Achilleas Beach Hotel

Our flight was delayed by 3 hours which meant we arrived at 9p.m. We had missed dinner by half an hour but the hotel has no independent food outlet, we were not offered anything and had to take a taxi to the nearest village to eat. Not the greatest of welcomes. Our room was very basic and unclean. The bed was terribly hard and uncomfortable and the head board was so dusty you would not want to be anywhere near it. We really resented returning to the room at night and did not sleep well. The bathroom had damage to the fittings and again questionable cleanliness. A very poor 2* in our opinion. Food at the hotel was fresh and plentiful no complaints at all and the staff in the hotel are pleasant and cheerful. The Island of Kos beautiful and Mastihari a lovely village - stay in the village!

i stayed at the achileas beach hotel in june this year. it was not to my standards. it is in a very quiet location. great for familys and couples, however the food is the worst ive ever had. i would not rate this a 4star or even a 3star plus. more a 3star at its best. the food is the same evry night and i was there 2weeks so it ahd time to change the menu. the food consists of chips, dryed out rice and pasta and salad. the desserts are tastless and dryed out. the resturant manager does nothing to help, i told him how dissapointed everyone was with the food and he did nothing about it. the complex and the swimming pool are lovley , a huge pool, kept clean and l;ots of gardens. the beach you wont see a picture of anywhere because it is banmked with sea weed. ther waves are rough and not suitable really for swimming. the rep for med hotels is also very unreliable. dosnt turn up at times stated, (id been there 9 days before i got to see her\)and when i told her how dissapointed i was,she too,did nothing. i would go back top kos again, but not the hotel. may i add the drinks are waterd down and even the orange juice, they mix with the rum, uis diluted. maybe i expect to much. i couldnt wait to get home to a clean room and decent food!!!!! p.s dont rely on the entertainment either. it will be ok for the kids but thats all.

This is a typical Greek 4* Hotel, the food is exactly what you would expect, buffet style and plenty of it. The soup & greek dishes are good and the quality of salad far exceeds what we have found in other parts of greece. The beer and wine are good but the local spirits......poor. As others have pointed out the accommodation is basic but this is common to many parts of Greece, the air conditioning is still 6 euros per night but worth it in high summer. A few guests had brought with them a net curtain (4'x2')which they taped to an open window. There is a constant breeze that blows off the sea & would have given them a cooler night without the cost. MOSQUITOES...Search & Destroy the first day in your room!!! the bar & toilets are the only other place these little --- congregate so be warned. There is an excellent beach with plenty of free beds the grounds are beautiful and well kept and they frame stunning views of the sea and the neighbouring island of kalymnos. Well worth a trip on the ferry from Mastahari which is within walking distance and leaves at 9.30am every day. Water park (which is owned by the hotel group)has recently opened close by, the hotel offers free transport to and from there each day, entrance fee 20 euros each. its the same bus that goes to Kos Town so book the day before to avoid missing out. The staff which are mainly eastern european are excellent and the Manager Sotiris is more than happy to help with any problems you encounter. Oh yes before i forget if you love feta cheese this is the place for you.

