Atlantica Kalliston Resort — Hotel in Municipality of Chania

Apologies for the lengthy review, but we cannot praise the Atlantica Kalliston Resort in Crete enough!||We booked this holiday 13 days before travelling, so had chosen this hotel without doing any research beforehand & in all honesty we're glad we did because it was perfect. We usually book hotels that are 3 star, so this was an upgrade in every sense for us. If you're not used to 5 star, this hotel will blow you away - it certainly did with us.||We were greeted with a warm welcome by Iryna, who informed us we had been upgraded to a deluxe double sea view room (we were secretly hoping to be upgraded to a swim up pool room!). She asked us to take a seat and she would walk us through the hotel and package whilst we had a welcome drink - we believe it was a sangria, but it was absolutely delicious and much needed after arriving from England into 34° heat!||Room: we were in room 231, which is smack bang in the middle of the hotel overlooking the lagoon pool & with perfect sea views. The glass wall between the bedroom and shower was interesting, but we soon got used to it! (There is a curtain if you're a bit shy so can shower in peace!) There was a bottle of white wine and a bowl of fruit waiting for us in the room, as well as two bottles of water (you can refill these at the pools for free throughout the holiday), and we thought this was a lovely touch. The room was perfectly air conditioned and kept the room constantly cool. The bed was the most comfy bed we've ever slept in, and we had the best nights sleep over the week. Our balcony overlooked the pool, which gave us some entertainment in the evenings before dinner whilst we enjoyed a drink and cards whilst watching people in the pool below! The rooms are cleaned daily, though there isn't a set time so you may see the cleaner as early as 10am or as late as 4pm - this didnt bother us at all and we worked around her schedule where possible. Our cleaner, Dorina, was an absolute superstar and deserves huge praise - she always greeted us with a smile and we stopped to say good morning which went a long way, she was always cheerful & a couple of times we came back to our room where she had placed flowers in a heart on our bed - this was an extra special touch, and we learned she had picked flowers from her home to do this - thank you again Dorina. She is an absolute asset to Atlantica Kalliston.||Food: we were half board - breakfast & dinner. You can change to have lunch rather than dinner, but we weren't hungry around lunchtime so stuck with dinner. The buffet has a lot of variety, so plenty of choice if you're a bit fussy. The desserts were out of this world, and it was tough trying to not fill up your plate with one of everything! The breakfasts were great too - full english breakfast if you want to fill up, as well as crepes, pancakes, and tonnes of breads and fruits. On a couple of days, we had gyros at lunchtime which were absolutely delicious and massive (would recommend sharing if there's two of you & you're not starving!). The staff were incredible, they were very busy but made time to say hello and have a quick chat. They are very quick to clear your plates and refill your glasses if they become empty (something we were not used to!) A massive shout out to Artemis, Eva, Anastasia, Vasiliki, Chrisi, Antonia, Nenad, Konstantina, and Nikos (and any others we may have forgotten). They all went above and beyond, and we found ourselves in conversation with them all, they seemed pleased to see us each morning & evening and always greeted us with smiles and handshakes (and even hugs!). They all work so hard to keep the place running smoothly, and deserve all the praise.||You can book the italian and greek restaurants who have an a la carte menu once each over the week if you want to give them a try. We didnt try the italian, but gave the greek restaurant a go. If we're honest, it wasn't that great and the menu is limited. Although very well presented & the staff were fantastic, we felt the food in the buffet was much better. |If you download the app, you can order food to your table when you're at the beach, pools, or at the bar. We didnt do this as we prefer to interact face to face to keep the personal touch, but others used it with ease.||Location and hotel: as others have said, you can get a bus into Chania, which is located outside the hotel. The supermarket over the road sells the tickets (make sure you get a return) at a cost of less than 2 euros each. We would recommend venturing into Chania, though it does get very busy, so maybe go first thing in the morning. Buses are every 20 minutes, which is great. |The hotel itself is located on the seafront in a bay, which is beautiful. We walked around the coast to two other beaches, which are absolutely worth a visit - clear waters and lots to explore if you enjoy snorkelling.|The hotel is quite vast, and it is easy to get a little lost, however, if you have a walk around on day 1 you will soon find your way around!|The hotel was very clean, and well signposted so you can find your way. The views overlooking the bay are stunning & the sunsets are beautiful from the terrace.||Pools and facilities: there are 3 pools - the lagoon, main pool, and indoor pool. We didnt use the indoor pool as this was part of the gym (which we also didn't use). The lagoon pool was our favourite - it had a sloped entrance to walk into and only came up to shoulder height at the deepest part. It also has a bar in the centre, so you can swim up and have a seat whilst enjoying a drink! Kristina and Manolis were great, they were always happy to see us and stopped for a chat, which gave the personal touch. ||The main pool was a little deeper, which meant you can have a good swim, and we liked that it had steps going into it as well as a slope for those who might have mobility issues. There is a "hot tub" pool as well, and it was great to sit in some bubbles in the sunshine - definitely use this pool! The pools do not have much shade, so be careful when UV is at its highest!||The music around the pools is fairly modern dance and didnt bother us at all, it added to the atmosphere and drowned out the cicadas which were in full force chirping away! |We enjoyed a couples cretan massage which was incredible - its a little expensive but absolutely worth it. We felt so relaxed after & our skin felt amazing! There is also a coffee shop on site, which we didnt use but could see others did, and a little ice cream shop, which was much needed after a day in the sun.||Entertainment: there was a bit of entertainment each evening...we enjoyed some cheesy music from Viva Las Divas, which may not be everyones cup of tea, but it got a lot of people on the dancefloor! There was also a group playing music with traditional cretan instruments & another couple of ladies who played violin (sorry, we can't remember the names) but these were great - we played cards in the evening at the bar & it was lovely to have this in the background.||We would absolutely book the Atlantica Kalliston again in a heartbeat, just for the staff alone - they really did make a lovely holiday great. We didn't have any gripes at all, but maybe next time we will book a swim up room so we can enjoy the...

