Vasia Beach Hotel

This hotel provided the holiday of a lifetime!!! My husband and I arrived at the Vasia on 9th Sept this year and absolutely loved everything about the holiday/hotel. We flew with Thomson.com and the flight was outstanding. We arrived at the hotel at approximately 3:15am. Upon arrival, we were greeted by very helpful and friendly staff. There were three gentlemen waiting to great us and another couple. One gentlemen booked us into the hotel and explained the all inclusive programme and everything we needed to know about the hotel and surrounding area, another man handed us a bag full of food because we had been travelling all night (which was much appreciated) and another man waited until we were booked in and carried our cases to our room.
Our room had been upgraded to a suite, we had two queen size beds, two bathrooms (one included a jacuzzi bath), there were two floors to the apartment with a lovely spiral staircase, one bedroom was upstairs and one downstairs. The apartments were absolutely immaculate, they were cleaned everyday, towels were also replaced everyday. I could have lived there indefinitely!!!
The food was out of this world, there was the main restaurant which was delicious. Then there were three other restaurants, a Greek, a Chinese and an Italian. All were fantastic. The best part of the holiday was the entertainment, there was a fantastic Animations team which consisted of two girls and two guys. They entertained guests from 10am by the pool in the morning and went right through to the early hours of the morning. I loved them all!!! My husband especially enjoyed the pool volleyball which was played everyday at 11am and 4pm, by the end of the holiday there was a great group of lads who would play everyday.
I can't fault the Vasia at all, and the previously bad reviews need their heads testing - I don't know where they were staying but it certainly wasn't the Vasia hotel in Sissi, Crete. We are definitely booking for next year.

Disaster, disaster, a nice 5 Star hotel we thought, well this was the first big mistake, the Vasia is on the best day a 2 star hotel. Looking at the pictures on the internet and reading what you get in the Vasia is a completely different world from what you actually get.
Arriving at 05.00am, we found the room with the A/C broken, no light in the bathroom and dirty, I mean dirty. Calling reception had the A/C working after 1 hour, but for the light we had to wait 2 days. The promised welcome drink, as advertised consisted of 2 little bags with a bottle of water an orange and a sandwich, these were put on the table in a 40 degree room probably the day before as the whole room was smelling of rotten ham or what looked like it.
Being hungry we decided to go to breakfast as it was 07.30 by the time the A/C worked. Got to the main restaurant to find COLD eggs, COLD bacon, Cold everything. Don’t expect a slice of real ham, you get 1 kind of sausage meat and 1 kind of sliced cheese.
Went and complained to reception which only got us treated as liars and being the only people who ever complained, although we found out over the first few days everyone we met had complained.
The room was never cleaned properly in the 2 weeks of our stay. The cleaner had the habit of rinsing her mop in the bath and not even bothering to rinse it. The mirror was quite a work of art after not being cleaned for 2 weeks.
Food wise don’t expect much choice or taste as it’s 1 day fresh 1 day recycled, and the menu is recurring.
Get up early if you want a chair close to the pool as they are all reserved by 8, even though there is a no reservation policy.
The bar has 7 kinds of inclusive spirits, which taste like crap and if you want a shot of the real stuff they charge 10 euro, the pub next door gives you 3 shots for that price. All inclusive???? Don’t ask for an espresso as its not in the all inclusive and they don’t even have an espresso machine.
5 pools and 1 snack bar means you have to run quite a bit to get you hands on a burger or something, but don’t bother as I’ve never seen anything like it. The only reasonable thing is the salad. Animation is abominable, every week the same done in the most childish way.
For us its first and last time in Crete.
If you want to go to Crete avoid the VASIA, it’s in your interest.

Just returned from a 1 week all inclusive break at the Vasia beach and must admit it was fantastic, it was one of the best hotels I've stayed in.
The rooms were amazing, 2 bedrooms, satellite TV inc Filmnet 1,2 & 3, Discovery Channel, National Geographic etc, PC with games, DVD player/CD player/internet, 2 balconies, tea & coffee facilities, en suite bathroom and family bathroom with full size bath, separate glass shower cubicle, excellent decor throughout, basket of freebies including slippers, fruit, drinks (in fridge). We even received a packed-lunch on arrival due to us arriving late (flight delays).
The pools and surrounding areas were kept spotless and were cleaned every day, there were a total of 22 pools in different locations some private (VIP etc), kids & adult entertainment, music, bar & food, best spot is near the snack bar towards the back of the hotel.
There’s something always on and the animation team were keen to get you all involved.
The food was great, there was always something for everyone.
Also I wouldn't bother taking any towels with you, you get towels on arrival and are changed every two days for use around the pool areas, if you lose them you will be charged 30 euros each.
Overall, a fantastic place to visit and to relax, the spa's excellent.

