Domes of Elounda, Autograph Collection, Crete

Was great to come back and see so many familiar faces from last year. We were lucky enough to stay in the same room we had had in 2024 so that felt like a headstart in getting straight into relaxing. Miss Leni and Stella were amazing throughout our two week stay sorting out any problems we had. Akis, Nikos, Chiara, Reina, Fatma etc were all fabulous as usual as well. I've just read Tom's review below about the building work and luckily it didn't affect us much as we weren't that close to it. But that will be the new Starwood hotel on the previous site of blue palace hotel round the corner. The baby situation was ok. But yes mealtimes can be a bit manic especially if the children are left to run around the place or sit on loud phones/devices at the main bar late at night. But during the day the adults pool was mainly very quiet and relaxing apart from a few selfish people on calls out loud. We can't wait to come back soon! Whats better ..... • Lunch options, more varieties, more salads (inc amazing peach and goats cheese at kids pool bar). • Food at Makris (much preferred it this year). • Having the beach restaurant open at night for dinner. • Having another new adults only pool (as yet unadvertised but the warmest water in the resort). • Much more buggies to transport everyone than last year. What could be better ..... • The taxi firm used by the hotel left us waiting at the airport for 50 mins before we found them at the wrong exit. They'd made no effort to contact/find us. I emailed them about this and they didn't reply. • Booking restaurants for dinner. This is hard work through reception (offer to call back to confirm and then don't etc) and best done through the customer services desk in reception in person. It would be easier to have a dedicated person/number/email address for this. • Housekeeping... We were woken up/disturbed several times whilst having displayed the do not disturb sign on our door. The general noise/shouting by these staff as well can be a bit much and starts very early. They have various bases/meeting places/rooms across the resort and if you are near one of them its going to be noisy. In the end we unfortunately decided it was easier not to have them clean our room at all. • Maintenance/groundsmen/pool maintenance ... For the second year in a row we arrived to a pool full of leaves and some rubbish in the garden/outside area. It was clear nobody had visited for some time let alone on the day of our arrival. We had to clean the garden area ourselves and there was no tool to remove the leaves so we had to do it by hand. I did see a man come and put a cleaning tablet in the pool a couple of times during our stay. • Music ... As some people have said in their reviews. This is 95% cover versions. Some are insane (breakbeat version of john lennons' - imagine anyone? The music was too loud at the kids pool bar though.

Pros: - A very nice hotel in a beautiful setting. - Staff are great: friendly, accommodating, and nothing is a hassle. I made sure to mention my feedback in the cons section below to Guest Relations while staying, and they were understanding and also offered us a complimentary meal, which was appreciated. - We had a villa in the Private Residences which was spacious inside and had plenty of outdoor space including a very large heated pool. - Food is good, if sometimes expensive. On half board we were able to choose an a la carte restaurant every night, plus got a voucher for lunch at their beach restaurant, which was a nice surprise. Do note that a la carte menus are either separate from the main menu (Blend) or lots of supplements need to be paid (CORE) if you’re on half board with the ‘dine around’ package. Cons: - The guests are almost exclusively young families with babies and toddlers. I have genuinely never seen so many under 5s in one place before! As a result meal times are loud and chaotic. This can still be the case in the a la carte restaurants at 8:30pm (apart from Antonino’s Italian restaurant, which is 16+ but not included in half board). The main Domes bar has a stunning outlook over Spinalonga but in our experience you may not be able to have a relaxing drink in there and enjoy the view because of the number of babies crying and young children running around. I think currently the hotel should be marketed as a specific families resort, which would make it clearer. Speaking to Guest Relations I understand an expanded adults only area is planned for the future. - As of October 2025 there is excavation / construction happening just behind the villas. No warning of this when booking so be aware. It can be noisy in the day with the sound of heavy diggers and dumping of rocks, and beeping from reversing dumper trucks. This noise echoes around the valley so not sure it can be avoided for those staying over the hill from reception. The staff told me it was a separate hotel so clearly outside of their control. Conclusion: - If you’re bringing a young family yourself and don’t mind noise, I’d say the pros outweigh the cons - If you’re looking for a holiday with peace and quiet and civilised meals I couldn’t recommend it, despite the many good points - Personally I found it hard to relax outside with the excavation / construction work going on (this won’t affect rooms on the reception side of the hill, facing Spinalonga)

We have just had a 10 day holiday at this wonderful resort. It really deserves more than five stars. With three generations sharing a holiday, it was impossible to think of anything further they could have done to make the holiday more enjoyable. Firstly, the team are consistently brilliant at dealing with children of all ages. On arrival the room was sorted with high chairs, cots, sterilising machine, loo seat, baby bath, baby bath wash, child step, bed guard rails, baby plates and cutlery … not to mention special pool toys. We were all more than impressed, as it really shows that they understand the needs of parents and grandparents when holidaying with their little children. The staff are all absolutely fabulous - the team in the Haute Living area (open from 10 am to 10 pm with refreshments available throughout the day) organised all restaurant bookings etc. Special shout out to Lily and Elina. I wish I could remember the names of the team working in the Restaurants, but all of them were such fun and made our little ones feel so special. The daily room service was so appreciated, returning to a room which was absolutely pristine was a further plus point. The food was consistently delicious and all Restaurants including the Vilebrequin beach bar. Hats off to Marriott for designing, maintaining, and delivering such an impeccable resort experience. Thank you for a really wonderful day.

Paradise has a name : Domes of Elounda , Autograph Collection ! The constant pursuit of perfect service in a breathtaking environment.

Just finished our third stay at this hotel with the family — it’s really starting to feel like a second home. We’re already planning our fourth visit for autumn 2026. This is truly one of the best places in Europe for an amazing family holiday with kids. We always stay at the Private Residences, which I believe are in the best location: they offer stunning sea and mountain views, are set in a quiet, private area, yet still conveniently close to the Blend restaurant and Kids Club. What makes this place truly special, though, is the people. The staff are incredible — always friendly, helpful, and genuinely nice to talk to. It’s also wonderful to keep seeing the same familiar faces year after year — special shoutout to Sara! P.S. The Kids Club team is on another level. Our kids couldn’t wait to go there every single day. A special mention to the only guy working there — huge respect for your passion and dedication.