Atlantica Princess Hotel

We went to Atlantica Princess at the end of June for a week with our 2 children (ages 4 & 2). First of all the area of Ialysos is beautiful and a short walk and you’re into the town centre and it is such a nice place with lots of little traditional taverna’s to call into. It is right in front of the beach, a very very pebbly beach, nonetheless still lovely! The hotel for us was average, the rooms look lovely on first inspection however the longer the week went on the more things we noticed wasn’t really up to standard, these being the curtains were hanging off the rails, we had a 2nd bed for our eldest which the bed sheets had a rip in them, the taps are very discoloured and very worn, the cleanliness was sub standard as under the beds there were spoons and rubbish (from previous guests not us). The fridges in the rooms aren’t stocked up throughout the week so beware! Every other all inclusive we’ve stayed in (including another Atlantica we stayed in Crete) you get at least a nice refreshing drink replaced when you arrive, however you get a few bottles of water upon arrival and have to refill them throughout the week, or buy more bottles of water from shops! The food is average, just a classic all inclusive buffet style, with a few changes in themes through the nights, nothing spectacular. The snack bar outside is also the same, a vegan falafel wrap is advertised on the menu, however I asked for one 3 days in a row and the guy doing it said “no, it’s not possible” and was rather rude when I asked why not, so why advertise it? So opted for fries, which were barely cooked unfortunately. The pool bar staff were fantastic, turning drinks out very quickly and efficiently which got the queues down well! The pool was good if you hit it early on, however as the day goes on it gets busier (understandably with the heat) but then feels over cramped and then they use the pool to play water polo etc, and due to there only being 1 big pool for all the guests, you soon feel you have to vacate the pool. The kids pools are good but also the same problem just too small for the sheer size of the hotel and amount of guests wanting use of them. Personally we would rate this hotel a maximum 3 stars, not the 4 it is meant to be having stayed in previous 4 star hotels.

I only eat kosher food because I'm a Jew and there was one employee at breakfast who took care of fresh vegetables for me every morning and made my stay at the hotel perfect!! In addition, the reception staff were smiling and helped with any question, I would definitely recommend!