Asterias Village Resort

“Yet another enjoyable vacation at Asterias Village.”

We first stated here in July 2023, it was during a serious heatwave which hit the region, so we came back again in October 2023. The hotel is such a welcoming place, with such great staff, it’s impossible to not enjoy your vacation in this region of Crete. We returned again this October 2024, to f… more

We first stated here in July 2023, it was during a serious heatwave which hit the region, so we came back again in October 2023. The hotel is such a welcoming place, with such great staff, it’s impossible to not enjoy your vacation in this region of Crete. We returned again this October 2024, to find all the same friendly faces that were there to welcome us once more.. Alex, Panos,Maria in the reception to Ana and he crew of bar / breakfast staff who were always on hand to serve bar drinks and food poolside with a daily warm welcome, offering a lovely day ahead. The hotel offers many different levels of accommodation to suit all tastes and requirements. All are daily cleaned, with the room staff visiting again with a smile. The hotel is built on a hillside, which offers great views from the pool/ sun bed area and most rooms of the view out to the bay overlooking Hersonnisis. The hotel is below the main village street which is navigated by 60 steps… Whilst this sounds daunting, it is well maintained, with good handrails if required. Sadly this has to be traversed each time you leave the hotel to go into the villages, but don’t let this put anyone off, as it is worth the effort by far. There is a slip road to the side of the hotel complex that gets you down to the pool level from the road, but this too is fairly steep, although this also offers decent steps too. Luggage upon arrival and departure will be dealt with safely by the hotel staff to ensure holiday goers don’t have to move their luggage themselves. The hotel has a small van to make the baggage run easier. On arrival the Olivia restaurant situated at the top of the main steps is part of the hotel, bags can be left there whilst you go to reception to book in, this is down at pool level. Upon leaving, bags left in reception and can be collected again in Olivia’s where the transfer vehicle will pick you up. Breakfast is from 8-11 each morning poolside, and is buffet style, with selection of hot food, cold meats/cheeses, usual cereals, pastries, cakes, tea, coffee, various fruit juices etc… each day a slight rotation of choices, enough to stave off hunger each day. Whilst it isn’t fine dining, it is very acceptable and starts off the day. We have very much come to appreciate this well placed Hotel and it’s friendly staff, as it’s position between two welcoming villages right on its doorstep, makes any vacation very relaxing. Finally upon this years visit to Asterias, we were very much surprised by the excellent enhancements and improvements to the poolside and its sun-bed areas. The improvement in these areas are exceptional. The new style sun-beds, large bean bag seating and semi shaded areas give an indulgence and chill out zone feeling that makes Asterias more home from home than ever….. ….we have already booked for 2025….. hopefully Alex and his staff can do us all proud once more… big thanks to the Asterias family. See you all soon. 👍🏻👍🏻

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“Good week at Asterias Village”

Arrived on Monday 14th and on arrival were met by Maria in reception, who could not help us enough over the whole holiday. We booked a Superior room which had a large bed, good balcony, excellent air conditioning, fridge and shower. We had booked breakfast every day and were not disappointed, lots… more

Arrived on Monday 14th and on arrival were met by Maria in reception, who could not help us enough over the whole holiday. We booked a Superior room which had a large bed, good balcony, excellent air conditioning, fridge and shower. We had booked breakfast every day and were not disappointed, lots of variety of cold and hot food to look after all tastes. Pool area is excellent with lots of sun beds, loungers and bean bags, pool very clean. Staff all friendly and very helpful. Only downside to the hotel is that there are a lot of steps, and some elderly people or unfit guests could struggle. Location is fabulous set between 2 small adjoining villages with loads of great restaurants serving traditional Greek food. Great holiday to relax and enjoyed the week.

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“Friendly staff, nice pool area. Rooms a bit disappointing.”

The Asterias Village itself is an attractive property built onto a hillside. There are a lot of steps to contend with which would be very difficult for anyone with mobility issues. Reception is by the pool at the bottom of the steps and staff will bring luggage down for you on arrival (although s… more

