St. Nicolas Bay Resort Hotel & Villas

Just returned, I have gave it 4 stars, as it was beautiful. Firstly the hotel has amazing views, we had a sea view suite( room with a sofa) and the views were breathtaking. The room itself, quite basic, Not enough storage for 2 adults, no drawers so I kept a lot of my clothes and underwear in the case. We were left food after a late flight which was appreciated. There were robes, and towels changed, and room cleaned daily. If you don’t want to be woken up really early, take an eye mask the curtains don’t block out the morning light, so by 6am the room is sunny. Pool was really cold but I didn’t mind that, Everything was really clean and maintained to a high standard, lovely sun loungers and lots of them. The food was lovely, Only small gripe you had to order your coffees and drinks on a morning, sometimes we were waiting ages, a self service coffee machine/drinks counter would have been better. That’s just my opinion. I can imagine in peak season you’ll be waiting a lot longer than 25 mins for a refill. I have to stay the staff were prob the best in regards to doing as much as they can for you. Friendly, professional and plentiful. It was a shame as far as I could see no entertainment, and not many activities to take part in. All in all a lovely hotel, I’d def go back to the resort loved the area. The environment tax is 15 euros a night, so does bump up your overall bill.

Hospitality was invented in Greece, I guess. It definitely rules in the beautiful St. Nicolas Bay Resort in Agios Nikolaios in Crete. Here, you can spend a perfect vacation. No exaggeration. They make sure that every detail is considered, and that everything is just the way you want it. From check-in in a very cosy and stylish setting at the concierge’s desk, who not only checked me in but also offered to show me the whole resort – the restaurants, the pools, the beach, the spa, the gym... We cut it short, because of the rain, but she – Martina, it was – called me later in my lovely room and asked, whether I would want to visit the premises now. She also let me know that the management would offer me dinner at the fine dining restaurant Minotaure, because they hadn’t given me an upgrade. Upgrades are always nice, of course. But I never expect them, because the promise of an upgrade usually depends on the availability of the respective room. So, a dinner instead of an upgrade was a charming suprise. The room I had was beautiful, anyway. Huge, elegant – very light colors, very sunny and friendly – with a nice and furnitured balcony, a couch (recliner, I think, you’d call it), and – most importantly – direct sea view. I, thus, had a chance to enjoy the stunning blue-turquoise Aegean day in day out, and I just loved it. What else was excellent: the food (delicious breakfast, Asian fusian dinner at the Minotaure, a yummy buffet dinner at Labyrinthos, lunch at the Beach Club), the service – everybody smiling, greeting, helpful, polite, the easy going atmosphere – “Nothing is a problem here” said the friendly waiter, when I had an extra wish and added the usual “if it isn’t a problem”. It is definitely also worth mentioning that Alexandros Glynos (Alex, as he introduced himself), the General Manager of St. Nicolas Bay Resort, member of the SLH (Small Leading Hotels of the World), is present in person from early morning – personally greeting all the guests at their breakfast tables, literally walking from table to table, to late in the evening, in the lobby, and always approachable, if you need something, at dinner time, again greeting the guests in the restaurants, walking from table to table. And all wishes you might have communicated beforehand via e-mail are being taken care of, too. In my case, I had asked for tennis options / a hitting partner since I was traveling alone, and already when I checked in, they had organized this for me. All this is definitely a 5-star-service! In addition to the beautiful setting of the resort, it might be nice to know that Agios Nikolaios is a nice little town, that it takes less than one hour to get here from Heraklion International Airport, that there are several equally cute places and beaches nearby, including Elounda and Voulisma beach. I will be leaving tomorrow, but I will definitely come back asap.

We thoroughly enjoyed our 7 night stay at the St Nicolas Bay Resort hotel. We were in sea view room 524 and it was perfect. The hotel has so many excellent reviews and photographs, so this short review does not do justice to this amazing hotel; the location, service/food in restaurants to the friendly hardworking staff were all outstanding. The hotel was closing for the season but standards did not drop at any time. We were delighted to be invited to the farewell meal at The Minotaure Restaurant where we dinned by candlelight under the stars and food, service were exceptional We cannot wait to return next season.

This hotel has a beautiful setting, on the stunning Mirabello Bay. The grounds are well laid out and maintained, with plenty of places to sit and relax, and easy access to the pools and the small private beach. Our room was spacious, comfortable and clean. The food was of a very good standard. In addition to the main buffet restaurant, we also ate at the 2 a la carte restaurants. The Greek entertainment and dinner at the Kafenion was memorable. Our lunches at the Blue Bay were all delicious. The staff were very friendly and helpful, and Eleni's welcome was always so warm when we arrived at mealtimes. The manager was often to be seen greeting and interacting with guests, and we appreciated the gifts of wine and cake in our room. We easily hired a car for a few days via the concierge service, and enjoyed exploring the Eastern side of the island, which has many places of interest. Highly recommended.

From the moment we arrived, late & tired, we were treated wonderfully by the staff. They provided a welcome drink, late dinner & showed us our room. We had a sea view suite, with two balconies, one covered & one uncovered. The room was large with so many places to sit! I found the bureau area great for hair & make up as it had a large lit up mirror. Lots of storage & a large bed made for a comfortable stay. The fridge was a silent pull out drawer & it was fine to use, along side the chargeable offerings inside. We were gifted a bottle of rose, some Greek sweets & there was a fancy coffee maker, with a selection of flavours. We were also left two bottles of water each evening. Our great shower was over a huge jacuzzi bath, which initially I thought was inferior to a walk in, but I actually had 3 baths over our 11 night stay & enjoyed them. We were upstairs (low rise buildings only) with a lovely view. We never heard a thing at night & rarely during the day, so peaceful. The resort is spread over a large area and everywhere is beautifully laid out & comfortable. The hotel beach is stunning & the plentiful sunbeds super comfortable. The pool is gorgeous, although we preferred swimming in the sea. Breakfast was fabulous, by the pool, served & buffet options. Dinner was really good, again main course served & other courses a buffet. Great authentic greek options. Spotlessly clean throughout. On Saturday evening we were invited to drinks by the pool & chatted to the general manager, who was very present throughout our stay. We hired canoes on the hotel beach which was fun. The cocktails were great (not strong) & the wine list gorgeous! We got very familiar with Greek (mostly Cretan) wine during our stay. The staff were polite & welcoming throughout our entire stay. We rarely go back to the same hotel/town, but would definitely return here in the future. The town is a 30 minute walk, along the sea & has lots to offer. There was a cliff diving competition on the lake too, whist we were there. We visited Elounda twice & Malia (don’t bother) as well as Spinalonga by boat, very interesting. We had a wonderful stay at St Nicolas Bay & would recommend it 100%. Thank you for a fabulous holiday.