Elpida Village

As a family, we spent 2 weeks at Elpida Village, 2 Adults, a 7 year old and a baby. We arrived in the early morning and was greeted by Dimitris the night manager, who was very friendly and helpful and helped us with our luggage to our room, which was quite some way from the reception. We had put in the notes prior that it was our anniversary on arrival. When we arrived at the accommodation, they had left us wine and some meals, however the rooms consisted of a dark downstairs room with a very dangerous spiral staircase to an upper room and bathroom. The stairs were not only dangerous to walk up and down the way the top of the staircase had been fixed to the wall, would never pass building regulations in the UK (I work in construction). With 2 young children on the booking this accommodation was not acceptable. Even though very tired, I agreed with my wife we wouldn't be able to sleep in this room without worrying about an accident happening. I spoke with the night manager and after some checking of the room schedule and visiting a few rooms at 4am, we found a large acceptable accommodation close by that we could sleep over night. In the morning we were called by reception to be informed we needed to leave this room and they had another room, I didn't find this had been done in a particularly friendly way. Then whilst packing up we had the caretaker knock on the door to tell us the exact same thing. At this moment I felt that we were being pestered to leave the room. Once we had packed up all our things, we made our way to reception to be shown the new room that was offered to us. This room was close to reception and was in a good location to access everything, it consisted of 2 rooms with a large balcony with a sea view. This room was very nice and we had no issues with the accommodation following this. We did have help moving our luggage from our old room to the new accommodation. We then got ready to go to the pool, when we arrived at the pool we realised there were no sun loungers available, this can be something you can accept when arriving late morning. However the fact is they have lots of space around the pool and no way enough sun loungers, especially during any busy periods. I did complain to the person on reception and they agreed with me that this is a problem. I then enquired about beach towels, which I was told that there is a deposit to pay and a weekly charge of 7 euros per week per towel, I have been to many hotels in Europe and around the world and have had to pay a deposit but not a charge for beach towels. The food was very basic and not a great deal of choice. During our first lunch I wasn't able to eat much as I have a shellfish allergy and they had provided a shellfish pasta bang in the middle of all the other dishes, not segregated. I therefore couldn't take the risk that other foods had been cross contaminated by the utensils. In addition none of the dishes had labels to tell you what it was. I complained about this and there was not shellfish present for a few days and some labels appeared. However once the shellfish had returned it wasn't segregated from other foods and there was limited food labelling happening. The food was extremely repetitive, very rarely was it that tasty and after a while we spent much of the lunchtimes and dinners eating out even though we had payed for all inclusive. The drinks including alcohol were very limited and not great, all the other all inclusive I have visited previously have had many more options. The hotel had strange rules, such as you could have an espresso or cappuccino during breakfast lunch or dinner but any other time you would have to pay for it as only regular coffee available at the bar. Times were limited for snacks or ice cream around the pool bar. If you were at the buffet late and had some savoury food, once it had past the last time for entry they would remove everything, including desserts, without asking you. The staff were generally very friendly but seemed overworked and very tired at the same time. Dimitris, Marina at the bar and Aphrodite and the pool bar were all really nice. Didn't care much for the surly gentleman at reception who I think was the manager (not exactly setting a good example). We were given 2 vouchers for the barbecue which we could use over the 2 weeks. We used one in the first week and although I very much like barbecued food, it was very average so we didn't bother using the 2nd one. Before arrival we looked on the website and our booking and noticed they had an animation team and entertainment provided. They do a Greek night once a week, however its probably only worth watching once, they do a open air cinema and that is it for entertainment. There appears to be a lot of guests from Poland and eastern Europe, therefore the kids club is really aimed at them. If you have children or are looking for entertainment, if you are planning on staying at the hotel you will be very bored. The pool area itself and the location is lovely, great views etc. We spent a fair few days at Voulisma beach which is approximately a 17 minute walk or the hotel offers a shuttle bus a few times a day there and back. The beach is beautiful and there are lots of nice bars/ tevernas close by. We also got the bus which is at the bottom of the hill to Agios Nikolaos, which is definitely worth a visit. When we arrived at the hotel we were dropped off in a small minibus which took us up the hill right outside the hotel. When leaving and after speaking with the transfer provider we were under the impression the same vehicle would be collecting. However a larger coach was sent which was waiting on the main road down the hill. The receptionist was called by the provider and informed me of this. We then had to make our way down the hill from the entrance, my wife had the baby and my son to walk down the hill, i had few cases and a push chair and the receptionist did not offer to help us with anything. I was then left to run up and down the hill with luggage etc. The fact some of the staff were friendly and the room we were eventually provided with and the location was lovely, stopped me from scoring lower. When you have spent quite a lot of money on all inclusive its hard not to feel aggrieved. I would recommend if you visit this hotel, go with the bed and breakfast option instead.

