Abaton Island Resort & Spa

This hotel does a lot of things right but it’s not perfect, the hotel itself is immaculate and spotless, the staff are amazing and attentive, it is extremely relaxing and I would highly recommend this hotel. There are some downsides though that we experienced. We had booked half board (breakfast and evening meal included) …this is not in our eyes what we recieved. We arrived late on Friday 8th May and the evening buffet was closed until Wednesday 13th May, this left us with two options, the “WOW” steak restaurant or the sea food restaurant (we don’t like sea food) so this left us with the only option of the steakhouse. You could see why it was called “WOW” as that is the first thing to comes to mind when you get the bill. We chose to eat out the first couple of days anyway as we tend to do that through choice anyway as we like to experience some of the local restaurants and without the buffet we wasn’t left with any choice but to have steak. On the Tuesday we booked the steak restaurant as we would be late getting back from a day trip to Santorini. When we arrived we asked the waiter which menu we were to use as a half board customer ( they don’t have paper menus, only ones downloadable via a QR code). He pointed out the menu marked “HB” which was 43 pages long, the problem was it was supposed to be a half board menu so we ordered a starter, main course and dessert from the list and enjoyed a nice meal, we ordered a bottle Of wine to go with which I knew we would have to pay for and they asked if we wanted some water which we said yes, assumed water included but it wasn’t. When we asked for the bill we expected it to be €31 for the wine, what we got was a bill for €122 as it seems the actual stuff included in half board accounts to about 5% of what is in the menu. Everything else is surcharged massively, when I queried this with the front of house manager he checked with someone else and insisted that we had to pay this, it is not very clear at all on the menu and you can easily fall into this trap, we only had the small 300 gram sirloin steak…nothing special. When we priced up the meal the next day before it was discounted for half board it should have cost €220 which is ridiculous for a basic steak meal. That’s the biggest issue with this hotel, everything is over the top expensive and with the town centre a good 45 minute walk away you felt you had to eat here and pay a fortune or make the long walk and with choice being just one steak house for the first 5 days that we would use it wasn’t really half board. The hotel also charges €150 to keep the room on for a late checkout, we thought this was way over the top but agreed to pay as nothing else nearby and not being collect until 7pm, thankfully when the hotel asked us if we had enjoyed the stay and we said we did but aired our grievances regarding the lack of half board we had paid for they gave us the extension for free in the end which was much appreciated and fair play to them for sorting this, if only. They printed a paper menu showing what was actually included instead of putting it on a confusing 43 page menu then this problem would have been avoided Lack of half board is probably a Jet2 issue as we booked with them on half board and they should be checking with the hotel that they are fully open before selling Rant over. Still had a great time

Beautiful location. Clean and well laid out accommodation. Calm atmosphere. Friendly and helpful staff in all areas of the hotel providing excellent service. Delicious food and great variety of local and international wines. All meals well prepared and presented. Excellent spa and yoga facilities. Arrived exhausted and drained, left relaxed, recharged and ready to get on with life.

A beautiful, clean hotel. white marble dominates the pristine reception, which smelled fantastic ( I bought the room spray and diffuser!!). Lovely staff, friendly and helpful. Large room facing the sea, but with a bath in the room rather than in the bathroom. There was a shower too! Buffet restaurant served breakfast and Dinner plus there are three a la carte restaurants on site ( Cretan, Steak or seafood) either as an alternative choice for a set menu or at a supplement for wider choice. I tried all the restaurants and they were very good. The buffet also was plentiful with choice and the sweets were to die for! Easy walk into Hersonnisos town with bars and restaurants. The bar area was lovely but very quiet. Lots of sunbeds by the pool or in the garden overlooking the sea. Grounds are immaculate Pool bar open for lunch and was very popular. Service round the pool and gardens excellent. Lots of plus points. However it is not a place for a beach lover as the coast is rocky and access to the sea is by a ladder from a jetty. If sea is rough no access at all. No good for a poor swimmer. There is a local beach next the the resort but access not fantastic or welcoming. Also the resort faces North the catch the sea views so most balconies get limited sun. Drinks expensive as is room service 10euros for four milk sachets to make a cup of tea. However there is a local supermarket where you can buy milk juice etc plus water as the hotel charges for water after the first welcome bottle, not good for a 5* hotel charging top prices. Overall a very enjoyable time but sadly I would not return due mainly to the lack of sandy beach with easy sea access and lack of sun on the balcony.

It was a great setting, great atmosphere and the view of sunset. It was a wonderful experience. The staff were amazing, helpful and friendly. We had an amazing time. The time were amazing and delicious. The view of the sunset it was beautiful while drinking and had dinner. It was unforgettable experience. The staff surprised us at the end with the drink and I had a really great time. Xx

I stayed at Abaton Island Resort & Spa on 25 September and unfortunately my stay did not meet the standard expected of a 5-star hotel. Due to island-wide power interruptions, the phone in my room rang loudly three times every time the electricity came back on, waking me repeatedly until around 3am. I understand the power cut itself was outside the hotel’s control, but the repeated disturbance and lack of any support or solution made the night extremely uncomfortable. The next morning, a housekeeper entered my room without properly knocking, at a moment when I had just stepped out of the shower. This was a clear breach of privacy and left me feeling embarrassed and uncomfortable. I raised both issues with reception and was referred to a manager, who unfortunately was dismissive and uninterested in addressing my concerns. I also contacted senior management afterward, but the responses were equally unhelpful, stating that no compensation or goodwill gesture would be offered. While staff like Kostas were wonderful and the food at Buddha Bar was excellent, the overall experience — especially the lack of accountability from management — did not reflect the price of €315 for one night. I hope this was an isolated incident, but based on how it was handled, I cannot recommend the hotel at this time.