Ostria Resort and Spa

We had a lovely 8-night stay at Ostria Resort & Spa and overall really enjoyed our holiday. The resort itself is beautiful, very clean and has a lovely relaxing atmosphere. It never felt overly busy, which was a big positive for us. However, despite many aspects being excellent, there were a few areas where we didn’t feel the experience quite lived up to what we would expect from a 5-star hotel.

Our room was one of the highlights. It was very clean, spacious and had high-quality amenities, including a good hairdryer, shampoo, body wash, plenty of towels, robes and slippers. We had a room above the swim-up rooms with a sea view and were really happy with its position. Having walked around the resort, we did feel there were some other room locations where we personally wouldn’t have been as happy with the privacy or outlook, so we were very pleased with where we were placed.

The main buffet food was probably our biggest disappointment aside from one particular restaurant experience. There was plenty of choice, but we generally didn’t find the quality as good as we had hoped, particularly the meat dishes, which were often tough. For lunch, we actually preferred going to the pool snack bar rather than the main buffet. They sometimes made fresh gyros, and the pizza was really good. The buffet staff were very good at ensuring food was always ready to be served though - we never had to wait for anything longer than a minute or two.

The two à la carte restaurants you can visit as part of the all inclusive were very mixed. Aeoleous was wonderful and exactly what we had hoped for. The food was really good, the service was lovely and attentive without rushing us, and we had absolutely no complaints. Unfortunately, Maestro, which we chose for our final night, was a huge disappointment and probably the biggest negative of our entire holiday. From the start, the staff were not particularly welcoming and some were actually quite short and rude with us. There was one waiter who came to our table later in the evening who was friendly, but otherwise the service left a lot to be desired. It was an extremely windy day, so the outdoor seating wasn’t available. We were placed in a small indoor section next to plastic sheeting that had been put up to block the wind, with nobody else sitting around us. We could see several free tables in the larger indoor dining area, so we politely asked if we could move. We were told that the tables for four were not for two people and that there were no other tables available (we could see a table for two that was free). Not long afterwards, another couple was seated at the available table we had asked about, and another couple was seated at a table for four! This made the response we had been given feel particularly frustrating. The food at Maestro was also not as good as Aeoleous and arrived extremely quickly. We deliberately ate slowly, yet still managed to finish a three-course dinner within around 50 minutes, which made the whole experience feel rushed. At the end of the meal, when I asked to pay for our drinks, the waiter didn’t even look me in the eye, simply held a finger up to me and said “one moment” and called somebody else over to deal with it. It was a really disappointing experience, especially as it was our final night.

The drinks at the hotel were okay, but the pre-made cocktails also weren’t really what we would expect from a 5-star hotel. They were convenient, but we would have preferred better-quality cocktails made fresh to order.

We had read quite a few reviews mentioning that the large number of French guests could be an issue, but we honestly didn’t find this to be the case at all. All of the staff we encountered spoke very good English, and the main evening entertainment always had clear English translation. The entertainment team who performed the shows were absolutely outstanding and deserve a special mention.

The only time we felt the language issue affected us was during some of the smaller-scale entertainment. For example, the Friday night quiz had the questions translated into English on the screen, which was appreciated, but the host was running around collecting answers and interacting with guests in French, so we had very little idea of what was going on or how everything worked. It would have been nice for these activities to feel a little more inclusive for non-French speakers too.

We didn’t make much use of the daytime entertainment, but this was partly because we found it slightly unclear where some activities were taking place or how you were supposed to book onto certain things. The information board and app showed what was happening each day, but not always the practical details. This wasn’t a huge issue for us as we could have asked reception if we wanted to take part, but clearer information would have encouraged us to use the facilities more.

Sunbeds were generally available as long as you didn’t mind using the ones on the pebble beach. These were not cushioned like the pool ones though. There was only one afternoon during our entire stay when we couldn’t find sunbeds anywhere. However, despite signs saying that sunbeds shouldn’t be reserved, the pool beds in particular were claimed very quickly with towels. One morning we went down at 8:15am and there were only around six beds left by the pool, while many others had towels on them but no sign of anyone actually using them. On other mornings, there were still beds available until around 9:30am, so it seemed to vary.