We booked this holiday as a 'last minute' getaway. We read reviews , some good - some bad and decided ( as usual ) that most of the time a holiday is what you make it ! Myself (37) . My wife (35) , daughter (8) & Son (6) arrived at the hotel at 3am. The chap on reception quickly loaded our luggage onto a trolley and showed us to our room (801). First impressions were good - room was basic but clean , we had a family room (which has a seperate bedroom) The only real problem we had was the pillows were very thin - would suggest you try & take your own from home. Food was pretty much what you expect in an Ai hotel - Breakfast fairly basic - for British tastes cereal & muesli was ok , but the milk for them was like condensed 'carnation' milk and not to our kids taste - Bread and jam/marmalade available , but it was always the same bread (thick sliced bloomer type) and the only way of trying to toast it was via a george Foreman type grill !?! There were hard & soft boiled eggs plus the usual German meats / cheese and some hot breakfast items ( Bacon , Eggs- scrambled / fried , Strange 'Frankfurter style' sausages etc.) would have been nice to have more fresh fruit. Lunch & Dinner were pretty much the same - Various meats / fish in sauces , French Fries, Pasta , not much choice of veg , but there was a good salad Table which always had A nice selection of items plus Feta & Edam & Chedder cheeses.Deserts ok but again more fruit would have been nice. I can honestly say that we only encountered Smiling & Friendly staff. The animation team worked tirelessley throughout the day with the various activities - water polo , water aerobics , darts , football etc. We didn't have any problem getting drinks - either at the pool or from the bar at night. The pool is very large and the shallow end is suitable for kids of 5 / 6 years as it slopes quite gently - the splash pool is quite small and really only suitable for supervised toddlers. The pool and sunbed area was always kept very clean and we didn't have any problem finding sunbeds even after 11am. The hotel is a bit isolated - the nearest' town' is Mastihari which is a 15/20 min stroll down a concrete path off the beach ( from the hotel complex head for the beach/sea , turn right and follow the beach till you see the pathway) there are shops , Bars etc here. We had a good day out at the Lido Aquapark which is only a 10 min (free) bus ride from the hotel - it cost 17 Euro per adult , 13 euro kids with 4 & Unders free. its worth taking / buying those neoprene type shoes for the aquapark as the stone floors around the park get very hot around lunchtime and can be unbearable to walk on. Safety standards were very good with lifegaurds on each slide to help you and tell you when clear to go etc. All in all we had a good weeks holiday and our conclusions on this hotel are : The time of year you go could have a big effect on your holiday - we saw room numbers up to 900 and would imagine when the place is full, dining , getting drinks etc could be a big problem. Our party rated it as an average 3 star ( by Spain / canary island standards) not the claimed 4 star we had seen on medhotels[-]website. In june/july Mosquitos can be a problem - sprays are available in most shops etc so use them. We would say to get good value for money don't pay more than £1300.00 For a family of four for a week. ( we paid £1149.00 inc.insurance in June '06)

Thanks to those people who wrote the rubbish reviews and put a dampner on the whole run up to my holiday!! I was so worried!! Why??!!! I got back from the Achilleas 2 days ago and I honestly cannot believe how people have slated the hotel. I do agree maybe a 4 * rating is a bit much but it is in Greece for God's sake!! The complex is massive with something for everyone. This is a good job as the nearest place you can walk to is Mastihari, which is about 20 minutes across the sea front. Saying that though, there is a lovely beach bar about 5-10 minutes walk from the hotel. Very romantic with a lovely view to watch the sun go down. Walk out of reception onto the road and turn right, keep walking and the beach bar is on your right. I am the fussiest person in the world and vegetarian and there was even food that suited me so ignore all the bad reviews. The only bad thing about this holiday was the mosquito's. Make sure you get plugs and spray because they're everywhere!!

