Galini Hotel

Have just returned from a very dissapointing week at this hotel. The rooms were small but fairly clean. Despite being all inclusive we had to pay extra for a fridge and air conditioning (6 euros a day each). The hotel is in avery isolated location it is about 15 - 20 mins walk to the nearest shops, cafes etc, and there are very few of them. To go to Hersonissis we found it necessary to take a 7 euro taxi ride as the resort was certainly not within easy walking distance. I can only describe the the food as very poor. There was very little choice. The main course for lunch and dinner consisted of diced meat (stewing steak) in various flavours e.g. lamb beef pork and chips twice a day with no other potato choice. Dessert was usually mousse or jelly in various colours. Breakfast consisted of cheap cooked meat (salami spam etc) cheese slices and bread. The only hot option was beans, although we did have eggs twice during our stay. All inclusive drinks were also a let down. The options were local lager, red or white wine, raki and soft drinks. No snacks were available without paying extra (although once paid for they were far better than the restaurant food). The only saving grace was the friendly people we met (most of whom wanted to form an escape committee) and the hotel staff who were superb. It is a shame that 5 star staff are working in what I can only describe as a 1 star hotel.

Ok time to set the record straight. me and my partner have had a horrible year, so when some spare cash come up we just took a last minute deal. just before i booked it i looked up the reviews and wasnt sure but i thought, ah what the hel, 200 pounds for greece, 2 weeks half board! when we arrived we were lucky to have one of the best rooms in the hotel (200B). we had a huge balcony, and are own private one at the back. that aside. the room was clean and tidy and well laid out. the shower didnt have a hook to put the shower head on so you had to stand and hold it above you but that didnt seem a problem, it was just like being at home lol. the meals were ok too. the food is made up of a salad counter (lots from pasta salad to greek salads), different soup everyday, and then the mains are made up of a fresh veg every day. a standard pasta and sauce, and then chips(everyday lol) and 3 mains, usually 2 meats and one fish or traditional greek dish. breakfast was a bit laim. eggs were only served every other day buit we ate lunch out so it was ok. we had mostly bread and little cakes for breakfast. it was very continental. the pool was lush. there are loos by the pool to change in and loads of sun lounges. there is a pool bar too. ok the beach really is 500m, so for us it was about 8-10 minutes walk. the beach was shingle but then most of the beachs down there are. the nicer, as in sand and shingle beach was about a 20 minute walk from the hotel further up the coast. if your on a budget dont do the hotel excursions booked through your rep, go out and along the beach you can find signs giving you details of the same trips for half the price. for a great boat trip walk left when you get to the beach about a mile to captins bar. just near there on the left is a sign for a boat trip to sissi. it was brilliant and cost us 17Euros. the hotel were charging 50 for a simular trip. that just about sums it up. its not great but its really not bad. we are in our 20's and we had a great holiday. its a bit remote but then again we walked into hersonisso 3 days running and had a nice time. its quite and relaxing and the staff cant do enough for you. becareful about the air con, you have to pay for it, but if you have good next door neibourghs its ok, all the remotes for them are the same. thats what we did. hope you enjoyed the truth.

Just back from a very dissapointing week at the Galini Hotel. Booked 2 rooms for our party of 4 on a half-board basis. Was meant to have 2 twin rooms but each had a double bed, fine for husband and myself but not for 2 unrelated teenage boys. Asked to be changed only to be told nothing until next day and then we were told we could have 2 rooms next to each other which were "superior" and bigger to the ones we had. Anything had to be an improvement on the tiny dingy rooms we were in so we had a look and accepted the new ones and then had to pay an extra 100 euros for the pleasure. These although larger and with a fridge and tv, (ours didn't work), were still very basic. It seemed quite a few people were being moved into these "superior" rooms as they were not at all happy with the other accommodation. They were not cleaned out other than waste bins being emptied and we had to eventually ask for clean towels as it was clear they weren't forthcoming. The pool was fairly small but very deep, could be a problem for younger children. Just a couple of snooker tables, 1 of which was removed before the end of our stay, and a football table. The evening food was mostly diabolical! Salad section was ok. Most of the food was cold or luke warm and very repetetive. It was bland, often tasteless and the dessert table was a joke. We would often try and guess what the colour of the bowl of "whipped stuff" would be for the night. No imagination seemed to have gone into the food at all and it wouldn't have taken a lot to improve the quality of it. Breakfast was ok and the tea/coffee machine when running properly made nice cappucinos. Generally the dining room seemed understaffed with just one person working his socks off clearing dishes and filling up food etc. Very unorganised with people looking for cutlery or waiting for more food to come out. If you like walking then its a pleasant stroll down to a very dissapointing beach. Shingly, sea-weedy and very rocky sea for swimming in. Nice rural peaceful setting with plenty of lanes to walk up and down but nothing really in the way of shops or restaurants. Hersonissos is the nearest town which is a 7 euro taxi ride away. Definitely would not go back to the Galini Hotel but not put off trying other parts of Crete. Anissaras was just a bit too quiet and remote and without even the benefit of a good beach.

