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.

Swimming pools had enough sun beds and bali beds for everyone, and very clean.

Very clean, two showers meant we could both sort ourselves out quickly.

The hotel is spotlessly clean in all areas.

It was immaculately clean and well maintained throughout the large area.

The rooms were very clean and the cleaners exchanged towels and did a very good job of cleaning everyday.

but it had everything you needed and was clean.

but clean and of a good standard for Greece, although tv’s done really work, not that you go away to watch tv but we had some storms in august.

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

Hotel is immaculate with beds changed everyday, rooms cleaned and all the hotel grounds being cleaned on a daily basis.

Our room is large, clean and airy even with the third bed in use.

but perfectly fine and clean 
- No alternative milk at breakfast, I cannot drink dairy so missed my morning coffee and I think all hotels these days should have at least 1 milk alternative on offer as it’s very easy to solve
- Only 2 plugs in the room and one wasn’t working, so maybe worth bringing an extension lead 
- The area is quite quiet around the hotel, not much to do.

3 clean pools with plenty of sunbeds, we loved the Bali beds at the main pool.

Absolutely beautiful place, and absolutely spotless!!

Staff were very friendly and our room was cleaned to a high standard as were all areas of the hotel.

The site is large with beautiful gardens and always so clean.

Pool areas were great - very clean, well maintained.

The sunbeds around the main pool, in ankle deep water, are just luxury.

The staff are just as helpful as they can possibly be; from the Reception staff to the pool cleaner and every other member of waiting and domestic staff, they all do whatever they can to make your holiday as good as can be.

..lots of sun loungers both on the beach and by the pool.

Pools
A Great choice of pools and plenty of sunbeds

The other pool as I stated was the relaxing pool, you could hear a pin drop, it was beautiful.

Plenty of pool areas to pick from, no problem getting a lounger or a bed as there are plenty dotted about.

We had a swim up room next to the relaxing pool which was perfect.

The hotel looks nice, has a few pools, and the overall experience in it was OK. 

That said, in the classic/standard rooms there is NO AIR CONDITIONING.

Hotel is fabulous with 3 pools with different themes depending on how you felt.

Lunch served at the restaurant by the pool was also really delicious and good value.

Just a lot of twist and turns to get to the main pool.

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.

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

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

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

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

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.

The staff, the services and the food - superlative.

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

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

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.

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

We had a sea-view room, which did have a good view,

We had a room with the infinity pool, and while nice, I would pick a different room next time.

The room was tastefully decorated and well appointed.

We had amazing surprise when we arrived: I mentioned in an email that we recently got engaged and when we arrived, there were presents in our room and we had amazing surprise waiting for us.

Would maybe upgrade if was to stay again for a bigger room with a view,

but would definitely upgrade to a better room, but feel with a bit more searching I would find a better hotel

but it is a "central AC" that has absolutely NO IMPACT on the room temperature.

Our room was cleaned every day and sweet treats placed on our pillows at night.

Rooms were nice - we had a balcony overlooking the pool with the sea to the left - beautiful view.

We were happy with our room and the hotel facilities generally.

Another fantastic holiday, paid for a sea view room and we werent disappointed.

We had breakfast and dinner included with our room.

Our only criticism would be that its more of a resort than a hotel and our room was number 973 .

The room was lovely and modern with a large comfy double bed,

Waiters and waitress's very efficient throughout our stay.

Especially if Manos was serving, with his cheeky smile!

.please as a tourist who pays a lot of money to get there sort out the reception staff

The reservation staff are very helpful and will accommodate where they can.

The staff are amazing, super professional, smiley and attentive.They will always take the extra step to make your stay exceptional.

but this seems to have been addressed quite quickly by the hotel staff.

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

The staff LIED TO US saying that this is how the AC works in the entire hotel (=not actually cooling).

Every single member of staff so friendly and polite and cant do enough for you.

All the staff were very friendly and couldn't have been more helpful during the whole stay.

There is a gym on the complex which has everything you need to do a workout and also there is a lovely fitness instructor who comes several days a week to do yoga, pilates and full body work outs etc, she is great and very knowledgeable.

Every member of staff is courteous and professional.

Good:
Friendly front of house staff
Good amenities

Bad:
Management
Dealing with issues

We had an okay stay.

Stayed here with my boyfriend last week, the staff was awful, the cleaners and one member of staff from the kitchen was the nicest staff members there.

On arrival there was a nice welcome gift waiting for us which highlights the way guests are treated by the lovely staff.

(we paid £1200 for 6 nights including dinner and breakfast)

The staff were charming and welcoming throughout.

The Island Hotel

poor

staff

restaurant

room

pool

cleanliness

beach

Also the dining areas are so in need of a very deep clean and a quick wipe over of a table is not cleaning it.

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

We would recommend this hotel to anybody, pool area great and very clean.

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

We had a fantastic stay.Excellent staff great service a job well done.rooms clean and tidy a small walk to the strip and beach.

