Iolida Beach by Smile Hotels

the welcome was pleasant and the employee's explanation was very informative, in relation to the hotel in general it is pleasant, but honestly it did not deserve the 4 stars it boasts. First we had an upgrade where the apartment we chose did not have a sea view and we were given the same one with a sea view, but this view was 150m away, which in my opinion is very far, secondly, on both nights so the air conditioning was throwing water while we slept, we complained and the problem was solved, thirdly, at the end of the day we never had hot water, we complained and the problem remained, but the worst thing was the allocation of the apartments, we traveled with another family of 3 people, This family also had an upgrade in their apartment, they were given a superior suite that was larger than the apartment we were in, we, who were 4 people, stayed in a smaller apartment than the family of 3 people... In terms of the restaurant, the food was delicious but Nothing spectacular, what surpassed it was the friendliness of the staff.

We had a wonderful week at Iolida Beach Hotel in mid-August. The beachfront location and serene atmosphere were perfect for a relaxing getaway. The staff was kind and attentive, adding to the overall pleasant experience. The food was enjoyable, with breakfast being a bit repetitive but still offering plenty of options. The hotel is split into two sections: the beachside, where breakfast, snacks, and drinks are served, and the "over the road" side, where lunch and dinner are offered. We particularly loved the Greek dishes and the variety available at lunch and dinner. Our room on the "over the road" side was spacious and comfortable, with a kitchenette and daily housekeeping. Though the furniture was slightly worn, it didn’t affect our comfort. The sandy beach and friendly staff were definite highlights. The only downside was some guests wearing wet bathing suits to lunch. A dedicated changing room on the beachside would be a nice addition. Overall, Iolida Beach Hotel provided a relaxing and enjoyable stay, and we’d happily return.

We have just returned from a wonderful week at this hotel. Food was incredible and having the choice of two pools was perfect! Room was cleaned every day Young man helped us with luggage on our arrival and we were always happily greeted during our stay. This is the most my 6 year old has ever eaten on holiday so there really was something for everyone! Would love to visit again in the future x

Fantastic hotel, a solid 3-4 star, all inclusive experience for families and couples. Facilities - 2 pools, very clean, decent size, safe access across the road via a bridge. Beach is beautiful, clean, you pay for sunbeds (~10Euros for 2 for the day). Rooms very clean, tidy and well kept. In our room the safe was broken, but minor issue only. All inclusive food and drinks - very good, good variance day to day (it is still an all inclusive). Staff - all fun, inclusive, great attitude and friendly. Its not mandatory but would recommend occasional tipping. Recommend: Learn some Greek language basics its fun and shows the locals you are making an effort. Bus trip into Chania (they only take cash) to see the Old Town Marina, evening is best, note very busy but beautiful Hotel massage team - great massage, expensive, recommend haggling but worthwhile. Waterpark - good fun, get the mini train.