We arrived very late at night due to our flight being delayed, I was disappointed when the coach pulled up as I didn't expect it to be on such a busy road. Went to reception to check in and the guy on reception took ages as he was trying to scan our passports the wrong way round. Told to sit in reception to wait for our luggage to be taken to our room offered a non alcoholic drink nice. Finally got to our room we had chosen a deluxe with inland view, I thought this might be mountains but it was another block of apartments and a car park. If you stood up you could see the sea over the car park. First night noisy as the road is extremely busy all night and the security light shone through the toilet window so lit the whole room up. Not keen on the toilet and shower doors as no privacy you can see someone sat on the toilet. Great shower had an overhead and a hand held walk in shower, no need to take toiletries everything is there gorgeous shampoo and shower gel, tiny bottle of conditioner but I did ask for another and this was supplied. Body lotion also a travel size but smelt lovely. Given change of towels every day foot mat and face cloths. When we arrived their was a bottle of wine and fruit much needed as no where was open when we arrived. Bed and pillows really comfy with a light duvet on top. Our Aircon didn't seem cold but ok really until we mentioned it and the maintenance guy sorted it. There was a small fridge, iron and ironing board a huge TV, expresso coffee machine and pods and a little kettle with teas, coffees, sugar and milk topped up daily.|The balcony was a good size a table fixed to the terrace and 2 quite comfy chairs it was missing an airer to dry clothes like some of the other terraces had but it did have a towel rail and found a suitcase stand so used that. Shady terrace got a bit of evening sun not much.|Food good variety but Luke warm at best by the time your bread is toasted your other items cold. Nice desserts and plenty of fruit or ice cream. The mushroom soup and carrot and curry ones were lovely and hot!! Plenty variety of bread rolls and bread.|We were half board but ate lunch at a nearby restaurant called Piato lovely food had a swimming pool you could use for 4 euros per day and had accomodation which we may consider, all the food home cooked by mamma who was amazing.|There are signs saying no reserving of sunbeds before 08.30 but if you didn't then you had to sit on the beach. There are 3 pools and a jaccusi style pool and an indoor pool. We mainly used the small pool by block 6 could usually get sun beds. There are 2 sets of double sun beds on the main pool but you have to pay for those, didn't use the natural pool as looked like a dirty lake. Didn't use the indoor pool or gym so can't say about them. Towels for pool or beach supplied and you can swap daily. Entertainment is pretty awful there was a duet a guy on the guitar who played and sang sorry he was truly awful the girl playing keyboard and singing was far better. Another night piano dreadful out of tune, 2 ladies on the violin who looked bored, the only 2 that were watchable were some ladies from Poland and Hungary who danced one sang but sadly the sound let them down they should have had their own speakers. We also saw a trio of ladies from South Africa very good their voices are great. Pool bar only used twice in the evening as only open when entertainment was on there. You do get poolside and beach service for drinks however if you are half board you do give you're room number and sign for your drinks the same in the buffet restaurant. You then pay this bill at reception either at the end or daily. There is a local tax to be paid at reception too.|Staff are all polite the team in the main restaurant work well together Antonia lives up to her reputation on here and extremely helpful and friendly, there was a new member of staff who was being trained during our stay and she looks like she is going to be a great assit well done Armetis you've started well.|There are a few bars/restaurants nearby but be careful crossing the road it is extremely busy. The shop across the road sells all sorts alcohol, snacks, pharmacy things and gifts the staff there are lovely too. You can buy return tickets for the bus to Chania either No 15 or 21 but we never saw a 15. Tickets cheaper from the shop only 1.20 euros each way 2 on the bus, if you buy a return it helps as it gets busy in Chania and if you have a ticket you can usually hop on instead of going through the front for paying. Chania is a must the port is gorgeous and a must is a horse and carriage ride as drivers very informative. The harbour is also gorgeous.|I have attached some photos of the room and view and some of the hotel, Chania port and harbour.|We celebrated our 10th wedding anniversary whilst there and the hotel surprised us with a cake and prosecco which was a nice surprise.|The swim up rooms didn't seem to use their sunbeds so might be why not enough beds.|Enjoyed our stay but the hotel is really a 4-star at best.|It's not really a hotel for younger couples as the average age is...

