Sentido Anthoussa Resort & Spa

We stayed at this hotel Sept/Oct 07 for 2 weeks. Reception was fine (we arrived late at night) but we were expected. I find it hard to believe that anyone could complain about the food. A really huge selection for breakfast and evening meal in the restaurant and also very nice food at the pool bar. Our room was on lower floor with access straight out on the the poolside which was convenient. Pool surroundings were lovely but the pool outside our room was filthy dirty. I complained but nothing was done. Rooms, Restaurants and reception were kept very clean and the beds we found comfortable but some may find them hard. Unfortunately, the uncarpeted concrete corridors could be noisy at night. Apart from the dirty pool, a very satisfactory all-inclusive hotel.

In August 2007 my partner and I booked a holiday to Stalis in Crete on an all inclusive basis for one week. On arrival at heraklion airport we were met by a Thomas Cook representative who showed us to our resort Stalis the transfer took 30 minutes from the airport. Upon arrival we were met by the Anthoussa Hotel receptionist who checked us in and gave us our wrist bands and showed us to our room. We were given a swipe card for the key to the door so you didnt have to use keys which was quite good. We found the room very clean it comprised of satellite TV, Telephone and two single beds and a fridge which contained a small bottle of Coke and a bottle of water which were replaced every day if you had used what was in the fridge. Maid service was every day they cleaned the room and replaced the 2 bath towels and 2 hand towels and toilet roll and soap and shampoo every day. The inside restaurant consisted of a wide variety of food for example breakfast you could have fruit, cereal, orange juice, cooked breakfast, toast and of course pancakes and maple syrup. The outside restaurant on a lunch time you could have pizza, kebabs, burgers, salads stuff, slovaki and pitta bread spaghetti bolognaise and vegtables and there was sweet stuff such as ice cream and cakes. The evening meals varied they had italian night, greek night ect. You could even have a glass or two of wine with your meals. The drinks you could have were varied but they were mainly house specialities, such as metaxa and coke, vodka and coke, beer and house cocktails and as much tea or coffee or alcohol as you liked. The beach and pool were very clean and the sun beds do not cost anything. There is gym and sauna and indoor pool downstairs in the hotel. The local entertainment in the hotel was ok they had karaoke one night and bingo and greek dancing entertainment and there was entertainment provided for the kids which was quite good. There is a local train service opposite the hotel that takes you into Malia it cost us 9 euros each and you could stop in malia for 1 or 2 hours or more and were given times for the return train. There is also a train ride to hersonissos which we did not do as we had a bike. The shops are plentyful and you can buy everything from leather products to chess sets to jewellery. Stalis itself is a long road which is full of shops and bars and restaurants the hammock bar was good for a laugh. We found the Rovers Return Bar good and cheap for alcohol and food. You will find however if you go in October the resort starts to wind down as it is there end of season. As for the Island excursions they do a day trip to santorini which one of the most beautiful greek islands with stunning views of the caldera and of course the stunning sun sets in the resort of Oia. The main port area which I guess they would take you to is Thira. Other excursions include Knossos museum in heraklion, crete. The Samaria Gorge, Chrissi Island and Of course Spinalonga Island, as well as other excursions around the island. I guess overall I would say most of the staff and management were polite and friendly and we liked this Hotel and all it had to offer. We are planning to return soon.

We booked a last minute holiday to Greece and it was great! We didn't pay much for this fantastic hotel in Stalis, Greece and so, we weren't expecting much but upon our arrival we were met with a plush resort and spa, excellent service by all staff and were were treated liked valued customers from arrival to departure. Our room was large for the two of us, with 3 beds, bathroom, tv, hairdryer, mini bar and a terrace leading out onto the pool area which itself lead onto the beach and gorgeous blue sea. We stayed on an AI basis, there was plenty of variety, buffet type serving with waiter service for drinks at your table. The management were always around to make sure things were running smoothly and very friendly. The entertainment staff were great, full of fun and enthusiasm and amazing language skills to accomodate the many nationalities staying there. Stalis itself is a great place for a beach holiday, not as loud as Malia up the road and good for couples who are not into clubbing into the small hours but instead enjoy a more relaxed atmosphere but by no means quiet. There are plenty of tavernas and bars to choose from and also transport to other places of interest are fairly easy to get. There are many excursions to offer. We particularly enjoyed a jeep trip up intothe mountains to see traditional villages and also a Greek night which was good fun with free flowing wine and Greek dancing. A brilliant holiday and we would thoroughly recommend the Anthoussa hotel which exceeded our expectations and we would rate as a 4star hotel.

