To start, I must say we rarely visit anywhere more than once, so many places in the world to see and visit, however we had a lovely stay here 6 years ago and thought we’d give it another go for a weeks stay under its re-branding.||Prices have risen significantly since our last visit but we were offered a “returners” discount for our seaview “bungalow” which softened the blow a little. We booked our taxi transfers through Herakliotaxi dot com which I highly recommend, on time, clean cars and €150 return.||We were allocated the same room as last time which had experienced a little re-furb though nothing significant but the raffia type doors on the cupboards had some light staining on the door and were worn in areas. The air-conditioning worked very well, great quality linens and very comfy bed and pillows. The fridge is now bigger and had room to store any of your own purchases like wine or soft drinks from the supermarket in Plaka. A more powerful hairdryer would be appreciated and like an earlier reviewer mentioned there’s no real area to do hair and make up other than standing at the bathroom mirror. We only had one proper bedside table (with drawers) and only one side of the bed had a USB socket, a minor gripe but not really what you’d expect at this price point. Another irritation was the gap below the shower screen means water floods into the adjacent toilet cubicle unless you block it with a towel, it’s slow to clear down the toilet drain and takes ages for the floor to dry however the rooms were kept spotless by the twice daily visits by the friendly housekeepers and the gardens/grounds were well looked after. ||We still had a nice view across the bay towards Plaka 5-10 minutes walk away but like many reviews have stated there IS ongoing building development across at the other part of the Blue Palace which is VERY audible at times if you’re sitting outside on your terrace. Being honest it didn’t affect us too much as we couldn’t hear it inside the room, we were out of the room most of the day after breakfast and it had finished by the time we returned late afternoon but I’d have been pretty annoyed if I’d booked one the pool rooms below us expecting to spend my days quietly around it! I suspect the building works will carry on for the rest of the season as it’s due to re-open next year.||Beach – we spent a lot of time at the very breezy beach, yes it’s very stony and shelves steeply into the sea but there are a couple of pontoons for entry into the sea to swim. The sun shades could do with being a bit bigger as it’s nigh on impossible for both sunbeds to be under the shade completely but the beach was very quiet first week in June so you can easily just use another sunbed and shade each. The loungers are well spaced out on a wooden platform so a decent distance between you and your neighbours. It will be interesting to see how the sunbeds and shades are allocated or the beach split when the larger Blue Palace re-opens, hopefully there will still be enough sunbeds for all Phaea guests without having to get up at silly o’clock to reserve them! You are well looked after by Illas and Vassos (apologies if spelling incorrect) for drinks, food and towels and there is a bar and small shaded seating area for food at the back of the beach (with toilets behind) if you don’t want to eat at your lounger. Selection of beach food isn’t huge, mainly salads but the club gyros pita is delicious and easily serves 2 as does the trio of burgers! We didn’t use the pool area but did note there wasn’t much shade around it and there isn’t a shallow end/children’s pool. On this point I wouldn’t really recommend this hotel to families with small children; although high chairs are supplied and children’s menus available, the beach is not child friendly, it’s a very hilly layout to push a stroller/buggy and the playground is in full sun most of the day. ||Food – There was a big improvement in both the quality of food and service from our last visit, breakfast was a small buffet with delicious local pastries, breads and fruits and cooked to order items served til 11am. There is no full English on the menu but we tried a large selection, (omelettes, roasted tomatoes with eggs and feta, pancakes, eggs benny, local avocado) and all were delicious served by the lovely Maria and her friendly team. We ate dinner once at Anthos (the lamb was fabulous but with the potatoes and veg it would easily serve 3/4, not the 2 as stated!) and once at the Blue Door which was also delicious with great service - the lady (who I think was in charge) remembered us from our last visit! Yes the prices are a bit higher than you’d pay in Plaka 10 minutes walk away or Elounda ( about an hour’s walk or approx €10 in a taxi) but the food is lovely, portion sizes generous and menus and prices are all on the app (which is set up for you on your phone when you arrive) or you can request them to be emailed to you beforehand so you make your choice. Speaking of the app, it was really useful to order a golf buggy through it to take us down/back up the steep hill to the beach or to pick us up from the main road to take us back to our room after dinner in Plaka - never had to wait more than a minute or 2. ||To conclude although there were some minor irritations we still had a great stay, made all the better for the excellent service from all the employees we met.