My daughter and I have just had a very nice week at the Atlantica Kalliston. Here are our thoughts.||Pros: |Excellent location, only a 30 min transfer from airport and|Short bus ride into Chania town (buy bus tickets in a shop and you will save money!)|Fabulous pool(s)|Right by a lovely sandy beach|Low rise buildings, no 'block of flats' feel|Never felt crowded|Beautiful sunsets every night|Adult only|Nice modern decor|Really lovely staff|Exceptional storage in rooms - hate living out of a suitcase when hotels don't provide enough|Supremely comfortable beds!|Kept nice and clean.|In rooms you can put toilet paper in toilet rather than bin!|Food was good. ||We chose half board which we were pleased with. You can change your dinner to a lunch if you want to go elsewhere in the evening, in which case you can go to their Greek restaurant for a good salad buffet or get something from the a la carte menu. Drinks are always extra (we aren't big enough drinkers to get a drinks package) but we found a Cretan rose which was very nice and reasonable. You can also have one meal at the Italian and one at the Greek restaurant as part of your package. Plus there was an Asian which is outside everyone's package (I believe) which we did treat ourselves too. All restaurants were very good. Breakfast was a vast buffet - practically everything you could think of, something for everyone, with waitress service at your table for coffee/juice. Nice position of buffet restaurant, overlooking the pool area.||Bedrooms had lots of storage - nothing worse than not being able to properly unpack. An unusual set up with basin and shower within the bedroom! Shower was behind an opaque glass door. Benefit is that basin/shower/toilet could all be used separately. Beds were sublime - it was actually hard to leave them!||Pools were lovely but we liked the 'lagoon' best with its gentle slope into the water, only shoulder deep, perfect temperature, nice planting around it. We always found a sunbed by pool but despite the fact it's not supposed to be permitted, we had to resort to putting our towels out before breakfast as everyone else did it and we may not have got one otherwise. There is always 'pop' music played around the pool, didn't bother us, but some may prefer it quieter - maybe it is around the other pools?||Sea was gorgeous, though we did find the navy cushions on the beach sunbeds got way too hot so we couldn't use them.||Cons:|We went to a similar resort last year and liked that a member of staff took the time to show us around and give us some information. Here we were just taken to our room and shown the a/c (never really got the hang of it, it was a bit hit and miss but super cool!) and as a result we got to the end of day 3 before we found out that we could change our beach towels daily in the gym, buy cheaper bus tickets in the supermarket opposite, book restaurants on touch screen machines etc. The hotel is a bit of a maze so a map with the location of restaurants/gym/spa etc would have been useful!|The 'entertainment' wasn't really necessary. There were singers, dancers, musicians each night but hardly anyone went to watch and it was all ok but not worth going out of your way to see.|To economise we chose a room with an inland view as it was practically £100 each to have anything better. What we did not expect, was a busy coast road running right past our doors. It may have only been a single carriageway but it is well used and when a motorbike went past we certainly knew it. I would upload a video, but don't think I can! The a/c slightly muffled it but we feel very strongly that these rooms should be marketed as noisy (at a lower price), or at very least the doors should be soundproofed - I don't go on holiday to stay in a room noisier than my own at home. As a result we never used our terrace which is a shame. A couple of times we were approached by staff members asking if all was ok and we mentioned it both times. Both times they took details but didn't offer any solution. We aren't the type to make a big fuss so we just got on with it, but it would have been nice if they had attempted to talk to us about it and/or offered us a different room?|Lastly, if you don't wish to return to your room to use the toilet whilst round the pool there are public toilets dotted around. Useful, but who on earth decided that they should have glass doors?! It may be patterned glass but there is no privacy whatsoever and women in particular need this. As I washed my hands one day the mirror very clearly reflected a lady in the cubicle behind me completely removing her swimsuit... After this I made the (long) journey back to our room to avoid them. It also seemed that the shower cubicle by the indoor pool/gym area had the same glass - this cubicle is visible by both men and women from outside the gym area as they pass by. I cannot think of any circumstance when glass doors are acceptable in public toilets and showers - unless they are blacked out.||Overall it's a lovely hotel and we had a very...