Elounda Water Park Residence Hotel

Stayed here for 2 weeks last August and returned with calves like Arnie!! The hotel and complex itself is amazing but the hills were exceptional!! Think of the highest gradient on a treadmill and times by 10!! The golf buggy and transit van are often on hand to ferry you, but when they’re not you’ve had it!! Check in was quick and easy and the rooms are spotless and cleaned daily. Staff super friendly and helpful and facilities are excellent. Pools and water park a huge favourite with the kids. Food just ok but lots of restaurants nearby, free bus takes you into town 2/3 times per day and the villages nearby are stunning. Fantastic views as you’re up a mountain. On site shop has all your basics and reasonable prices. Overall, fab hotel but the hills would put me off returning, you need to be an athlete to tackle them!

We stayed at the hotel at the end of August 2023. We booked a package through Jet2 which we find works extremely well. There were staff at Heraklion airport to greet us and guide us to our bus transfer. Upon arriving at the hotel, there was a mix up with bookings (we had booked quite last minute so this could be a factor) but the lovely gentleman on reception was excellent to get us looked after. This was brilliant considering it was during the night. There is a fantastic gentleman who helped us with our cases to get to our room. He was so helpful and kind. The room was very clean and perfect for our stay. We had a family room which slept the 4 of us very comfortably. The food on offer in the restaurant is excellent. There was a great selection available and our children had great options too. The staff looking after the restaurant were very efficient and very friendly. There was no electricity one morning for planned maintenance but the breakfast was absolutely outstanding. Highly impressive. Well done to the staff for looking after the guests! The snack bar near the pools is brilliant during the day. Ideal for busy kids. The bars have many drinks available. I loved the fact that a husband and wife work there looking after different bars. They were such lovely people and really provided a special experience for our trip. Walking around is great exercise as the hotel is on a hill. The saltwater pools seem to be much better for your skin and I liked that there wasn't the smell of chlorine. Remember to pack goggles though. My son loved the football pitch. Great fun! The shop near reception was well stocked and very reasonable for prices. She's such a lovely lady that runs the shop. It was a huge pleasure to meet Pavlos and his dad. They have a fantastic hotel. We are planning to visit again. It is such a beautiful island! Highly recommended!

Another wonderful holiday. This is our 6th or 7th visit to this resort and this hotel which we are totally in love with. This time with our 12 year old grandson who is not easy to please. Firstly the views cannot be beaten: looking down on the resort of Elounda and the sea and harbour. Next the food is excellent every night - a choice of Greek dishes and more traditional food. Always a good selection of meat, fish and plenty of vegetables and salads. Even our 12 year old loved meal times and that is an achievement. The staff couldn’t be more friendly and helpful and then of course the water park. What more could we want. Hopefully we’ll return next year.

When we booked this hotel and checked the reviews, they were a bit mixed and some were somewhat unfair, complaining of the terrain being too hilly and no food when checking it late at night. The first really impressive thing was that the hotel had obviously reacted to the reviews, for when we checked in after 10.30 pm we were given sandwiches, fruit and water before we even got to our room - well done to the hotel team for a positive response. This hotel was excellent value for money, although I do wonder how they would cope during peak season as the serving areas and sun beds didn’t look like they would cope with a full hotel. That said we were really well looked after on half board. The food was consistently good, the spa was excellent, and the staff were OUTSTANDING!!!! I cannot praise them highly enough - they are a credit to their hotel and the island. Overall a fantastic autumn break.

We enjoyed our holidays a lot thanks to our stay in Elounda Residence. It is a fantastic hotel with the best views, pools, food and drinks, animation and above all the best hotel staff that you can wish for.

I had emailed the hotel before leaving as had read some fairly poor reviews. I was reassured by the management that we would be looked after and on arrival late at night we found they had upgraded our rooms which was great as were travelling with three teens and an 11 year old. We were hungry and given a bag of food and plenty of water and there was also water in the fridge in the rooms. The buggy driver that took us up the hill told us what times everything opened/closed and pointed out the restaurant areas. The rooms were so clean with fab air con which was lucky as temps were still in the high 20s. I had asked for extra blankets as other reviews had said they only had a sheet and they had provided plenty of extra blankets for me us all. In the one room apartment the sofa bed was hard but the extra beds in two bed apartment were super comfy so we just swapped over. The staff and team were fab and the entertainment was hilarious, we had some great nights singing and watching some good and some bad karaoke and they tried to get everyone involved. Giorgios and the young lassie especially were so welcoming and even persuaded my teen boys and husband to join in water aerobics on the last day. The music and dancing nights were traditional Greek style and again Giorgios got everyone involved. The food was delicious, hot and fresh with lots of options, chips at every meal if required as well as home made american pancakes with masses of chocolate sauce every day that kept the kids happy. Also good selection of fresh fruit, tastiest watermelons and good choice of cereals and exciting puddings that changed daily. I loved the hot options and they were also changed daily, The pool area was spotlessly clean, as was the rest of the hotel. Our sheets were changed and room cleaned thoroughly daily. There is a big hill leading up to apartments but Crete is hilly! Buggy is always around up and down the hill and happy to take you up and down. Can’t fault anything except gym equipment was a bit worn but who goes on holiday to go to the gym! Views from balconies were to die for! Area is gorgeous and would love to visit again as didn’t run out of things to do.

Avoid this hotel please they not say what they advertising. Our backpack got stolen whimsy we was in the restaurant. The staff have refused to help me and jet2.com refused to help me! I am currently stuck in the hotel pleading for help and all jet2 can say is someone will call bk. I am scared I am stuck here with my kids at this point I have to stay in the hotel until the day we leave meaning my kids haven’t enjoyed anything! Please please avoid this hotel. I am currently sitting here crying pleading for help from jet2.com to get us out of here! I also noticed the beds are not clean !

We stayed right at the top in room 120. The walk down to the main restaurant was not pleasant on the knees and you could get the hotel’s golf cart to take you back up as long as you don’t mind waiting (and obviously hotel arrivals/departures take priority). Not much grilled meat and the only decent meat was on the BBQ night at their second restaurant which we had to PAY FOR despite being all inclusive! There was no kids entertainment despite having a mini disco advertised. The evenings consisted of giving the children money to waste in a very small arcade. The aqua park was right at the bottom of the hill so we only went there twice of which you had to climb back up steps to go to the bar. The pool is salt water which contains more salt than the sea! Drinks were served in flimsy plastic cups of which the only time you could have a pint was for beer - so be prepared to be going backwards and forwards to the bar!! To get to town you NEED A CAR or you will be relying on a shuttle bus which drops you down to the main road and there’s a good walk into town if you do choose that option. Good points: breakfasts were good and bar staff in the main bar were lovely. Unfortunately we will not be returning - ever.

This is a very well run hotel, full of staff who go the extra mile to make your stay happy. The food and drink are excellent ! We found the bar staff particularly friendly and we enjoyed good banter with them. There are some challenging slopes down to the town (800m away) and around the complex, but there was a free shuttle service to the former and the staff were always willing to ferry guests around for the latter. We only used this for our cases but others were pleased to use the buggy more regularly. The multilingual Paul (Pavlos) is intelligent and warm. When you talk with him he gives you his full attention and focuses on meeting your needs. Most importantly he runs a brilliant team. We went in mid-October when the temperatures were pleasantly warm, but not hot, and the hotel wasn't packed. We highly recommend this hotel.