Kalimera Mare Hotel

2 readers found this review helpful

booked a week at this hotel in october 07 with my partner and four teenagers.. well straight to the point.. grubby rooms.. dire food.. entertainment non existent.. extremely rude staff especially the one at the pool bar.. we asked for some ham toasties and were asked if we hadnt eaten lunch!! ( actually no ) .. that was about the third incident with her and this was only the second day.. extremely rude woman... most of the facilities advertised weren't actually available .. table tennis.. all packed away.. pedaloes the same.. animation team.. there but rubbish..we left the hotel on the second day and we weren't the only ones.. all the guests were complaining.. take my advice and avoid this hotel... we are not the fussy complaining types but this place is a waste of money.. we did end up having a fab holiday once we'd escaped the kalimare and stayed up the road at the norida beach hotel... the manager was brilliant and sorted us out.

2 readers found this review helpful

As two friends we booked this hotel as part of a last minute deal to go somewhere that was both relaxed but with plenty to do. Overall we were very happy. I wont waffle but just give you the facts to see if this hotel is for you.
Positives
- Very relaxed staff and easy to get along with
- The swimming pool is well kept with plenty of places to enjoy the sun
- The meals throughout regular times in the day are a good mix, at the time of our stay there was a mix of foods hot and cold and an Italian chef making fresh pastas etc
- If you are looking a retreat away from noise this is the perfect location, the hotel was booked with many different nationalities all very friendly.
Negatives
- Depending on if you are looking for somewhere in the heart of the bars and restaurants you need to spend 8 Euros in a taxi to get to the nearest town. It is 30 Euros to get to Kos Town
- All rooms appeared to be double rooms with Double beds (we didn't really care as they were large and we certainly didn't spoon!)
- I think that though the staff were laid back some people may find this too relaxed - the pace of life out there is really slow so don't expect the kind of trained staff you would find at the Hilton.
- The Midkito's! Not just for the hotel but Kos at night may eat you for misnight supper if you do not pack the repelant.

We had read reviews of this hotel prior to booking it and the information and pictures we recieved were very misleading. We were told that there were three restaurants and infact there was only one and to add to this the food wasn't even cooked on site so the waiters/ waitresses didn't even know what was what and being vegetarian we only ate potatoes and salad for 2 weeks. Some facilities we were told about like gyms and spas were not there. There was on 1 swimming pool there.

well where do i start we came to kos last year in july, there was a group of twelve of us all aged between 16-26. Kos was a gorgeous place, very hot in the 50s and the view from the hotel was gorgeous it was very close to the beach and a short journey from the town where we used the taxis on most occasions which was also very cheap. The town was full of shops always busy and the night life was brillaint good music nice restaurants and really catered for our age group. The res out there were very friendly always helpful. we visited the local water park, hired quads and visited the whole island in a few hours.
Now the hotel! well... it was a small hotel but in a nice location really pretty, the rooms were spacious, i was very excited to get on with my holiday but soon as i took a closer look my bed sheets had blood on them n were dirty with mould. the room was infested with ants, i informed the receptionist that i wanted my sheets changed and they were very rude towards me blaming me for the blood on the sheetd but i had just arrived. The cleaners never did a thourough job and i was left to make my own bed most days and would have to strip my own bed just to make them change the sheets.
There was a variety of food available at meal times but as i got to realise it was the same every day for the two weeks i was there, which became sickening and very boring this is not the standard i would expect from an all inclusive deal. The staff at this hotel were all very rude never helpful and didnt make us feel very welcome. The bread was stale the coke had no fizz and the food was mostly cold n repetative if you got to dinner late and food was gone that was tough as they never put more out.
the entertianment at this place was non-existent they held a kids club and i think a karoke one night a wk but apart from that u had to make your own fun. The was one small shop and a swimming pool were we then spent most of our time, it was a very quiet hotel and many of the residents were not impressed with the standards of this place.
We put a deposit for air con but on our last day we was told we wouldnt be allowed it back as they had misplaced one of our keys and we would have to pay for this? after being deeply angered by this the staff were again very rude.
i have never been to such a place were i actually wanted to go home. i would never come agian to this hotel and how they make customers with their attitude i dont know. there is alot to be desired about this place and i wish it had all been a fantasy but for me and many other unhappy holiday makers who have stayed here we have been left with this memry of our holiday ruined, disgusting repetitive food and unhygenic dirty rooms. im only 19 and thats my opinion but looking at the rest of these reviews this place should be shut down or definately improved. Dont they have inspectors in kos?
Please save yourself the hassel and time of booking yourself a holiday and if your due to go... im sorry but be prepared for all of this and spend most of your time in town and eating out!

