Aelius Hotel & Spa

Was a nice hotel. Had a great outdoor gym for calisthenics. We both had treatment at the spa by Emma and Eugenia, they were lovely and our treatment was relaxing. Just what we needed before travelling home. Thank you

Unfortunately, our experience at this hotel was extremely disappointing and nothing like what we expected from the description and photos. When we first arrived, we were given a ground-floor room that honestly felt more like a basement. There was no balcony as described, the room smelled of damp and mould, and it looked nothing like what we had booked. After complaining, we were moved the following morning to an apartment, which was slightly better. However, the next day we had a serious problem with the bathroom. My daughter went to have a shower over the bath, and shortly afterwards I walked into the hallway and almost slipped and fell. I then realised I was standing in around two inches of water coming from the bathroom. Instead of the water draining away, it was actually coming back up through the drain and flooding the apartment. My daughter had no idea this was happening while she was showering. Shortly afterwards, guests from the neighbouring apartment knocked on our door because the water had started entering their apartment as well. I immediately reported the problem to reception and was told that someone would come to investigate it. Nobody ever came. Considering the amount of water and the fact that I nearly fell, I found this completely unacceptable and potentially dangerous. The attitude of some members of staff was also disappointing. Whenever we asked for help with something, we often seemed to be told to find somebody else, usually with some excuse as to why they could not help us. The food was another major disappointment. Much of it was either extremely salty or unpleasantly sour. The grilled meat was often so tough that it was difficult to eat, and there was very little choice of fish. We also repeatedly came across plates that were not properly clean. The hotel was extremely noisy and overcrowded. The pool areas were constantly full, making it very difficult to find somewhere to relax. As a result, we often had to go to the beach instead, where we had to pay an additional €10 for an umbrella and sun loungers. We stayed until the end of our holiday simply because we had no realistic alternative, not because we were satisfied with the hotel. Our final day made the experience even more frustrating. We had to check out at 11:00 am even though our flight was not until 11:30 pm. We asked about a late check-out but were told that it was impossible because there were no rooms available. This left us with more than 12 hours before our flight, so we had to find and pay for a day pass at another hotel just to have somewhere comfortable to spend the day. Overall, this was a very disappointing experience. Between the initial damp, basement-like room, the serious flooding problem that was reported but never attended to, poor food, dirty plates, overcrowded facilities and lack of helpful customer service, the hotel fell far below our expectations. I would not choose to stay here again and unfortunately cannot recommend it.

Absolutely fantastic place definitely would return I would definitely recommend it to anyone. Food brilliant room spotless place was fantastic

Very beautiful and clean hotel. The service and atmosphere is amazing and everyone is helpful and friendly. Rooms are spacious and cleaned daily, beds are comfortable. There are plenty of food choices including a further 2 restaurants a side from the main restaurant that offer a more fine dining experience for an extra cost. Location wise there isn’t much to do around the hotel other than the beach which is a 5 minute walk from the hotel. Heraklion is a 25 minute taxi away which is a beautiful city but taxis cost €40 one way. The spa is the highlight of my stay, I had a facial and back massage done by Emma and it was the best massage I have ever had as someone who has regular sports massages done for their shoulders and real tightness. Emma did an amazing job at nearly making me fall asleep haha. Extremely relaxing and highly recommend. Gym facilities on site are brilliant too, basic equipment to get a nice workout done on holiday. I highly recommend this hotel if you’re looking to just relax for a while. I personally wish it was in a better location but I guess that would take away the relaxing, quiet atmosphere. Thankyou Aelius Hotel & Spa.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ We have just returned from a week at Aelius Lavris Hotel in Gouves and honestly, we couldn’t have asked for a better stay. From the moment we arrived, the hotel was clean, tidy and beautifully maintained, and every member of staff we came across was so friendly and welcoming. We stayed in the Senus area, which was absolutely fabulous. Having our own rooftop Jacuzzi, separate pool and private bar made the stay feel really special. A huge shoutout to Spyros at the bar — he was so friendly, always had a smile on his face and made an amazing strawberry daiquiri! 🍓🍹 The staff really do go above and beyond to make you feel looked after. At breakfast, there was a lovely lady who I believe was called Giota. She was so kind and, after a few mornings, knew exactly what we liked. She would have our breakfast tea, coffee and orange juice ready for us when we arrived, which was such a small gesture but made us feel so special and remembered. ❤️ The food throughout our stay was great, with plenty of choice, and there was entertainment on every night. It was nice having something different each evening, although things do quieten down a little around 10:30pm — which wasn’t a problem for us at all. The hotel was also really accommodating when it came to getting to the beach. They run shuttle buses every couple of hours in the morning, with return shuttles later in the afternoon, which made getting out and about really easy. If I had to mention one very small thing, the shower was quite leaky after using it, so the bathroom floor could get a little wet. But honestly, this was such a minor issue and certainly didn’t affect our overall experience. We absolutely loved our stay and would happily return. The hotel, the staff, the atmosphere and those little personal touches made our holiday so special. We were genuinely gutted to leave and were already wishing we could stay longer! 🇬🇷☀️💙 Thank you to everyone at Aelius Lavris for making our holiday one to remember. We’ll definitely be back! ❤️