The hotel room was lovely, with complimentary drinks and fruit in the mini bar on arrival.
The air conditioning actually worked (unlike other hotels I’ve visited!).
The food was fine, I enjoyed the bbq on the Wednesday and the Italian restaurant, but the Chinese night was not great.
The entertainment was not great, although we did not find the club until the second to last night, we tended to explore further afield at night.
Overall though, no complaints and had a lovely time! Definitely recommend!

My family and I have just returned from two weeks at the Vasia Beach hotel and we would like to say that overall this has been one of the best holidays we have had.
We also cannot understand the negative comments from other reviewers. The hotel was spotlessly clean and the staff were always polite and helpful and very hard-working.
We arrived at 5am and were quickly checked in and our cases taken to our room which was room 1603. It was very spacious and comfortable with two bedrooms, three bathrooms and three balconies. The beds were comfortable and the rooms air-conditioned with units you can control yourselves. We also had our own pool which was completely enclosed by a wall with its own terrace and sunbeds.
We only queued once for dinner and found the food to be plentiful and varied, including soup, breads, salads, fish, pasta, vegetables, rice, casseroles, carvery, chips and another choice of potatoes. We tried most things over the course of the two weeks and were very happy. There was always plenty of choice at breakfast too with cereals, breads, cold meats, cooked breakfast, smoothies, fruit etc. You can help yourselves to drinks including beer, wine, soft drinks, tea and coffee. I only used the restaurant a couple of times for lunch as we mainly ate at the poolside snack bar where you can get burgers, pizza etc. The staff were always helpful and cleared the tables very quickly.
The activities during the day were fun and enjoyable, and there were lots of them. We never had any trouble getting sunbeds, even at 10 am there were always some available and the pool area was never crowded. I swam some mornings at about 8.30 and was amazed that at that time how few sun beds had been reserved. We stayed mainly by the sports pool, where pool volleyball, water polo and aqua gym was held, but our sons also used the deep pool on the other side of the complex which was never crowded, although busier than the sports pool. Also as other reviewers have said, don't take any beach towels as you can get them from reception. You can change them every two days, but be careful not to lose any as you will be charged for them.
I tried the Spa twice and thought the treatments were great and good value for money.
The evening entertainment was not always great but the animation team (including Barbora and Tatiana who took the aqua stretch and aqua gym) worked very hard producing quizzes and shows and there was professional entertainment three evenings a week. We stayed at the Cotton Club most evenings until 11pm and then several times went to the Pink Flamingo bar and taverna (which is just along the road from the club opposite the supermarket) for a drink or two which was great. The owner George made us very welcome.
We walked into Sissi several times and thought it was a charming village with plenty of bars and restaurants if you felt like a change. The prices of things are very similar everywhere, i.e the cost of an ice cream cone was €1 from everywhere we bought one.
There is a small beach area by the harbour in Sissi which you can hire sunbeds and shades which we used a couple of times. My husband also went to Boufos beach a couple of times but it was too rocky and the sea too rough for me. I was quite happy to stay by the pool though.
If you do not have transfers included with your holiday I emailed the hotel and they arranged for us to be picked up at the airport which made things a lot easier.
Both my sons, aged 15 and 11 had a great time and made lots of friends. The whole complex felt very safe and I had no worries about letting them go around the various pools and snack bar during the day and to the Cotton Club or Pool room at night.
All in all it was a very relaxing and chilled holiday and we certainly loved it.

