughly enjoy.

We have recently returned from our stay from 8th to 15th October in a garden room, all inclusive.

We had a late flight home & were able to have a late (6pm) check out for €50 & made full use of the all inclusive right up to when we left at 8pm.

We went all inclusive, and you get a mixture of using the restaurants and buffet.

The Food 
We were ‘All inclusive plus’ with our tour operator and could honestly not fault the food.

The all inclusive wine was very drinkable and we also had a few paid for bottles which we purchased at half price.

We stayed at the Knossos Royal for a week, paying for bed and breakfast rather than all-inclusive.

We opted for the bed and breakfast option as we wanted to explore the different restaurants at the resort and within the surrounding area without being restricted to the all inclusive buffet every day.

Every member of staff has been fantastic, and please try and tip them as with all-inclusive and not paying as such, the staff really do appreciate the tips and thoroughly deserve them.

Food - I've been on quite a few all inclusive holidays

It was also nice to have international drinks and lots of cocktails included in the all-inclusive deal which were served by the loveliest of bar staff.

The all inclusive lunch was very repetitive.

Food is great - and the all inclusive is really generous.

The AI option was great, food of a good standard and drinks were decent with an option to upgrade to premium drinks

Go VIP All Inclusive so worth it 

There is nothing not to like about Knossos Royal its beautiful 

We really enjoyed a relaxing and sunny week and our daughter loved it

The only thing we would comment on is please give some extra thought to the entertainment on an evening they do try at the amphitheatre

They did give us VIP breakfast for 3 days, free drinks on one dinner day  and an all inclusive lunch.

Being all inclusive for 7 nights we had included lunch at the beach bar one day and dinner at the 3 al la carte restaurants all booked easily and with gorgeous food.

but everyone really enjoyed the yacht and the crew was absolutely great and the food they prepared was really delicious.

The restaurants are excellent, the buffet restaurant offers something for every taste and has a huge selection of freshly prepared dishes.

The food was plentiful, varied and enjoyable.

Food was plentiful and changed theme every night.

Food at the main restaurant was very fresh & plentiful … most tables have lovely views.

We were always welcomed with a lot of cordiality and the breakfast was a perfect start to the day.

The food was very nice in the evenings at the buffet where we really enjoyed the themed nights,

Out of the other restaurants, the Italian was our favourite, beautiful setting and delicious food.

The restaurants are wonderful, and you won’t be disappointed with the buffet either!

We enjoyed ala carte restaurant: it’s a great opportunity to taste delicious local cuisine.

Pleasant renovated hotel, friendly staff, beach next to the hotel, good service, delicious dinners and live music every evening.

The breakfast was brilliant, plenty of choice!

Artemis, the Greek restaurant was epic, the food was delicious,

The service is exceptional, the Hotel is immaculate and the food and drink are plentiful.

We were always able to get sun loungers and very few were ‘reserved’ before breakfast.

The main restaurant had a variety of dishes available at breakfast and dinner sittings.

I was assured that there would be a good range of gluten free meal options in all the restaurants and that was me experience during the holiday.

we definitely would recommend the hotel for family vacation.

Thank you very much for that, you made our holiday easy.

Thank you for making our first family trip to the Greek islands a wonderful and memorable holiday

Overall  l would recommend this hotel with all its superb settings and surroundings, superb service and warm welcome and offering a  very high standard of holiday

The hotel has everything you need for a wonderful, relaxing holiday.

I will continue to travel to the Greek islands for my holidays

Would highly recommend the Knossos Royal as a conference venue, or just for a holiday.

Was away with my daughter for my 40th birthday for a relaxing holiday and that's exactly what we got.

Overall a lovely holiday and would highly recommend this hotel.

We have just returned from a very relaxing 7 night break & would highly recommend this hotel to anyone thinking of visiting Crete.

but a few standout that made our holiday.

My wife and I felt pleased to have chosen this hotel for a 10 day holiday.

I really don’t know where to start to be honest, as the whole holiday was just incredible.

We didn't go on any excursions so can't comment.but if you're looking for a beach and pool holiday with great food this ticks all the boxes

For those of you who like to work out on holiday, be warned that the gym whilst large and has ample machines, has no air con.

Break fast was lovely loads of choice as was lunch by the pool bar.

SERVICE

4/5

The hotel were helpful when we contacted them via email in the weeks before our holiday.

The evening was disappointing as the service was poor, wine was served in a plastic beaker to us whilst the next table received theirs is glass wine glasses, we didn't return  again in the evenings.

though was the lunchtime snack restaurant, having had many all-inclusive holidays this lunchtime food was quite poor.

The food was poor and the service slow (especially in the main buffet).

The food was very poor my husband couldn't find anything he liked other than pizza chips and spaghetti bologanaise.

On the negative side the room we stayed in was dated, service at the pool bar was very poor, and unless you got up at some unearthly hour you had no chance of getting a sunbed thanks to the towel dropping 'this is my sunbed brigade',

We have waited over 2 years for this holiday and am aware we are very lucky to be here and have made it through covid where as some poor souls haven’t.

Given that the hotel is meant to be a 5 star hotel (in my opinion it's 4 star), the entertainment on offer in the evenings was poor.

