Aelius Hotel & Spa

“Sen-sus-ational stay!”

We have just checked out of Aelius Hotel & Spa - we were virtually the last 3 guests to check out of the hotel before they close for the winter. Being there for the final week of the season has been both a blessing and a curse. If you had asked us after the first couple of days, I would have sai… more

We have just checked out of Aelius Hotel & Spa - we were virtually the last 3 guests to check out of the hotel before they close for the winter. Being there for the final week of the season has been both a blessing and a curse. If you had asked us after the first couple of days, I would have said 3 out of 5 as a rating, but at check out, the goodwill the staff have shown us this week has left an indelibly positive mark on us all. We had originally booked a junior suite which we were given when we arrived in the early hours last Saturday. The room was in the main block, just above Reception and it was a really great size; it was clean, we had a large balcony and an excellent mini-fridge (which we filled with water, soft drinks, wine and beer from the nearest Lidl!). The reason why we weren’t too enamored in the first couple of days probably was based on the hotel winding down for the end of the season. We reported that the bath plug mechanism didn’t work and we didn’t see anybody from the maintenance team. There were also no activities for children being run or a kids club (we had booked partly because most websites e.g. EasyJet & Booking.com list a kids club however the hotel definitely doesn’t have one anymore); the a la carte restaurant also closed completely mid-week (fortunately we had already had our 1 evening meal there but missed out on a breakfast), and the swimming pools were pretty cold (the main pool being the coldest!). The shower was also lukewarm at best. We spent a lot of the first half of the week going out from the hotel and taking the hire car on some adventures…visiting Heraklion, the Archeological Museum, the Palace of Knossos, Matala beach, Spinalonga Island and Mirabello Bay. If you are staying in late October and are here on the 28th, all the main sites are free entry as it is a national day - this saved us a huge amount of money! Once we got wind of being some of the only remaining guests in the hotel, our initial thoughts did a complete u-turn. We approached the hotel and asked if there was any possibility of moving into a room in the Sensus block - they agreed to this as the hotel was ultimately empty, so we had our last 48 hours in a swim-up room. They also allowed us to have our room until 6pm on our final day as we had an evening return flight to the UK. The change in our experience of the hotel was monumental - we had the Sensus pool, the snack bar and all the sun loungers and seating around that block to ourselves. It was the most wonderful 2-days to end our trip. The Sensus rooms are amazing - contemporary, tastefully designed, high-spec and sumptuous. The storage was lacking a little, but that is a smile gripe. We loved the bean-seat on the terrace and a Nespresso machine an excellent addition. As they were running down the snack bar, the staff threw in drinks/snacks from the bar by the sensus rooms despite us being half board and not all inclusive. Food - we never had to queue for anything; for breakfast, the fresh omelettes are a must, as is Greek yoghurt + nuts + honey. At dinner, the live cooking station was usually very good and there are many options which aren’t particularly repetitive. We loved the traditional ‘Cretan Corner’, especially the Dakos rusks+tomato+crumbled feta & olives. Our evening meal at the a la carte was superb and the service, excellent. Mattresses in the main block and sensus rooms were very soft, for me - I slept really well. Bed linen quality in the Sensus block really felt superior and more luxurious than the main block. Drinks-wise, we were half board so made the most of the mini fridge, but we did have the odd drink - 3/4 euros for a small beer and 4 euros for local wine. All in all, having experienced the two different halves of the hotel, I feel we can make a really informed comment about the hotel. The goodwill and service provided by the front of house reception staff was fantastic and we will not forgot how it transformed our staff; the restaurant staff were lovely (particularly Helena?) and quality of food was very good, despite them clearly winding down for the end of the season. We would definitely return (and definitely try to book a Sensus room from the very start next time).

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