1 reader found this review helpful

We were a group of ten people ranging from 13 up to adults, two families. We first originally booked for the Kalimera Kos which was great although not too many people because of the time of year that we booked. This was great as the five kids had the run of the place and probably drove the staff mad he he.
George on the pool bar what a guy, always very polite and funny, top bloke. Then there was Romeo on the inside bar what a fella with the kids and adults alike, great bloke too. We had a brill time here and met some fantastic people ie George the manager, Romeo the bar man, George the pool bar man, Denise and Dee from London, Jack and Jan from Bolton, Yan and his friends from Poland, etc. We had some entertainment there and Khalid did his best for us but most of the entertainment at this time of year is at the sister hotel The Mare.
We were only told on the second day that we were to be moved to the Kalimera Mare the following Wednesday as the kos were shutting for end of season... not many people thought this was a great thing to happen but we just thought that it would be like having two holidays in one.
We were moved to the Mare by private transport put on by George the manager and taken to the Mare and upgraded to having suites for our room.
Wow the people here were brill and great... we were overlooking the pool where the kids were all the time near enough, looking out onto the beach, oh my god what a hotel.
Mitsi on the pool side bar once you got to chat with her a very nice lady and works very hard.
Angela on the bar some nights very nice lady and always polite she even shared a bottle of champagne with us on our last night.
Armando well what can we say what a fantastic fella and always there to chat to and have a laugh. Always welcomed us at the beach and organised our activities for each day.
Khalid well what can we say about this guy too, what a top fella absolutely fantastic with the kids and adults alike, always came and chatted with us and got us all involved with the activities he had arranged both through the day and evening.
Gerard even chatted with him about doing the same job as he does next year, he cant wait.
Richie we didn't know for that long but he was great with the kids.
There was also a guy in the restaurant who always came to our table and asked us what we wanted to drink and he always had a smile on his face, lovely guy.
Don't know how to spell it but 'Effgaristo' to all the staff that made us have a great holiday.
We met lots of people here and all were very friendly. Two ladies who left before us who live in London had a very poor deal with things happening to them all the time they were not happy bunnies and we really did feel for them because we loved it.
Alfi and his family great people, Peter and his archery techniques, Sue and her husband, little dancing Jamie and her family what a dancer (little girl with black short hair), Sue and Helen from London (woteeevvvvaaaaaa), Kath, Jodie and Cara who we are definitely keeping in touch with and have done with a lot of people that we met on holiday.
Will most definitely go again without question probably at the same time of year again... although it was at the end of season we thoroughly enjoyed it every second. Lovely place, clean, cleaners spot on, food great, the specials thanks to Mitsi on the bar (specials being the alcoholic cocktails wow).
Cant wait to go back again very very very soon.
With love to all the staff especially George, Khalid, Armando, Angela and Mitsi
Kim, Raynor, Andrew, Chris, Gerrard, Kayleigh, Steven, Adam, Tom and Chantel
We cant wait to see you all again very soon.

Arrived at hotel 11.30 pm with my partner, looked clean enough, we asked if snacks were still available and were told they stopped at 6 o clock.
We were surprised there was no lifts as there were disabled people in there.
The first morning for breakfast in the canteen as we called it was because it wasn’t like a restaurant!! There we found at least five cats roaming around the tables and scrounging for food. As I have an allergy to cats I wasn’t impressed to say the least.
Not to mention the fact that people were stroking them then touching the food (disgusting).
The food was very plain and always cold although there was a microwave to heat it up,
no one used it for the obvious food poisoning reasons.
The pool bar served popcorn, drinks and cake but you had to ask for a toastie, which was made on a kind of home sandwich toastie maker but only between certain times , which were 4pm to 6pm, how can that be all inclusive?
The entertainment was rubbish and to be honest if it wasn’t for the people we met in our second week making the holiday bearable, it would have been even more of a nightmare.
Toilet roll was scarce and the receptionist didn’t have a clue where to get us one, so we had to take them from the hotel customer toilets.
Changing money at the reception was also a problem, as they never wanted to change it for you and always made an excuse, although a local free bus would take you into town only ten minutes away, again at certain times.
We had to change rooms on our third day because of the noise from the bar so that was a bit sickening.
After about five days of buying bottled water at the local shop which incidentally was tragically empty all of the time, we were told that we could just get our bottles topped up by Mitzie who ran the pool bar, she was always happy to help, until one day her manager told her to stop filling them for us as we were not using the shop.
Not to mention the day the shop DIDN’T open!!
Kosmar is pile of rubbish and the rep was a disgrace, also very unprofessional in her manner and had no urgency to help with any queries.
All inclusive which was the package but we ate out most of the time due to the repetitive food and dirty cats, we just couldn’t stand it. Considering we had saved all year and this was our main holiday it was very disappointing to say the least, especially as we had just got engaged before we went and this was meant to be our celebration .
We won’t be returning to Kos and certainly will not be using Kosmar again.
Please, please whatever you do, do not go to the Kalimera mare hotel, it’s more like Fawlty Towers.
On a last note we did go into town one of the many nights to eat out and went to the Chinese called THE FU KING GOU. I just wish the holiday had been FU KING GOU'D.

