CHC Marilena

We stayed at the Marilena Hotel in Amoudara Crete for 10 nights in July this year. Firstly, I would like to talk about the positives which should be the shortest part of this review sadly. The staff who work hard at the hotel, particularly the lovely lady who makes the most amazing crepes and serves hot dogs and burgers all day in a very hot pool bar kitchen, Elanie and Marianna were both lovely bar staff and in general all of the staff at the hotel were welcoming, friendly and as helpful as they were able to be. The pool is gorgeous, the 2 shallow areas with sun loungers in were a particularly nice touch, as was the hot tub. The sun loungers around the pool were good, sturdy and very comfortable, its unfortunate that there isn't more of them to allow more guests this luxury, as you do have to get down and stay with your loungers to reserve it as its definitely worth getting one or you will have to be on the additional cheaper blue loungers on the grass area away from the pool. The final positive is the weather is beautiful and the location of the hotel just being set back from the beach allows a lovely breeze whilst you are sunbathing, meaning those (like my husband) who can't usually sunbathe and take the heat, are able to spend time with the family under an umbrella. Now for the more extensive part of the review, the negatives. Sadly, the rooms are dated, its evident all of the money spent on this hotel has been thrown into the pool and reception areas only. It has been very poorly thought out. There are dirty marks in the rooms on the walls, on the chez lounge, they expect children to sleep on and on some of the bed linen. The curtains were covered in what I can pnly guess were blood stains, vile. The towel rails, shower and shower heads are covered in limescale and/or rust in places. The rooms heavily need modernising. You can see from the images attached some of the issues we faced with our room. The food is not to everyones taste, my husband really didn't like the food and referred to it as school dinners and mostly mushy, sloppy, bland and boring. To a point he stopped going to the resturant and lived on the pool bar food or snacks from the local shops. Our children went back to eating beige foods, they did eat the salads and fruit though so not all bad. The kids enjoyed the deserts and large selection of ice creams. I occasionally found something to my taste but we were all heavily put off by the large volume of flies that was seen to be frequently landing on the food. This is due to the patio doors being open for every meal, as the seating is split between indoor and outdoor dining. The outdoor area has a lot of stray cats who wonder round your feet or sit next to your table, whilst you are eating in the hope you will be willing to share your food with them which we did on the few occasions we sat outdoors. There is very limited seating both inside and outside for the amount of guests who are staying at the hotel, often resulting in people stood waiting for a table or walking around watching you eat, so they could judge when you would be leaving your table, as I said poorly thought out. Another frustrating part is that on the 1 or 2 nights a week when they do have entertainment on, you have to sit on the sun loungers round the pool (if you can get one) as there again isn't enough seating for the amount of guests staying there. Unless again you wish to sit down the bottom on the grass area next to the kids sand pit. Lastly, our least favourite part about the hotel, the drinks are absolutely disgusting. The holiday information both at the hotel and when booking, clearly states a selection of local and imported drinks including cocktails, beer, wine, mixers and fruit juice. The first drink I had was the Marilena cocktail and I had to refrain from spitting it out as it tasted like dishwasher detergent 🤢 then I had a wine and for a second questioned if they poured it straight from a sarsons vingear bottle, vile. My husband drank the larger which gave him an upset stomach. I tried nit once and was not suprised. We soon discovered it wasn't the spirits that made the drinks taste so bad, it was actually the post mix mixers. The cola was like rola cola only worse as the syrup to soda water ratio isn't correct and you can actually taste the gas in each of the drinks, honestly horrendous. The most tolerated one was sprite but after 2 days we could no longer stomach that even with a drink that was 3 parts gin or vodka. So we ended up only having spirits from the bar and buying mixers ourselves from the shop just outside the hotel. I'm diabetic and on our first night at the hotel, I discovered that diet or zero drinks are not included in the all inclusive. They have bought in 500ml bottles of coke zero which they expect you to pay an extra €3 per drink for. I complained that as I am diabetic I can't drink full sugar drinks, the hotel guest liaison lady firstly asked, if I had informed them before our holiday that I am diabetic, which is something I have never had to do when staying at multiple other hotels. I wasn't aware that I would need to inform them I need diet/zero drinks prior to our stay. She went off to ask the hotel manager Stavros, if he could provide me with an alternative to which he responded "No, if she wants coke zero she can pay €3 at the bar for it." When I also explained to this lady that the drinks all tasted disgusting she said. "I KNOW I AM SORRY."🤦🏻‍♀️ So we purchased 1.5litre bottles from the shop for €2.20 everyday instead. I have had some money refunded to me by the holiday company I booked this trip with, as they are in agreement that this hotel doesn't warrant its 4 stars and is actually more of a 3* hotel. I have emailed Stavros the manager who completely disagrees with our complaint and feedback, however on receipt of the images I sent in response asking him if our room meets his cleanliness standards, I haven't received any further reply. Avoid this hotel, there are some lovely 4 and 5 star hotels on the beach front with much better rooms, food and drinks. We will not be returning to the Marilena.

