Amaryllis Hotel

We only stayed three days, and I wish we’d booked the entire trip here. It was quiet, the pool was warm and clean, and breakfast was delicious. The owner was helpful too. Great value for the price.

The staff were among the most welcoming people we’ve met. Luisa, Athena, and Ana especially deserve a mention. They were attentive and generous from the moment we arrived until we left, and the room service was great. The food was very good too. We had a lovely experience.

We were a family of three adults and a teenager, and stayed for a week. It was good value and a generally enjoyable holiday, though there are things that could be better. The beach at Kalamaki is lovely and child friendly, with sea turtle nests in summer, and is about a five minute walk away. The main road has tourist shops, car hire, restaurants, and souvenir stores, but little local Greek character. Laganas nearby felt like a party town, with much the same soulless shops plus bars and discos. Renting a car is easy and cheap, or you can take an ATV to Zakynthos city or Agios Sostis harbour, where you can often see sea turtles. The airport is close, which is handy for arrival and departure, but planes can be heard through the day. There’s usually no traffic from 10 pm to 6 am. Meals are buffet style in the open restaurant, with decent choice and some variation. There was always a meat free option. Drinks at meals came from dispensers. Snacks were served twice daily, two hours before lunch and dinner, mostly sandwiches and cake, and that was about it. The all inclusive bar ran from 10:30 am to 11 pm, with cocktails, draft beer, wine, and different coffees. Ice cream began at 1 pm and had five flavours. The bartender could make drinks not on the list, such as gin and tonic or rum and coke, usually free with local alcohol brands. You could also ask for a frappé, though it wasn’t on the menu and depended on whether the bartender felt like making one. Ice cream came in cups, but cones were available on request, though not always. The rooms seem to have been renovated in the last five years or so. Each had a decent terrace or deck accessed through large sliding doors, plus blackout curtains, air conditioning, and a small fridge. Our family room had a separate main bedroom and two extra beds in the living room. The bathroom layout was unusual: two sinks in a niche by the entrance, then separate doors to the toilet and a large shower with regular and rain showerheads. A huge window looked from the shower into the living area, with a pull down blind controlled from the living room side. I’ve never seen a shower window like that indoors. Rooms were cleaned daily. Each guest had a bath towel and hand towel, changed daily if left on the floor. Pool towels came from reception and could also be exchanged daily on request. We only got one key card, which was awkward for four people who weren’t always together. The central pool was a good size, with just about enough sunbeds, plenty of fixed umbrellas, and a cabana style section. Everything was fairly new and maintained well, but the sunbeds were hard as rocks and need cushions. The bar played a broad mix of radio music during opening hours, nothing special but fine for the setting. Would we return? Maybe. The price is very good, but expectations should stay at the level of a three star hotel. A few easy updates could make it much more appealing to families.

We liked the friendly, helpful staff, and the pool was clean, quiet, and never short on space. The location is handy too, with shops and restaurants along the nearby road, and the airport isn’t far. There were quite a few planes overhead, but they didn’t bother me much. The room felt recently renovated, with a comfortable bed, balcony, air conditioning, a roomy sink, and a nice walk in shower. Meals were more mixed. Breakfast was the same each day, and although lunch and dinner changed, some dishes weren’t tasty, so I kept going back to the same things. The drinks were okay, though the sodas tasted syrupy. Even so, I’d definitely come back.