Marietta Studios

13 readers found this review helpful

I have recently returned from a 2 week holiday in the Marietta, which both my fiancée and I thoroughly enjoyed.
Like most people, when searching for a holiday on the internet I often search for reviews on the hotel and resort in order to make up my mind on whether to book it. When reading the reviews on this accommodation I found a few negative comments but decided to take a chance..... Although these comments were enough to make us slightly nervous and they do play on your mind (as they do!)
Well, all I can say on my return is take no notice of the negative reviews. I have never written a holiday review previously, but as we found this place so enjoyable and some of criticisms in the previous reviews unfair (and off the mark), I felt compelled to write my own review.
We found the accommodation to be basic (as you find all over Greece), but it was very clean, comfortable and spacious - exactly what you hope for. The maid service was good, Pedro the bar man was warm and welcoming, the bar area was excellent - with nice relaxing background music and not at all rowdy. The pool was fantastic - a great size and always crystal clear.
We selected the B/B option, which was actually the same price as going self catering. Breakfast was basic but nice - you have a choice of about 6 combinations (e.g. one choice was 2 boiled eggs, 2 slices of toast, jam butter, tea or coffee and orange juice). B/B was the correct choice as we still got a fridge to keep our drinks in etc; the only thing we did not get was a kitchenette..... But who wants to go to Greece and then cook? The enjoyment comes from trying the various taverna's around Skala and none disappointed. We travelled with my fiancées parental unit and we had meals out at about 10 different tavernas (as we returned to a couple for a second visit) and all were fantastic. I would just like to single out 9 muses, Flamenco, and the Manor for special comment as we had the most fantastic meals at these 3.
I can safely say that if you were to book this accommodation you would have an amazing holiday. Some of the previous reviews made me laugh, they criticise the apartments, but actually the criticisms are nothing to do with the apartments and i will address a few of those:
1) Crowing Cockerels: Heard all over traditional Greece. You won’t hear these in Malia or Falaraki.... but I would rather hear a cockerel crowing than a Chav being sick.....
2) Dogs Barking: See the point above about cockerels
3) Tranny next door: What do you say to this? This must have been a complete one off, but you could hardly blame it on the hotel? Not sure if the "tranny" was really a problem or if it was the reviewers prejudice?
4) Shaun of the Dead star Simon Pegg was up himself: Again not really the fault of the hotel, but maybe he just wanted a relaxing break without stress or strain. If so, he would definitely have enjoyed Skala!
I would definately return to the Marietta!

5 readers found this review helpful

just returned from marietta studios. The apartments were well maintained and cleaned twice a week, however we were surprised to find no kettle or toaster on our arrival has was stated in the brochure. Despite this this was a lovely place to stay very peaceful and the village of Skala is beautiful. We dined out every evening and i can highly recommend the Scandanavia restaurant and bar staff are helpful and polite and the food was excellent and good value for money. Hope to return next year.

4 readers found this review helpful

If you are used to Greek accommodation, you won't be disappointed with the Marietta. It is basic but clean, and the maid service was good during our stay.
The pool area was spotless and I endorse the previous comments about Pedros the barman who was very welcoming - the music played was either Greek or 60s/70s easy-listening so maybe they have taken on board some of the previous comments.
Incidentally, there were no dogs barking this time, and the cockerel was only heard once or twice, which just added to the charm of the place.
We booked self catering because my wife likes to have a fridge in the room, but my daughter & partner booked bed & breakfast and still got a fridge, so that seems to be a better option.
Breakfast is the usual Greek fare but with a few extra choices, and served by a charming local girl.
All in all I think that the Marietta was excellent value for money, but I would go for the Bed & Breakfast option next time.
Regarding Skala itself, I could not add anything to the previous comments.
P.S. Who on earth is Simon Pegg/Sean of the Dead?
P.P.S. I thought that a tranny (sic) was a portable radio

3 readers found this review helpful

I stayed at Marietta in Skala, having read some reviews recently was slightly concerned about it, however there was no need, I would recommend this place to anyone, The rooms were really clean, and linens changed twice a week. The catering facilites are sufficient for what you need, the pool area was immaculate, with plenty of sun beds, Marietta is in a really good location about 5 minutes walk from Skala centre and Beach.
There are many Tavernas in the centre, really good ones are Paspalis on the seafront, Kavalia, The flamingo and miabella.
Renting a car is a must as Drogerati caves are amazing and Mellisani Lakes are great. Sami and lixiouri are a must. Antisamos beach was lovely however the road to it is not great, my advice would be don't go for the cheapest smallest engine on a car!
the boat trip to Ithaca is well worth while, a long day but really enjoyable.

