Magda Hotel Club

Unfortunately we arrived whilst it was raining and the weather throughout our holiday has been poor; rain, thunderstorms and lightning which of course is not the hotels problem but started off on the wrong foot. The package wasn’t exactly cheap but wasn’t expensive, given that it was all inclusive and we went for the swim up room. Will note it is probably not the best place for a young couple unless you do want a very chilled holiday, which is what we were after so it’s fine- the weather effectively forced us to stay in the room constantly anyway. I also had a massage at the spa- I was told it was €50 and charged €60 which I didn’t realise. The first half of the massage was great, until went on my back. I had a mask on so couldn’t see what was going on but she did my neck and upper shoulders. I don’t know how else to put it other than she seemed distracted- constant stop starting for about 15 minutes I honestly have no clue what she was doing with no real effort. Shame as it started really well, but who knows, maybe it was their style of massage?? Wouldn’t recommend though.

Positives: Nice staff Great room and an upgrade Lovely swim up pool Variety of cocktails Fair choice in the buffet Snack bars throughout the day Branded pepsi/ pepsi max was a bonus!

Negatives: Felt like I was eating prison food at some points undercooked turkey Plastic in my food Poor quality alcohol but expected for the price Majority of Meat was such poor quality spent the holiday living off carbs Shower pressure was great the first day went non existent after that? Ended up having to use the shower head rather than the rainfall shower.

Overall, I wouldn’t come back.

This hotel is in a great location. Not too far from the beach. Plenty of shops walking distance.

Staff were all very friendly, especially Fanta who made it her business to come and find us and make sure we were okay everyday. Nothing was too much trouble, she was always willing to help. Keep up the personal touch Fanta 😍

Check in and out was smooth. On arrival our rooms were not ready so we were advised to put our bags in a holding room and have lunch.

The hotel was very clean and housekeeping staff were very attentive. All communal areas were clean and this was maintained throughout the day.

The hotel has a lift for accessibility, but that's it. Not much thought has been made to other areas of the hotel with regards to accessibility or inclusion. For example there are a number of pools within the hotel and all but 1 have ladder style steps. This includes the swim up room.

The 1 pool with steps has no rails so is still not safe for those with mobility issues. All activities in the water happens in the pool with the ladder style steps so only able body people can take part.

The hotel is quite big and has different blocks which could mean you may have a bit of a walk from your room to the main facilities depending on where you are situated.

Food selection is limited, no real consideration for dietary requirements ie, lactose intolerance, gluten free, dairy free.

There is only one restaurant, buffet style. Food is very basic, no real variety. No option to have food made to order fresh. The food served is not hot so you end up having to reheat it in the microwave.

Desserts are nice, good selection of ice cream, but again no sweet treats for those with dietary requirements apart from fruit.

The hot selection for breakfast is very limited if you don't eat meat/pork or eggs. However, the cold selection has a good range of bread, cheese, cold meats, cereal, fruit, yoghurt etc

Snack bar serves just pizza waffles and premade sandwich cheese or ham & cheese.

Despite this being an all inclusive hotel, 1 bottle of water is provided in your room as complimentary. You are expected to either refill the bottle yourself from the bar or restaurant or buy water. Also if you require drinks after 2300 you have to pay. It's not included in the package.

In general, in the bar and restaurant everything is self service apart from cocktails and alcoholic drinks. The waiter and waitress mainly clear tables, reset tables and top up buffet stations.

There needs to be a clear smoking and non-smoking areas. It is very off putting as a non-smoker to be overwhelmed with smoke in every outdoor space area. For that reason I had to withdraw from the evening entertainment as it was too much.

Just returned from a fortnight here. The hotel, grounds and rooms are of a good quality: especially sun beds, chairs and tables in the many shaded areas. We particularly enjoyed the top pool: new, pretty, tree lined but it is freezing cold! It is self service for wines, beer and hot and cold drinks- all easily available daytime and evenings. We enjoyed the hot food in the restaurant but we have experienced a wider choice of salads/ snacks/ cold food in other AI hotels. I must make special mention of the freshly cooked waffles available most afternoons!😋 The hotel staff are friendly and hardworking. The animation team have bundles of energy and provided games that gave us much laughter. They speak French, English and German- playing bingo in 3 languages did take a little time!😂 A five minute walk takes you to a soft sandy beach. Thete are plenty of beds and umbrellas €10 for a set. The sea is lovely and clean but quite changeable, a couple of days it was too rough to enter. I’m afraid the area is not what we expected. There are a couple of supermarkets and sea front cafes but after that little else. It seems the area is neglected and in need of some investment: abandoned buildings, broken pavement, crumbling roads and dumped cars! It is still worth walking along the coast, after a good 20 minutes you will discover a cliff edge restaurant called Island- fab food, views and entertainment 😁Walking the other way up the hill you can take a bus to Hersonisis one way or Heraklion the other way. We loved our holiday at Magda but probably wouldn’t return due to the area and there are lots of other islands to explore! 😎