Aegean View Aqua Resort

The island and its people are lovely, but the hotel left me very disappointed. We paid 700 per room for five days all-inclusive, and at that price it felt awful and severely overpriced. It doesn’t feel like a four-star hotel. The swim-up pool rooms are okay, but the rest of the place feels more like two or three stars. The older barman was incredibly rude to me twice and made it feel like serving drinks was a hassle. I ended up going back to my room. The food was mediocre, the main bar floor was sticky and the entertainment was crap. Some shop staff were lovely, but reception was quite rude too. There are probably much better hotels in the area. We booked at the last minute and didn't do enough research. Take the reviews as they are. I wouldn't come back even if it were free!

I went to this hotel about four years ago and it was beautiful. I recently came back and found the place had changed for the worse. They told me there was a new manager and new staff. The good reviews seem to be from years ago, while recent ones talk about the view. Honestly, you can get a great view anywhere in Kos.

The views were lovely, and the older reviews make it seem this hotel used to be better, but our stay was awful. We booked seven days and had Jet2 move us after the second day. We weren't the only guests transferred, and plenty of people complained too. Our bed had bedbugs. My partner and I woke covered in painful bites, and I had an allergic reaction on my face. The bedding was stained, the bathroom had black mould, and we never saw the pools cleaned. Food was cold even when we arrived as the buffet opened, sometimes undercooked, and people were getting food poisoning. Most staff were rude or unhelpful. The woman at the little convenience shop was lovely. The bar staff questioned me for ordering two drinks, one for each of us, then said they'd let me off that time. Only the main bar opened, so from rooms up the hill you had to walk across the resort whenever you wanted a drink. My partner's wine glass was visibly dirty. When he took it to the manager, the manager put a finger inside it and walked away. The free shuttle into Kos town broke down twice on our seven-minute ride. Other holidaymakers said that was a recurring problem. Apart from the views, this place has very little going for it.

We ended up flying home a week early because our time in Kos was so bad. I can only speak to what we experienced, though at least four couples we spoke to had worse stays. One man was covered in what looked like bedbug bites. The room had mould on the sofa and bed, limescale and rust on the taps and bath screen, and dirt on the bath and sink. There was no TV despite the booking saying there would be one. The fridge was loud and leaked overnight, the door had no lock, and some lights didn't work. The pool outside was green and full of leaves. When it rained, the drains backed up and made the room smell disgusting. The good service was easy to spot: the woman in the shop was lovely and liked chatting, the receptionist was kind and sympathetic, and the bar staff were excellent at serving, cleaning and handling rowdy guests. A free shuttle runs to town at selected times. Most of the other staff we dealt with were rude. A few days in, staff moved into the room next to us and stayed up shouting and revving scooters all night. When we complained at reception about the drains, a rude woman asked why we hadn't reported it earlier, then said they were full and couldn't help. I'd been checking online and could see rooms available that night. Room service also entered whenever they liked. Twice someone walked in while I was there; once they came while I was out and left the front door wide open. The explanation was that they had forgotten to close it. I found the location bleak, with run-down buildings and construction sites around us. Kos town was okay, but the restaurants along the main road seemed to offer the same menu. The food was okay, though I wouldn't go back for it. We waited over an hour for a taxi, which I understand was due to a shortage, but the driver was rude and aggressive. He said we'd chosen the worst hotel because the roads were bad for his car, then sped over potholes. The onsite shop is expensive, so buy toiletries and snacks in town. Kos was such a disappointing experience for us that we cut the holiday short.