4 readers found this review helpful

My partner and I have just returned from a wonderful relaxing holiday in Skala. After reading some of the previous postings regarding the Marietta we were a little apprehensive, but we needn't have worried. The owners were very friendly and Pedros the barman was an absolute star !!
We were aware that the accomodation was going to be basic, but were a little suprised at just how basic the self catering facilities were. Even though we ate out every night I feel that we really would have struggled if we had based (and budgeted!) our holiday as purely self catering. There was the bare minimum crockery (just two of everything including knives,forks spoons etc) and we had to buy our own washup liquid, tea towel etc as these weren't supplied. The room was very small and also incorporated the kitchen so space was a major issue if you did intend doing any cooking.........however, that aside I just guess we got unucky with our apartment and I'm sure there would have been no problem if we would have asked for a move.
Marietta is a lovely complex which is well tended to and clean. It is ideally situated for the town centre for all the main bars and restaurants (approx 5-10 mins walk) and the beach (which I would recommend unless you can get up really early to secure a sunbed around the pool!!)
There are so many wonderful restaurants to choose from but our personal favourites were Scandanavia on the main strip and Pikirona which is on the beach road (left at the bottom of the strip) This was our little haven at the end of the day, sitting in the orange lantern lit gardens sipping cocktails. The food here is also amazing and so well presented that I almost didn't want to eat it, but was so glad that I did ! I would highly recommend a visit here and if you ever get fed up of the beach or just fancy a change, Pikorana also has a pool with free sunbeds which are available to everyone along with a great poolside bar.
Sallys Garden Bar (behind the church) is also great place to drink.....and stuff yourself on the limitless free popcorn! along with the contemporary bar Venue which is located on the main strip. Following here we tended to take a stroll down to the town plaza where all the locals gather at the end of the evening and soaked up the laid-back Greek lifestyle.
We only booked one day trip but what a day it was!! We booked to attend the Beach Barbeque with Captain Makis on a glass bottomed boat (booked through Thomas Cook rep but approx 10 euros cheaper in town... although possibly not with the same crew who were great) The day started in Argostilli where we travelled out into the bay to view the dolphins who came to swim along side the boat. Following this we stopped off after viewing goods from an ancient shipwreck at Murderers Island, for a champagne dive and swim. We then headed onto another beach for our barbeque (limitless free wine and food) and a game of beach volleyball (men v women, obviously the men got very competitive, as they do!) then we all got the chance to cover ourselves, from head to toe, with a natural clay skin treatment..which was great fun especally after all the wine we had consumed by that time (I got some great photos!) On the way home we had a karaoke and as the wine had tickled my tonsils for the first (and probably last time ever) I had a bash at murdering a few songs! Eventhough the trip was quite expensive (60 euros each) we really enjoyed the day and would definately do it again.
I could gush on about this holiday for ever. It is the only time that we have been on holiday and it has felt like we had been away for longer than the two weeks. We intend to return to Skala and the Marietta in the near future. They say Skala is the perfect place for couples and families that want a truly relaxing holiday and that's exactly what we had.

3 readers found this review helpful

7 of us have just returned from 2 weeks staying at the Marietta Hotel. The rooms were typically Greek, very basic but as we have been to Greece numerous times we knew what to expect! The rooms were clean, cleaned every day except Thursday and linen was changed twice a week. The biggest issue we had was the lack of air con, but as we knew this when we booked, we really can't complain! We hired a "fan"...not worth the money, but helped none the less. Three of us stayed in one room and quite disappointingly one of us had to sleep on a camp bed, but we just took it in turns. Unfortunately, the two other rooms our party had didn't have a back door and had a balcony that opened out on to the main passage way. This was disappointing, as they couldn't open the door at night and hence it just got hotter and hotter and was nicknamed "The Vault!" Ha!!
The best part about the hotel is the barman Pedros. He makes your stay at the Marietta. He is always happy and wants to get to know his guests. He is not overpowering, just a genuinely nice guy who loves his job...a rare find!
Skala is beautiful. The food was very good. Our top three restaurants were The Manor, Mi Alebi and Pantheon. The last two are not on the main strip but are well worth a visit. The beach is pebbly and incredibly hot in August with very lttle shade, 2 beds and an umbrella cost 6Euros. Our advice is to pay, or walk very quickly when the scary man comes and asks for your money!!!
Unlike the other reviews, we enjoyed our stay very much. During our stay the "miserable" waitress in the morning "left", and was replaced by a very nice young lady who couldn't do enough to help. With air con and proper beds this review would have been 9/10.

