Hotels near Church of Agia Varvara, Heraklion Prefecture

Crete is probably our favourite Greek destination and frequently visit Heraklion for a few days before venturing to other parts of this vast beautiful island! Previously, we had always selected to stay in a hotel but due to the current pandemic we felt reticent due to the various restrictions imposed, hence losing the overall hotel ambience! It was for this reason I decided to search for an alternative and fortunate to come across the City Lion Apartments! The brand new apartments, completed 2020, are located metres away from the famous Morisini Fountain! The building has been restored and extended to feature one/two bedroom apartments! Although only two of us, we chose the two bedroom loft apartment featuring a mezzanine floor! The apartment is fully fitted with all the mod cons, fully fitted kitchen, dining area, bathrooms second to none, air con, international tv stations etc! The apartment also had a balcony so we could view the everyday life of this vibrant city! Christos, our host was most welcoming and, along with Michael, went to great lengths to make sure our stay lived up to expectations! City Lion Apartments, Heraklion, is without doubt a 5* accommodation amidst this wonderful historic city!

The hotel is located in the center of the old town, very close to Piazza Venezia and the church. It is convenient for eating, shopping and going to the beach. It takes about 15 minutes to take a taxi from Heraklion Airport, and the taxi price is 15 euros. If you rent a car, you can park in the central parking. The night is 7 euros, and there is a 24-hour valet parking guy; the hotel is relatively new, and the rooms are relatively large in Europe. The bathroom is designed with three separate parts. It is best to bring your own slippers and toiletries. There is no toothpaste or toothbrush, and the towels are poor and Only one set was given to two people; there was a kettle; and the bar downstairs was noisy.

The sea view outside the window is first-class, facing the historic site. Although it is facing the street, the sound insulation effect of the door and windows is very good. Free parking lot is rare. It is about 500 meters away from the hotel. The linen in the room is relatively old. European hotels basically do not provide toothbrushes

Very good location, close to the port, long distance and short-distance bus station. Walk for a few minutes. It is also close to the busiest square, full of restaurants and cafes. No need to choose a sea view room, the window is small, a little sea view. The front desk service is very good, the commercial atmosphere of Crete is not strong, people are very friendly!

WE' LL COME BACK! Fantastic joy& pleasure we have had at Aquila Hotel at our stay there at Heraklion, it was our first time. Enjoyed it at breakfast, our room was so clean& with enough space with terrace& great view...Pool on 6th floor was pleasurable..All Hotel is interesting with exterior as well as interior...This hotel have so much to offer&most important to give you touch of happines at your stay! Lots of smiles from Belgrade:)) J&K

A basic but adequate hotel very convenient if you need somewhere near the airport. Reception was friendly and efficient. The room was on the small side but perfectly OK for what we wanted. Despite being near the airport it was fairly quiet and we slept well. Despite arriving at almost 11:00pm we were able to get a basic bite to eat, in our case an omelet which was perfect for our needs. Shower was fine. Breakfast buffet was a bit basic, but fair value for €7. The hotel has parking, which is useful. We never tried the pool. It looked a little on the small side. Not a ‘Destination’ hotel, but if I ever had a late flight in or early flight out I would happily use again.

We chose Anemos Suites as we were looking for somewhere self-catering at the end of a month in various parts of Greece. We stayed in ”suite” 302 titled ”Sea Horse”. The room was quite spacious but there were very limited kitchen supplies. Only 3 of everything supplied (bowls, glasses etc), one burner that you plug in, kettle, sandwich toaster, one saucepan, milk pan, frypan, no microwave. We never made any meals or even a cup of tea here! They had a restaurant on site and the meal the night we arrived was tasty enough, but my husband got food poisoning from the club sandwich that night. A better dining alternative is down the end of the lane near the beach at the News Seaside Bar Restaurant where I had the best club sandwich and chips in Greece! On the second day (our first morning there, and my birthday) I attempted to have a shower but the water was cold. My husband then realised the bathroom was flooding not in the shower cubicle but bubbling up in the middle of the bathroom behind me where I hadn’t noticed. By the time he warned me and I turned it off, it was flooding out into the living area. We managed to move my suitcase just in time. We reported it but there was no-one around that morning that spoke much English. They understood enough to send the cleaner over to mop up the water and she somehow fixed the blockage, however the water was still cold so we couldn’t shower. We tried to communicate with the staff about when the hot water would be fixed but were instead handed a breakfast menu. When we asked to see the manager we were told only ”later”. After wasting a couple of hours that morning trying to resolve things (including calling our travel agent who also contacted the manager) we ended up having a sponge wash and went out to start our day. By the time we left (around 11am) someone who spoke English had arrived and he was able to tell me that a plumber would be there later that afternoon. He also gave us directions to find a doctor as my husband had developed an infection in his leg and needed antibiotics. So he at least was helpful. After returning late afternoon, I asked if we could have a replacement bathmat and hand towel as they were still soaking wet from the flooding. The elderly Greek owners started arguing with each other in Greek and then the woman argued with me saying “tomorrow” as in they were only due to replace the towels tomorrow. I think she also wanted payment for changing them earlier. I tried to explain about our room flooding but she couldn’t understand. I said they should be compensating us with a free breakfast or drinks not arguing about replacing a couple of towels, and said we would give them a bad review. There was a worker there who spoke good English (we had interacted with him the evening before) but instead of interpreting what we were saying he just went and sat at the check in desk and didn’t want to get involved. I gave up and 5 minutes later the elderly Greek lady came to our room with two towel

We came to Crete for a wedding and stayed for a week at Irida. It's a great venue if you like being on the mountain overlooking the sea whilst you also have the nearest beach within walking distance along with all shops, restaurants and all kinds of services at Agia Pelagia. The hotel was clean, staff extremely friendly and helpful and the restaurant and pool bar also had plenty of options available any time of the day. The free yoga was also fantastic according to my partner.

We had a wonderful time at Anna Apartments. It is very well located, close to a great sandy beach with warm water. Also, the bus station is just across the street so you can easily have access Heraklion or to other places (and bus stations are not that common in the area). The apartment that we had for 7 days was clean, cozy and comfortable, with everything we needed. I liked the balcony, the kitchenette, also the hairdryer was super handy for a girl with medium-long hair. The bed and pillows were nice and soft. The mirror in the bedroom is very useful for when you are getting ready to go out. Now for the best part, the owner Yannis is the best host we've met so far. He is really kind and caring with all the guests, paying attention to their needs and making sure that they are having a good time, giving the best recommendations. He is also very funny and chatty. It was really pleasant for us to hang out with him and talk about literally anything. We are so greateful for the whole experience! Thank you, Yannis!