Crystal Springs Beach Hotel

Absolutely amazing the best holiday ever, staff were excellent and the rooms fantastic along with the view, food was 1st class and we couldn’t find any fault :)

I think a pool table by the beach bar would go down a treat on a night time :)

We booked this holiday through Jet2 as a special celebration for several family milestones, mainly mine and my husband’s 40th birthdays. We travelled as a family of four, along with my husband’s parents and sister.

We chose this hotel because of its consistently excellent reviews. We were aware of the building works before booking but, after reading so many positive comments, decided not to let that put us off. I’m so glad we didn’t.

Airport Transfer

We booked a private return transfer with George (€245 for five adults and two children). The service was excellent from start to finish. George was friendly and welcoming, and the air-conditioned Mercedes was a very comfortable way to start and end our holiday.

Arrival

We arrived at the hotel after 11pm and were checked in quickly. We were also given a paper bag containing food and drinks, which was appreciated after a long journey. We had a quick drink in the lobby bar before heading to bed.

I was woken around 6am on our first morning by the building works, which initially made me question whether we’d made the right choice. However, that was the only morning it disturbed me. I wore earplugs for the remainder of the holiday and slept perfectly well.

Our Room

We stayed in a sixth-floor family room overlooking the pool and the sea.

The room was spacious, with a large double bed and two single sofa beds already made up for our children. There was plenty of storage for the four of us.

The bathroom has a full frosted glass door, so if you switch the light on during the night, the whole bedroom lights up. I wish I’d packed our small plug-in night light for the children.

The room included toiletries, robes, slippers, a lovely beach bag, kettle, tea and coffee facilities, an empty mini fridge, and a free safe.

All sockets accept UK plugs, so no travel adaptors are needed.

Our balcony was large, with four chairs and a table. The air conditioning only works when the balcony doors are closed. It wasn’t the strongest we’ve experienced, but it kept the room comfortable. We left one room card in the room during the day so it stayed cool while we were out.

Pool & Beach

We were given four towel cards, which could be exchanged each day for fresh pool towels.

There are plenty of sunbeds around both the pool and gardens. We never struggled because my sister-in-law was always up early and reserved a few for us. However, one day we didn’t do this, when we returned from a day out around lunchtime, every sunbed had gone.

On our third day, my sister, her husband and son surprised us by arriving at the hotel. It was such a lovely surprise. Finding enough sunbeds together became more difficult after that, but the staff were brilliant at helping us find tables together at lunch and dinner.

The beach is beautiful and easily accessible via either steps or a slope. It’s more shingle than sand, so I’d definitely recommend beach shoes or Crocs, as getting into the sea can be a little stony.

The cove is fantastic for swimming and snorkelling. We saw loads of fish and even several sea turtles. If you enjoy snorkelling, take your own full-face snorkel masks. Just avoid getting out of the sea on the left-hand side of the cove, as the rocks are incredibly sharp.

Exploring the Area

We walked along the coastal path in both directions.

Turn left past the neighbouring hotels and villas and you’ll come to a small fishing marina with a lovely little seafront bar.

Turn right past Serena Beach Bar and the new hotel development and you’ll reach a larger marina where boat trips can be booked.

It was extremely hot during our stay, so we didn’t explore as much as we’d have liked. Next time we’d definitely hire a car to see more of the area.

The local bus stops just outside the hotel entrance and costs €2 into Protaras, continuing on to Ayia Napa. We visited Protaras and Fig Tree Bay, but the heat made it difficult for the children to spend too long walking around.

The Staff

Now for the best part… The staff.

We’d read how wonderful they were, but they genuinely exceeded every expectation. They are, without doubt, the best hotel staff we’ve ever encountered, and we’ve been fortunate enough to stay in some incredible hotels, including the Shangri-La in Sydney.

Everyone was exceptional. The lobby bar team, restaurant staff, pool towel attendant… every single member of staff was friendly, welcoming and genuinely happy to help.

Our favourite was George in the snack bar. Always smiling, always joking, and always making everyone laugh. Our boys absolutely loved him too. Make sure you ask him for a “George Special” frappé!

