Athina Palace Resort & Spa

We stayed for a week in this hotel and were absolutely delighted with the location of the hotel its design. Every level looks unique and that combination of surrounding rocks with all the greenery is truly remarkable. Another thing is a sea - we spent whole day at the beach breathing the breeze and watching our daughter splash in the sea. We took a bus to get to a lunch restaurant (which is located closer to the sea ,separately from the main restaurant where breakfast and dinner take place, allowing people to have lunch in a more casual outfit straight from the beach/pool, and made our way back to the beach till the evening. Another big highlight of this place is its people/staff - which was super nice and helpful - a special shouout for a waitress Maria - she is so lovely and made our daughter laugh every time we came for dinner ❤️ We had our room with a sea view - it’s one more thing to fall in love with at this place - most of its rooms have sea view which is amazing! Food was also good and we always found something tasty and Cretan)

This is fantastic resort at a excellent location. Close to Heraklion airport and by car the most interesting sightseeing sites are easily approachable. Restaurants are great, the whole system is built with caution and on a guest friendly way. The beach is very nice and the fact that a beach bar is available makes it very comfortable.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ We had a wonderful stay at Athina Palace in Crete! The hotel itself is beautiful, with stunning views and a great atmosphere for relaxation. The facilities were well kept, the food delicious, and the surrounding area is perfect for exploring both the coast and nearby villages. A special mention goes to Sofia at reception, who truly made our stay unforgettable. Her exceptional kindness, warmth, and helpfulness stood out from the moment we arrived. She went above and beyond to make sure we had everything we needed and gave us great recommendations so we could enjoy the best of Crete. Thanks to her, we felt so welcomed and cared for. We would absolutely recommend Athina Palace to anyone looking for a memorable holiday in Crete, and we’ll definitely be back!

- The staff was incredibly nice and upgraded us to a much larger room. - Gorgeous views from both sides of the resort - Food was decent for a buffet style resort and often new options were available - The beach was not crowded despite we were at the property during high-season - The tennis courts were often available and the rackets were good

The resort itself is quite massive. We travelled as a family (with a 3yo). The place is very family oriented. There are shuttles that take you to the beach and back to reception/restaurant. A convenient place if you plan to just stay in the hotel and relax in its facilities and beach. Might seem like quite a lot to do at first but really you would only be utilising the pool and the restaurant for most of the cases, unless of course you purhcased a tour online from countries that have contracts with the palace (I assume France/Poland being the most oriented). Was really pleased to see that there is constant work going on around to improve the facilities. Some parts seem to be under reconstruction/rennovation, means that owners are working towards improving the place. I guess my rating solely relied on the staff being really friendly. Dionisis and Popi were a highlight. Apart from understanding Greek form of communication, they were great at making contact and just bein really helpful.