The hotel is reasonably priced, always clean & in our view the food has a variety to suit most tastes.

As for the hotel in general it’s staff work extremely hard to provide a clean and comfortable environment.

Can recommend the one at the Windmill Apartments (€7 for two loungers) and the one at the Sofi Apartments (€8 for two loungers), both with soft sand and clean, calm sea.

The young girls on reception were so cheery and welcoming, especially Anna and whoops forgotten her name (sorry, ended with Tina)   long name, red in her hair and very amenable.

We stayed at the Anastasia Hotel for 9 days in September and reading previous reviews were not expecting too much. First the pros:  hotel was clean (although public loos left a lot to be desired!)

However the room was clean and spacious and fine for our 1 night stopover.

Clean and comfortable as Crete standards go.

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

Staff at the hotel were all pleasant, the hotel is clean

The staff were all amazing , worked exceptionally hard, always smiling and very friendly nothing was to much trouble (especially the lady with blond hair and glasses sorry forgot your name).

I took my family for a long two weeks holiday at Anastasia Hotel, very happy we had such a lovely time , nice hotel very clean tasty food , staff was looking after us all the time very busy time of the year tho

Excellent place to spend time with your family, very clean environment , comfortable rooms , plenty facilities for kids , fresh food , staff was lovely very friendly and kind especially the manager of the hotel giorgos babos such a lovely man with many years of experience in the management he treated us they best way that any  anyone could do very happy honestly highly recommend the Anastasia hotel such a beautiful place also beautiful beaches nearby.

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.

If you didn't want the room making up then we just left the door handle sign on the outside and we were left alone.

Unlike the normal practice of boarding from the front of the bus the usual way here is to board from the middle door, take a seat and a conductor will come and take you fare.

but the door was often closed during the day.

but after the third day it just became normal, I think you just get use to it, the rooms have shutter doors that keeps most of the noise out anyway.

The shutters on the balcony doors were so useful when our 16 month old Granddaughter was sleeping, keeping the room dark and quiet at night.

Two positives were the lovely friendly Anna on the front desk & Tony the Karaoke/Bingo/Quiz guy that does some entertainment nights there.

The two girls at reception are so friendly and helpful and the entire staff are great.

We also find all the staff are always polite, supportive & friendly too.

but the welcome and service remains as friendly, helpful and efficient as expected.

Staff were very friendly and a particular shout out to Constantina and Anna on reception who were always smiling and helpful.

Girls on reception top class,so friendly.

We found all the staff to be friendly and helpful - even carrying our bags to our room.

The restaurant and waiting staff were all nice and very attentive, the receptionists were really lovely and helpful, the bar staff are not very friendly to be honest.

The staff is friendly and there is enough pool space around.

Also the hotel treated me on my birthday with a card, flowers and a bottle of wine was a really nice touch and the staff was all fantastic everyone  was so welcoming and friendly they really make your holiday.

The staff are absolutely fantastic, friendly and welcoming.

Staffs are friendly , most especially the ones serving the foods.

Staff are friendly, helpful and greet you with a smile each and every time.

The staff are very helpful and friendly, 
Katerina, George, Ana, Younnis, Maria , Yannis, Vangelis and Alex, just a few of the outstanding staff
The food in the restaurant was lovely you could always find something different to eat.

If you are looking for a safe, friendly and clean place to stay definitely look at this hotel.

We go to recharge the battteries & it is lovely to see a lot of the old staff who work tirelessly to make your holiday enjoyable.

Food is good and the the pools are great.try out the mini golf, pool bar fantastic.We have no issues with anything, once again thanks for a great holiday.

!haha.now the letdown for us personally was a few staff members who looked as if they detested their job!people are on their holidays and would like a genuine smile now and then please.we did meet some great people on our second week!

Thank you all so much for a fabulous holiday ! !

but having said that, we did have a lovely holiday and met some lovely people.

We have had 4 Holidays here over the past 10 years

Have just come back from an amazing holiday at the Anastasia Hotel!

It is a good option for those seeking for a safe holiday in the hotel with everything catered within the hotel premises.

The lady who does the holiday club was fantastic with our granddaughter she loved it,the bar lady as well gave her 2 bracelets the day we left which was very thoughtful.

Had a great holiday in this lovely welcoming hotel.

It ticks many boxes for all sorts of holidays: The location is ideal for resting on the beach - 10 min walk, or partying in Malia - 20 min walk.

All in all an excellent holiday and we would happily return.

Just returned from another great holiday at the Anastasia.

We had a great holiday so much so that we have booked to return in October.

The kids then went between the pitch and the pool.

Ice cream for the kids looked cheap and home made .

The Grounds were maintained to a high standard and the maintenance guy works non stop

you can now go places all inclusive for less then you may pay here half board, we just come back from Turkey 5 star for £700 less than we were quoted for Anastasia All inclusive for 2 adults and one child. I felt we were ripped of for what we paid on the last visit to Anastasia

This was once a great Hotel

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

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