Talea Beach

I wasn’t sure whether to spend time writing this, but someone may find it useful. The scenery is lovely, Greece is colorful, and the grounds are well kept. That’s about all I liked. Breakfast was very poor, and the food got repetitive, mostly steamed vegetables. Don’t expect a good meal. Toward the end of our holiday, the food got so bad that we had stomach aches. The only alcoholic drinks were beer and wine, and the wine was extremely sour and unpleasant. The room was fairly clean, but the fridge didn’t keep things cold. The shower was a complete mess: the showerhead leaked, there was hardly room to move, and everything fell off the useless little shelf. Be careful bending down to pick things up, I nearly hit my head on that tiled shelf twice. You have to claim a sun lounger at 6 AM or they’re all taken. Beach loungers cost 15 euros. I really liked Greece itself, but the hotel experience was awful and I’d never come back. Two stars at most.

The staff were friendly, and we got one of the best rooms, on the third floor of the main building, which is newer. Our room was really big, with an extra sofa, a child’s bed, and an amazing terrace. Other rooms can be very small and less nice. They cleaned every day and changed the sheets every 3 days. The hotel is right on the beach, with no stairs to climb, and has a beautiful garden. As expected, the beach bar and restaurant aren’t part of the all-inclusive option, but prices are affordable: 15 euros a day for two sunbeds. The hotel food is okay, just don’t expect anything fancy. Drinks come in 150ml glasses, which is inconvenient for beer, and there are usually queues. They offer only one local beer, one white and one red Cretan wine, and dispenser juices that aren’t tasty. Shops next to the hotel sell whatever you might want, and there’s a beach club not far away.

The beach was nice and the view was good, but the stay was frustrating. Our room wasn’t properly cleaned when we arrived, and during the stay we had to ask for toilet paper and fresh towels. The pool was packed, with far fewer sunbeds than rooms, so getting one early was a struggle. It also closed at 6 pm. The all-inclusive food was bland, and they seemed to reuse leftovers. After eating there three or four times, we started paying for meals at the beach bar instead. I wouldn’t recommend it.

I can only speak about the restaurant, since I stayed at a different hotel nearby. The staff were the highlight: everyone was warm and friendly, especially an older gentleman who may have been the manager. I can’t remember his name, perhaps Manolis. The food was tasty, though there wasn’t a huge choice. At the beach à la carte restaurant, the dishes were fresh and delicious, and the view was wonderful. I’d happily recommend it.