Atrium Platinum Luxury Resort

Atrium Platinum Luxury Resort Hotel & Spa, Rhodes

Our stay: 7–15 October 2026

Having stayed at numerous five-star hotels over the years, we wanted to share our experience of the Atrium Platinum, highlighting both the positives and the areas where we felt things could have been better.

Firstly, we want to make something very clear. This is a genuinely beautiful, high-quality hotel, exceptionally clean, beautifully decorated and well maintained. Nothing appeared tired, worn or in need of refurbishment. Quite the opposite, in fact.

We have seen reviews questioning whether the hotel deserves its five-star classification, and whilst we wouldn't go quite that far, we can understand some of the reservations.

In terms of appearance and presentation, it certainly has the feel of a five-star establishment. However, looking at the overall experience, we would probably place it somewhere between four and five stars.

There is a great deal to admire, but certain aspects simply didn't quite reach the standards we have experienced at other five-star resorts.

The staff, the hotel's greatest asset

Without question, the best thing about the Atrium Platinum is its staff.

As so many other reviewers have mentioned, the people working here really are what make the hotel special.

We were particularly fortunate to have three absolutely lovely ladies looking after our room, together with a fantastic waitress in the buffet restaurant.

Their warmth, friendliness and attention made a genuine difference to our holiday, and we cannot praise them highly enough.

These people deserve enormous credit, and we hope the management fully appreciates what wonderful ambassadors they are for the hotel.

Arrival and first impressions

Unfortunately, our arrival was somewhat disappointing.

We arrived at Rhodes Airport at around 10pm, where the whole experience was rather chaotic, with people seemingly wandering everywhere.

When we eventually reached the hotel, we were surprised to find nobody outside to greet us or offer assistance with our luggage.

We were essentially dropped off by the taxi and left to struggle with our cases into the lobby ourselves.

Being in our 60s, a little assistance would have been greatly appreciated, particularly from an establishment of this standard.

It just seemed a rather strange and unwelcoming first impression, although thankfully our experience improved considerably afterwards.

Our room and accommodation

The accommodation itself was of an excellent standard, beautifully presented and spotlessly clean.

The bed was exceptionally large and very comfortable, something we certainly appreciated.

Unfortunately, the pillows were another matter entirely! Although the hotel kindly provided us with a few additional pillows, we found them all rather awful, which was a shame considering how comfortable the bed itself was.

The towels were also surprisingly stiff and rough, rather than the lovely soft, fluffy towels we would normally associate with a hotel of this standard.

Another rather puzzling feature was the shower door. Every time we opened it, the door swung directly into the toilet, striking it quite forcefully.

It seemed such an obvious design oversight, and we couldn't help wondering how many shower doors might have been damaged over the years.

Surely a simple tri-fold shower door would have been a far more practical solution and eliminated the problem altogether?

These are relatively minor details individually, but they are the sort of things we wouldn't expect to encounter in an otherwise beautifully designed hotel.

Our room also came with a private heated swimming pool, something we had particularly looked forward to, although unfortunately this didn't quite live up to expectations.

The swimming pools, our biggest disappointment

The main outdoor swimming pool is absolutely magnificent to look at. It's enormous, beautifully designed and undoubtedly one of the hotel's most impressive features.

Unfortunately, it was also the coldest swimming pool we have ever experienced in all our years of travelling.

We aren't talking about water that was simply a little refreshing or took a few minutes to get used to. It was unbelievably cold, to the point where we found it virtually unusable.

What made this particularly disappointing was the sheer size and beauty of the pool. Throughout our stay, we rarely saw more than half a dozen people actually in the water, despite the number of guests around the pool area.

It seemed such an extraordinary waste of a wonderful facility.

We appreciate that heating such a large pool would be expensive, but for a resort of this standard, we really do feel that guests should be able to enjoy its main swimming pool comfortably.

There is a much smaller heated outdoor pool, but this was frequently occupied by children and simply wasn't a practical alternative for a relaxing swim.

We also had a private heated pool with our room, but unfortunately found this disappointingly shallow, offering little more than the opportunity to sit in the water.

We appreciate that these are probably designed as plunge pools rather than conventional swimming pools, but we couldn't help feeling they were rather gimmicky and of limited practical use. We also noticed that very few guests seemed to be using theirs.

The spa and indoor pool, a real highlight

Thankfully, the hotel has a wonderful, very large heated indoor swimming pool within the spa.

For us, this was one of the highlights of the holiday.

The water was a lovely temperature, the pool was spacious, and it was an absolute pleasure to use.

We thoroughly enjoyed spending time here, and it certainly helped compensate for our disappointment with the outdoor swimming facilities.

It was lovely to finally be able to enjoy a proper swim without feeling as though we were entering an ice bath!

Food and dining

Food is obviously a very subjective matter, and we appreciate that everyone has different tastes and expectations.

We certainly wouldn't describe ourselves as fussy eaters, but unfortunately, we found the food to be one of the more disappointing aspects of our stay.

At first glance, the buffet often looked quite appealing, with dishes that appeared appetising and well presented. However, we frequently found that the food looked considerably better than it actually tasted.

The selection wasn't particularly extensive, and we found much of the food surprisingly bland and lacking in flavour.

We generally managed to find something to eat, but we rarely came away feeling particularly impressed or excited by what was on offer.

Having stayed at numerous five-star hotels, we have experienced considerably better dining, both in terms of choice and flavour.