We stayed for a week. Its ok, but its best to sleep here and use it as a base. It's more of a hostel than hotel. The staff are rude and grumpy. The barmaid Marina and the lovely girl by the pool are the only pleasant staff that knows what customer service is. Don't waste your money on half board like we did, too many lovely restaurants and cafes nearby.

Really nice relaxing stay in a quiet village. Elpida Village is built on a steep hillside. Good facilities and really good atmosphere. Weak internet though. Food good. Pool bar and pool good. Great Views.The main issue I had was the steps and my luggage. Our room was at the very top of the site. Luckily I found an access road that looped around to the top end of the site that with permission I could drop my bags 10 meters from my room using my vehicle. Worked out nicely, and my bad knee did not complain.

Terrible steps no one helped us with our luggage to get to our room we had to walk a very steep heel. The guy at the reception was also not polite and Def not worth 100 euro a night. Consider spending your money somewhere that they will be appreciated and valued

We recently experienced a very long delay for our return flight home, and were accommodated by easyJet for an overnight stay at the Elpida Village. We were dropped off by coach at the entrance to the hotel. However to access reception there is a steep incline of about 200 metres,then a series of steps before you reach reception. However, if the hotel had been aware of our arrival, there was a mini bus and a van to assist. Approximately 50 travellers descended on the hotel at about 6.30am and the reception staff had the difficulty of allocation of rooms to very tired people. This they did with relative efficiency and a smile on their faces. Happy to guide and assist us to our rooms. We were provided with breakfast and spent a few comfortable hours only before we were picked up to return to Heraklion airport. Because of this short stay, I am unable to comment on most of the facilities at the hotel. Except to make you aware of difficult access, many flights of stairs etc, making the hotel impracticable for those with reduced mobility. I can however praise all the staff throughout the hotel for their smiling faces, cheerful καλή μέρα and for their valuable assistance. Note, the views from the dining room and the pool across the Mirabello Bay are superb. I

very nice stuff and breakfast and dinner service

Хороший отель недалеко от пляжа Вулизма и городка Айас Николас. Расположен на холме и пешком подниматься-спускаться не очень удобно, но мы были на машине и нам ок. Ходит трансфер до пляжа. Завтрак прекрасный, разнообразный. В отеле много пакетных туристов

A typical all-inclusive resort hotel - enough food with a variety of options to choose from at breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Non-branded drinks were available free until 11pm, fresh orange juice and frappe's plus branded spirits i.e Metaxa Brandy were extra. There is only 1 main restaurant to eat at, the other does a Greek style BBQ but you can only eat there once per stay and tbh wasn't really worth it. The pool bar serves ice cream most of the day and has tiny stale cheese and ham rolls available after 3pm incase you miss lunch - we missed it by 15mins when we checked in. The hotel is not in Istron itself, it's in Kalo Chorio - there's not much around, a couple of minimarkets and traditioal bars/tavernas but no nightlife in or outside of the hotel and no tourist shops so a car is highly recommended. The hotel does run a shuttle every few hours to the beach. Because the hotel is not on the seafront (nor that near it) the views are 'just ok' - don't think epic Santorini views!! The sea and mountain views are nice but spoilt by the solar panels on the rooftops directly below.

The hotel has a beautiful panoramic view from its restaurant and has an incredible smell of jasmin flowers all over the area. The staff is very good and polite. Breakfast is nice. Dinner as well. Areas are clean. the shower area is very tight. they do not put shampoo refill every day and no soap tablets. All in all good stay for vacations.

After recommendation from my Mother and Sister that were staying at the hotel in 2018, we decided to choose Elpida Village as our holiday destination this year and we had the best time! Hotel is situated in a quiet village. If you are looking for the clubs, loud music and shopping area this is not a place for you but I recommend to visit many family owned restaurants and spend some money for seafood. There will be no need to splurge money on local cuisine as hotel offers delicious food for all inclusive package. There are plenty of choices and baklava is to die for! Around 15 minutes walk from the hotel or 3 minutes drive by hotel bus there is a beautiful beach - Voulisima. I highly recommend to try jet ski - great experience. If you are looking for crystal clear sea - that is the perfect spot for you. If you are more pool oriented - hotel offers very nice swimming pool area with open bar and incredible view - BREATHTAKING. People working at the hotel are showing great Cretan hospitality and are very helpful. They are creating great atmosphere where you are not anonymous hotel Guest. Special thanks to Marina (best drinks ever), Maria (great recommendations what to see) and Manos (managing the hotel and checking how we enjoy our stay). At the and - hotel is very well situated. Great starting point for organizing your active time on the island. Hotel is helping with car, bike, quad rentals and prices and conditions are good. Spinalonga, Agios Nikolaos, Chrissi Island, Heraklion - must haves. We were travelling as a group and wondering before a trip how the situation with COVID-19 will look like. To be honest it is very safe, rooms are cleaned every day along with all common areas. No need to worry. Elpida - see you next time!