The holiday got off to a poor start with a 1 hour delay in the coach arriving to pick us up from the airport - not really appreciated at 4.15am. When we arrived, there was no room allocated to us, so we then had to wait even longer to get to bed. That said, the room we were given was very good - think it must have been a family room as it had 2 bed settees in the living room, and the main bedroom had a nice big bed. The ground floor room overlooked the pool so that was an added bonus.
The maid service was very good and the room was cleaned every day. One thing though - the bathroom very often smelled of sewage from the drain that was set in the floor! Lovely....The hotel itself was basic, but clean everywhere. The reception staff were always helpful but some of bar staff could do with customer service lessons and learn to smile even if they don't feel like it. The animation team were excellent and tried hard to get people involved in activities, although I do think that 10pm is a bit late to start entertaining people, especially the mini disco for children. The beach was nice; the pool was always clean and a nice size. Plenty of sunbeds, although that was probably due to the time of year. It was just slightly too far from the town though - 35 to 40 minutes walk to get there.
And then we got up for breakfast!!!! What a let down the food was; looking forward to some nice Greek dishes and what did we get? bland, boring, repetitive and cold food throughout the holiday and that was breakfast, lunch and dinner, day in day out - all accompanied by chips and flies. The cold puddings were cold though - in fact there was always ice in them from not being defrosted properly! We suffered for most of the first week then spent the second week eating out in nearby Kardemena - as did a lot of other people while we were there. Most of the staff in the restaurant (looked more like a transport cafe than a restaurant) were miserable, with the exception of the lady who was on every morning and dinner - she was always cheerful, helpful and pleasant. The cats always looked happy though as they chased the various insects around while we ate. Complaints to the tour rep were met with the comment that "they (Kosmar) had been telling them about the food for a couple of years, but it never changes". Is that what you want to hear from the rep of the tour company who has taken your hard earned cash from you? We were told that the food was not cooked on the premises but brought down from the sister hotel - charming!! no wonder it was cold. There was a microwave to warm your food up though, if you could be bothered.
The first evening we went for a drink in the bar - We tried white wine, red wine, rose, brandy and finally a gin and tonic - all completely undrinkable and had to resort to the beer. Branded spirits were expensive to drink - 4.5 euros a shot! It is no point offering free drinks if you cannot drink them!! The pool bar offered the same; snacks (tasteless toasties and ice-cream) were available at set times, but not during the hottest times of the day when you might want them.
The hotel was graded 4 star in the brochure, but apparently this means Greek 4 star which is actually 2/3 star - nice of both the tour operator and the company selling the holidays to advise that - not!!!!!!
Overall, the hotel was ok; we can put up with non smiling or bored looking staff, but we could not stand the food and it completely spoiled the holiday - the sun shone, the island was nice, but would we go there again? Never!!!

Not the hotel we originally booked but very clean and just the right size.
Unfortunately my two boys had no bedding for the first night and had a struggle to get them some the next day - in fact we only had 3 pillows for 4 of us until the night before we came home - repeatedly asked reception and rep.
Staff were friendly apart from Mitzi in the pool bar - if she didn't like you she certainly let you know it and for some reason she seemed to have a problem with me even though I was always polite.
Pool area was lovely and clean, weather was lovely, shingle beach was very hot to walk on and there was only two pedaloes which meant we only got on one once in the whole week.
All sports were organised at certain times which we were not expecting as where we've been before you can do sports when you like - it was a bit boring for our 11 and 15 year old. Kardamana was nice, people in shops and tavernas (Fat Olive Taverna) were very nice.
Sunset Cruise excursion was nice and we went into Kos town on an excursion which was good.
Overall a good holiday and I would return there myself but my children said they wouldn't as they were too bored.