This hotel is very underwhelming. The first negative, and the overwhelming one at that, was the food. A very cold, bland and small selection for food at breakfast, lunch and dinner was common every single day of our holiday. The meats were all incredibly dry and flavourless, with only one main meat (plus a fish selection) on offer every dinner time. Me and my partner stayed 7 nights, all inclusive, and we chose to eat out on 3 occasions as the food was so poor. We wish we’d have eaten elsewhere on all 7 nights. The snack bar, open from 12-17:30, was similarly a small and bland selection, with pizza on offer 3/7 days a week, on other days was small things like pre-made cling-filmed sandwiches, and chicken nuggets and undercooked chips. On to drinks, the Pepsi was often in one bar area, often out of order in the other, which was obviously incredibly frustrating. The cocktails while a small selection, were delicious, however were only served up until 11pm. After then, you were required to pay (even if you were all inclusive like us). On to the room. It was incredibly inaccessible, about a 4 minute walk from the reception, part of this walk being across a main, busy road. We received no help with our luggage on arrival or on departure. Our room was incredibly hard to locate due to a lack of visible signage, which was incredibly frustrating. I say the room is inaccessible as there are so many stairs and steep ramps, making it near-on impossible if you were to have a wheelchair or pushchair. The bed was lovely (2 single beds together), air conditioning worked perfectly, Wi-Fi strong and fast, the view on our Studio Sea View was lovely, a small-ish balcony but just about big enough to fit 2 people on the table and chairs with a small clothes-horse. The bathroom however, was awful. The shower was in the corner of the bathroom, with the floor as a sort of slab. The slab was loose, and had a tipping point on it, incredibly dangerous. The drainage system was also absolutely terrible. There was a drain in the middle of the room, that was it. The water from a shower would slowly trickle down the drain, leaving the bathroom floor soaking for hours after a shower. There were 2 pools at this hotel and a children’s pool. We only used one pool, by The Bridge restaurant, and it was ok. The same depth throughout the pool, but it was clean and did the job for cooking when the sun got too much. The thing that shocked me the most with the pools, is that during our stay there was a lifeguard on duty on only 2 of the days, for about 2 hours each day, which is incredibly dangerous. The entertainment, to put it simply, was non-existent. There was a woman with a saxophone who played (poorly) 2 nights during our stay. There was also a DJ night, which if you were expecting some lively music, think again, very dreary music that added little to nothing to the night. There was a TV in the reception area of the hotel, and we stayed during the euros, however the TV was not sw

Iolida Beach Resort is in a superb location right on the beach in Agia marina. The room was spacious and comfortable with clean linen. The room was made up spotlessly every day. The food was excellent, although the bridge restaurant was little like a canteen the staff there were excellent, clearing tables as soon as they were vacated and setting them up for the next customers. It's best to try and work out the quieter times to dine there as it can get quite noisy at busy times. The beach bar and restaurant where breakfast and snacks are served was again excellent. Attentive staff and great food and drinks (only local shorts and beers included in the all inclusive but we found that very acceptable). Again the bar and waiting staff here were great. There are two pools. One by the beach and one on the other side by the main bridge restaurant. We only used the beach pool because this tended to have a bit more of a cooling breeze. The sun loungers and parasols here are at a bit of a premium. It does say you can't reserve them but that gets ignored so get there early to grab yours. There are more loungers and parasols right on the beach but they are extra. As far as extras go. They charge 10EU per week for beach towels which you can change every other day and 25EU for a safe key. We did venture out for dinner a couple of times to break it up a bit, even though the food in the hotel was excellent. If you look a little bit behind the sea front there are a few little gems of restaurants/tavernas serving great Cretan dishes. We found Taverna Roka just 10 mins stroll from the hotel which is a family run Taverna set back from the main tourist area. The staff were excellent as was the food with huge portions and all at very reasonable prices. All in all a very enjoyable week in the sun at and excellent spot on the lovely island of Crete.

Good points first Great swimming pool on the star side with plenty of sunbeds . fantastic pool swim up bar Good Drinks - but limited in an all inclusive package Friendly in the reception area Food was good bar staff beach side bar Pleasant and nice Not so good Food for Gluten free or Dairy free very limited no ice creams in diary free during the day for kids Entertainment was very limited Rooms Star side very out dated balcony very small hard to get out with sofa in the way . sea view was very minimal with a lot of building site to be seen hassle going across different hotel for breakfast with star side bar shutting early Rude bar staff star side Also need to pay for drinks from 11pm Not sure why the beach side is more updated , than the star think it would be better if was updated star side

We have just returned from our family holiday here and our stay was perfect from start to finish. The hotel was clean and staff were so friendly; they couldn't do enough for you especially Dimitri who worked tirelessly at the bar to make everyone's holiday special. The variety of food was outstanding and was delicious; they catered for all ages. The hotel is in 2 parts each with its own pool seperated by a road however there is a bridge to get to each side. The beach starts where the hotel ends, bonus! Plenty of drink and ice cream variety could not fault this hotel, we will be returning!