Hotel Aldemar Knossos Royal & Royal Villas

The hotel had its own private beach and was located quite near to Heraklion Airport, so from that perspective it was well located. However, it was about a 2 mile walk into the nearest town and Knossos was 45 Km away, which wasn't too far in you had a car. Closer was Malia Palace which is also worth a visit. There is quite a lot to visit and do, and if you have the time Kourna Lake is really worth a visit. However, it is quite a long way away, so to really appreciate it you would need to set aside at least half a day.

The staff were always friendly and helpful and spoke good English. Our room was cleaned to a good standard on a daily basis.

There were a number of restaurants but we only went to the main one, so my experience is limited to that. As already mentioned, there were good menus and something for everyone. There were themed days as well but even then there were other options for those who might not like that particular cuisine.

There was a kids club which we did not need as our daughter is 18. There was also the Animation Team who kept us entertained every evening. Some of their acts were quite bizarre, but always entertaining. There were also regular classes like aqua aerobics and learning Greek but I did not participate in any of these although they did sound like fun. The pool I frequented was always clean and there was a water slide into it too which, once I got over my initial nervousness, was great fun!

There were 3 of us in the room and it was a fair size. Everything was in good order and we had a little balcony with a table and chairs but we were never around long enough to utilise it. Everything was clean and fresh when we arrived and the daily cleaners kept it that way.

We went in early September and the temperatures were typically between 28-31 which was perfect for relaxing and a bit of sightseeing.