The Asterias Village itself is an attractive property built onto a hillside. There are a lot of steps to contend with which would be very difficult for anyone with mobility issues. Reception is by the pool at the bottom of the steps and staff will bring luggage down for you on arrival (although someone will need to make the journey down to reception to ask for this as there is no way to contact them from the top - a courtesy phone for this would be good). The pool area is attractive and well kept with very comfortable loungers, beds and bean bags. It was quiet during our stay (end of October) but considering the number of rooms at the property, I suspect it may get quite crowded in high season as Koutoulafari is not a beach resort. The pool bar and snack bar was reasonably priced and the food good. Views out over Hersonissos and the bay from the terrace were lovely. All staff were friendly and helpful. There is a free car park if you intend to hire a car - I would certainly recommend this and there are several options in the village (we used Orion who were excellent). We didn't use the main restaurant, but it looked nice. Pool towels can be provided (10eu deposit) We travelled as a family of four, staying in a one bedroom apartment. The beds were extremely comfortable with linen and towel changes every other day. Room was serviced daily. The apartment was clean and functional but was small and we felt was designed more for couples than a family group. Access to the balcony was only via the bedroom and the two beds in the living area did not convert to seating so aside from a small two seater table the only place to sit was on the beds. Balcony was small and again only had two chairs. We had upgraded to a sea view and although we could see the sea, it was off to the side and the view largely blocked by trees so a little disappointing. Kitchenette was very basic but sufficient for preparing snacks. Toaster, kettle and Nespresso machine provided. Aircon was free and effective. Room had a safe deposit box (2eu per night charge). TV only had two channels in English (both news) and appeared to have been locked from accepting streaming from tablets/phones. Bathroom was small and quite tired - grout lines mouldy in places, loose toilet seat, leaking shower screen etc. Hairdryer provided but not very powerful. As our transfer wasn't until the evening, we asked for late check out. This was charged at 30eu until 6pm (from 11am) and we had to move to a studio room. I don't know if the studio we were given was only used for this purpose or whether it is offered as a rental room, but if the latter I would have been disappointed. The room was dark, mouldy, smelt unclean and the shower/bathroom flooded easily. Overall, we did enjoy our stay at the Asterias Village. The public areas are very nice but based on our experience of the rooms, I think it's four star designation is optimistic - personally I would put it more at the 2/3 star level. Surrounding Area: The hotel is located between the pretty Cretan villages of Koutoulafari and Piskopiano, just a couple of minutes easy walk into both. There are plenty of gift shops and restaurants in the villages and everywhere we visited was very friendly. Prices did vary a little but typically we were spending around 20-25eu per person for a main meal. I felt the drinks were a bit on the expensive side (4-5eu for a soft drink, 5eu for a local beer, 10eu for a cocktail) but all the food we had was lovely. There is a small Spar shop opposite the hotel open until around 11pm daily for essentials. As it was the end of the season, some places had closed for the winter but there was still plenty to choose from. The nearest main town/beach is Hersonissos. Although its nearby in terms of distance, the roads leading down the hill are quite steep - not so bad on the way down, but a bit daunting coming back up! It took us about 25 minutes to walk down, but closer to 45 minutes back up. Although the roads through the villages are tiny, there is a surprising amount of traffic so do be careful when walking around. One final thing to be aware of and nothing to do with the hotel. If travelling with TUI, double check where the airport transfer collection point is. We were given the wrong information and very nearly missed the bus!

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“Hit and Miss.....”

We have just returned from a weeks stay at the Asterias Village, self catering. We were taken to our one bedroom apartment, very dated, but exceptionally clean. We found our balcony a bit 'sad', no view as such just looked at others front doors and roofs and extremely close to others, no privacy … more

We have just returned from a weeks stay at the Asterias Village, self catering. We were taken to our one bedroom apartment, very dated, but exceptionally clean. We found our balcony a bit 'sad', no view as such just looked at others front doors and roofs and extremely close to others, no privacy at all. Ok, so bed huge and extremely comfortable, air con very efficient and plenty of space, but bathroom old and tired. I dreaded having a shower every day, unable to amend the height and felt like needles due to the power and it's a step in the bath type. Cleaner would insist on knocking on the door at around 9am every day, and if told to give us more time had a bit of an attitude. No 'do not disturb signs' given. Some bath towels had dirty marks on, didn't know until about to use them, so a bit unpleasant and too late to complain when you're stood dripping in the shower. On a positive note, the pool area is lovely, bar snacks are delicious and great value for money and the staff are friendly and polite. This hotel/apartments are in a fabulous location for all of the restaurants/tavernas which are excellent. The chap in the supermarket across the road is great and will help you with anything you need. If you do book this hotel, my recommendation would be to get the best room you can as we were disappointed and would not stay here again. BTW, didn't ask for a change of room as the place appeared full, and speaking with other guests who were about to leave, they were not allowed to keep on their room as hotel was full.

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