We wouldn't go so far as to say the food was bad, but it certainly wasn't memorable, and for a hotel of this standard, we had expected rather more.

Tipping and signing receipts

One aspect of the all-inclusive experience that we found rather unusual was the constant presentation of receipts to sign whenever we ordered food or drinks.

Although these receipts showed a zero balance, there was always a section inviting us to add a tip.

We have absolutely no objection to tipping staff for good service, and we fully appreciate how hard they work.

However, being presented with a tipping option virtually every time we ordered something felt rather uncomfortable and unnecessary.

We much prefer to recognise excellent service voluntarily rather than feel repeatedly prompted throughout an all-inclusive holiday.

It wasn't a major issue, but it was something we noticed and felt worth mentioning.

The severe weather and how the hotel coped

Unfortunately, our holiday was also rather spoiled by almost 48 hours of exceptionally heavy rain on and off, including some of the most torrential downpours we have ever witnessed.

The thunderstorms were quite spectacular, with extraordinary lightning and thunder, and conditions became so severe that we even received an emergency weather warning by text message.

The sheer volume of water was incredible, and inevitably the hotel struggled to cope.

There were leaks in numerous areas throughout the building, with staff working tirelessly to deal with the water and keep everything functioning as best they could.

We certainly wouldn't dream of criticising the hotel for the weather, which was completely beyond anyone's control.

In fact, we felt genuinely sorry for the staff, who were clearly doing everything possible under extremely difficult circumstances.

Unfortunately, the weather did cause additional problems, particularly with the lifts.

Two of the three lifts at our end of the hotel were taken out of service, making it extremely difficult to navigate the building, especially as we both have mobility difficulties.

Lifts and accessibility

One criticism we would make, quite independently of the extreme weather, is the general availability of lifts throughout the hotel.

Even when everything was operating normally, we felt there simply weren't enough lifts for a hotel of this size.

We frequently found ourselves waiting what seemed like an eternity for one to arrive, only to discover it was already packed with people.

For guests who have difficulty using stairs, this can become particularly frustrating.

When the severe weather subsequently put two of the three lifts at our end of the hotel out of action, the situation became considerably worse.

Unfortunately, these were still out of service when we were leaving, and rather surprisingly, there was no signage explaining that they were unavailable or directing guests to the nearest working lifts.

For guests with mobility difficulties, as we both have, this made navigating the hotel unnecessarily difficult.

Whilst we completely understand that the severe weather caused unexpected problems, clearer communication and some simple directional signs would have made a considerable difference.

Checking out and a genuinely thoughtful gesture

One final experience that we feel deserves a special mention was when we came to settle our bill.

The staff seemed genuinely keen to know whether we had experienced any problems during our stay and were very willing to listen to any concerns.

At that point, we didn't feel it was particularly worthwhile going through the various disappointments we had experienced, so we chose not to raise them.

However, having been unwell during part of our holiday, we were very pleasantly surprised when the hotel kindly and completely unexpectedly waived our late check-out fee, along with some room-service charges.

This was an incredibly thoughtful gesture, particularly as we hadn't expected or requested any such concession.

It left us with the distinct impression that the management and staff genuinely care about their guests and really do want everyone to have an enjoyable stay.

We were extremely grateful, and it certainly deserves recognition.

For all the criticisms we have mentioned in this review, gestures like this speak volumes about a hotel's attitude towards its guests.

Airport transfers

One final piece of advice for anyone visiting the hotel would be to consider booking a private airport transfer rather than using a shared shuttle service.

Our return journey to the airport involved stopping at what seemed like a considerable number of other resorts along the way.

This made the journey rather drawn out and far from smooth, particularly as the shuttle itself felt quite cramped.

Having experienced this, we would certainly recommend paying a little extra for a private taxi instead, particularly if you value a more comfortable and straightforward journey.

This is, of course, a comment on the transfer experience rather than a criticism of the hotel itself.

Overall impressions

We really don't want this review to come across as an attack on the Atrium Platinum because, in fairness, there is a great deal to admire about this hotel.

It is genuinely beautiful, immaculately presented and maintained to a very high standard.

Above all, it employs some truly wonderful people who work incredibly hard to make guests feel welcome.

We certainly understand why the hotel receives so many glowing reviews.

However, we do feel there is a distinction between a hotel looking and feeling like a five-star establishment and every aspect of the holiday actually delivering a five-star experience.

For us, the extremely cold main swimming pool, disappointing private pool, rather uninspiring food and difficulties with the lifts all detracted from what could otherwise have been an exceptional holiday.

The extraordinary weather was simply unfortunate, and we certainly don't hold the hotel responsible for that.

Despite the disappointments we experienced, we left feeling that this is a hotel run by people who genuinely care, and we sincerely appreciate the kindness shown to us.

Would we return?

Sadly, no, I'm afraid we wouldn't.

Not because this is a bad hotel, far from it, but because having stayed at numerous luxury resorts over the years, we feel there are others that better suit what we enjoy from a holiday.

We appreciate that everyone's expectations are different, and what disappointed us might not concern other guests at all.

Nevertheless, we would like to end by extending our sincere thanks to everyone who helped make our stay enjoyable, particularly our three wonderful housekeeping ladies and the lovely waitress in the buffet restaurant.

You really are the hotel's greatest asset, and we wish you all the very best.

Thank you, Atrium Platinum, for having us.

Excellent 1st impression. Klaudio Anna Michael's arre the best we felt like kings !!! We look forward to enjoying!!