Caravel Hotel Zante

2 readers found this review helpful

We have had 3 holidays in Tsilivi at the Caravel. During 2008 we spent a week at the Caravel and enjoyed our stay so much that we returned again in 2009 for 2 more holidays - we haven't been disappointed!


Each time we have booked a room with a side sea view, the room was cleaned on a daily basis with towels and bedding changed. Each room has it's own fridge - very handy for keeping drinks cool. We were on half board and the food was excellent, we really were spoilt for choice both for breakfast and dinner.

The Hotel is situated at the very end of the resort - so if you want a busy nightlife this is probably not the hotel for you, however, this is what we liked, we could walk one way into Tsilivi but the other way was very peaceful and quiet. Last year we did the two boat trips - to visit the Ship wreck and also to see the Turtles.

There was a small amount of entertainment in the Hotel, a couple of evenings during our stay we went out to a local bar with live music- most of the time we stayed in the hotel and relaxed at the bar - again the choice was ours.

The Staff are brilliant - very helpful and friendly, and really made our stay special. We are hoping to go back again this year and just hope that most of them will be there again!

5 readers found this review helpful

If your thinking of staying at the Hotel Caraval...DON'T..!!!!
Like me you read all the bad reviews of this hotel and thought, oh well maybe some people are just too fussy or they gave a bad review cause it was the end of the season.
WRONG.
On arrival the girl at check in tried to con us into sharing an adjoining room for our two rooms. but it only had one bathroom. when we finally got our own room keys and went in the views we had from both rooms were of the dog kennels, an old scruffy warehouse, a dirty unfinished concrete and rusty metal wall and a very annoying and noisy 12 hour generator/water pump. we must of been given the two worst rooms in the whole hotel.!
When we complained the staff seemed totally uninterested and totally unhelpful. they said they were fully booked at first, then they said if we wanted another room with a better view it would cost us about 36 euros extra per room. my disabled 72 year old mother was with us so I decided to pay the euros, but they said I would have to come back in a couple of days and ask. we had already unpacked and begrudged giving them the money so decided to keep the dam rooms and try to make the best of it. Then we found out we had to pay 5 euros a day (35 euros a week pre room ) for air conditioning and if we wanted a safe we had to pay another .20 euros a week. what a rip off. we only found this out when we got there.
The food was terrible and seemed to be catered more for the German guests than the British, the food was often cold too and there were no trays to carry hot plates on.on one day we discovered the butter we rancid and had gone off only to be told that there was no more. The staff were rude and unfriendly they never said hello or good morning or even lifted their heads to acknowledge us. we were told one day that a table was reserved for us all week and we should sit there from now on. the very next day as we were about to walk in we were stopped (pierre) turned around and told to wait outside and wait to be called in.!! after that incident we ate out every night and finally started having breakfast out too at our own expense.
In the hotel booklet it said that the only entertainment was once a week. but we never saw any entertainment at all the time we were there.
At night it was very noisy and we didn't feel safe at all. dogs barking all night from the kennels, motor bikes and cars screeching around.
The door to our room view was of a courtyard full of rubble and rubbish the fire escape was blocked by wooden pallets. we also saw big rats running around.
I have never stayed in such an unwelcoming and unfriendly hotel in my life. this really put me off Zante. which is a shame cause outside of the hotel the greek people we very nice people.
The hotel was full of German people so when they found out we were british they ignored us. and you couldn't get a poolside bed cause they all had towels or stones on them. decent hotels have put a stop to this.
This hotel ruined my holiday, the staff were unfriendly and unhelpful.it was full of rude German people. the food was not catered for the british, was horrible and cold.the beach was stony and tiny,there was no entertainment on the evening,the room walls were littered with the squished bloody remains of weeks old dead mosquito’s that were not cleaned off. (yuk.!! sorry..)
Take my advice never go here...!!!!
I have already made a complaint to my booking agent.

3 readers found this review helpful

My husband and i went to the Caravel for one week mid october. We were a bit apprehensive about going as we had read a few reviews that were not that good, but we found the hotel to be excellant. When we got to the room it had a nice marble effect bathroom, fridge, flat screen TV ( Usual BBC 24 only in English) and a fair size balcony.
the food was good,but by the end of the week the choice was limited,as the hotel was closing for the winter.
The pool areas were fab they had plenty of sunbeds and sun umbrellas and always kept nice and clean. There was easy access to the beach from the poolside just some steps down to the sea.
But even at this time you got the sado's who had to put towels down early in the morning and didn't show up until mid afternoon and there was plenty of room to pick from at any time
Tsilivi's main street was a 5-10 minute walk away lots of bars and shops. There was no noise from the town so its great if you are looking for a not too lively holiday. One bar which was really nice was Level Bar which is an english family run cocktail bar.you felt that you walked in as a stranger but came out as old friends
The staff were very polite and helpful. I would recommend this hotel to anybody.