We have just arrived back from this hotel and in truth we knew what to expect from Achileas beach hotel because we stayed there for a week last year and had no problems with any aspect of the service or amenities offered. But on reading the reviews on show on many sites like this one I began to wonder if it was the same hotel complex that we had stayed in. A little bit about ourselves, my wife and I are both 37 and would describe ourselves as being ‘out going on our own terms’, we like music/dancing and clubs but don’t like being thrust in the middle of the clubland throw up in gutter scene. My son is a typical 11 year old. The location of the Achileas beach hotel is a little remote with the nearest place being Mastihari which is a pleasant (on an evening) 15 minute walk along the concrete beach path which is pretty flat and well lit up. Don’t forget though that this same walk may turn into a 25 minute kid’s whinging session in the heat of the sun. A taxi to the same place as an alternative costs around 6/7 euros. Once there, there is a good selection of taverna’s and restaurants (**essential male tip **if you like watching football ‘Bar One’ is a good venue for most matches). Also car/bike/bicycle/beach buggy hire can be found there although there is a hire shop just opposite to the hotel gate as well as a small shop. Mastihari also has a port for ferries to neighbouring islands i.e. Kalymnos and a big modern supermarket called Constantinos, if as we normally do you forget to pack something. The Hotel itself has a good range of sporting amenities including a decent Gym, squash court, football pitch, basket ball court, mini golf, a games room with table tennis and pool tables for which there is a returnable €10 deposit, a volleyball court and of course the Olympic sized swimming pool which has a very gradual slope to it ideal for the not so competent swimmers, and a kids splasher pool. There is entertainment provided by the animation team who run a mini club for the kids twice a day and then also do activities for everyone throughout the day, i.e., aqua-aerobics, football, water polo, volleyball, and darts to name a few. The only exception is Wednesdays when they have a day off, but hey, God only worked for six days right? The evening entertainment takes place at one of three places. The main bar, the theatre or the amphitheatre and always starts with the kid’s mini disco at 9.00pm and then an adults show follows at 9.30pm. There are 4 bars on site. The main bar, which has seating inside and a terraced area overlooking the pool outside. The pool bar with a covered area and seating where there is a selection of snacks mainly pizza slices and ham and cheese rolls available also ice-cream is served between 3.30 until 4.30 beware this does generate a lengthy queue. A resident’s nightclub, which is open 3 times a week. First gripe, there is also a bar which was closed, located adjacent to the beach and next to the amphitheatre, in August 2005 there were shows on at the amphitheatre but drinks were having to be fetched from the pool bar which is a fair distance to walk also if open this bar could serve the people who prefer to use the beach rather to the pool, after all they’re all inclusive too. The staff were very polite throughout the whole complex with a smile to greet at all times and we found them to be very helpful. In the main bar tea, coffee, juice, wines and soft drinks were available on a self serve basis although you had to wait in line for beer/spirits, where as, at the pool bar the beer, coffee and tea were self serve. As they have a rule of 2 drinks per person maybe they could standardise this and make the beer self serve at the main bar to cut down the waiting time. As you do get a few queues forming throughout the night. The all inclusive drinks deal runs until 11.00 pm although drinks are available to be purchased after this time. The food in general was very good with a decent selection from typical Greek, German and of course English dishes. This we found good as we could get my son to try different foods out and the temperature all of the food was regularly checked. At Breakfast there was a good choice of conserves, cereals, cold meats and cheese, hard and soft boiled eggs, full cooked English breakfast style items, pancakes, and omelettes. For lunch and evening meals there was a full salad bar a choice of fish or meats accompanied by chips, rice, pasta or potatoes every day there was also choices for vegetarians. The restaurant was efficiently run, although the hotel in May 2006 was not filled to capacity as it was in August 2005, the service did not seem to be effected as they just increased the staff to cope with the demand. The accommodation in Greece is normally basic and The Achileas beach hotel rooms are no different. There is a €6 per day charge for air conditioning and the remote controls for air con and TV require a €20 refundable deposit. These are obtained from the reception desk. They also seem to like single beds rather than doubles. The hot water system is solar powered so it can run out if there are high usage users in the same block as you, so showers are normally a better option than baths. The rooms are of adequate quality and of the two maintenance issues we had, both were sorted out on the same day. We also had a maid service every day contrary to previous reviews that said once a week was normal. So to summarise we certainly didn’t experience any of the horror stories that other reviewers did and if we had read the previous reviews we would probably have tried to cancel, personally, I’m glad we didn’t because on both of our visits, the Achileas beach hotel has offered a very good value for money holiday. In the worldwide scale of things I would probably question the 4 star rating but for the money we paid it was worth every penny.

Not long returned from this hotel, and must say we found it to be excellent. Maybe the staff have been reading the reviews on this site, because we only encountered friendly, helpful people all over the resort! On arriving very early in the morning we were taken to our room, no 416, which was a stones throw from the pool and the beach - perfect. Was quite basic, but very clean and comfortable enough. Linen and towels changed daily. Had a great view of the sea from the bacony and could see sunset from the other side. Beach was lovely and quiet, this may have been due to early in season? The food was what you'd expect of an AI hotel, various meats in sauces, rice, chips, pasta, and plenty of fresh salad stuffs. Drinks were self serve, and I found both white and rose wine very palatable. If you wanted more than a thimbleful of soft drinks then no one seemed to mind my taking a beer glass and filling it. Staff were relaxed and friendly in the restaurant. The pool was massive and very clean, but to be honest we spent most days either on trips out or at the beach. Speaking of trips, I would recommend the island of Nysiros, which is a volcano. Very enjoyable day out. But don't book with the reps in the hotel. We found a very helpful little place called Mastihari Travel in town which did the same trips for approx 10e less each. And they pick you up from the hotel, thanks Nicos! We also hired a Jimny to explore a bit, and had a day in Kos town, and at the hot springs Thermes. All in all, Kos is a lovely island and The Achilleas Beach is a good base to see it from.

I have read some awful reviews about this hotel, I stayed in June 04 with my family and friends. We had a great holiday, food was of a good standard, the rooms were basic, tired but clean, very clean as was the whole hotel. We found the staff pleasant and helpful although very overworked. The pool was amazing and again, very clean. The hotel is off the beaten track, peaceful, no road or plane noise, the only pain was queueing for drinks in the evening, during the day you could pour your own beer from the pool bar. Yes the kids only got cake and icecream for an hour a day......good! For the money we paid, I'd say it was excellent value and i'd go again tomorrow, in fact i think i will!