We were all-inclusive for one week, I wished we had booked two weeks. The pool area is good and the pool bar is one of the best we have seen. The drinks available on all-inclusive are beer, white and red wine, raki, soft drinks, tea and coffee. They are free from 10am to 11pm - which is the same as other all-inclusive Hotels we have been to - after 11pm you have to pay. The rooms are basic, but clean, wardrobe, dressing table with mirror, bed, side table. Toilet, shower/bath and basin. Balcony. The maids came in everyday. The food is fine, continental breakfast, but you can have an English breakfast if you wish but it will cost a couple of Euros extra. All meals are buffet style. It is a ten minute walk to the beach - ambling along, not running! 7 Euros taxi fare into Hersonissos itself, 30 Euros from the airport to the Hotel. In the reception area there are two computers with internet connection for 3 Euros per hour. A supermarket (well there are two actually) just around the corner, there is a bistro about 7/8 minutes walk away. The staff were very friendly and helpful. We had a lovely time and would go back again. Thank you Galini :)

The food was pretty awful,repetetive and often left overs with a newly made sauce on.A toaster would have been a boon,also easier for the staff as people would make their own.Dont know where the hotel got 500 metres to a beautiful beach,the nearest beach was horrible,we had to walk for 25 minutes to get to a decent beach,where are the shops,tavernas and bars within easy reach?The staff were very good,pity they work for a rubbish hotel,this hotel should be downgraded to a 2*(at the most),a most disappointing holiday,only redeemed by the good company that were booked in at the same time.Entertainment was bingo or karaoke.

Hotel is definately NOT 3 Star - would struggle to give it 1 star. Food horrible, rooms small with no wardrobe. Concrete - yes concrete bed, mould in bathroom and so on...... Do not go to this hotel - you will not enjoy your stay. It's also over 2 KM from the beach and has few facilities nearby.

hotel is tucked right out the way need a car definate food is average ok if u like chips and salad and local fatty meat dishes even all inclusive still costs six euros aday for air con no kettle no fridge no nothing this is a one star basic hotel not a 3 or 4 star YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED loads people not happy there etc all wanting to change ps they like moving you about room to room ps one week was enough 2 weeks would be hell and boring .

The hotel Galini was overall, a great place to stay. Nice quiet location and helpful friendly staff, however..... it was not without it's issues. 1. Be aware that air conditioning does not come as standard with your room. A fee of 6 euros per day is payable and 4 euros for a fan. A fridge will also set you back 6 euros a day. 2. If you need a late checkout it will cost you an additional 20 euros. 3. The electricity system is not geared up to cope with a full hotel all using air conditioning,we experienced power cuts (localised, not the whole hotel) on several days and had to be given alternative rooms. The staff at the hotel however, went out of their way to find us other rooms with power and seemed to genuinely care about our plight. 4. The food was okay. Lunch seemed to be a bit nicer than dinner as a rule. Breakfast was a monotonous affair with the same things brought out morning after morning. 2 cereals: cheese, tomato, and 3 different types of "spam"? Nice warm fresh bread though. 5. The all inclusive package only includes local soft drinks (no coke etc, just the watery local number) , local beer, wine and raki. No spirits, no ice cream . Having said that, the pool area is great and never seems to get over crowded, there is a little baby pool too. . Kostas at the bar has his job down to a fine art, from remembering everyones name, to serving drinks on his head, to making yummy looking cocktails complete with sparklers. (i say yummy loooking as i couldnt have one as i am pregnant ). The bar was mostly just families enjoying a drink and a chat or game of cards of an evening ,although there was karaoke and prize bingo on a couple of nights too. This isnt a big hotel with kids clubs etc. It was lovely at night to be able to sit on your balcony and just listen to the cicadas. The sourounding area is nice , out side the hotel drive was a field with a cow and little calf. But there are shops within a short walk. Beach is a 10 min walk away, its a shingle beach and doesnt get crowded but i don't think is great for smaller kids. There are a lot of rocks at the waters edge and in some places the beach shelves quite steeply into the water. The drivers can be a bit nuts, and the road running through Hersonnisos is MENTAL, nerves of steel required for crossing it as moped and quad wielding teenagers do not recognise the familiar black and white stripes of a pedestrian crossing!! Wouldn't like to drive through it either. If you fancy a trip though it will cost 7 Euros in a taxi from the hotel. Car/quad/moped hire is readily available. Taxi from airport will cost you 30. To sum up.. We enjoyed ourselves, it was clean and quiet and friendly and we would go back, any problems we experienced were out weighed by the over all positive experience of this hotel. Ps, look out for Manos on reception, possibly the hardest working man on crete, holds down 3 jobs and a family and still has time to be helpful!

