Stelios Stalis - Superb Stay! (Stelios Stalis Apartments (Crete, Greece))

Member Name: Luvlylana

Product:	Stelios Stalis Apartments (Crete, Greece)
Date:	23/01/09 (465 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great location, low cost

Disadvantages: Basic by standards of travellers used to Spain and the like

In June this year, myself and my boyfriend travelled to Crete for a one week holiday in Stalis. We chose the Stelios Stalis Apartments as they were not too expensive and in a very good location.

When we arrived, we were allocated room 324, and paid for our air conditioning and safety deposit box straight away - both were an absolute necessity, especially the air conditioning, as without it the heat would have built up during the day and been stifling when we arrived home at night.

Room 324 overlooks the sea and you can see the Stalis beach road and the mountains rain or shine. Luckily from the 10th to the 17th June there was only one feeble attempt at rain one evening, which only lasted five minutes! It was very clean inside, and had all the basic essentials - TV, hair dryer, cutlery, cooker, shower, bath etc. The one thing I would say is that my bed sheets were ripped, and though the maid came pretty much every day, these were not replaced.

Also, any of you that have been to Greece before will be aware that the sewage system does not cope well if you put loo paper in the toilet, and therefore it must be put in a bin in the bathroom. Again our maid was wonderful in that she took the bin away daily to prevent any nasty consequences!

Stelios Stalis has two adult pools (one of which was quite slippy), a children's pool, a play park, a bar/restaurant, internet access, a playstation 2, poolside games (i.e. air hockey, snooker etc.) and a poolside library with a range of books donated by previous customers.

The food in the restaurant was delicious, though we did try and eat out in Stalis, Malia and Herssonnisos for more authentic Greek cuisine. The staff rotated from the reception to the bar, but whoever was on duty at the time was always very willing to help.

The hotel runs entertainment in the bar every night, ranging from karaoke to bingo to quizes, and on a Sunday they organise a Cretan barbeque with traditional entertainment and local wine (which apparently isn't all that nice, but is given free anyway!). Unfortuneately when we were there, not enough people had expressed an interest in attending the Cretan night, and therefore it did not take place that week. It was rather disappointing, but at the same time the hotel needed time to organise buying food etc, so it wasn't really their fault because people didn't give enough notice.

A staff member mans the reception day and night, and so when the time came for us to travel home (just after 2am), checking out was a very swift operation and did not leave us panicing about whether we would be ready for the coach in time.

I would recommend the appartments to a variety of different people. Firstly young couples - myself and my boyfriend had not been on holiday alone before, and I don't think we could have had a smoother stay anywhere else. Families are also very welcome, as there are a facilities scattered around the hotel that children would enjoy, and you are in close proximity to local water parks, shops and attractions. Older couples would also enjoy it as it is not too loud (the management have signs everywhere asking guests to walk quietly through the building if they arrive in after 11pm) or swamped by hen/stag parties. If you are also intending to go as a small group of girls or guys, you are also welcome if you are looking for a base outside of Malia, but I think they may have qualms about letting larger groups stay, as they want to keep the peace with other customers.

All in all we had a fantastic holiday and stay at the Stelios Stalis Appartments, and would definitely consider going back there in the not too distant future.

(As written for Ciao.co.uk)

Summary: A great hotel for couples and families alike