Lissipio Complex

I've just returned from a week staying in the main apartment block on a ground floor room, with my mother and daughter (aged 8). The room was cleaned twice during the week, even the toilet paper bins containing soiled loo roll are only emptied 2 x weekly - nice smell in the heat! The toilet door wouldn't close. 'Self catering' ought to read 'Room with kettle'. Out of 19 sun loungers, only 4 are not broken; I reported this to the rep on our first day and she stated that she was aware-no further action!The place is owned by a very rude woman called Jenny, loud shouting at night by her and her family as they live at the place, and instead of tidying up the scruffy gardens during the day the owners just sit around the bar area, smoking and shouting.
The place is overrun with cats, at least 14 were counted.(I do work for the RSPCA.) One ginger cat (mother of 4 kittens) obviously had cat flu, a kitten was losing an eye, and one of the many uncastrated tomcats had either been run over or been kicked, such was his lameness. Vet treatment? Not a consideration in Greek culture. My daughter loved one particular kitten (what small girl wouldn't?), but whenever she held it the mad owner snatched it from her arms and stormed off with it.On returning to the apartment one evening after a pleasant meal out, we 3 sat on our balcony and the kitten came to see us; within minutes the owner (Jenny)came over and started screaming at us, accusing my daughter of bringing cats into the apartment (she hadn't), telling me that I was causing her big problems by allowing this. I put her straight but she still persisted with her screeching and when I asked her if she was happy now that she'd reduced my daughter to tears, she shouted that she didn't care and that she could do whatever she likes as she owns the place.
I had a lightbulb moment on my last day, when another guest told me what a lovely, kind woman Jenny had been to her: If you sit around her poolside all day every day, paying her for her food and drinks from her bar, you are subjected to the kind of treatment expected from the owner of the apartments, ie. consideration and respect. If, however, you go out each day to escape the mad woman and her broken sun loungers, you will suffer.

We haved stayed in a lot of budget studios over the years. This was by far the worst. Rooms were dirty and not cleaned, the linen and towels were filthy and never changed. Self-catering was not possible with the hotchpotch of plastic utensils and odd plates, we even resorted to trying to boil an egg in an old dented frying pan. The staff were rude and treated us to the daily family argument whilst the teenage sons were getting drunk on the roof of the bar. I would suggest 70% of the sun loungers were broken in some way. Most importantly we were kicked out of the rooms at 10.00 am even though our flight was not until 3.00 am the following morning. They charged us 35 Euros for the privelage of keeping the room on until 8.00 pm.
They then locked the poolside toilets and left us outside in the rain until our pickup at 1.00 in the morning.
We wrote to Olympic Holidays to advise them of our problems stating that we were not chasing compensation.
Olymics response was that if we read the small print we weren't even entitled to a kettle in Self-catering never mind the luxury of a toaster or knives that didn't bend, and that the owner could charge us what he liked as Olympics contract with us had finished at 10.00 am.
You pay your money, you make your choice.

1 reader found this review helpful

My partner and i arrived at the Lissipio Studio's at about 2:30am, everything seemed nice... The room was basic and clean. However during the holiday we had terrible thunder storms, and our towels that were hanging over the clothes line got rather dirty from the rain and mud from the floor. We had to ask for clean towels which seem to be a problem for the staff. Our room was clened once and when i say cleaned what i mean is the floor was mopped. Our bed linen was never changed. We had a collection of beer bottles in our room that we had kept to return to the local supermarket in exchange for 15 cents per bottle. A member of staff had came into our room during the day when we were out and removed the bottles....Never cleaned the room though..
We were bitten alive by not mosqitoes but by fleas, and we were not the only ones on the complex ,4 other groups were bitten alive as well. On our last day our coach was coming to collect us at 11:30pm. i had asked the owner if i could use the toilet at about 10:00pm. She said the mens was out of order, so i asked to use the ladies.... I was taken to the ladies by the owners daughter, two other guests went to use the toilet but were screened at by the owner to get out. All the other guests waiting for the coach could hear and were horrified. All i can say is beatiful location shame about the dirty rooms, Extremly rude staff who are only interested in watching the television and have more time and manners for the 10-15 cats roaming around on the complex.

