Beach Club Aphrodite

We booked this holiday last minute. One week All Inclusive. Although the hotel is listed as a 4*, based on previous 4*s I have stayed in I would rate this as a 3*. We arrived early in the morning (4ish) and were met by a lovely member of staff on the reception desk. The reception area is nicely decorated (probably recently refurbished). However, the room was a bit of a let down. The room was quite small and both the double and the single bed were in need of being replaced. The shower was excellent and so was the maid service which was every day. The room was not as grand as the one shown on the website, but then they never are. We did ask for a high up, double room with a seaview and we got it so good and bad. There was a carpeted hallway on the 3rd floor and I think this is where the nicer rooms are. Because the corridors are stone floors it can get a bit noisy late at night. All of the hotel staff were friendly and polite. The staff behind the bar will always have a chat. The entertainments team were excellent. The food in the hotel, as many others have said, was not very good. Breakfast was ok with lots of choice - although sometimes leftovers from the previous night were served! Lunch and the evening meal were never very warm so we ate out nearly every night. I wouldn't say the food was traditional greek, but every nationality was catered for. The local bars and restaurants near the hotel were cheap to eat in. The swimming pool wasn't too crowded (it isn't as big as it looks in the pictures), but you have to grab a sunbed early, even though there were plenty of beds typically you get people who put a towel on a sunbed, in the best spot, early in the morning and then they might decide to pop back for 15mins in the afternoon. The staff don't do anything to stop this. If you fancy going to Heraklion take the bus as it only costs a couple of pounds and the bus stop is at the top of the road. A taxi will set you back between 25/30 euros one way. As I said there are lots of bars and restaurants to choose from. ELOTIA was a favourite of ours, the owner is lovely and the food is great and cheap! If you go in the Street Cafe Bar keep a note of what drinks you have! The owner is friendly, but his adding up leaves a lot to be desired! I wouldn't go back to this part of Crete and I wouldn't go back to this hotel. For a last minute cheapy this was an OK holiday. The weather was great and that's what we wanted. P.S Watch out for the lads asking you questions about your holiday for a survey, they will then give you a scratchcard and you will win the star prize - yes it is a timeshare scam!

OK, lets get one thing straight. If you are a typical B.A.B. (Brit Abroad) please do not go to this hotel. If you are looking for a relaxing, happy, great value for money holiday then this could be the place for you. We booked three days before departure and were slightly concerned by all of the negative reviews. We needn't have worried. We arrived at the hotel at 4.45am and were immediately shown to our room. We were pleasently surprised to find that the children had their own room within our room, we also had a terrace and beautiful bathroom with a fantastic power shower (no bath, but who cares when you are there for a week!). We missed breakfast the next morning so we were all looking forward to our lunch. We weren't disappointed. The first thing that hit us was the lack of queuing. Last year in Bulgaria there were always queues for everything (tables, food, drinks at the bar etc.....) However this time we walked into the restaurant, found a table with ease and then advanced to the sumptious buffet. Well, there really was something for everyone (one of my boys is quite picky but he always found numerous things that he liked). At every meal there was always a good selection of salads, bread, a fish dish, at least 2 meat dishes, pasta, chips, vegetables etcs. All beautifully cooked, local produce. If you are after bugers, chips, roast and cooked English breakfast - again please don't come here! All the staff were very friendly throughout our stay and always smiled and said hello. The amimation team were great. If you didn't want to join in they left you alone. The pool area could get busy, but then the beach is only across the road and is so safe. My boys - 13yrs and 11yrs spent all of their days snorkling. We would definately consider returning to the Aphrodite, although it doesn't have the WOW factor that some of our other holidays have had, if you are looking for a cheap, relaxing GREEK holiday, then this is the place for you.