3 readers found this review helpful

Have just returned from 1 weeks holiday in Skala staying at the marietta apts with my husband and 9yr old son. . We stayed in a duplex apt for 4 people which is on two floors. Where very dissapointed when we arrived as we found we had no air con.!!!! We were lead to believe that there was air con. that coud be paid for locally but it seems only a few rooms have this. This was very uncomfortable most of the time.
The apts were large enough for 4 people, though had very limited storage for clothes.and we are used to the basic greek rooms as we have been to a few other islands.
I have to say the kitchen area had to be a joke,it was positioned under the turning stairs. There was a sink with a couple of cupboards under , and a two ring portable hob that was on one of the two very small work surfaces, and this was right next to the front door, literally, they would be very lucky if someone didn't have a serious accident with this. The only other work area (if you could call it that) was under the stairs so you would have to bend over to use it. The fridge was in the down stairs bedroom which was very noisy at night. The whole thing was pretty useless.
We found the pool area to be pretty packed, so used the pool over at Eleana Apts over the road, these are owned by the same company and you can use each others facilitys.
Eleana's pool is more spacious, though the snack bar does only do toasted sandwiches and drinks. If you don't want to prepare your own food or walk into the village then you would have to have meals at the Marrietta. We would walk into the village for breakfast ,best full English breakfast was at SIROCO, 5.50euro, Very clean, and breakfast not greasy like a lot of others.We would have lunch at one of the pools as by this time it was far too hot to walk into the village, then eat out in the evening. Best restaurants we found were Siroco, Galera, Taverna Grill, and there was a lovely traditional one called Mi Abeli, on the left towards the bottom of the road. Most of the restaurants are good, we never had a bad meal in any.
Getting back to breakfast at the Marietta, we only ate breakfast here one morning , my husband and son ordered full english 7euros each compared to 5.50euros in village, i just had egg on toast. Breakfasts were very oily and much smaller than in Siroco, and the orange juice in a 3" glass compared to the VERY large glass we were used to.
Anyway up comes the breakfasts with a large jug of hot water for tea and cofee, the sachet for these 3 of each on a plate placed on the table. My son didn't want the tea that went with his breakfast, so i had 1 cup, and my husband had 2 cups of coffee.
When we had finished the waitress bought us an additional bill for an extra coffee and a tea total 4,50euros ???? When my husband queried this she said that we had used an extra coffee sachet and i had a tea from the plate that i hadn't ordered?? (which in fact was my sons tea! As my husband complained that they shouldn't put a plate on the table with extra coffee and tea sachets if they weren't included in the price, or the extra hot water!! SO BEWARE, ITS PUT ON THE TABLE JUST TO RIP YOU OFF!!!!
Now back to the good bit. SKALA is beautiful, not too big, not too small, lovely people, and some great restaurants with traditional food.
Go to Skala , have a great time, just don't stay at Marietta !!!!!!!!

3 readers found this review helpful

myself and my wife were at the mariette in may and unlike some of the reviews we found the marrietta and its staff fine! I am also very pleased to say that all of the british and greek people we met at the marriette and scala resort were very nice and added to the enjoyment of our holiday. the rooms are clean but basic we were fortunate and had a room at the front overlooking the pool. we did not have a problem with the pool area or the bar/music being played in fact we requested a few tunes while we were there and petros was more than happy to oblige.the food at the marriette was not wide in choice but very good! our favourite places to eat were the scandinavia, galerea and the flamingo but there are many enjoyable places to eat and as we were only there for the week we ran out of time, but as i recall we ate in five different taverna's and did not have a bad meal. we used a really nice internet cafe opposite the church (sorry can't remember the name but you can't miss it) most days for a quick check on the weather and a cake and a coffee-bliss!! the internet did help us as we used the forecast and it was correct, to plan what we were doing and the one day of rain forcast for the week in scala we did the island tour and did not see hardly any rain and had a fantastic day. top tip on this we booked through penam in the high st- 10 euro's cheaper than the rep at the hotel, excellent driver, guide called esme who was so knowledgable she made the day a memorable one! we wold love to visit kefolonia again, definatly to scala and the marriette! would highly recommend

4 readers found this review helpful

We have just returned from a week in Marietta Studios in Skala. We can certainly recommend these studios they were clean and and were cleaned 6 days a week.
The staff were also very friendly and it was only a 10 minute walk to Skala. plenty of places to eat,and on the whole they all had a wide choice of meals,however we did experiance one bad restuarant where we were very disappointed with the meal and that was The Manor House above Sally's Bar.
We also went on the Island Trip with the Local Company (not through the rep) we would recommend this to everyone,the Guide Esme was incredible and made the trip enjoyable and also very informative. highly recommended and it is also cheaper with them.
We certainly intend to return to this lovely island and to the Marietta Studios.

3 readers found this review helpful

Having been to Zante the previous year we were a little apprehensive about visiting the Greek islands during peak season - aside from the cost it tends to get awfully noisy and a little too lively.
However, as we're both teachers in our twenties we can only really go away in the summer so we booked a week in Skala.
We were absolutely gutted. We both wish we'd booked longer! This was the best holiday we have ever been on - the resort was pretty small but there were many restaurants and bars all serving high quality food and drink in a relaxed and laid-back way (no people approaching you to try and get you to eat in their restaurant).
The atmosphere of the place was so nice - very family and couple friendly and although the beach seems to be made from shells not sand it is superb. Clean, relaxing - only a 10 minute stroll from the apartments - and none of the overcrowding you'd expect in August.
If you want a perfect, romantic, and relaxing holiday I would say you can't beat this place - although I would probably opt for self catering if we went again - we were bed and breakfast and the menu we could buy from was very limited. Other than that it was absolutely perfect for a summer holiday!