Liza Mari Hotel

1 reader found this review helpful

My wife and I came here in June, I gave it 9~10 now 3~10, the place has gone down hill big time, if you want to stay at Liza Mari go self catering the local people who look after this part are FAB, Ill be back, but will be staying with locals in there apartments.

1 reader found this review helpful

Our party was 1 adult and two children aged 8 and 10. A set of apartments in an excellent location with facilities which were typically Greece. So yes that includes a wet room where you hold the shower head, but the rooms were very clean on arrival and were cleaned throughout our stay. The barbecue on the Sunday evening held by the owners is extremely good and a good way of meeting your other holidaymakers. Only went to the pool once but bigger than it looks in the pictures probably about 15 metres in length. The "pool bar" wasnt open but the main outdoor bar was only 10 metres away and was very good.
Bali itself is a fantatsic location for a family. The beach was a 3 minute downhill walk and was very safe and had a multitude of sunbeds which cost 2 euros a day. When the brochure talks about hills they mean big Hills but you can take the train which does run very regular or strech the calf muscles.
Other useful info. There is one cash machine in the resort on the main road down to the port on the RHS - just after the cash machine is some steps down to the port which can save you 2 to 3 minutes walking, they go through a restuarant but there is no hassle.
There is some nice bars such as Mambo on the beach below the aprtments which show skysports and stay open until 1 ish - there is is a number of nice restuarants in the harbour and also the pirates bar in the harbour area.
Went on the trip with Olympic to the watercity waterpark which was very good value and the kids definitely enjoyed.
A great location and resort which is throughly unspoiled and typically Greek. Would recommend to anybody.

1 reader found this review helpful

we booked this without any reasearch then got a bit concerned when we read some of the previous comments about the Liza Mari. We needn't have worried. Bali is lovely for a relaxing holiday and the apartment was just what we wanted. It's more or less in the middle of the 5 beaches so the many tavernas are within walking distance but it's off the main road so very quiet. The apartment was spotlessly clean and looked newly painted. We didn't expect air conditioning and thought E5 per night was very reasonable for this. The owner was friendly and available if needed. We also found the Olympic organisation of airport transfers was good and our rep, Simon, was helpful and seemed to know the resort well. We had booked 3 days car hire through Thomas Cook before we went but found virtually every other shop was a car hire company so if we went again we would wait till we got there.

1 reader found this review helpful

First time at Liza Mari, if the bar stayed open till 2am this would be 10 rating, very very friendly, best barman in the world [ANTONI] back again 2 sept 08. 'Owner' Joseph is one of the best cannot do enough for ya. see ya all again soon, John & Donna GRIMSBY,UK....................

If you are looking for a holiday full of excitement and adventure, a stay within the Liza Marie Apartments would not be recommended. There is absolutely nothing to do within the hotel and amenities are limited. The staff are indifferent and unpleasant. The rooms are extremely basic and the pool is dirty. Rooms are also not the cleanest. Breakfast was buffet style and terrible. The area is very under developed. I would not return to this hotel and would not recommend you to visit.

1 reader found this review helpful

Having read other comments I am very pleased to say that our experience was every bit as good as we could have hoped for.
The apartment was spotless and the owners were delightful. Air-con is available in all apartments now but we did not need it with it being Sept/Oct. As self-catering apartments go in the Greek Islands I would say that they are better than average. They were cleaned every day and bed linen and towels changed during the week.
Should I want a break away from it all I would definitely choose to go there again. As with others I did hear rumblings about the experiences in the hotel but this did not affect us in any way at all.

My wife and I have just returned from a fantastic week at the Liza Marie Apartments.
The Apartments are as described on other postings so I won't detail that again other than to say they were spotlessly clean and Vassilis and his Family displayed the typical Cretan Hospitality.
A Bar-B-Q on the Saturday afternoon when he provided more meat than I ever thought we would eat, roasted vegetables and salads were made by his wife, and he asked all the guests to bring a little something.
Only three other guests turned up which was their loss because the afternoon was an unexpected treat. Air-con was installed in our apartment although we didn’t need it as it wasn’t that hot.
The resort is truly beautiful and although there is still some building going on it's never, thankfully, going to turn into Malia. Plenty of Tavernas and although they all serve pretty much the same dishes if you enjoy Greek food you won't go far wrong in any off them.
We particularly liked the Blue and White taverna overlooking the bay just below the apartments and the Panoramic taverna overlooking the port. There is a two storey taverna at the port where not only do you get the usual free desert after your meal but also a complimentary jug (not just a glass!) of Ouzo before your meal. All that, a starter and main course and a bottle of wine for about £20 including a tip. Great value.
We also struck lucky on our flight as we were the only people travelling to Bali so we had a taxi transfer both ways, about a 30 minute journey with the sea on one side and mountains on the other.
We would go back to Bali and if we do we would definitely try to stay at the Liza Marie Appt again. We couldn't recommend it highly enough.
By the way, one of the three dogs had 4 puppies a week before we arrived and Vassilis daughter, Aphrodite, took great pleasure in taking us to see them.

Couldn’t find fault anywhere for the price.
We had a few power cuts whilst there, and the one on the morning we were leaving was most inconvenient, but think this was a common enough occurrence in Bali itself and not the fault of the Lisa Mari.
Rooms were cleaned every day and fresh towels left.
Wouldn't recommend the place [Bali or the Liza Mari] for people with walking difficulties, though I’ve a dicky knee and managed to cope.
Bali itself it beautiful and highly recommended if its RnR you want, had difficulty sleeping in the heat, but managed to catch a few truly beautiful sunrises as a result.
Would go back to Crete in the morning, though think I’ll give Chania a go next time, as fell in love with it during a day trip.