The little touches throughout the day really stood out. Staff regularly brought around fresh fruit and frozen flannels by the pool, which were very welcome in the heat.

Guests also leave behind inflatables when they go home, which are kept by the pool towel station for others to use. You can also buy inflatables from the on-site mini market, where they’ll inflate them for you free of charge.

Food & Drinks

The food throughout the hotel was excellent.

The buffet offered a huge variety and everything we tried was good quality.

The snack bar menu was also excellent, although the portions were enormous. It would be nice if there were a few lighter options available too.

We ate at Basilikos twice, once for the fish meze and once for the meat meze. Both were excellent, although we preferred the fish. Be warned… they bring out everything on the menu, so arrive hungry!

Service was superb, and Basilikos also serves bottled Mythos, which isn’t available elsewhere in the hotel.

The drinks selection was another reason we chose the All Inclusive Plus package.

My husband usually drinks San Miguel at home, so he wasn’t overly keen on KEO, although bottled Corona was always available. We also discovered during the last couple of days that they serve gluten-free bottled San Miguel too.

The wines were very good, especially the local Cypriot white. I also asked for a frozen strawberry daiquiri that wasn’t on the menu, and the staff happily made one every time.

Spa

My only disappointment during the entire holiday was the spa.

A couple of days into our stay, the spa team came around offering discounted treatments, but only gave us an hour to decide. We weren’t ready to book then.

The day before we flew home, I asked if there were any offers available for a couples massage. I was told there weren’t, so I paid the full price of €190.

Later that same afternoon, the spa advertised a special offer reducing the treatment from €95 per person to €60 per person. When I queried this, they refused to refund the difference.

The massage itself was excellent, but the way this was handled left a disappointing end to what had otherwise been a fantastic holiday.

The spa also includes a complimentary sauna and steam room, along with changing rooms and showers, which were perfect for freshening up before our late flight home after checking out.

Gym

The gym, located on Level -1 beside the spa, is well equipped with cardio machines, a Smith machine, cable machine, free weights, mats, exercise balls and several resistance machines.

It never seemed particularly busy when we visited around midday.

A Few Useful Things to Know

One slightly unusual feature is that there is only one public toilet block within the hotel (apart from those in guest rooms). These are located on Level -1 near the pool. Management explained this is simply due to the age of the original hotel, although additional facilities are being added as part of the extension.

Overall

We had a truly fantastic 10-night stay and would happily recommend this hotel to anyone.

The building works were nowhere near as disruptive as we’d feared, and everything else more than made up for them.

We’re already talking about returning in the future.

The staff told us the extension will include more than 100 additional rooms, a larger buffet restaurant, another restaurant, a new adults-only pool in the gardens, and extra public toilets.

It’ll be exciting to see the finished result, but even in its current state, this hotel gave us one of our favourite family holidays.

A very good hotel in every respect. The seawater is warm, very clean, and calm. There are some larger rocks in the water, but they aren’t a problem—just be a little careful. The entry into the water is gentle. The beach is public but very beautiful. It costs 10 euros (for 2 lounge chairs and an umbrella). Or you can use the hotel’s lounge chairs and umbrellas (which are just a stone’s throw away). You reach the beach via a staircase (from the hotel courtyard). And the view is superb! We had a family room with a superb view of the sea and the pool. The hotel is located right on the beach, has plenty of green spaces and shaded areas, and the bar is very well situated (between the pool and the beach). It’s very kid-friendly (they have a small playground, a kids’ pool, free pool and beach accessories, unlimited beach towels, and extremely friendly and helpful staff—they’d replace towels if they got wet and help with anything you asked for). Everyone who served us was wonderful. This goes for the staff at the lobby bar, the pool bar, the towel area, etc. All the drinks were top-quality. The entire staff is extraordinarily kind and helpful. The Romanian lady at breakfast was wonderful. The head chef was always eager to help. The food was very good and varied. The cleanliness was exemplary throughout the resort and in the room. The ladies at the front desk were very kind. They helped me with a stroller from the hotel, since the airline had misplaced our child’s stroller. I have nothing but praise, and I thank them for the way they treat their guests.

Crystal Springs Hotel in Protaras is definitely worth a visit. You’ll have a dream vacation.