Grecian Park Hotel — Hotel in Paralimni

We stayed here for 3 nights, ending our vacation in Cyprus. The hotel is big and has a nice pool. The beach also looks pretty but there are lots of stairs so we didn’t try going there because my mother has knee problems (they have a buggy but only once an hour apparently). Also, there are lots of boats and catamarans from excursions, with loud music that you’ll be able to hear from the lawn at the hotel way above… Around the swimming pool, you’ll have to move your sunbed around a little bit to find shade as the umbrellas are stuck to the ground and don’t tilt, but that’s ok. You can also buy ice cream by the pool (3,5 euros for 3 scoops I believe, and they also sell waffles and some other snacks). Our room was also spacious enough, and the beds were comfortable. There was also enough storage space and outlets to charge our gadgets. Unfortunately, we believe the floor wasn’t vacuumed once during our stay because we felt dirt under our feet the minute we arrived and it wasn’t from our shoes (and we didn’t go to the beach…). The breakfast buffet was generous (we loved the fresh orange juice machine), but we would have loved if it ran until a later hour (it ends at 10:30). We had full board, so we tried lunch (one day it was buffet - a bit limited -, another day a la carte) and we had dinner each evening at the hotel. And although the staff at the reception and at the store was friendly, we were disappointed with the some of the servers at the restaurant, especially the one we had more than once. He was borderline rude and we didn’t feel welcome at all (he asked where we were from and he told us he thought Portugal was a very strange country, in his own words… such an impolite thing to say to their guests!!). Also, there are lots of younger waiters and waitresses, who were much friendlier, but who struggled speaking English (simple things, like asking for the bill) and took a long time to refill our drinks (usually not a problem but since they put the wine bottles so far from our reach, it’s bothersome, since we had to go fetch the bottle ourselves) or to take our plates away. Also, the entertainment during dinner time is very much geared towards people in their 80-90’s (age wise, not decade of birth). The live singers only sang old (+++) songs and not good ones most of the time, and the dancing bit with the younger group seemed forced and tacky. We couldn’t understand their entertainment options since we saw a lot of people in their 20-50’s, so newer songs or a simple background relaxing music would have been preferred. It was worse than at a cruise for retirees. The gym facilities, on the other hand, were great. There’s also an indoor pool which we didn’t try. We also believe car parking reservations should be possible. We asked if we could reserve a spot and we were told they didn’t work that way but that it would be fine; it’s true we did find a spot, but the parking lot was almost full when we arrived during a weekday at 15:00 and some cars were so badly parked that our spot, for example (the only one we found), was super tight (and there’s no security, we believe, so maybe go check on your car once in a while whilst you’re on vacation if you’re not using it daily). Overall, we were happy with our stay (we can’t deny the hotel is big, especially the pool, and that the view is beautiful - although you won’t be able to see the sunset from the pool, the restaurant nor from your room) but we would love to see these 3 main things improved: service at the restaurant and better a la carte options full board should include at least a bottle of water per meal and, at least at dinner time, one glass of wine per person (as it was done on our first hotel in Cyprus in Paphos, which was “only” 4 stars) ; a bottle of water (0.75mL) is more than 4 euros and wines are around 30 euros or more a better personal experience should be provided (no one noticed at the reception nor at the restaurant that it was my mother’s birthday during our stay… at least a birthday card would...

Really pleasant stay, very close to being more 4 star than the 5 stars it has. The views, greenery and incredible day time staff are the main things keeping this hotel on top (the grounds really are beautiful!) but it’s due a much needed refurb and general ‘good scrub’.

ROOMS The rooms are pretty decent, a bottle of complimentary water on the first day, spacious, plenty of storage space, universal plugs inc USB charging docks, electric blinds & good AC... the bed is HUGE also! Had a turndown service which is expected in a 5* establishment but it was hit and miss if you got it each night, the maid also kept leaving her cleaning sprays in the room & forgetting to leave towels. The corridors however were a little shabby and needed a lick of paint and a good clean.

FOOD Breakfast had a good selection of pastries, continental meats and cheese, fresh omelettes & the choice of champagne if you wished.. however the cooked ‘full english’ side wasn’t appealing, sausages looked like hot dogs! Because of the amount of children in the hotel there was food all over the floor (not the hotels fault about the kids) but they could do a sweep when chance given and not leave it all breakfast! The waffle & pancake shack around the pool was AMAZING, highly recommend, the pool bar food was also really good.. but again, food all over the floor. It was also served on plastic plates which i thought strange for 5*.

