Diogenis Blue Palace

We have just come back from this hotel and we would like to give an honest review on our experience. When we arrived, we were welcomed by a very nice and friendly reception staff. The room was dated but it was ok for our needs. We were lucky to have a newly renovated bathroom, however the shower screen is far too short and it floods the bathroom floor during every use. The soap was only provided first day and then never was replenished. The room service was the worst we have ever experienced. The beds were never made, the surfaces never been dusted in the time we were there. The cleaners were not friendly and never said hello. The food in the hotel was the biggest let down. It was very very repetitive with a very limited choice. The quality was not good and it was barely warm and sometimes cold. You often read holiday reviews complaining about the food not being hot and being repetitive. But it had been always acceptable for us. However this was not the case in this hotel. Breakfasts were very poor, fried eggs were always cold, even if you come for the opening. The croissants were hard and of cheap quality, the coffee was barely drinkable. There was no dry fruit like figs or prunes, which we found very strange for a 4 star Greek hotel. We love tea but we couldn’t drink it in this hotel as the water quality very much affected the taste making it horrible. The fruit choice was very limited and most of it was not fresh and poor quality. The fish was absent from the menu, which is a shame. They did have squid/octopus a couple of times for almost 2 weeks. They had a Greek night with a BBQ once, however it was only pork. We didn’t go hungry, but we hardly ever enjoyed our meals. We were never looking forward to meal times like we do in other hotels. And we are far from fussy eaters. This hotel was the first we had ever been to that never served ice-cream, which was a shock. The hotel needs to improve/change their food strategy. Otherwise we think they will struggle to get repeat business. The restaurant staff were the hardest working people in the hotel. They were very friendly to everybody. The barman Bennie and pizza guy were also very nice. The bar drinks, both alcoholic and nonalcoholic are of a very limed choice and not good quality. We noticed that the senior staff (hotel manager, the owner, head chef, etc) never drank from the bar. They always drank coffee in paper cups brought in from elsewhere and their drinks were always bottled from an outside cafe/bar. This speaks for itself. The head chef Ellias approached us and our friends on first few nights bringing us a bottle of wine and asking us to leave a very good review for the hotel, which we found very off putting. We spoke to other guests and they all experienced the same from him. He even asked everybody to mention his name in the reviews. We are even not sure if he was a real chef. We think he was just responsible for talking to people and giving them impression he was a chef and he was ge

We are staying at the hotel now. Having read mixed reviews we didn’t know what to expect from this hotel. We are very happy we came here. It is a little gem. The hotel is overlooking the sea. All the staff are very friendly and helpful. The hotel has a very nice feel to it, it is very very charming. The pool area is one of the nicest we have come across. Our room has a very beautifully renovated bathroom and a really good shower. The room itself overlooks the pool area and it’s a pleasure to sit there and just enjoy the atmosphere. Kostas and Chef Illias are genuinely nice people. They work very hard and they make everybody feel special and very welcome. They create a very pleasant atmosphere. Nothing is too much trouble for them. The food is very tasty and cooked with love. We really enjoyed the BBQ night with fireworks, live Cretan music and dancers. It was very special. We are really enjoying ourselves and already looking forward to returning next year. Don’t be put off by negative reviews. Just come, relax and enjoy yourselves. You won’t be disappointed.