Mayia Exclusive Resort and Spa

We can absolutely see why Mayia Resort & Spa is considered a 5-star hotel. The resort itself is stunning, the staff are wonderful, and many aspects of our stay were genuinely excellent. However, there were a few significant issues that impacted our experience enough that, despite enjoying our holiday, we wouldn't choose to return. That's disappointing because there is so much to love about this hotel.

The Positives The hotel is beautifully designed and immaculately maintained throughout. Everywhere was spotlessly clean, and our room was modern, comfortable and very well looked after. The bed was comfy and pillows to a good standard. Every member of staff we encountered was friendly, professional and welcoming. Service was consistently excellent throughout our stay. The food was of a very high standard, both in the buffet restaurant and the à la carte venues we managed to visit. The drinks selection was equally impressive (all branded!). The complimentary minibar was another excellent touch and was replenished daily. The gym was well-equipped and ideal for anyone wanting to keep up their fitness routine while away. It was quiet first thing in the morning. We also enjoyed the spa facilities. Although we didn't book any treatments, the staff were always welcoming and the overall atmosphere was relaxing. The beach is peaceful and pleasant, although not quite as picturesque as some of the online photos suggest. The location is quiet and remote compared to the busier resorts in Rhodes, which many guests will appreciate. It's roughly an hour from the airport but ideal if you're looking for a more relaxed setting. The WiFi is excellent throughout the whole resort.

The Negatives Unfortunately, there were several areas where the experience fell short of our expectations for a 5-star resort.

Lack of Covered Areas We were unlucky enough to experience a couple of storms during our stay and quickly realised there is very little shelter available around the resort when the weather turns bad.

Limited Food Availability in the Evening The street food and healthy snack areas close at 5:30pm, and once the main restaurant closes at 9:30pm, there are no complimentary food options available. If you're enjoying a few drinks later in the evening and fancy a snack, your only option is paid room service. For a luxury all-inclusive hotel, we found this surprisingly restrictive.

The Swimming Pool This was one of our biggest issues. The main pool was absolutely freezing! Not just cool, genuinely cold enough that most guests seemed reluctant to use it. We forced ourselves in once a day, but rarely lasted more than ten minutes. It's difficult to understand why the hotel doesn't invest in some form of pool heating, even if only during the cooler months. For us, this significantly impacted our enjoyment of the holiday, as spending time in the pool is normally one of our favourite parts of a resort stay.

Entertainment The evening entertainment was pleasant enough, usually featuring live singers in various locations around the resort. However, daytime entertainment felt very limited. There was no music around the pool for most of the day apart from the short aqua gym session each morning, and there was very little else to do. Aside from a single dartboard that had clearly suffered from the heat, there were no pool tables, shuffleboards, table games or casual activities available unless you wanted wine tasting or mosaic making. This was particularly noticeable for guests who don't enjoy lying by a pool all day. Combined with the cold water, it left limited options for daytime entertainment.

À La Carte Restaurant Booking System This was tied with the pool temperature as our biggest disappointment. Restaurant reservations are made through the app, with bookings opening three days in advance at midnight. Knowing this, we stayed awake on our first night to secure reservations. We successfully booked the Greek and Italian restaurants and managed to get one of the few remaining slots at Wasabi. However, Flame was already fully booked just seconds after reservations opened. When we spoke to reception, the best they could initially offer was a 9pm reservation on our final evening, which was later moved to 6:45pm. However when we got there it had been cancelled altogether and we had to spend ten minutes arguing that we were indeed booked in. We did eventually get seated (mine was delicious but my husband’s was overcooked as they “recommend” no less than medium - he has his medium/rare). Reception explained that Flame only has around 40 covers each evening compared to approximately 100 in the other à la carte restaurants. More surprisingly, we were told that some guests are able to pre-book in advance due to their room category or loyalty status. This didn't sit particularly well with us. Before travelling, we had specifically asked whether we could pre-book restaurants (due to an anniversary) and were told it wasn't possible. To then discover that certain guests are given advance access felt unfair and lacked transparency. We would have found this easier to accept if it were clearly communicated at the point of booking. "Subject to availability" doesn't quite tell the full story. If priority is given to guests staying in higher room categories or loyalty members, we think it's better to be upfront about that from the outset. The hotel wasn't anywhere near full during our stay in October, so we would imagine securing reservations could be even more difficult during peak season.

Helpful Tips for Future Guests

• If travelling in October, bring warm clothing. The evenings become surprisingly chilly.
• When watching an act at the Amphitheatre, be aware that the chairs leave a white chalk like substance on your clothes.
• Don't automatically book a taxi to Lindos through the hotel. The bus stops directly outside, takes around 20 minutes and costs approximately €6 return per person. There are also small electric carts available to help visitors up and down the hill in Lindos.
• The White Party may be cancelled if the weather is poor, which isn't clearly advertised. Worth bearing in mind before buying a special outfit (it was dry the evening it was supposed to happen but still didn’t).
• Men should pack proper evening footwear, as flip-flops are not permitted in the restaurants.
• Don't pay extra for a sea-view room as all rooms face towards the sea to some degree.
• Beach shoes are highly recommended, as entering and exiting the sea can be challenging over the stones.
• If you're specifically choosing Mayia because it is adults-only, be aware that the neighbouring beach area is connected to a family resort, so children are often present nearby.

Final Thoughts Mayia Resort & Spa gets a solid 4 out of 5 from us. The hotel itself is beautiful, the staff are fantastic, and the food and drinks are excellent. However, the freezing pool, limited daytime activities and frustrating restaurant booking system prevented it from being the exceptional 5-star experience we were hoping for. Despite having a lovely holiday overall, these issues would be enough to stop us returning.

It’s been amazing. I only wish we could have stayed longer. The facial massage with Georgia was great, very relaxing

We just had massage and facial with Joby and Lisa which was amazing. Would highly recommend visiting the spa on your trip.