Kriti Beach

Excellent location, good food and value for money. The service from staff was of a high standard. The rooms were very clean and comfortable. All areas within the hotel were also kept clean to a high standard. This hotel is a smaller hotel but you are in Rethymno where all the action is from culture to tourism and much more.

Everything was just perfect, from the kind staff, welcome bottle of wine, outstanding breakfast and dinner and generous beach. Hope to visit again next year this beautiful hotel

Location is excellent — sea right across the street. Rooms and common areas were very clean. Nice touch being able to leave luggage, use showers/changing rooms and get towels if you have a late flight. There was also a bottle of wine in the room, a nice welcome touch. Staff are a mix — some very friendly, others a bit arrogant. Food was good and portions were sufficient, but not very varied.

On the downside, several things made it feel below 5-star level:

• Pool is small and right next to the eating area and the main street — the Booking photos didn't really convey how small it is, though this may just be a space/location limitation.
• Elevators are quite small — I doubt a stroller would even fit. Not ideal for families with young children.
• Towels are only changed every 3 days.

No self-service coffee machine at breakfast — coffee is only served from a filter carafe brought to the table, or made to order at the bar (cappuccino etc.). There's no dedicated barista — the same staff member who makes the coffee is also busy setting up and arranging the tables, which causes delays. A proper coffee machine where guests could make their own coffee would have made a big difference. Coffee was served quite slowly most mornings, except for our last day, when it came quickly. There's also no coffee machine in the rooms — just a kettle and instant coffee, so there's no way to make a proper coffee at any point during the stay. -Extra charges felt like a low-cost airline model, taking advantage of almost every situation through their policies: beach loungers require a minimum €3 /€ 20 consumption at the bar, and the breakfast drinks policy is confusing and inconsistently applied. One day a waiter told us the bar was closed, yet served cappuccino to another table — I had to go order it myself in person. Another time, after leaving the breakfast area and ordering a coffee from the smoking terrace, we were only informed when it was served that it would be charged €4, per their policy — even though we were still within breakfast hours (7:30–10:00). We raised this with reception, not to dispute paying for it, but as constructive feedback that for a 5-star hotel, this kind of policy feels more like a low-cost airline nickel-and-diming guests wherever possible. Staff were quite firm and didn't seem open to reconsidering it. At checkout I also asked directly about the coffee policy and got conflicting answers — first "one coffee per day," then "as many as you want but only if you stay in the breakfast area, otherwise you pay if you're on the smoking terrace." The policy remains unclear even after asking. At check-in, some information was given only in Greek — partly on us for not asking for an English version at the time, but it should probably be offered by default.

Overall: great location and clean, but small elevators, no coffee-making options, confusing breakfast policies, inconsistent service, average food for the category, barista attitude and a "pay for everything" approach to extras made it feel more like a solid mid-range hotel than a true 5-star experience.