Their attitude is  appalling,  very poor service and their customer service is not good.

Entertainment -  Overall poor and non existent.

Unfortunately we seemed to be there a week too early as the beach bar didn’t open until the day we were leaving, and generally the entertainment was poor in the evenings.

FOOD & DRINK
Life is about opinions and in our opinion the food was very very poor.

summing up its a nice Hotel let down by its poor and often confusing drinks package.

but all inclusive drinks a big let down, local beer not drinkable (and I will drink most beers) and wine in some bars very poor, you could according to signs upgrade each drink for 1.50 euros, however when I tried to upgrade to a bottled beer I was asked for 4 euros??

Very well explained and guided on what each treatment we could have by the wellness centre’s Nuranda who was brilliant in helping and advising us on what was on offer , to the absolutely top quality therapist Anna who was was amazing , I swear that girl has magic in her hands !!

Absolutely fantastic hotel and entertainment.

We had a great time making our own entertainment

We also experienced various good musicians entertaining at the bar in the evenings.

The entertainment team put a lot of effort in

I only really met a couple of them for dance classes, which are held at 4.45 a few times during  the week in the amphitheatre.

The evening entertainment was varied, so something for everybody young and old.

The entertainment during the day was ok at the main pool,

We didn’t go to the entertainment as it was I.

Entertainment is on every evening from full shows to musicians in the bar.

There is also a children’s disco in the evening.

One of the absolute highlights of our stay at Aldemar Knossos Royal Resort was the Kids Disco!

but the staff were all fabulous 😍 special mention to Pantelis (F & B Manager) and Danny (animation team) What lovely guys and the wine tasting you arranged was one of the highlights of our holiday.

I would particularly like to give a shout out to the entertainment staff who were fantastic!

Also my children enjoyed the entertainment team of the hotel and the incredible dips in the pools and in the sea.

Lovely little areas to enjoy quiet drinks or join in entertainment in the main bar.

We spend a week on this resort, the animation crew was great and the kids club is really great, we aspected more variety of food and more Greek food, the room was big and in a very good location , near the private pool.at least we had a good vacation .

Aldemar Knossos Royal

holiday trip

all-inclusive

show

We had booked breakfast and evening meal for our duration

The hotel is clean, there are plenty of sun loungers & there are sufficient choices of food at breakfast & dinner.

but are immaculately clean .The food was excellent as shown by the heaped plates and there was a big choice for breakfast and dinner.

However, I would have melon, tomatoes and cheese for breakfast which was fine for me.

The breakfast was flat cold and inedible and the evening meal was of the same standard.

Breakfast was ok, some items changed on a daily basis.

Rooms are clean- cozy, the pool is nice and good breakfast.

We only had breakfast once and this was ok (the children enjoyed a lie in), we ate in a few times at night and the food was good, even my little fussy eater founs something to eat which was a bonus.

Breakfast and dinner at the hotel was lovely with plenty of choice and even our picky kids managed to find something they liked.

In addition, there was also minimal choices of Greek cuisine ( this is one of the whole reasons we like to visit Greece so often-because of the delicious food!).

The 'Local Corner', providing Cretan dips, tapenades, feta in olive oil etc - we found to be delicious.

There was also cereal, pancakes, croissants, fruit and yoghurt.

Breakfast was nice with a international choice.

Breakfast & evening meals are again of a good standard with lots of choice.

They did have some apples and oranges and some tined peaches out.

The buffet was also incredible with plenty of fresh salads and fruits.

On our arrival late in the night we were greeted by a man standing at the front door smoking cigarette and the smell of smoke in the hotel voyeur was horrendous.

The balcony was also not fit for purpose, the balcony was not much wider than the table and chairs so to sit on the balcony we had to place the table in front of the door and push left or right to be able to sit on the chairs, good job there was only two of us!!

The beds in the room were also rock hard and the door on my shower cubical was literally almost hanging off!

The doors are also very hard to open the locks don’t work like at home which is fine

I have to question whether the new management are in the least bit interested in the guests and their opinion, in recent visits we would receive a questionnaire under the door the day before leaving, this does not happen, If they were interested they would ask.

Theres a do not disturb sign that you can put on your door if you do not want the cleaners to come in, we opted not to have our rooms cleaned every day

but the balcony doors had to be kept shut .Unfortunately the doors had no handles on the outside so both of you you couldn't sit outside with the air con on inside.

but comfy, plenty of extra blankets if you needed them and loads of pillows, we had a wet room, so yes the floor was wet after a shower, but put the bath mat outside the door to dry your feet!

Only issue with room  toilet door jammed so I had to go at 5am to use restaurant  facilities and then take son down at 7am (Mike the night man didn't think it would go down well if he tried to open door with brut force!).

It is ridiculously small (3ft x 9ft) being no bigger than a walk-in wardrobe with a silly sliding door that had to be open when using the basin due to the lack of room.

The aircon switches off if you open the balcony door.

however the glass doors and shutters kept most the noise out.

Unfortunately, the ventilation in the bathroom was constructed incorrectly, allowing us to hear all the noises from next door's bathroom and, I presume, vice versa!

There is a small door within the sliding gate, go through and follow the road to the bottom where you will reach the main beach road.

The patio doors were really narrow leading to the tiny balcony.

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