A Little Gem only 10 minutes from the beach. It is a small family run hotel. The rooms were basic but clean, (although there was not a bath only a shower in ours, but we only shower on holidays anyway) the food was above average, what you expect for a 3* hotel. We went on an all inclusive package, so there was wine and coffee and coke etc available in the restaurant during meal times. Breakfast was Continental buffet, bacon and eggs were 2 Euros extra. Lunch was good as well as supper, both with excellent salads. Pool was very clean and plenty of sun loungers to go around. Pool bar was great for all ages. Kosta, the bar manager will make it a holiday to remember with his cocktails and humour. It is not like other all inclusive as only local beers, wine, raki and ouzo was available in the bar free. All other alcohol had to be paid for, but happy hour is everyday 19:00 til 23:00. The kids loved the cocktails made by kosta and was made to feel very much at home. A great budget holiday hotel.

Firstly this review is listed under Hersonissos even though the Galini Hotel is not actually in Hersonissos itself. The Galini is actually located in a small, quiet Cretan village called Anissaras which is about 10 mins in a taxi or by bus to Hersonissos or 10 mins in the other direction to Analipsi. The Galini offers a clean, tidy and pretty Cretan hotel with a pool, plenty of sunbeds and a poolside snackbar by day (bar by night, see further down). The Galini has a good size supermarket within a 2 minute walk and the pretty, quiet shingle beach is just a 10 min walk downhill. One of the most inviting things by far about the Galini are the staff who own and run the hotel. They go out of their way to be hospitable, helpful and friendly. Effi and the guys at Reception are fantastic and can help with car/quad and scooter hire if need be as well as book your horse and carriage rides (again see further down). Meals at the Galini (which is a half board or all inclusive hotel) are served buffet style to allow you to pick and choose your own food and serving size. We stayed half board but most days didnt get up in time for breakfast. Dinner was usually laid out as salads, soups, hot main courses and deserts from which you help yourself. Manelos the waiter will set your table and take your drinks order, he usually will also bring a smile to your face... thats if the sea view from the dining room hasn't already. After dinner you dont have to go far for a great evening, just stroll across to the pool bar and visit the fantastic Kostas but be warned, Kostas doesnt like to see anyone not having a good time!! :-) The pool bar also offers some themes such as Prize Bingo, Karaoke and BBQ lunches on set days. And make sure you ask Kostas for one of his legendary cocktails!! During the day the pool bar also offers cooked breakfasts and snacks for guests who are not all inclusive. The food is good value and tastes great so well worth a try and remember to say 'Hi' to the lovely Sanya. The Galini offer air conditioning, fridge hire and safety deposit boxes (which are located in reception for extra security) at a small extra cost. The rooms are cleaned daily, towels and bedding changed 2-3 times per week. Our room was large and had a double bed, cushioned seating bench, dressing table and stool and double wardrobes. Our en-suite had a shower, toilet and basin and we had a balcony with sea view which had a small table and 4 chairs on it. Anissaras is a quiet, pretty little Cretan village situated between Analipsi (another beautiful village, well worth a visit with a nice sandy beach) and lively Hersonissos which is great for shopping. One 'must do' while your here is the horse and carriage rides bookable at Reception. For just 20 Euros each you are taken on an hour long carriage tour of the old villages of Old Hersonissos, Piskopiano and Koutouloufari....they are beautiful!!! Alternatively you can choose a coastal tour. The horse and carriage rides are run by the local Arion Stables (George and Zara) which are also well worth a visit. Located inland, the Arion stables have their own taverna/bar with gorgeous homecooked Greek dishes, a play area for the children and a chance to see the horses at home all the while taking in the mountain views surrounding them. As you will have gathered from this review we really love Crete and this is our 2nd visit to the Galini (3rd to Crete). We regard Kostas and his family as great friends. If you want a large complex in the thick of it all then the Galini may not be for you. But if you want a traditional, friendly, family run hotel for all ages in a pretty Cretan village which is the ideal base to explore from then the Galini would be a good bet! I must be mad as I should keep the Galini my secret but its such a shame not to share it..... I'll be back to see Kostas and the family again as soon as I possibly can!