Summer Palace Hotel

2 readers found this review helpful

this hotel is lovely and i dont always give good reviews look at the one ive just submitted for the herrinisos palace hotel in crete!.This on e though is just lovely yes i suppose the food can get a bit repetitive but most all incs are that i have been to.The location is out a bit but the views over lokking the sea from the resteraunt is lovely and the pizza resteraunt is really nice.The rooms we had were lovely big bright and clean with a free mini bar stocked everyday allin all a really lovely relaxing holiday.

Myselft and 4 of my friends, all aged 19 at the time stayed here and had a fabulous holiday!
Staff couldn't do enough for us and saved us a table in the dining room for all meals. Had no problem with us taking lots of alcoholic drinks to our balcony to enjoy with music before going out.
Room always clean and maid did a super job to say that we left it rather messy!
Had some problems booking the italian meal, mix up with the day you write your name down and then the day you attend so were told we had not booked twice, when we finally did get there food was excellent so definitely made up for it.
Our rooms we huge and right near reception so never far to walk, pool right outside room which we had to ourselves 5 days out of 7.
Not sure about the entertainment as we were not interested. We caught the free bus into kardamena about 10.30 each night and enjoyed the nightlife there. Even got the managers and hotel staff out with us on the last night.
couldn't have asked for more....except maybe a job for the summer!

2 readers found this review helpful

Love this hotel best holiday ive ever had! The staff were very friendly and helpfull, food was great too. Definetly worth staying for 2 weeks, never a dull moment. The only downside is the distance from the main town, could get the bus but be careful of the maniac drivers, best to take a taxi which is 9 euros.

This place is a sham!!!!
Staff so unhelpful. We got there at 4 am and couldn't get the room door open, and trying to get someone to help us was pathetic...into the bargain a foreign woman in the next room came out and started shouting at us!!!!
The lift down to the pool was always broke and the pools themselves were certainly not what we expected in a 5* - there were tiles missing off the sides and bottom of the pool and although they claim to have a jacuzzi its never turned on. The air conditioning in the rooms was so rubbish and made a lot of noise (think it must have been from 1960!!)
The drinks are disgusting and the restaurant food was vile (not a lot of dishes to suit the Uk holidaymakers....mostly catering for German and other European tourists) and the Italian restuarant on the premises has to be booked at the reception....I was informed by a local restaurant owner that this hotel imported most of their food from Africa........IN TINS!!!!!! Also.....MILLIONS of flies in the restaurant absolutely disgusting!! Also, people in the hotel falling ill, probably with the lack of hygiene and all the flies.
Do not use the phones in the Hotel as you end up paying a fortune for a call lasting a few mins.
The free bus service ran about 3 times a day. The entertainment was poor.....and there is no way of getting into Kardamena town at night unless you use a taxi which costs 10 euros each time. Do not attempt to walk back from Kardamena at night as there are no paths along the beach once u reach a certain bit and its not a nice experience walking along a deserted beach in the pitch black!!!
We ended up going into Kardamena in the morning, going for breakfast, spending the day on the beach and having our evening meal while we were there and headed back to the hotel for a sleep at night....!
Recommend the Fu King Goo, good variety of food, excellent portions and reasonable prices!!!! Also the Fat Olive was a great place to eat....amazing English breakfasts!!! Cheap as chips!!
DO NOT BE FOOLED.....5 STAR MY BACKSIDE!!!!!!
If you fancy Greece, try Crete....people so much nicer and place so much cleaner!!!

Just stumbled across this site, while looking to book again for next year!
We all went (9 of us) to the summer palace last year and thought it was fantastic, the food was great, although book early for the chinese restaraunt!
Rooms were fantastic, not UK standard 5*, but still very very good, clean, well maintained and most importantly mini-bar restocked daily!!!
During the day the waterslides were great fun, aswell as lounging by the pool (although they are salt water)
Definatly dont miss out on trips to kos town, bubble beach and one of the 3 or 4 bay cruises from the village.
Nightlife was fantastic, there is some great entertainment in the theatre early doors, suitable for the kids, then onto the nightclub around the corner for a boogy or a sing song.
One thing i must say is that once you leave the main entertainment for the complex round the corner, the food and drinks are no longer free, although theyre still less that UK prices.
There is a nightclub with really good English DJ's (one not far from where i live). They played all the latest stuff (which the kids loved) but also gave us oldies a go with some old classics. Great with requests too, had pretty much everything i asked for!
The bar next door was great and usually open later than the club, they have karaoke till the early hours, english staffed and all the football matches during the day
A trip down into Kardamena one night is a must....saturday night is the foam party at starlight!
All in all 10 out of 10. Just about to book for 2008.

1 reader found this review helpful

I stayed at this hotel in July 07 with my boyfriend. Overall I really liked the hotel, the food was nice and 99% of the staff were friendly. The only problem we had was that our ipod got stolen from our room as we were out at dinner, so just be careful of what you leave in your room.
The room was cleaned everyday and we were given fresh towels and new bed sheets daily. The only problem we had in our room was that the water was dirty sometimes and if you had the shower on for a while then it seemed to come up the drain on the floor in the bathroom. We had a wonderful view from our room however of the sea and the pool. There are plenty of pools in the hotel, quite a few of them are salt water though, however if you go up into the family area then they aren't.
The food at the hotel is good, a nice range of food and it does change throughout the week. The waiters and waitresses are great and come to clean your plates when you have finished. The bars are good as well, plenty of cocktails to try, they have a list behind the bar of all the different ones they do.
The only other down point is the location of the hotel, I like to be out of the noise but it was just a little to far as you cant walk into the town as the roads aren't lit and it would take quite a while. There are buses but they aren't that regular as in other places I have visited. There are also taxis but that can get expensive.
On Kos in general I didn't find that there was that much to do, there is a waterpark that claims to be one of the largest in Europe but its not in my opinion, however its still a good day out. I never got to go to Kos Town because its to difficult to get to with the buses and to expensive to get a taxi again. Went on a tour of the islands which we booked through Thomas Cook which was a disappointment, the boat was rammed, we were told that its not normally like that, then the place we were taken to for dinner was awful and cheap the food wasn't good. I recommend going to book it in the town not through the operator as you will get ripped off.
Hope that's been some help.