We stayed at the all inclusive B.C.A. Hotel from July 25th through August 1st, 2007. The hotel itself is billed as 4-star but the reality is that it barely rates 2 (at least in our experience). The hotel is very run-down and appears to be lacking from basic facility maintenance. Walls and floors show extensive use and inattention to daily cleaning requirements, painted surfaces are faded, furnishings are old, dirty, and minimalist. The decor is lacking and there are numerous areas in the hotel and around the pool which are damaged; however, the needed repairs are neglected. Amenities in the room are virtually non-existant (from a four-star perspective) and include only a small fridge, a hair dryer, a tiny television, and two tiny bars of soap (these didn't last my family of four the whole week and, since the room keepers didn't replace them, we had to go out and buy our own from a local supermarket). From a safety standpoint, it is unlikely that the facility meets international safety codes. A few problems we noted include: 1. There is only one way to exit the upper floors from the guestrooms and that is through the central stairwell near the elevators (which by the way are very small and somewhat unreliable as the hotel suffers, for unknown reasons, from frequent power outages). 2. Entrances to and from the ground floor of the hotel are numerous and uncontrolled. 3. Guests room keys and passports being held at the front desk are easily accessible to anyone. 4. The keys themselves are standard metal keys (i.e., not electronic) and room numbers are marked clearly; so, if you happen to lose yours, the items stored in your room are at risk. If you choose to drop your keys at the front desk (per the hotel's preference), you will note that the drop box is a wooden tray on top of the counter which anyone can access when the receptionists are not looking. The owner and his relatives (whom help him manage the hotel) are very polite and friendly. However, most of the bar and restraunt wait-staff are largely indifferent to the guests and some of them are just plain rude. The entertainment staff (animators) are the exception and do a pretty good job in keeping the guests from thinking about the hotel's other shortcomings. The quality of food and beverages served at this all-inclusive hotel is extremely poor. In fact, one of my children got sick, we believe, from eating one of the cake desserts. The menu choices are reasonable but repetitive. The food, soft drinks, tea, and coffee are plentiful but of low quality and in most cases lack flavor. The all-inclusive beer, wine, and cocktail quality matches that of the food and soft drinks. There are some excellent beach areas in Crete; however, the beach immediately adjacent to the hotel is extremely poor. The name "Beach Club" is misleading. The beach itself is a man-made "cove" which is also used to harbor small boats. Water circulation in the cove is poor and, in most areas, the water is murky and smells of petroleum. Crossing the busy street from the hotel to the beach can be hazardous if you don't pay attention to the cars and mopeds that are constantly whizzing by. There are two swimming pools. One saltwater pool and one freshwater. Overall conditions are consistent with the rest of the hotel. The saltwater pool can be hazardous to children as the boundary between the shallow and deep areas are poorly marked and the dropoff, on one side, is extremely steep. Algae growth occurs rapidly in the saltwater pool and, being a pool owner, I believe this to be due to an inoperative (perhaps non-existent) water circulation system. All in all, our opinion is that the hotel is definitely NOT a four star hotel. It is clear to us that management is trying to get by "on the cheap" as much as possible. We paid a little over $3000 for our one-week stay and this price included airfare from central Germany to Heraklion. We definitely will not be staying at this hotel, or using our travel agent (Thomas Cook) that recommended the facility, again.

Had a really lovely holiday the staff were really friendly. and animation team were brill. especially leon food was good better then expected. rooms were clean and tidy. theres a lovely bar on sea front what does excellent food. and as a bouncy castles for kids. to keep them entertained.