POOL AREA Plenty of sunbeds, never a problem getting one, also appreciate the wooden beds with thick mattresses & waitress service so you don’t have to move if your lazy! Wifi stretches right round the pool area. The grassed areas were beautiful but the area around the pool itself (concreted parts) needed a good clean, the parasols included need a good cleaning. The pool bar is very dated and needs a refurb as it’s covered in rusted metal. I understand why they use plastic glasses around the pool as smashed glass and bare feet doesn’t go down well.. but reusable plastic quality glasses would be better than thin disposable cups - especially as the hotel ‘takes environmental awareness seriously’.

CLIFF BAR & BEACH The beach is gorgeous, crystal blue water, smaller than others which we liked as it wasn’t busy and hectic. The walk down to the beach is picturesque and a good workout (free shuttle offered at reception). The cliff bar’s views are to die for, however twice we went and walked straight back out, the first time we went for it opening at 1pm as we had places to be, no one was there and everything covered with sheets, 15 mins later staff appeared and said “20 minutes” which we couldn’t wait so left. The second time we left due to being shoved on a tiny table when there was lots of other tables free and when asked to move caused upset & they would walk past not taking our order so just left. We did manage to eat and drink there on two other occasions and the service was fab!

STAFF The breakfast staff are really pleasant, friendly & attentive. The pool bar staff are amazing, so so helpful and fun, we spent a lot of the day sitting at the bar, chatting & drinking their creations, really lovely people! Gym staff & instructors are fab also, always smiling & welcoming. Reception staff/managers could smile once in a while (maybe because they’re stuck behind a dated desk), the man who checked us in when we arrived at 11pm was a bit rude, i thought he had finished talking so asked if our room was a double or twin & he obviously hadn’t as he just looked at us and said “can i continue?”.

LOCATION £10 taxi to Protaras & £15 taxi to Ayia Napa - or you can use the hotel shuttle bus to get to Ayia Napa every 2 hours. We walked to Fig Tree Bay beach one day which took just under 50mins and was a nice stroll, we also walked along to Capo Greco church which took 25 mins and would highly recommend, gorgeous stroll & views, cool caves also for swimming around!

Over all a brill holiday & would recommend to...

Pros: • General Manager involved with dealing with issues. • Hotel is clean and there are plenty of nice facilities. • Although the beach is a bit of a hike, it's very nice, and you can take a car down. • Very calm and quiet atmosphere. • Pool is lovely with no boisterous activities • Pool staff are professional and friendly, and service is great. • Plenty of very comfortable sun beds which you can get service to.

Cons: • Air con in room not sufficient enough. Temperature was hotter outside in the evening. • Reluctance to let us move to a different room. • Unhelpful staff that seemed to put the blame on us for any problems. • Communication/language barriers at night. • If your room has a problem, you can't get it sorted unless it's in the day. • Many of the facilities are charged, including gym. The pool table is also 2 euros as opposed to the typical 1.

On arrival, it was all very promising. Welcoming and lovely looking hotel, although it took nearly half an hour standing at reception to be checked in but told this was due to training.

Our bags were bought to our room, and the air con was set up and explained to us by the staff.

It was 28° in the room upon arrival, not comfortable and very humid. The air con was taking a very long time to make any difference, but we left it on and went out to explore and have dinner in Protaras.

We got back to the hotel room around midnight, which was still 25°. I called reception, which rang through twice before being answered, and asked for a fan or to repair the air-conditioning.

A porter was sent up, and he told us the air con wasn't on correctly and to give it 30 minutes to cool down. We gave it an hour, and the room just got hotter since we were now in it. The outside temperature was at 24° but the room was at 25°.

We called again, and the porter returned, played with the aircon, and put it on fan mode as it would bring in the "cooler" outside air. While that may have been so, it certainly was still not cool, and the room didn't drop below 25° all night. We weren't allowed to move room or offered a fan and told the maintenance man starts in the morning so there's nothing they can do.

Deciding to have a cold shower to try and cool down, we discovered the drainage was blocked, and the whole bathroom and entrance way became flooded.

After having a total of 3 hours of sleep between us, we went down in the morning and explained the situation to the daytime reception staff. They told us, if you want anything sorted for the room, you have to call during the day. Offered no apology and told us to wait in the hotel for the maintenance man.

He sorted the drainage for the shower and told us the air con should work.

The general manager got involved to assist us with our issues and offered his apologies and some complimentary items. Maintenance was again sent to get the aircon working. On returning to the room after being out all day, it had gone down to 23°, but in order to maintain this, the black out blinds need to stay closed and us kept in the dark.

The room is now comfortable and settles at 21.5° but not as cool as every other air-conditioned hotel I've stayed in. The hallway is hot, and the air-con fan at the entrance seems to not be working while the other one blows at the ceiling.

Being relocated to a room with fully functional air-conditioning that did not have the sun beating down on it all day would have resolved the issues and created a more...