Semiramis Village

4 stars? In my opinion, is a 2 star hotel and I’ll tell you why: 1. We were accommodated on the 5th floor, there is an elevator until the 1st floor only and we had to carry our luggage up the endless stairs by ourselves. If it was just me and my husband it wasn't a problem but we were with our mothers who have an advanced age and locomotory problems. It was a pain for them to go up and down a mountain. 2. Food was THE SAME for 7 days at the breakfast, lunch and dinner. They don't have labels that let us know what we're eating, their waitresses don’t speak English, they didn’t know what to tell me about what I’m supposed to eat. No selections for people with gluten and lactose intolerance. Food is semi-prepared, nothing fresh and consistent. Alcoholic beverages tasted like piss and so are juices. The still water tasted like oil. The sparkling one was good (this is all that you have good in your hotel, THE SPARKLING WATER). A horrible dining experience! A lady was washing her hands at the water dispenser in the restaurant. I got the attention of the supervisor, he said “sorry” and kept on talking with somebody else in my face! The waiters do not speak English, so you can’t tell them if you have some allergies or to ask them what you are eating! I asked for directions to some places to visit and they said “no English”. At the bar there are drinks for a fee, which were served in a pleasant manner by Emmanuel - the only one who knows bit of an international language! There are never free tables and chairs on the terrace, the pool is always full, and if you're looking for peace, know that you won't get anything like it! 3. The rooms from the time of Zeus, the rusty bathroom, the toilet dirty and full of hardened faeces in the toilet bowl, soap smelling of strong chemicals, the shower pressure too strong, if you showered after a day at the beach it would sting your skin. The rusty beds where you felt like you were in prison. It can be heard when the neighbor needed himself in the bathroom, including when he was having intimate moments with his partner. We had a mini lake on the balcony, because all the water coming out of the air conditioner was leaking onto the balcony. The AC was from 1960’s. No power at all. I paid a fee of 50€ for two rooms for air conditioning. Yes, the AC is free but you have to pay for it. The good thing is that the towels were changed every two days, and the linens were changed every 3 days. No water in the room, no coffee machine, no tea, no iron, no slippers, no bathrobe. 4. The distance to the beach is not very long, but you have to cross a road with cars and there are no pedestrian crossings. Only two mini markets nearby and a wild beach where you sit on the sand as there are no sunbeds or umbrellas. I went one evening to the Stalida beach and I recommend you to go there. You can find lots of restaurants with good food (Atki's was brilliant), souvenir shops, you can go around on a scooter - we paid €40 for a scooter for the day. All in all, the moments spent at the hotel were horrible. I'm sorry I chose this hotel, it's not like the pictures. Zero benefits for €4k paid. We were dying of hunger with what you provided! The General Manager needs to have some trainings about hospitality! Is not possible to provide that kind of services and be named a 4 star hotel! Is not possible to have no elevators and forcing your guests to climb 300 stairs daily! Horrible service, horrible staff service, horrible food and drinks, horrible rooms!

This hotel is rated a 4 star hotel and unfortunately there are a few to many things that let it down and would not consider it to be 4 star it’s more like 3. When we arrived at the hotel we were greeted by a nice man who checked us in. The staff were very pleasant to deal with and welcoming. Unfortunately we were given a room at the highest point of the hotel and there was only a lift to the first floor. We arrived in the afternoon and it was about 34 degree heat which we then had to carry our suitcases up 5 flights of stairs outside with no help from staff. The room was clean and spacious and we were given fresh towels every other day, however the rooms are outdated and need to be refurbished but this didn’t bother us to much. The air conditioning didn’t turn off in our room which did end up being a little bit of a issue as in the night we would wake up freezing cold in the room. The food at this hotel is not 4 star standard. It’s very basic, same type of pasta every day, a small selection of salad, some sort of fish everyday and a different meat but selection was small and basic. The soft drinks machine was occasionally broken and it was usually warm with no ice. Some of us from our group did become unwell and we were convinced it was from the food as we thought that it was reused the next day at lunch. The pool area was okay. Some days it did feel over crowed and we ended up leaving and going to the beach just so we could relax. The walk to the beach was around 20 minutes away which wasn’t to bad however you could get a taxi to malia and they also had a beach. The taxi was €15 each way which we thought was reasonable and you can ask at reception for one. There are no cocktails included in the all inclusive drinks. You can pay to have a cocktail and they were around €7-€9 each. The selection of drinks again is small. Beer, wine and a small selection of spirits. This included vodka, gin, and rum. There was also coffee and tea available at the pool area. They also don’t provide beach towels so make sure to take one or you can buy one from the local shop which was down the road outside the hotel. The location of the hotel is close to malia which was a 15 minute taxi and the other way was hersonissos which again was 15-20 mins away. Be prepared to do a lot of walking as the hotel is up a big hill and then steps to all the rooms. Overall we did enjoy our holiday but the food and drinks selection let it down massively.

This could be a long one....... I have very mixed feelings. Hotel itself is in a beautiful setting. Room outdated no tea or coffee in rooms but thats okay plenty at breakfast. No pool towels available they do not offer the service. You have to pay extra for cocktails as not part of all inclusive. The only drinks are orange, cola, lemonade water. Then rum, gin, vodka or raki. All served in plastic cups. You also have to pay extra if you want an icecream outside of meal times. The only snacks available are from 3.00 pm which is pizza most days the occasional bread roll and pastry. No bus service to beach even though this hotel is on very steep hill. No air conditioning during day in restaurant and you have to eat inside you are not allowed outside for meals. There were temperatures reaching over 30 degrees!! Air conditioning turned off during night due to 'electricity costs' Majority of staff were lovely. Food was always fresh but very very limited. Dont really cater for children and if you are gluten intolerant do not go there you will starve. If you are a non smoker very limited in the outdoor space to sit in a smoke free zone. Entertainment only once a week. Nothing else at all just music playing. Would I go back there? No I wouldnt, shame as it could be a beautiful place. Crete itself is a lovely island and there must be plenty of lovely hotels. I personally will go back to Crete just not this hotel as rather dissapointing.