St Nicholas Bay Resort Hotel and Villas

This is our most favorite hotel and we come here for several years. A luxury hotel situated on a hillside above a private bay. The accommodation is in two floor appartement buildings on a beautiful landscape.

There is an extensive breakfast buffet with freshly prepared egg dishes (and other freshly prepared dishes, e.g. salmon, avocado toast, etc.), Greek specialities, and a continental breakfast. In addition, there is plenty of fresh fruit, a large selection of coffees, muesli, warm dishes, etc. The breakfast terrace is situated under olive trees by the pool with a view over the sea — a dream.

In the evening, there is a buffet restaurant with salad, warm and cold starters, delicious desserts, and a children's buffet. There is also a daily changing menu with three main courses each (meat, fish, vegan), a starter, and pizza. We often ate only from the buffet because there was so much and it was so delicious. In addition, there are several à la carte restaurants (at extra charge), which we did not visit.

During the day, there is a bar by the pool with snacks and warm meals (at extra charge).

Overall, the food is delicious and varied. There is always a vegan option available. The staff are extremely friendly, always helpful, and quick.

The staff are extremely friendly, quick, and helpful. Every morning, countless employees are busy preparing the grounds for the day. In the restaurants, bars, and by the pool, there are plenty of service staff everywhere — you hardly have to wait. Everyone speaks good English.

There are three pools: the main pool (saltwater), a children's pool, and, more recently, a sports pool (25-metre lanes). Around the pool, there are plenty of sun loungers situated in the shade of the olive trees.

At the private bay, there are plenty of sun loungers on the beach and on a promontory, although they are in high demand. Various water activities are offered. The bay mostly has very calm, clear water — perfect for swimming.

The journey from Heraklion Airport takes about one hour by taxi. The hotel is happy to arrange transport (at extra charge). The nearest town is Agios Nikolaos, approximately 2 km away, easily reachable on foot or by taxi.

Traveled as a family of 4 in the last week of August. We booked a 2 bedroom suite with pool. The room itself was lovely and clean, the a/c kept it at a pleasant temperature. There was a coffee pod machine, stocked well. However no kettle. I am a tea drinker and tried using the machine for the hot water but it just came out brown and tasted of coffee. So I don't think it had been cleaned for a while. The outdoor area of our room proved to be quite dangerous to have a toddler in, he slipped over twice on the terrace because it was covered in dirt/dust. I don't think housekeeping sweep the terrace, we never saw them do it when we was around. He could also open the gate to the side staircase, so we were constantly alert. It would be better if the gate had a bolt to slide across to prevent children escaping.

We feel we did not get value for money, this hotel is expensive. We paid half board and dined in the evening twice - both times a disaster. Although the staff are all wonderful and Alex the manager tried to help find a solution, it just didn't work with our children. Eating past 19:30 is far too late for dinner for them. We did end up taking taxis into Elounda, Plaka & Agios Nikoloas to eat & explore in the late afternoon. For adults though, I must say from what we did eat in the hotel, it was delicious.

The children's play area is rundown, definitely needs some maintenance.

The spa was excellent, I had an incredibly relaxing massage just before flying home.

I think this hotel is perfect for adults, the food, the atmosphere and facilities are brilliant for adults. Unfortunately, it just didn't work with our children. Which is really disappointing because I can see a lot of families loved their time. I'm sad we didn't.