Elounda Gulf Villas

We are a family of four and recently stayed in the Seafront Villa at Elounda Gulf Villas. The villa itself was beautifully renovated, spacious, very comfortable, and had excellent air conditioning. One thing to note is that this villa is the only one not located on the main resort property. It’s in Tsifliki, about a 10–15 minute drive from the hotel’s breakfast area and facilities. We didn’t mind the drive at all—in fact, we sometimes walked (about 2 miles and some hills) —and enjoyed having a little more privacy. The location worked well for us. It’s about a mile from Plaka and roughly 30 minutes from Agios Nikolaos. We ended up changing a few dinner reservations from Agios Nikolaos to Plaka because of the distance, but that turned out to be a great decision. Plaka is a beautiful little village with a relaxed atmosphere, and we found ourselves spending a lot of time there. The villa has a private pool, which management kindly heated for us, although it never got quite as warm as we expected. In hindsight, with the beach literally steps away, we probably wouldn’t bother paying for pool heating again. The beach is somewhat rocky when you first enter the water, but it quickly becomes easier underfoot. We didn’t find water shoes necessary but some people had. We also really enjoyed the beach club. It’s fairly small, but that was part of its charm—it was never crowded and always felt peaceful. Both Georges at the beach club were incredibly accommodating and made us feel very welcome throughout our stay. A special thank you to Despina and Stella from reservations and concierge services. We had to make numerous changes to our plans before our arrival and during, and they were always quick to respond, patient, and helpful. Louise at the front desk was equally wonderful and helped with anything we needed during our stay. The breakfast was good with many options including fresh squeezed orange juice and Prosecco. The bread offerings was good as well as the choice of eggs. The breakfast team was responsive and accommodating. Shout out to Georgina who deserves a mention for making fantastic flat whites every morning, along with some of the best iced lattes we had during our trip. Overall, we had a wonderful stay and loved both the villa and the surrounding area. The combination of privacy, beautiful scenery, excellent service, and proximity to Plaka made for a memorable family vacation in Crete.

I’m giving three stars only because of the kind staff and front desk team. They were as accommodating and helpful as possible throughout our stay. Also, the views from this property are absolutely breathtaking. Unfortunately, my overall experience was just okay. During a three-day stay, I had to change rooms four times—yes, four times. * The first room had broken automatic shades, leaving the room exposed to direct sunlight. * The second room had a broken patio door, so we couldn’t access the outdoor space. * The third room was a beautiful villa with a heated pool, private jacuzzi, and sauna; however, the air conditioning wasn’t working. A maintenance technician came by but was unable to fix it. * As a result, we were moved to a fourth room only a few hours before our early morning departure. To make matters worse, the property’s water boiler was also broken, which meant cold showers during our stay. My genuine advice: if you market yourself as a luxury property, you need to consistently deliver a luxury experience. Regular maintenance inspections and preventative upkeep are essential. The staff did their best, but the number of issues we encountered was disappointing and fell well short of the expectations that come with a luxury resort

We stayed at Elounda Gulf Villas for a weekend with our children, aged 5 and 2, and the atmosphere was amazing. From the moment we arrived at reception, the warm welcome made a wonderful first impression on our family. The groom kindly escorted us to our suite, "Pasiphae," using the club car. It was a beautiful and spacious suite with two separate terraces surrounded by stunning views and lush greenery. The buffet offered a rich variety of dishes, and the flavors were excellent. We also enjoyed the à la carte restaurant by the pool, where the atmosphere was fantastic and the food was absolutely delicious. Our children especially loved the high-quality ice cream. The General Manager, Achilleas, was attentive to every detail and always available to assist guests. This is truly what hospitality in a luxury hotel should be. We will definitely come back. *Christos, Eirini, Marilena & Nikoleta*

Unfortunately our experience at Elounda Gulf Villas did not live up to expectations based on the reviews we'd read and the images on the website. Starting with the good ; food was excellent quality and every meal we had was flavourful and well prepared. The teams work hard to ensure that they can deliver the best service with limited staff resources. Our suite was well cleaned each day and replenished with water. The gardens were well kept and maintained. Now the not so good; the hotel itself is very tired, maintenance around the pool area was lacking with the main pool itself covered in green algae around the edges and it was rarely cleaned; metal fittings had corroded and were rusting. The private beach club was on a patch of shale at the waters edge, with an electrical cable strewn on the edge of the waterside; food choices were limited to a prepack wrap or plastic box Greek salad. The bedding in our room (501) smelt fusty and old including the pillows; it was 5 days into our stay before linens were changed. On day 5 we had a walk planned and headed out for breakfast at 9am to find that our door wouldn't lock after exiting. After waiting well over an hour and escalating 3 times a manager came down and assured us things would be fixed, which he called to advise they were 3 1/2 hours after reporting; whilst apologising profusely, it should not have taken over an hour and the need for continued escalations to get to a point where we felt safe to leave the room with the manager in attendance. The bathroom whilst very spacious was also very odd. There was no door between bathroom and bedroom, the w.c. door would not close correctly making things awkward to say the least. The only 5 star hotel I've ever been in where the shower had to be hand held (no wall fitting in place). The living room was simply decorated but had mosquito marks on the wall and blood on the sheer drapes ( no privacy blinds or curtains in the room). Outside the bedroom, hundreds of sparrows nested in nearby trees waking us each morning for an hour or two from 5am (we appreciated the ear plug gesture but didn't really want to use them). Staffing was limited around the pool for the first few days, and the staff that were there, whilst wanting to help were incapable of making basic cocktails listed on the menu having only arrived the month before and being thrown in at the deep end. Work was underway to prepare a hotel in front of EGV to open, making inevitable noise which we appreciate can't be helped, but also the hotel was somewhat of an eyesore (many of the pool pictures on socials and the website are from the private villa pools and not the main pool). Overall, a disappointment and we would not return until things are seen to have changed for the better

My wife and I just returned from a 7night stay, and we loved it. The people working here, all the people, clearly understand that you get the basics right - and you work hard at that for sure - but then it's the little things that lift a hotel up to the next level. For example, we were arriving late and they had thought to have some nice fresh snacks in the fridge and a bottle of wine to welcome us. There is clearly a lot of work going on from housekeeping, to the care of the facilities, but it feels unobtrusive. I can't speak highly enough, and I do hope that we get the chance to stay here again.