kristieboland
October 13, 2023
My husband and I stayed at Katikies villas in Oia 5 years ago and it was incredible, so booked again for our 10-year wedding anniversary. Sadly, we were very disappointed with several things. One major change I think contributed to our dissatisfaction was management-the prior manager, Erini, was amazing. However, the staff during our stay this year was superficial and on several occasions, not at all helpful. First, no one informed us that the infinity pool would be closed (as well as the bar) - they claimed they were having issues getting the pH correct (would’ve been nice to know prior to our stay so we could have anticipated needing to go to the main resort). One of the reasons we booked the villa and not the main resort was for privacy, only 7 rooms, so the pool area typically doesn’t overcrowd. Unfortunately, we could not enjoy that during our stay. They also told us that even though we booked for in-room breakfast, that we would have to go to the main resort, as they were having problems with their chef as well. We pushed back on this and did have breakfast delivered, though it was generally very cold upon arrival and lacked flavor. We did get breakfast at the main resort on our last day and the service and food was amazing. Our luggage was lost upon arrival and we were concerned given we didn’t have a change of clothes available. After hours talking with the airline, I was told our bags would arrive at the airport. We had requested to be transferred to receive them, and two issues arose: 1) the resort staff wanted to dictate to us what time we should leave, and 2) we were quoted 100€ for the transport to obtain our bags, but because it took longer than anticipated, we’re told we would be charged double (200€). As I’m sure you can imagine, this added more stress to an already suboptimal situation. We had requested a late check out on our departure day of 1pm (given we lost two days due to not having luggage and given it was season end for them). They would only accommodate late check out to noon (1 hr later than usual), which again, given the issues we faced, had hoped they would be more accommodating (the resort was not full). I do want to commend Nicholas and Sam (bell hops)-they were amazingly helpful, super strong and very kind! Also, all of the staff at the main Katikies resort-especially the lower deck lounge, were wonderful, thoughtful and amazing! If we return to Oia, we will definitely look to book the main resort over the villa. Also-housekeeping, while very friendly, was lacking. Again, we book resorts that are known to be meticulous (NOS, Melian); however, upon arrival the bathroom vanity had a sticky substance on it, clearly it hadn’t even been wiped. Turn down service was variable-one woman folded our clothes and went above and beyond, while the other failed to even replenish noir TP or empty the trash can.