Akti Palace

We arrived for a 7 day break at this hotel. All staff very friendly and welcoming. Room was tired looking, needs updating, but clean. Food was ok, not a lot of choice but always found something to eat. The food at the beach bar was freshly cooked and in my opinion better than the restaurant. I feel the hotel needs a makeover during the close season. A big plus is the free transport bus into Kardamena which we took advantage of during the day and night. Overall we really enjoyed our stay

We stayed at Akti Palace from 13th–20th September and, overall, there are lots of fantastic things about this hotel. It is a lovely, clean and spacious resort, the pool is a great size, and the staff in the restaurants were generally attentive, friendly and welcoming.

The food in the main restaurant was absolutely wonderful, with a fantastic selection and some really great quality dishes. The pool food was also excellent, and the fresh pizza was amazing. George’s crepes during crepe hour from 23:00–00:00 were another highlight!

A special mention has to go to George, who worked the night-time restaurant on his own. I genuinely cannot speak highly enough of him. He was constantly running around looking after everyone, while remaining incredibly genuine, pleasant and attentive. He really went above and beyond and helped make our holiday feel special.

There were also some other great aspects to our stay. Our room was lovely and spacious, the hotel itself was clean, and we really enjoyed the free use of the pedalos on the beach. The free shuttle service to Kardamena was also very useful. Reception staff were lovely and helpful whenever we needed things such as taxis. My boyfriend also had a wonderful massage at the hotel spa, which was easily arranged by one of the helpful spa staff who came around the poolside.

However, unfortunately, there were a number of issues which, for me, mean that I don’t feel the hotel currently lives up to its 5-star rating.

The sun loungers around both the pool and beach are extremely uncomfortable, and the beds in our room were some of the most uncomfortable I’ve ever slept on. We could actually feel the springs in the mattress.

The bathroom also wasn’t particularly well designed. The shower screen is quite small and awkwardly positioned, meaning water regularly ended up all over the bathroom floor.

Our balcony chair was also broken and hadn’t been properly fitted together. I only discovered this when I sat on it and it collapsed underneath me, which obviously wasn’t ideal.

The housekeeping experience was another disappointment. Most of the cleaners we encountered were absolutely fine, but unfortunately one particular member of staff was consistently rude. Despite having the Do Not Disturb sign displayed, we were repeatedly disturbed by knocking and people entering the room while we were sleeping. I completely appreciate that staff have a job to do, and everyone has different holiday routines, but after some late nights this became frustrating. On one occasion, when I answered the door, the cleaner gestured in an annoyed manner that she wanted to clean the room.

I really don’t understand why a Do Not Disturb sign would be ignored. One of the things you expect when staying in a hotel is to be able to enjoy your room in the way you choose, without being repeatedly disturbed.

There were also some issues with communication and information throughout the stay. It would have been really helpful to receive a clear welcome pack explaining things such as restaurant opening times, entertainment, hotel services and late check-out arrangements. Instead, we often found ourselves having to search for this information ourselves.

We also paid for late check-out, but weren’t told that we needed to go to reception before the normal check-out time to have our key card reprogrammed for the extended stay. I only discovered this on our final day by chance when I happened to ask about the late check-out time. Surely this is something guests should be told when purchasing late check-out, or the key card should simply be programmed correctly from the beginning.

We also booked the Greek restaurant expecting more of a traditional restaurant experience. Instead, it was essentially a plain room within the hotel where the food was brought out as a tasting menu. There was very little explanation when we sat down, so we weren’t really sure what was happening or what to expect. A little more explanation and atmosphere would have made a big difference.

Overall, there are genuinely lots of fantastic parts to Akti Palace. The food, pool, cleanliness, spacious rooms, beach facilities and many of the staff are all things we really enjoyed. George in particular deserves huge recognition for the way he looked after guests.

However, for me, it’s the little details that make a hotel feel 5-star. Uncomfortable loungers and beds, a broken balcony chair, poor shower design, repeated disturbance despite a Do Not Disturb sign, and a lack of clear communication about hotel services and late check-out all detracted from the experience.

We had a good holiday and there are plenty of things I would happily praise about Akti Palace, but based on our experience, I don’t feel the overall experience reflected what I would expect from a 5-star hotel.

Hopefully these issues can be addressed, because the hotel has a lot going for it and, with some attention to these smaller details, it could provide a much more polished experience.