A Truly Wonderful Place This hotel is an absolutely amazing place. It was our first time staying there, yet from the very first day we felt at home and like regular guests. The hotel itself is beautiful, neat, stylish and exceptionally clean. The cleanliness is truly premium. Every morning, while the guests were still peacefully asleep, we could see staff cleaning the windows around the pools. Everything and everywhere was cleaned on an ongoing basis, and I constantly noticed the housekeeping staff working around the resort. The reception team was incredibly kind and helpful. They answered every question we had, helped us with every little dilemma and even explained how to get to Heraklion by bus. Our room was cleaned every day, with fresh towels provided regularly. During our 7-night stay, our bed linen was changed twice. The hotel manager was constantly around the resort, always friendly, smiling and helpful, making sure that everything was as it should be. The swimming pool was wonderful — cleaned every day, with crystal-clear water and fantastic sun loungers partially immersed in the pool. ❤️ And then there was the pool team… ❤️ The bar with its delicious snacks, run by Atalanti, was one of the highlights of our stay. She showed us so much kindness and warmth that we truly didn’t expect. Her delicious pancakes, hot dogs and burgers, always prepared with a smile and genuine friendliness, made our time by the pool even more special. The lifeguard was also absolutely lovely — friendly, cheerful and always making sure that everyone was safe. Every day he organized aqua aerobics in a fantastic atmosphere, and the Zorba dance at the end of the exercises is something I will remember for a very long time. ❤️ There was also the wonderful lady behind the bar — always smiling and so friendly. She even made us beer with a little heart made from juice. Such a small gesture, but it meant so much to us. ❤️ The location is fantastic. There is a bus stop right outside the hotel, from which you can easily travel to Heraklion, the capital of Crete. Tickets can also be bought at the kiosk right next to the hotel — the price was €1.80 per person. As for the food, tastes differ — one person may love something while another may not. Personally, I thought it was excellent! I enjoyed plenty of tzatziki, cheeses, delicious soups, vegetables, fresh fruit and desserts. Food was constantly replenished, and there was never a situation where something ran out. Whenever something was getting low, fresh portions were brought out almost immediately. We will definitely come back for another holiday in two years. We felt more comfortable and at home here than anywhere else. ❤️ Atalanti and the taste of her pancakes are still in my head to this day! ❤️❤️❤️ I wholeheartedly recommend choosing this hotel. It is a wonderful place where you can truly rest, relax and simply feel happy. ❤️ Thank you for making our holiday so special — we will be back! 🇬🇷❤️

Terrible experience so far. Currently staying here, we arrived and got sent to another hotel due to ‘rooms being out of order’ they sent us to a lovely hotel but that is besides the point after travelling all day and turning up at 1am - you want your room ready. We were told because of this we would have better rooms, turned up the following day well the rooms are very disappointing. Checked with the lady at reception and was told that the rooms we were in were the ones we booked. Which meant no better room was given - she said come back the next day and she will sort this out for us. I went back but as it was 2pm instead of 12 ( i shouldn’t have to be there at 12 just to get the room? I am on holiday!) she said that the rooms is not available… after a lot of fuss on reception I told them to forget it and walked away. Food is ok, there is not enough staff so food is running out quickly and not loading up with fresh food. Massive queue for drinks as 1 staff is there to serve everyone. No staff around the pool area apart from the life guard. Not enough sunbeds at all, there is nowhere near enough around the pool yet so much room to add more? The sunbeds on the grass area are mostly broken. Bathroom is dirty, loudly ceilings are the is dirt and filth everywhere… how this was ever rated a 4 is beyond me. More like a 2!!