1 reader found this review helpful

We have just returned from a 2 week stay at Lissipio Studios and yes the rooms are basic, but they are clean and comfortable and you get what you pay for. My only regret was that there was no air con, so sleeping is difficult but we were able to hire a fan and that was a real life saver. Jenny and her family are lovely and hard working people and we thoroughly recommend the meals that Jenny serves up - very good and very reasonably price compared to other eating places in the area. The pool is excellent and well kept and clean. One problem though is that quite a number of the sunbeds and parasols were broken so there was not really enough to go around, as the pool area is open to the public not just to guests staying at the studios. Aside from that we have a very good 2 week stay and would not hesitate to return to Lissipio

I took my 8 year old daughter here end of August 2009. The idea being to relax and unwind before the return to school, and thats just what we did. The rooms are large by greek standards with high ceilings which help keep room cool, small shower room/tiolet, and typical basic Greek cooking facilites, 2 rings and kettle and fridge. Lots of clothes storage space. The studios all have patio/balcony with tables and chairs. We purchased fresh rolls ect from the nearby supermarket and ate breakfast on the patio although if you wanted a cooked breakfast there are enough places to find one. The pool is very clean and looks out across the hills. Ideal place to relax. My daughter was the only child but she was happy and played with some of the local greek children at the nearby restaurant on an evening. The little bar area is lovely and a great palce to sit and unwind. The restaurant to the left of Lissipio is fantastic, I am afraid I cant remember full name but something like minolous corner. The owner will cook anything you want the way you like it, especially good with kids food. He makes is own wine which he serves at a good price. We also ate at Spiros and Oasis but this was in my opinion by far the best. Beware wasps in August, the grapes are overripe and it seems to send them a little wild. I was stung twice and you need to watch your drinks, advisable to take a wasp sting kit. If you are going to do the beach bbq trip you can book it at the little supermarket down the hill at a fraction of the cost. Great trip. Paleo studios down hill on left with steep drive do a great cheap cooked breakfast. Also tried the expensive restaurant further down hill, think it was called Nereeds, lovely setting but food nothing special for the price and service very slow. Much better going to Monolis corner next door to studio.
All in all a great holiday. Not ideal for anyone not keen on walking up hills because road very steep. Will be going back again this year.

4 readers found this review helpful

we went to lissipio annex this september.the acomodation was better than we expected as this was a very cheap holiday.
the studio was not in the hills as we expected but on the road going into paleokastritsa.the studios are very clean ,the cleaner came in every other day .
the studios were small but tidy ,the pool was situated over the road from the studios .
the pool was lovely and clean and had a cafe/snack bar which was resonably priced.
paleokastritsa is beautiful and there boat trips .small beaches,tavernas and shops all close by .this is an ideal holiday for any one that does not have small children.as there is some walking .we had lovely time and will be going again

More Photos...

4 readers found this review helpful

My issue is with the tour operator who promote this as a 'complex'.
It is NOT a complex!! It is three separate blocks that are owned by three separate people and are not connected in any way. The photographs used to promote the 'complex' are of the ' Lissipio Studios', real name Irida Apartments. All of the facilities, i.e. the pool,sunbeds,umbrellas and bar are provided by Jenny and Dimitri, along with nine basic,clean, typically Greek, self catering apartments. Other reviewers have said most of what there is to say about them, so I will not elaborate, other than to say we stayed there this year and had a wonderful holiday. We would not hesitate to return.
Last year we stayed at the 'Lissipio Annexe', real name Athena Apartments, situated across the road. These are NOT in an elevated position as described, nevertheless, they are also clean, basic and typically Greek self catering apartments. The upper floor rooms provide some view, but the lower floor has no view other than looking straight into an olive grove, look at my photographs, you will see what I mean. Fortunately we were on the upper floor. We used all the facilities across the road provided by Jenny and Dimitri free of charge, and had a thoroughly good time, and that is why we returned this year. We had no complaints regarding this accomodation and would stay there again, but I have to say this year was far better. If you DO have complaints, do not complain to Jenny, they are not her apartments, and can do nothing about it. Talk instead to the tour rep.
The so called 'Lissipio A', real name unknown, backs on to the Irida, and is on the right of some photographs.
We have not stayed there, so I cannot comment from personal experience. However, I was witness to several heated conversations between guests and the tour rep, including the resort manager, and it would seem there were several unhappy people there during our stay. Certainly you have to carry your suitcases quite a way up a winding path from the main road, and although the entrance has been resituated, it is on a very dangerous corner. Purely from observation, I would not want to stay there. It seems to me that all the negative reviews stem from this block of apartments. Once again, these are not anything to do with Jenny and her family, other than she allows guests to use her facilities.
Which brings me to my final point. It is my understanding that Jenny and Dimitri receive NO remuneration whatsoever from the two other blocks, other than what people spend in the bar or on snacks. Along with their daughter, Irini, they work long hours to provide a pleasant and friendly place to enjoy your holiday, and they deal with any issues that are relevant to them. They CANNOT deal with issues from the other apartments.Talk to the tour rep. Irida Apartments, AKA 'Lissipio Studios', are a warm and welcoming place to stay.These apartments are five years old now, and they have added and improved over the years. It represents a huge investment for a seemingly very uncertain return. OK, they are not 5 star, but don't expect champagne when you paid for lemonade.They deserve support, and they deserve better from the tour operator.