We stayed in the self catering apartments and had no problems at all. The Lisa-Marie is split into 3 sites around a small "square" (actually a road junction - but not busy).
There is the hotel, the self catering apartments (only 5 of them) and another building that had the breakfast room and extra rooms.
The self catering apartments are in a gated compound and give good views of the surrounding hills. A pleasure was watching the sheep being brought down from the hills every evening. Sitting out at night all we could hear was the chicadas and the clonking of sheep bells.
Apartments were the usual Greek basic - 2 single beds (comfortable), normal furniture, a built in wardrobe, an electric hob, a sink, a few cupboards and a shower room/loo.
Cleaning was done every day and we got fresh linen twice a week. No air-con, but as we were there in September that was not a problem. The building is well built and the compound was well maintained. We had 2 power cuts during the 3 weeks that we were there, but they were regional and not specific to our building and this is Greece after all.
We were 5 minutes from one of the 4 bays that make up Bali. It is a little hilly, however while we were there the "Bali Express" was introduced; one of these little road-trains that look a bit tacky but provided a service to all of the bays for 2 Euros one way or 4 Euros for the round trip. For late season it was well used and will do well next year. We asked the owner why the service started so late in the season? The answer was that the vehicle was purpose built in Italy and the combination of Italian and Greek bureaucracy created havoc!
The Hotel owner’s brother in law (Vasillis), wife, daughter and 3 small dogs live upstairs and were very friendly and even organised a barbecue for "their" guests - we provided the meat and they provided everything else. With the guests from the 5 apartments and the family it was a very nice gathering.
The dogs are very friendly and are quite small, given the amount of food that they were getting from the guests, they won’t stay small for very long. They also have a marmalade tomcat who is their best friend and it was quite common to see dogs and cat in a big heap on one of the sun-beds.
We did hear negative comments about the main Hotel - as has been noted above. Those of us in the green gated compound felt very lucky that we were there and not in the main hotel.
We also heard that Olympic are not using the Hotel next year BUT have contracted with Vasillis for the self catering apartments.

Firstly, Bali is a beautiful picturesque area of Crete to visit. Very hilly, but take things at a leisurely pace and it is worth the walk around all of the bays. The best bay we found was called 'The Last Beach', with the most refreshing beer in Bali! The Tankards were actually covered in Ice, obviously been kept in the freezer, to make the beer colder. A few secluded beaches can only be accessed by the sea, so either hire a pedalo or swim around!
There is a small train which runs around the whole area at a cost of 2€ one way or 4€ return, well worth it for returning back to the hotel. It runs from the main road all the way to the last beach. Be careful of just laying down on the sunloungers after you come out of the sea, as young girls with a bum bag just appear and demand 6€ for the privilege...
Now, the 'Hotel'.....as it was our first visit to Crete we didn't know of the standards.
The rooms are very, very basic, in need of a lot of refurbishment. The hotel is in three blocks, 2 on one side of the road, and one across the road above the Taverna.
The first room we were given was quite similar to a beach hut, as it was on ground level near to the pool, but we were not happy with it and were changed onto the second floor over the taverna.
Although still very basic, it had clean white sheets and towels. The beds were very creaky, and we made use of the blanket (we found it stuffed in a top cupboard) as a buffer in the gap between the beds! A small dresser with 2 tiny drawers, a mirror and a chair was on one wall. Also there was 1 bedside cabinet, with a tiny drawer, and a fridge next to the bed, (which I used as a bedside unit). This room also had a balcony, with a sea view and air con.
The wet room was in need of refurbishing and needed a hook for the shower to be used as a shower. We were there for 4 days before we had any hot water as they use solar panels to heat up the water. Have you tried to shave in cold water?
If there had been a kettle in the rooms it would have helped - normally we take a kettle with us, but have never needed it before, ....we could have done with it this time. Maids took the rubbish out of the rooms regularly, but only replaced the sheets and towels every 4 days.
We only used the pool once in the week, it was cool and fairly clean. The sun loungers were occupied by three dogs laying on them!
We were booked in for half board, but found the meals were not to our taste, and spent more time in local tavernas. Breakfast consisted of cold processed meat, slices of cheese, bread, cake, butter, yoghurt and honey, and cereals. Some mornings there were boiled or fried eggs, or omelettes. Juice, coffee and hot water from a machine. The evening meals always consisted of salads, and 2 choices of hot food, (which often just seemed lukewarm) and there were unlimited grapes and fruit available.
The only entertainment that we saw at the hotel was a Grecian night which was an extra 15€.
The electricity seemed to go off quite often, especially during the night, but it did go off one morning, so there were no hot drinks. It was especially difficult if you needed the bathroom during the night.
We found that the car hire from 'Happy Cars' was good value and a good way to see the island. We visited most of the main areas going as far as Agia Nikolas in the East and Hania in the west, and crossed the White mountains at one point to Agia Galini on the South Coast. Watch out for police in unmarked cars, and the speed limits! Sometimes the roads just turn from lovely paved roads into dirt tracks too. There are often diversions as they have land slips, and the maps are not always accurate! If going to a main city, head for the first car park you see and stay there all day, as the Cretans are very aggressive drivers and it will save your temper!
As this was our first visit to Crete, we were not very impressed with the standard of hotels and would not consider returning.