2 readers found this review helpful

Me and my boyfriend went to the Caravel for one week at the beginning of June. I was a bit apprehensive about going as i read a few reviews that were not good but i found the hotel to be excellant. When we got to the room it had a nice marble effect bathroom, fridge, flat screen TV and a good size balcony. The view from our room wasn't that good as it looked like the hotels maintenance yard, but it didn't matter as we weren't in the room much. The pool was a good size right by the sea, it was really pretty and clean. The beach however was the length of a sunbed so didn't really go on there, the sea was clear and very shallow. The food at the hotel was ok i didn't think there was much choice but maybe that's because i'm quite fussy. The staff were very nice and helpful. Our coach to take us back to the airport picked us up at 3am!!! check out was 11am the previous morning, but there was a room to store luggage and the hotel let us have a spare room to shower in. The hotels entertainment was ok but not brilliant.
Tsilivi's main street was a 5-10 minute walk away lots of bars and shops. There was no noise from the town so its great if you are looking for a not too lively holiday. One bar which was really nice was Level Bar which is an english family run cocktail bar, that became our local for a week. We did eat out in the town twice which was nice. There were a lot of people walking round trying to sell roses, key rings dvds etc, I found it quite rude that they were allowed to walk into a restaurant and do this while you were eating and the staff didn't stop them.
The hotel is advertised as 4 star I would say it was a very good 3 star it does have some 4 star qualites such as the customer service, but I thought the food could have been better, the beach a bit cleaner and some of the grounds of the hotel tidied. I would definetly go back to the hotel. I really enjoyed my stay there, the pool area was beautiful and the staff were very polite and helpful. I would recommend this hotel to everybody it was excellant!!

3 readers found this review helpful

This holiday was one of the best that I've ever been on all the staff were all very welcoming and helpful.
The rooms were very spacious and well equipped with a fridge, TV, and air con. Cleaners came every day providing clean towels.
The pool areas were fab they had plenty of sunbeds and sun umbrellas and always kept nice and clean. Pool activities were good fun with staff joining in with water aerobics and water polo. There was easy access to the beach from the poolside just some steps down to the sea.
The pool bar had a good choice of meals and not to expensive great for fussy eaters!
The beach was a little narrow not very good for sunbathing but the water was very calm and you can walk out quite far. Can hire peddle boats which was good fun?
The hotel restaurant was lovely with staff welcoming you in and showing you to a table, there was a good variety of meals with something different every night, drinks are also pretty reasonable for local sprites and beers. Tables were cleared away promptly.
The Hotel also has an outside bar called caravel land which has a big screen TV showing movies and the football.
The town outside the hotel was very nice with plenty of bars, restaurants, and shops. I recommend you visit this in the night time as more is open and it’s not so hot.
Whilst on holiday there were plenty of excursions available, the shipwreck was a lovely day out. We also went scuba diving which was a great experience I recommend it to anyone who likes the water.
All in all this holiday was brill and deserves 10/10 and we will be going back.

3 readers found this review helpful

My wife and I spent two weeks at the magnificent Caravel hotel, Tsilivi, Zante.
We were married in Zante during our stay, the hotel was superb, excellent surroundings, right on the seafront, excellent food, staff were fantastic.
On our wedding night the staff were fantastic setting aside a table for me, my new wife and 14 other guests. They also supplied champagne (four bottles) for a small reception when we returned to the hotel. So a big thank goes to George, Peter, Erwin and all the crew at the fantastic Caravel for looking after us for two weeks, especially on our special day.
And a big thanks to Manos. J + C Hamilton. p.s. Friends Bar, just up the road from the hotel, Yannis and Illyas, the best wee bar in the world, try it out.

2 readers found this review helpful

My boyfriend and I have just come back from a week's holiday at the Caravel Hotel in Zante.
Overall the hotel was very good, lovely surroundings, fantastic beach/sea views and a short walk to the centre of Tsilivi.
We stayed half board and have to admit that the food was very good, a chance to sample Greek food as well as the usual holiday buffet food e.g. salads, potatoes, pasta and sauces etc.
The only negative point we have about the hotel is that we found some of the hotel staff unfriendly.
All the local Greek staff in the restaurants and bars nearby the hotel were fantastic, very welcoming and good fun.
If anyone wants a lively bar we recommend the "Two Brothers Bar" another good bar though not as lively is the red apple cocktail bar, the staff were very friendly.
For restaurants we recommend "Giorgios" especially their fillet steaks and "Popeyes" for snacks and lunches.

2 readers found this review helpful

The hotel was much better than we thought, beach front, staff were friendly and the accommodation had all you needed and was cleaned well everyday.
Food was good too, a descent variety and hot we had no complaints.
We would recommend both the hotel and the resort also the two trips we went on turtle watch and we saw some amazing sights!
The shipwreck is also a must but book both from just outside the hotel on the right.
The boat we went on got to the wreck about 15mins before all the others, we have unspoilt pics.
I can only imagine what all the other tourists thought, when the view was blocked by lots of boats and people swimming and sunbathing!
The price we paid was half that the reps charge!