I went to Corfu with my family after they had had a previous visit to the same accommodation. I was shocked that the owners of the complex had remembered my family after their visit 2 years previous. The rooms are basic but you only need to sleep in them. The area is fairly quiet but was good as it was relaxing. We went and ate the Oasis Taverna almost every night, you could never eat the same thing twice as they have a vast menu and the staff also remembered my family from there prevoius visit, they even remembered what my brother ate how impressive is that, just imagine how many people they must have served in 2 years!!!!!! Highly recommend a holiday to paleokastritsa!!!!

2 readers found this review helpful

Room was basic but when you go on holiday you don't want to spend all the time in the room do you!! second visit back to lissipio complex was impressed overall. Impressed that owner remembered us from previous visit two years before. Complex was very clean and pool was a life saver! Food was Great. Went to the oasis restaurant nearly every night staff were friendly and accomodating when there was fussy eaters such as myself! Holiday destination is for a more relaxing type of holiday if you would like clubs n noise then go to kavos or sidari. Looking forward to maybe returning next year!

4 readers found this review helpful

We found the apartments to be clean, spacious and basic (well it is Greece so what would you expect!). The kitchen area is equipped with a fridge-complete with ice box, a two ring electric hob – which we unplugged and placed in cupboard to give us more worktop space. There was also an electric kettle which is quite unusual for Greek apartments. There were adequate pans, crockery and cutlery (once again it was basic we didn’t feel the need to be throwing any diner parties). There was plenty of hanging space and ample drawers. Toilet and shower were basic and clean, the shower tray and curtain were a little on the small side but there was ample hot water throughout the day. We took our holiday at a time the island was experiencing a heat wave and as the apartments did not have air conditioning we hired a fan from the owners for 30 Euro’s for the two weeks. The room was unbelievably hot and although the fan was on full speed it was still uncomfortable at times as we were unable to get the temperature regulated (we took a gamble when we booked as we knew that the apartments did not have air con so I’m not mentioning this as any form of complaint). The beds had new mattresses that were very comfortable and the bedding was changed once every week. Blankets and throws were provided-not that we needed them!
The apartment boasts some great views of the mountains and hills that surround the bays; however there are no sea views due to the contours of the terrain. The swimming pool area is fantastic for young and old alike and the water throughout our stay was always invitingly warm! The owners of the apartments can also provide meals and drinks, although the menu is not extensive the food always seemed to be well prepared and priced competitively.
Required to vacate the rooms at 12 noon (they are pretty strict about this), rooms can be kept on for a sum of 25 Euros. There is a very good shower and toilet block next to the pool which provide you with adequate facilities if you decide to vacate your room and continue to enjoy a last swim before changing for your homeward journey.
Overall I felt that the room and the apartment facilities exceeded my expectations having read some of the other reviews.
There are a couple of bus stops close by and there is a regular service into Corfu town (really worth a day trip) which pretty much runs on time (Well Greek time). It's about 2 Euros per person each way.
There are three restaurants in very close proximity which offer a varied range of meals at very competitive prices. A supermarket is within two minutes walk and will be able to supply the majority of your holiday needs. They sell the local wine which although will never reach international acclaim is extremely palatable and at approx 8 Euros for five litres represents good value for money, they also offer other wines at a reasonable rate if you are a discerning drinker!
The apartments are situated a good 2 kilometres from the main part of the resort which incorporates the harbour and the two main sandy beaches. However there is access to the sea only a few hundred metres from the hotel if you do not mind accessing it from a diving platform (there is no beach) at the Acapulco Hotel. The Acapulco boasts a swimming pool, and several sun bathing areas in its vast grounds and welcomes guests (as do all the hotels that have pools as it helps to generate further custom for them). The nearest sandy/stone beach is about 20 minutes walk away and can be accessed from the Akrotiri hotel (down a flight of steps which passes one of the resort diving clubs). Sun beds and parasols are available (8 Euros a day for 2 beds and parasol). This beach has 2 bars, public toilets, diving, water skiing, various water rides, pedaloes, canoes and day boats. The scenery is spectacular and as a result the beach is busy (especially on Sundays when the locals like to use it).
The mosquitoes were pretty aggressive (although we didn’t have any in our room) and were active during the day (in shaded area) and it was not unusual to see them around the pool area from 4pm onwards. However a good squirt of insect repellent and the electric plug-ins in the room kept them at bay. There were also a fair amount of wasps but as they were Greek they seemed far too laid back to be as persistent as their UK counterparts!
Car, motor bike, quad bike etc are all available locally and it’s worth trying to negotiate a deal as there is some flexibility! Please, please, please take the helmets and wear them if you have a bike............there were several accidents and quite a few walking wounded. Although the main roads are of a good standard the best views are to be had from the mountains and these are only accessed via twisting tracks that can be challenging to the novice rider.
All in all a great holiday destination.