Upon arrival to what was supposed to be a 5 * hotel my family and I had the worst 2 weeks holiday in our life!
After arriving at 3am we were charged 110 euros for a taxi from airport to Vasia which we later found out should have cost no more than 45 euros! We checked in at reception to be given a one bed apartment for 4 adults and 1 child, we had no lounge as detailed in booking as they had crammed 3 camp beds into it.and a further room with a double bed in.
The air conditioning was noisy and cut off every 10 mins throughout the night and was nowhere near sufficient!
The food was roast pork, curry pork and any other meat served was mainly bone or fat! Basically the same every day, at lunchtime and dinner, with disgusting greasy chips that were reheated, if not cold. The restaurant had no air con and was far too hot which made it unbearable; the food had flies on it, the plates were dirty, there was not enough seating. It was like a cattle market!
The soft drinks were very watered down; the coke even came out as fizzy water on several occasions.
The pool made your swimwear green which does not wash out! Several items ruined!
The snack and drink bar had huge queues which were not worth queuing for.
The management were not interested in any complaints!
The staff, especially in reception, were totally unhelpful and did not know anything.
On the whole Vasia Beach is a total waste of money and I would never recommend it to anyone!

I suppose it's true that absence makes the heart grow fonder, having been back for a week now, I can honestly say that this was certainly one of the most relaxing holidays that I have ever enjoyed. Certainly not a destination for the party people looking to waste their vacation in the pubs & clubs of Malia.
We booked only a week or so in advance and did some research on the web reviews on the hotel so were pretty well forearmed with what to expect.
As single dad, I travelled with my 2 daughters aged 11 & 10 and from the moment they arrived in the apartment, I knew that this was going to be quality, the rooms were very well equipped and bathrooms a little bit special with the spa shower cubicle separate to the deep wide bath. Fair enough our view of the adjacent apartment block could have been better.
I always opt for a hotel that has a good mixture of UK and European holidaymakers and Vasia was no exception, guests were from Ireland, Scotland, England, Holland, Belgium, Germany, Sweden, Norway, Finland, France, Italy, Slovakia, Greece, and no doubt many more besides.
Food was varied and of excellent quality, however, the kids choice at the speciality restaurants was virtually non existent, my 2 ate bread rolls those nights (deduct 1 point).
Restaurant staff were efficient in the extreme, put a fork down and your plate was in danger of being lifted. The (Polish / Slovakian) waiters were absolutely excellent with terrific attitude and smiling constantly.
Reception & general hotel amenities were excellent, very clean and well laid out. The spa was good but poorly frequented by most guests, may have been different story if it was available to AI guests.
Good to see that as the hotel got busier, both pool bars were opened during the day. Alcohol was available until 23:00 every evening, but the quality was questionable (deduct 1 point), the only time I woke up with a hangover was after a night out at the karaoke in the Sissi Arms.
The staff in Vasia beach were child friendly and kids club was very good also. The local kids were very friendly down at the local harbour and once our kids and theirs got together, there was no language barriers with smiling & diving into the water off the cruise boats.
Entertainment team were superb, if you wanted to relax you were left in peace, if you were up for participation, then a good variety of games & activities were available daily. The evening shows that they put on were a great way to finish off the day and certainly well supported by the bulk of the clientele.
I would have been more than glad to sit & chill out for the 2 weeks, however, decided to book a car for the final 5 days (120 euros), offset the cost of transfer to the airport in a big way(60 euros each way).
Eating out was excellent in other resorts specifically Cafe Kovanouos in Istron, can't recommend it enough.

I have just returned from 1 weeks AI at the Vasia Beach Hotel and I am baffled by the negative comments. I can only say we had a great time and this hotel is excellent value. The food is of a very high standard,with a very good choice available. The room we had ( no 29) was massive and had its own terrace large enough for its own 5-a-side football game! Also I cannot compliment the reception highly enough. They personally show you to your room upon arrival and will also help you in any way they can. The resort of Sissi is a short walk away and is picture postcard Crete with a good choice of bars and restaurants. I would not hesitate in returning again at a later date . Also I cannot praise Elena and the management enough for returning my clothing which I forgot and left in the room .

Just had a fantastic holiday with my partner at the Vasia. Being my first trip abroad I was nervous of what to expect but I needn't have worried.
The accomodation was lovely, we had a double room with a view over the sea. The food was lovely and had plenty of choice, and the staff were all friendly and helpful.
We throughly enjoyed ourselves!

This is a nice hotel, food very very good but the bars a bit understaffed. The entertainment was rubbish though. For the Brits amongst you I would recommend, for a really excellent night out, to get down to the Sissi Arms about, 200yards from hotel. [not far to stagger back] Say hi toHelen, Adonis and Kirsti - great great night - say hello from Keith