Finally, something to be aware of: when it’s windy, it is VERY windy! Obviously, this is completely outside the hotel’s control, but be prepared to keep an eye on your belongings around the pool and beach as things can easily blow away.

Overall, we had a really enjoyable and relaxing holiday in a beautiful resort, and there are definitely aspects we would praise highly, particularly the cleanliness, our room, the peaceful atmosphere, Aeoleous restaurant and the fantastic evening entertainment team. However, the inconsistent food, average drinks and especially our disappointing experience at Maestro meant that, for us, Ostria Resort & Spa didn’t quite deliver the consistent standard we would expect from a true 5-star hotel.

There are so many things this hotel gets right. The rooms are stunning and generally the grounds of the hotel are so beautifully appointed. It absolutely achieves its five-star standard across the board in that respect. The pools and common areas are fantastic. The main pool can be a touch cold but then the pool bar pool is heated which was lovely.

This resort is predominantly French, although most things are also translated into English and in some cases German as well. So there was no problem with communication in any way shape or form. It also benefits on a few points. The food is phenomenal, generally excellent across the board and that goes for both the buffet restaurant and the 2 ala cartes that are included in the all-inclusive.

The crêperie & ice cream place in the greek square is fantastic and open from 4-10pm everyday and included in the all inclusive which was a lovely touch.

We never had a problem with anything like finding loungers around the pools. The resort always seemed to have ample space and a really chilled out Vibe which we loved and there was always ample sports and recreation to take part in if you wanted to.

The resort gave off serious club med vibes just with a higher standard of accommodation across the board. Sports facilities are superb and with the exception of Padel everything else seemed to be included.

The Spa onsite is extra but is good value and is superb in both the treatments and the wet spa area which you get access to for an hour before or after your treatment.

However, the main area that lets the entire setup down, is its "all inclusive" drinks package which is meagre even by four star standards and certainly not in keeping what I've come to expect from other five star properties that offer all inclusive. The wine is not drinkable without lemonade and then there is the so-called international branded liquors, which included stuff we wouldn't even drink at home in the UK (Grants whiskey) and the rest was mainly locally sourced tosh and the few cocktails cocktails they did offer are generally pre-mixed and overly sweet with very little alcohol in them and no choice of sparkling wine of any kind. And with the exception of Pepsi for cola, all of the other soft drinks were non-branded and not quality products. And with the exception of the adult only bar there's no table service on drinks.

Having stayed over the last few years at Rixos, Barut, Grecotel, Iberostar and Titanic hotels the difference in all inclusive offering between these and Ostria is mammoth and all of these offered table service and drinks remain a sticking point with the weird bit ...Gala Night!

Let's just say entertainment quality at this resort is superb the shows, the party nights are all absolutely fantastic and the best we've ever seen for an in-house entertainment and that goes double for the Gala Nights Moulin Rouge show which was a highlight of our trip however again the oddity of the resort basically shutting down to move the entire resort into their conferencing event space and serve everyone one choice of meal of a set menu was just bizarre.

For Gala Night the main buffet restaurant is shut down and the bars in the event space will only serve you lager or soft drinks, there is the cheap wine on the table but everything else was setup for you to pay for so no spirits, no cocktails unless of course you pay for the privilege and although we were told we could arrive from 7pm for dinner, everyone's fish dinner was served at the same time of 9pm which was just as they were turning the lights of for the show so you could barely see your dinner, an overall weird experience that's forced onto guests as the only option available outside of the crêperie.

These 2 things let down what could make it one of the best 5 star resorts in Greece.

Id still seriously consider going back but these points make the choice much more difficult for us.

Thank you for the opportunity to spend two weeks at your hotel. We look back on our wonderful stay with tears in our eyes. We truly appreciated the fantastic atmosphere; everyone was kind and smiling. We felt that friendliness from the very first moment at reception—our initial contact was with Ms. Marianna, who looked after us like family; she patiently explained everything, answered our questions, and provided plenty of useful information—all with a smile and excellent English. We knew right from the start that this would be one of our best holidays in Crete. The food and variety of dishes were excellent, and the cleanliness of the property was exemplary. We were so sad to leave. We will be back in 2027. Thank you and best regards.