Having read some of the reviews before leaving for our holiday our expectations were not very high but we decided to make the best of it. The hotel itself was clean and well maintained with nice rooms (lovely big comfy beds), air-con worked well and the maid service was spot on, and unfortunately that’s where the good points end.
We decided to go all inclusive this year so our 2 boys, aged 9 and 17, could have some freedom and we wouldn’t have to keep dipping in our pockets 24/7, what a waste of money that turned out to be. Although the food in the restaurant was edible it never came close to being 4 star in fact, I would go as far as to say that a 1 star would be doing it justice. After the first week we were so disheartened and sick of the sight of it we decided to cut our losses and find somewhere else to eat. That’s when our holiday began.
We found this wonderful little Greek taverna 15 minutes walk down the beach towards the Summer Palace hotel called Big Mikes, where we spent all day, every day eating and drinking with wonderful Greek hospitality from Adam, Denise and Yanis. They have sun loungers on the beach that their customers can use and the food was exceptional, now this is what I call 5 star.
Anyway, back to the Mare. As well as the food, the whole business of customer care is a joke. The hotel seems to be used as an overspill from all the overbooked hotels in Kos so no matter how unhappy the guests are the tour operators just keep bringing in poor unsuspecting holidaymakers (which made up at least 50% of the guests) to keep the hotel running.
Bar snacks if that’s what you call a dried up ham toasty and a piece of manky cake, are only available from 10am to 11.30 am and from 4pm to 6pm.The poor kids are not even allowed an ice cream outside these hours which is the thing that upset me most. You could drink double vodkas and cheap 19p cola until you were legless but the kids couldn’t have an ice cream at the hottest time of the day and that to me sums up what this hotel is all about. On one particular day there were so many complaints that the manager allowed snacks to be available all day but next morning, back to same old story, and if you’re hungry after 9pm when the restaurant closes then tough. You won't find a thing to eat in the hotel.
Now you might think that I am probably someone that expects too much as I did when reading some of the reviews, but we worked hard all year for this holiday and although there were many good points, the bad parts overshadow these. I would have much preferred this holiday had it been B&B then maybe I wouldn’t have felt so cheated.

Well where do I start
Food- The food was quite nice although it is mostly the same so you mght start to get a bit bored of it after a while, as I did. I enjoyed the food at first but got a bit bored towards the end of the week. I would recomend you eat out a couple of nights as the food in Kos is really nice and its a change from the food at the hotel. You get some Greek food at the hotel but it is mainly British food.
Area- The beach is right in front of the hotel and its gorgeous! The views from the room are brilliant (or ours was anyway!) The only real downside is that there is nowhere really to walk to. You can walk to Kardamena which isnt that far a way but thats about all. At the other side its just appartements if you walk along. Although the Go karts arent far away so you can walk to them. There brilant!!
Staff- I personally liked the staff, Mitsi at the pool bar is really nice if you get to know her (but dont get on her bad side lol.) the staff in the restraunt are very funny! The staff at the bar and reception are also really nice. (although one of the guys at the bar doesnt speak much english and he might come across a we bit grumpy but he is actually nice he just finds it hard to understand you) Overall the staff are dead nice and helpfull. The animation crew are also realy nice! i forgot about them oops!
Weather- The weather is pretty hot it was 39 degrees one of the days we were there. It can be a bit to warm but if there is a breeze its absoloutly gorgeous!!
Pool- The pool is perfectly clean and its great!! If you ever get to warm just go in the pool and you cool right down. Its freezing when you get in but if you dip in the we pool quickly before you go in its not as bad. You can also sit out on the sun beds during the day because obviously it helps you get tan (but be carefull you dont burn) and there are no moskitoes out during the day!
Rooms- The rooms are really good and quite big which helps. They are very very clean and have a nice balcony! But the air conditioning switches itself off sometimes which is a bit annoying but not to bad. There is plenty of cupboards and a safe to put your belongins in. But it costs about twenty euros for the key to the safe. The cleaners must be very good because the room is always neat and tidy once they have been in.
Snacks- You can get ice-cream, popcorn and tosties at the pool bar at certain times. But you can also get icecream at lunch and diner. You cant really get any snaks after diner time, inless you go to the mini market and buy some there.
Good points- The animation team are really good and you get things like archery and darts in the mornings and different things at night. The greek night isnt that good but the rest are ok and some really fun. The hotel was quite quiet and all the guests where really nice and respectful, so you could talk to anyone you wanted to and you all felt quite close. The pool and the rest of the hotel was really clean.
Anything to look out for - Make sure you bring aftersun and mosquitoe repelant. Mosquitoes are really bad at night especailly if there is no breeze. the food got a bit boring after a while. There should have been a bit more entertainment (although the entertainment you get is quite good.) You feel a bit bored sometimes cause there is nowhere really to walk to.
Tips- REMEMBER MOSQUITOE REPELANT (although if you run out there is some at the mini market. You might want to go on a couple of the day trips ( the one to Kos town is really good, you just get a bus there and then they kind of leave you. If you go there when you get out the bus and are facing the road turn LEFT to go to the shops. There are also really nice restraunts there. I would recomend the one if you walk straight up, past some of the shops, there is one where you sit outside, which you wll see right next to you when you look left if you walk up far anouth. You might want to hire a car if your staying for a long time cause that way you can get to more things. BRING some extra money incase you get injured would help, because if you go to the hospital or doctors you have to pay, and then get the money back when you go home.
My final tip is that although there is a couple of bad points it still really good and you would enjoy it if you came here!!