Kalithea Horizon Royal

We came back to this hotel this year after having such an amazing holiday here last year. We loved it so much that booking again felt like an easy choice, and we were really looking forward to returning. We still had a lovely family holiday and made some great memories, but unfortunately we felt that a few things had changed since our last visit. The biggest difference for us was the staff. Last year everyone seemed so friendly and helpful, whereas this time we came across several staff members who were quite rude and unhelpful. There were some lovely staff too, but overall the atmosphere just didn’t feel as welcoming. We also noticed that hygiene was significantly different too- a lot of flies around the resort, which became quite frustrating, especially around food areas. The pool areas didn’t seem as clean as they were last year either and often looked like they could have done with more attention. The popcorn around the Safari Bar doesn’t help issues as it is spilled and left on various surfaces without being cleaned up. Another issue we encountered was stomach bugs during the holiday. We can’t say for definite where this came from, but the hygiene standards of the hotel in my opinion could have been a factor. It’s a shame because we really did have a fantastic holiday here last year and that’s why we chose to return. We have still enjoyed our time away, but unfortunately the issues above have left us feeling disappointed and let down. We hope the hotel can address them and get back to the standards that made us want to come back in the first place. Sadly, despite having a nice holiday overall, we won’t be returning again.

I am still currently at this hotel, I would not recommend to anyone looking to travel here. We are a British family and a total of 13 of us who have travelled to several all inclusive that are 4 & 5 star and they have been outstanding. This hotel is no more than a 3 star at best. It is dirty, unhygienic and there are flies everywhere and all over the food. Prior to travelling we asked to move hotels due to one of our parties medical needs on the Facebook reports of the sickness bug outbreak at the hotel. Tui denied any sickness bug reports and reported a 89% satisfaction rate by people visiting. This was a lie, hundreds of people have come down with this bug that’s across the island. The hotel has not managed this sickness bug well enough, they have just denied that it is as issue. I have spent 5 days in bed and had to have a doctor out to see me with treatment. My holiday has been absolutely destroyed due to the hotels poor hygiene management of pool areas, restaurants & rooms. Avoid mythos pool and safari bar pool is diabolical. We have moved rooms after three days of being put in the basement. We paid for superior sea view room and we complained as the rooms were full of flies and rubbish at the end of hallways. Eventually we were moved into better rooms. The guy on reception and one of the ladies are lovey, the other lady is just rude. I can’t wait to get me and my family home. We paid an excessive amount to stay here and this hotel is not fit for purpose. Do not book this hotel!

The past couple of years I got the most wonderful time at Kalithea Horizon Royal. Most of the staff has been working there for years and you always get greeted like you belong there and some of the staff members really become your friends. What made this holiday again so special, was the laughs we had with Nikos in the Athina restaurant, the special cocktails from Alexandra in the Safari Bar and the way that Panda always makes time for everyone to say hi and make you feel special! The rooms were super clean and we we're left gifts multiple times during our stay. Definitely worth visiting if you like a sunny place that feels like home!

The Good: Location & Island Freedom Rhodes itself was fantastic. We hired a car for two days from a shop down the road, much cheaper than booking through the hotel, which gave us the freedom to explore at our own pace. Highly recommend visiting Rhodes Harbour, the Old Town, Lindos, Kalithea Springs, Koskinou, and Kamiros. The local beach right by the resort is rocky (bring water shoes), but the sea is crystal clear and phenomenal for snorkeling. The Hotel Reality Check Be aware: Kalithea Mare Palace and Kalithea Horizon Royal function as one massive resort with roughly 720 rooms. It is enormous, and the TUI description doesn't make this clear. The Room & Layout: Our room was large but definitely dated. It was located right down at the bottom of a huge hill near the beach, that walk up to the main facilities nearly killed me every single day. Facilities to Avoid: Safari Bar & Pool: Absolute hell. Crammed like sardines, no sunbeds available unless you join the ridiculous dawn patrol towel rush, and the evening bar queues felt like a hectic Saturday night in Liverpool. Athena Restaurant: Chaotic and covered in flies. Other Pools: The Mythos pool looked dirty, and the indoor pool was essentially a fly graveyard. The snacks here looked awful. The Hidden Gems (Where to Actually Spend Your Time): Delphine Pool: Beautifully clean, massive, spacious, and relaxing. We turned up at noon one day and still had our pick of sunbeds. The snack bar here had a buffet lunch or a la carte menu. Food was delicious. Thalasso Restaurant: Indoors and wonderfully air-conditioned. Main Reception Bar: Clean, indoor setting with friendly staff and table service. Note: Technically, these better facilities belong to the Kalithea Mare side (sold through TUI Germany), which wasn't clearly advertised in our TUI booking. Overall Verdict Despite the initial shock and the stress of the crowded main areas, we adapted, found the quieter spots, and had a great holiday. We would actually return, but only because we now know how to navigate the resort properly. TUI seriously needs to update how they market this complex.

This hotel is a very mixed bag. Cons - We checked in in the early hours. We had paid for two rooms. We was told we had been upgraded to a royal suite and would pay half tourist tax when I asked why the tax was halved the receptionist said because we have one room instead of two but tried to convince us we’d got an upgrade and give us upgraded wrist bans as a sweetener as I was querying the ‘upgrade’ Didn’t want to be arguing at 3am so we took the room. It was a nice room with a door separating the two bedrooms but in hindsight I think we was duped into thinking we had a bargain when we probably got ripped off as they had over subscribed at the hotel. Checking in man was rude and give us absolutely no information about the hotel so we relied on chat GPT for the week. The hotel Is swarmed with flies. Never known so many flies at a hotel! They are constantly on you and your food and drinks. It gets very annoying. There was a stomach bug going round which many guests got. 3 out of 5 of my party have had it so far and I expect the remaining ones will come down with it in the coming days. I don’t know if this was connected to the flies in the hotel, dirty jacuzzis or a contagious gastro bug. No information or advice was shared in relation to this so no doubt more and more people caught it. The food is very average. The acropolis food area is very busy. Thalassa is much better but unfortunately we didn’t use that restaurant until the last day of the holiday. It wasn’t near our room and looked really dated outside so I assumed it would be poor. It’s really hard to get any food outside of the restaurant times e.g only one snack bar with very limited food and opening hours. Stray cats are all over the hotel. Standard, sugary juice cocktails on the menu, cheap wine, beers and spirits. Kids ice cream area gets really messy with kids dipping in and out of it and making a mess which is left. Pros - entertainment staff were really nice, looked like they all got on well and they spent time speaking to all the guests. Some activities on during the day which the staff make enjoyable albeit it’s very much the same each day. Very nice views which make it feel like a luxury hotel. Cleaner cleaned room really well each day. Good selection of pools. Buggies to use to get you around the hotel. Writing this review has made me see there was more cons than pros so I wouldn’t go back.