We were dropped off by Direct Holidays at lunchtime on 14th Aug. The hotel signed to accept us with the Rep. We were left waiting for half an hour before the Accomodations Manager came to tell us that she did not have a room and we would have to go by taxi to another hotel. We refused to go anywhere until we had spoken to Direct Holidays so I insisted that they telephone the number given to us on a card so that we could talk to them. We explained to the rep on the phone what they were trying to do and he told us not to agree to anything until they had come back to us as he was going to call the main office. Whilst we were waiting the Accomodations Manager came to us with another solution - 2 apartments next door and we could use the hotel facilites. Again we refused and said we wanted to wait. They were obviously trying to get us to agree to something without involving Direct Holidays. She told us the reason why we did not have a room was that she had taken an overbooking from anther hotel the previous day"!!!! Christine the Resort Manager for Direct Holidays arrived shortly as they were totally unaware of what the hotel were trying to do and tried to sort the situation out. She told us that the hotel they were trying to send us to by taxi was no where near the same standard as the Anthoussa so we agreed to look at the apartments. They were extremely basic with none of the facilites that we had paid for and only slept 2. The Anthoussa Manager thought it was reasonable for a 12 year old girl to sleep in an apartment on her own with no interconnecting door to her parents room! We agreed to stay there for 1 night on the understanding that we got a room in the hotel the next morning. Christine managed to get free towels for the pool/beach, an extra 2 nights at the a la carte restaurant and the mini safe free from the hotel. I would not call the a la carte restaurant that as you are given the choice of 2 set menus with no chance of selecting starter from one and main course from another. We only went twice instead of the four times we were entitled to as we thought it was poor. Direct Holidays were excellent thoughout this experience. We cannot fault Christine and Gill (hotel rep) at all. They followed up on everything the hotel had agreed to do to ensure we got it. They also automatically gave us compensation which we decided to use towards 2 trips. I spoke to a few people and we found out whilst we were there that the overboooking problem has been an issue all season with mainly British holiday makers but this was the first time it had happened to Direct Holiday customers. We spoke to other holiday makers and it had happened to many of them. 2 couples had been in the apartments we had to stay in for a whole week without the Tour Operator being informed! The hotel itself is very nice. You cannot really fault anything once you actually have a room there. Everything is spotlessly clean and there is a good selection of food. We have never been all inclusive before and we were impressed by the standard. The restaurant and waiting staff were excellent. The animation team worked very hard to involve all the holiday makers but we were not impressed by the evening entertainment but from what we have heard it was what you usually got in all inclusive hotels. The hotel itself in a central position in Stalis with some lovely bars close by and we never found it to be noisy. We hired a car and went up into the hills which have some stunning views. After a rocky start we enjoyed our time in Crete. If we decided to return in the future we would not consider the Anthoussa even though this holiday turned out well in the end. WE WOULD HOWEVER GO WITH DIRECT HOLIDAYS AS WE COULD NOT FAULT THEM AT ALL.

We also booked for the Anthoussa Hotel in April 07 but found out the day before we were due to fly (11th Sept) the hotel had over booked. We were offered alternative accomadation in Hersonnisos. The hotel we were booked in was nice (Star Beach Village) but did not do all inclusive. They did accomadate us by doing all inclusive but it took about 3 days before all staff was aware of what we could have and we all found it awkward and embarrassing at times. We visited Stalis and spoke to quite a few people that had had the same experience as ourselves. We found that the Hotels in Stalis over book all the time so they can fill the hotels in Hersonnisos (one of the waiters in Stalis told us this).. This has put me off booking for Crete in future.