1 reader found this review helpful

Just got back from the Summer Palace and would recommend it to anyone. The food was plentiful and varied, the staff helpful and friendly, accomodation spotless. The hotel complex is a good walk from the nearest town but they do offer a free bus service.
All the pools were clean and well maintained. As for the sewage pipes on the beach that someone has mentioned on a previous posting please get your facts correct. The main pool is a salt (sea) water fed pool and these "sewage pipes" are in fact the pump and overflow pipes for the continuous filtration of the large pool.
One word of warning though if you are considering going the last week of the season, the childrens activities finish the beginning of this week and some of the smaller pools and bars will be shut.
Overall we had a fantastic time and met some nice friendly people (staff and guests).

Dear travellers, I’d just like to warn you about all the flies within this hotel, they were everywhere, that was the biggest downfall of the holiday.
If you don't like climbing mountains but you like walking to places this is not the holiday for you as the hotel is almost on a ski slope and just as slippy.
There is nowhere to walk due to the hotel being in an isolated area, no evening stroll along the beachfront as there are no lights, other than a few around the hotel.
I'd rate this hotel as a 3* not a 5*, the water in the bathroom was brown for the first five minutes after turning it on, the smell of sewage is unforgettable. Be careful of the lift down to the beach and pool it runs on 3 cables and a block of wood.
Most of the staff were friendly apart from one miserable old man on the bar at night, if only he could smile! If you’re looking for good all round entertainment at night, well it’s very bland and even if you wanted to go there are not enough seats, there is another bar at the top of another mountain! but it's not part of the all inclusive complex.
We did enjoy this holiday though we just blanked out all the bad bits. If you do go to Kos make sure you go on the bubble beach trip, beautiful beach fantastic day out.

1 reader found this review helpful

Oh my god? How can people say this hotel is poor? I have just come back and me and my boyfriend are booking to go back next year!
For every 15 rooms there is a swimming pool and also a main pool and an indoor pool. There was plenty of space round the pools and on the beach as we went when the kids were back at school. There was still alot of entertainment including Greek night, karaoke and bingo. If you don’t fancy the entertainment there are plenty of quieter areas to enjoy a drink in the evening.
As the beach is pebbles I didn’t think it looked very nice but once I was on it I loved it! The sea was lovely and clear and there was plenty of fish so buy a snorkel. Also the beach is very clean and there are snacks and drinks available till 6pm on the beach.
The food was also fantastic, something for everyone. Breakfast included full English, American pancakes or continental. Lunch and dinner were similar with a choice of fish, salads and lovely meats.
Rooms were very clean, sheets and towels changed every day, free mini bar which is topped up every 2nd day, also free Greek wine and fruits on arrival!
Kos itself is fantastic with plenty to do! I would strongly recommend the trip to Bodrum, Turkey, a trip to the volcanic island Nisyros. Both of these cost 30 euros through your rep at the hotel and also the trip to Kos town shopping which cost 10 euros!

If you want to hire a car, scooter, quad or buggies I recommend you go into Kardamena as they are alot cheaper than the ones at the hotel!

This hotel is a very nice well kept hotel; plenty of swimming pools (9). Rooms are kept very clean, every day you get maid service, every other day you get your bed changed.
We went Sept to Oct 2007 all inclusive, but found that the food was cold as stated in other reviews. The menu consisted of cheeses, salads, cold meats, meat balls, pasta, and some kind of pie, breakfast was toast, cereals, yogurt, fruit, beans, savaloy sausage, eggs, cheese, etc. plenty of cakes on all meals. It was more a German menu than a Greek, but of course it’s a Thomson hotel! So if you’re expecting roast beef and Yorkshire puds you won't get it here.
Everyone in the hotel was coming down with stomach upsets, and laid in bed for a few days, we don't know the reason for this, whether it was the food or a bug, but it made quite a lot of peoples holiday a miserable one.
They had stopped the hotels entertainment, because there was not enough people to provide entertainment for. They had also closed the main outdoor entertainment centre where they had cinema and shows, because they said it was too cold, which was rubbish the weather was fine.
We started to eat out in Kardamena town as we did not enjoy the food, but it’s to each individual preference.
The staff after we expect a busy summer, seemed to be very stressed, and did not seem to care at all; they virtually threw your drinks at you, with arrogance. but we tried to understand.
BUT, even so people have still paid a good amount of money for a hard earned rest, and should not have to put up with this type of service, after all its just a job to them and they were ready for home, after the summer season. They just did not care anymore.
We was using a restaurant called Fue King Gue in Kardamena, they do Greek food Chinese, fresh fish, English bacon and sausage, Heinz beans, steaks are to die for. They take much pride in what you get, and one of the chefs was one of the top ten in the country. He used to come out to us to make sure everything was ok. we never had a bad thing to eat there; even snacks were in huge size. WELL RECOMMENDED.
We had a good holiday but our personal preference would not to visit Kos again, it’s to dry, no greenery, we don't know how the poor cattle survive.
If you were to go to Kos I would recommend Kardamena town or Kos town there is more choice to make your holiday a more enjoyable one with things to do for all.
Well that’s all folks Happy holidays, Hope this helps.