Having recently returned from a two week stay at The Aphrodite i am pleased to say the all of the negative reviews on this site in my opinion are unture. The hotel caters for many nationalities and they do so in a very fair way, the food choices are plentiful and although they do get a little repetitive during the second week of our stay there is always lots to choose from. The quality of the food is above average and the desserts i have to say were superb! Every meal time we saw the same gentleman to welcome us and the dining room staff work very hard clearing tables and fetching jugs of water etc, the dining room has beer, red, white and rose wine and soft drinks all on tap to help yourself to which was a great idea. The room we had was quite small but i was on holiday with a friend and we didn't really need much space, also we hardly spent any time in the room other then to get ready and to sleep! The bathroom was fine, had a very good power shower although it did not have a bath which i have to say i do miss - sad i know! The maids came everyday and cleaned and made and changed beds etc. I'm sure most people are aware but just in case, i Greece you cannot put toilet roll in the loo, you have to put it in a bin provided and they come and collect it, we took those little scented nappy bags which i think would help to mask any unwanted aromas! My only complaint really about The Aphrodite is that around the pool area it does get really cramped, you can literally be only feet or some days inches away from near naked strangers!! A little disconcerting it must be said. The pool area now does have floating markers to differentiate between the childrens section and the deeper section so it should be more obvious. The animation team here are FANTASTIC! They work sixteen hours a day and they are lovely people, they talk to everyone and try to get them involved with all the activities but not in a pushy way, they put on shows in the evenings in an ampitheatre which are sort of caberet shows really but they really do keep you entertained - look out for the cockerel alarm clock in the mornings - you will know what i mean when you get there! The Gouves area is very nice, there are lots of shops, bars and restaurants just a 2 minute walk away which are all worth a visit, the main nearest town, Hersonissos is also worth a visit. I must say that we only paid £389.00 including flights for a two week all inclusive holiday here and for that money you will ot find a better holiday. (booked through [--]). Enjoy!

we are all sad at how some people are accusing the aphrodite of being anti-english..we found all the staff and in particular the entertainment team nothing short of excellent and welcoming to us and to any other nationality prepared to enjoy themselves. yes the food was a little boring at times but they are catering for the whole world it seemed at times..we never heard any complaints ..this is the only holiday resort we would consider returning to - but only if the entertainers were still there .. our only complaint would be the division between the two pools which was i feel unsafe - a sheer drop from safety for kids to full size , deep pool in one step..

A 4 star Cretan hotel which caters for all nationalities. This was an enjoyable holiday which was only spoiled by british holidaymakers constant complaints about the food and drink. Please be aware of the fact that this is a greek run hotel which serves greek food and serves greek drinks at the bar, if you want english breakfasts and sunday roasts then this is not the place for you. My wife and I stayed here for one week and found it to be clean, quiet and well run. The meals were excellent with plenty of variety and there was always something we liked, if you would like to try greek food then this hotel will give you the perfect opportunity. Entertainment was geared towards families and the kids loved it. An advantage we found was that at night the entertainment at is held in an ampitheater next to the indoor pool which allows people who want a quiet drink at the bar to relax and just chat , play cards or board games to do so in comfort. The pool area has plenty of sunbeds and seating but we found it very cramped and usually went to the beach in front of the hotel. The beach is small and man made, set within a small harbour, which makes it a bit safer for children.There is also a large beach situated about 200yds.from the hotel which very clean and well looked after. Staff at the hotel are friendly and pleasant and although the service at the bar can be slow at times, the staff try their best. Rooms are cleaned every day with towels and bedding changed regularly Only three things concerned me about this hotel. there is no childrens pool, the water depth is not marked on any of the pools and there was no fire alarm tests while we were there. Apart from this I was happy to stay here and would return in future.

we just got back from a great week at aphrodite beach! some of the reviews i have read are a little unfair. The food was ok a little more variety would of been good but still something we liked everyday. The animation team were great, brill with the kids! they were all so freindly and helpfull as were all the staff. we will probably visit this hotel again in the future. Overall a good holiday! Vicky and lyndon, South Wales.

The food was terrible! The entertainment staff is what makes this place come alive! The hotel, including the rooms are not as advertised. The place overall is a little run down. The sauna was out of service. The hotel staff is polite but can be pushy, at times. The best part about the hotel facilities was the pool which is filled with salt water from the sea. If you want a deal and do not have high expectations, then this is the hotel for you. The save and grace is, is that you can rent a car and see the surrounding area.

booked up a week in advance and got it cheap, arrived at the hotel and was impressed. It was clean, big with friendly staff nothing i could complain about. Room was clean and the maid service was around every day asking if you wanted fresh towels etc. the Animation team i believe were the best part about the hotel, they worked hard even though it was the end of the season and had been there for 6 months previously. Think the hotel and the area is however more set up for families at this part of the season, but for a relaxing week by the pool (if you didnt get caught in the thunderstorms) then you cant go wrong.