We travelled as a party of seven to Crete - 4 adults and 3 children. We booked our holiday thru Olympic holidays and i would NEVER recommend them to anyone. Our holiday was ruined by the staff's complete lack of care and their whole attitude to the problems we enccountered. The hotel was fab, had just been refurbished and when arrived our first thoughts were 'what a great choice'....only to be told that our rooms had been double booked and we would have to be given alternative accomodation. The first accomodation offered, which we refused, was a 2 star rated appartment and took over 3 hrs to organise. Eventually we were offered what they 'laughingly' called a comparable 4 star alternative,which we had no alternative but to accept. The reception staff were quite rude and unhelpful in dealing with us - however, to be fair they were probably sick of telling people that the hotel was having problems with double bookings, as we weren't the only ones to experience this, but then it is their job to sort difficulties out. After 3 and 1/2 days and LOADS of hassle we were given rooms in the Anthoussa Hotel and it then lived up to our original thoughts, but we just feel that the 14 day holiday we bought and had been looking forward to had been turned in to a 10 day one.

We have just returned from a fantastic two weeks at the Anthoussa Resort, Stalis. We found the staff to be courteous and friendly, and the service efficient. Our room was adequate and clean, however storage was minimal. The Anthoussa is located in Stalis with bars and shops just a few minutes walk from the hotel. The hotel facilities were good. The pool areas were kept clean. The Animation Team were very entertaining and provided a range of activities for guests to take part in. During the day meals were served from the poolside snack bar and the main restaurant - both very good. In the evening a buffet dinner was served in the main restaurant, including themed nights. One thing we particularly appreciated was the hotel's policy that guests should not reserve sunbeds. One morning at about 9am we were sitting by the pool when the hotel manager and a staff member came along and removed all the towels from sunbeds that weren't being used ! Overall it was a very good holiday.

Upon reading a comment about this hotel prior to our holiday,we called our travel agent in a panic as it said that there were alot of building works going on with many months work remaining, though they did say once finished will be a nice hotel. As our holiday comes only once a year it was important to us that we were not going to a building site and could relax for that week. To our relief, when we got there we found there to be no work being done. Yes there were signs of work that had been carried out but nothing to intefere with our holiday. We enjoyed our week there and found all of the staff to be very friendly and helpful, the food superb, lots of choice and large quantities. We do very little but relax on holiday so we spend alot of time at our hotel, at Anthoussa we had the choice of poolside or beach to do this and enjoyed both. Mr C. Wiltshire

have just returned from the anthoussa resort/spa and had a fantastic two weeks. unfortantly because we had the heatwave with temps,reaching 104 in the shade we didn't do much sightseeing. the surrounding area is fantastic especially when all lights are on. The hotel itself is great and so are all staff especially the entertainers,they are all so very helpful. the one drawback is that the hotel is still being renovated so the stairs do not have any handrails and all loos are downstairs,also lighting is not very good,but dont let this put you off as long as you are sensible its fine.One tip for the gentlemen it is long trousers for the evening meal only.If anyone goes there we promise that you will have a fantastic holiday. ENJOY.

We have just returned from Anthoussa Resort, Stalis. The hotel is in the most spectacular of settings and in the centre of Stalis. The hotel has almost finished a complete renovation and once it is finished and some health and safety issues are sorted will be worthy of its 4 star. Unfortunately for us the hotel was not quite up and running as it should have been, with only 1 restaurant open instead of 3 as advertised in brochure. The animation team did start at the end of our first week and were great, it really made a difference and there was a mini disco every night for the children. I'm sure that in a couple of months the renovation will be complete (two floors of bedrooms still being renovated) and hopefully they will have worked on the food selection (pasta, pasta or pasta).They were also working on getting the beach bar up and running(not open for us) but as its greece and they work in greek time it may be next season before its all finished!!! There was also a virus which affected children in the hotel, but obviously this could have been nothing to do with the hotel and just bad luck. Overall though we did love Crete and especially Stalis, which has something for everyone.