2 Adults & 2 children aged 9 & 13. Fully Inclusive NOT actually inclusive!! We were very sceptical as we read a few poor reviews but never take to much notice as we feel a holiday is what you want to make it too be. Never written a report before but felt like had to write this one. Good points. The Olympic sized pool is excellent cleaned everyday. The hotel complex is clean and big. Rooms cleaned daily with clean towel. Excellent Gym, squash courts, out door football pitch. Free sun beds on the beach lots of choices. Summer staffs from eastern countries were very friendly and helpful. Bad points. Food was awful same food every night, chips, pasta, salad pizza. We hated it so much we ate most nights. No creek food. Lots of German cheeses. Ice cream for kids only between 3.30 – 4.30 ONLY with one person serving with Queue miles long with kids and parents and when 4.30pm arrives they close immediately even if kids haven’t been severed Limited drinks to two per person including soft drinks. Many nights saw big arguments with parents and Bar staffs as couples can’t get drinks for there children. Must drink was local cheap wine and spirit watered down (ouzo ). No chance of ever getting drunk I’m not a drinker. You have to pay for proper drinks as not included on the fully inclusive lists. Drinks finish at 11PM and they start charge which is expensive. Entertainment was awful and some shows alternate nights. The Animation Team was crap and stupid games that my children found boring. Winner of ALL the games gets a free drink… Great at an All- Inclusive hotel. They have shows sometimes at the beach which was almost 10mins walk to the bar so lots of parents didn’t bother topping up drinks. I later found out from one of the staff that the reason for this was to get the quest away from the complex for a few hours and save on cheap free drinks. Watch out for restaurant manger (General Peter) my kids named him. He definitely needed a good charm school and rude to a few guests. No customer service skill what so ever. He runs the restaurant like a military canteen with time slots and we you finish they want you out ASAP and we has always stirring at people and shouted and screamed at a young lady who came to the restaurant in a bikini. She was in tears. 6 euros daily for Air condition. 15 euro for safe deposit box and 10 euro for remote control. No credit card just CASH. Found out later about the switch beside the air condition on/off that you control manually and don’t have to pay 84euro for 2wks. TV had 5 channels mostly in Germany and creek. The main TV room in the hotel advertises SKY news & sports on website was a lie. Same channels as one in the Rooms. The hotel is in the middle of Kos and away from everything. Taxi to Kos town is 20-25 euro one way. Only one bus daily @10am, Mon, Wed, Fri. If we hadn’t hired a car, and the remote location of the hotel would have made this an extremely disappointing holiday. Car hire much cheaper at Mastihari village, which is 15 mins walk from the hotel through the beach front. We have been lots of fully inclusive holiday, some excellent, some not to bad but this is the worse to us. In terms of the extras we paid for things and eating out several times and paying for outside entertainment for the kids. My children were was so happy to see rice and pasta. If it’s a 4 star ALL inclusive you’re looking for, then I’ll advise you think twice before going. It’s going to cost you double. This is the worse holiday of our life the whole family hated it. Don’t waste your money. We spent almost the same as the holiday for things outside the complex i.e. Food, entertainment, day trips to Turkey. Be very warned with the Turks make sure you haggle because some items are the same price in England and don’t fall for the sales charm because they want you Euro!. Would we go to Kos Island? Oh yes. Next time stay in one of the self catering hotel in mastihari village with friendly locals which you get value for money. DON’T GO TO THIS 2 STAR RIP-OFF FULLY INCLUSIVE HOTEL.

We booked 1 week before going and read reviews after paying! Cant be that bad I thought - how wrong can you be? Reception was great but when we eventually entered our room I couldn't see how it would be a 2* let alone 4*. Thick dust, telephone socket off wall (fixed day before coming home), shower flooded everytime used, shelf hanging off in bathroom, lumpy pillows etc. Toilet was excellent though - well you've got to give some good feedback! Dont know how they had the cheek to charge for airconditioning as it wasn't exactly a cheap holiday. Food was a disgrace as it was luke warm, with no variety and you can only have a small glass of juice not the 1/4 pint glass as that's for beer. Snacks - hard cheese roll. AI alcohol must be home made as it certainly didn't taste like vodka, whisky etc. We bought cocktails in the end which were over priced and not much better. Coach trip to Kos Town 6Euros well worth it and get your alcohol to take home and drink in evening from there as it was excellent value. Be careful of rocks on beach if you're on lilo as waves take you into them. Lots of seaweed and big stones in sea - watch your toes. Pool was colder than sea but has lots of sunbeds. Entertainment - where!!