Philoxenia Hotel

We’re a family of four and stayed for 12 days in July-August this year, in the new building. The beach is about a 200-meter walk through the pine cone woods. There’s natural shade from the trees there, the beach is clean, the water warm and the beach bars play nice music. A classic Halkidiki experience. As far as we noticed, there are no clubs in town. We chose this hotel mainly for its great facilities and half-board or full-board meal options, which are great for families with kids. Hotel manager Irini checked that everything was going well. There was plenty of food, with lots of choices and theme days like Greek, seafood and Asian. Be sure to try the cooks’ Greek specialties. Most guests were from the region (RO, BG, SR), though there were also people from elsewhere in Europe (UKR, UK, GER). We really enjoyed our stay.

The city beach is close, but it isn't very nice. For a nicer beach about 1 km away, you need a car, and there isn't much to do in town generally. The room looked new, though the bathroom looked 20 years old. Sometimes there was no hot water, and staff told us to wait 10 minutes, which wasn't possible with a baby. With a basic room you can use only the older pool, while the other hotel area is off limits unless your room is there. Odd, especially since the hotel isn't that cheap. Breakfast was nice, as was dinner, but drinks were included in the morning and not at dinner. You have to pay for water, and they only sell large bottles for €3, or Coca-Cola 0.25 for €4. Staff were nice, but only 2 of the 15 people in the dining area could take drink orders. It wasn't comfortable with a baby, and there wasn't enough space, so it felt a little overcrowded. WiFi costs €1 per day, and photos they offer to take are also an extra charge. We had an unpleasant experience at the pool bar and restaurant. It's more expensive than restaurants on the main street, and the food was meh. During the morning shift we had about €120 worth of food and drinks. Each order was put on our table, and at the end we collected the bills and paid. In the second shift we spent about €70 more by our count of the bills left with each order, but the final bill was €92. After a short discussion, the staff said they'd made a “mistake,” to our detriment, even though we'd already spent around €200 there that day. They recalculated, and the bill matched the receipts left on our table after each order. It felt like they tried to charge us for everything except the stay and pool access. We definitely don't want that feeling on vacation.

The staff were excellent, polite and very helpful, even with things outside the hotel. The food was my main concern when booking an all-inclusive or half-board resort, and every breakfast and dinner was excellent. I stayed at Philoxenia for a week with my family and have to give them big compliments. The rooms were clean and well furnished for a good night's sleep, with trees around the location by the sea. The closest beach is literally 40 seconds away on foot, and there are phenomenal beaches nearby to switch between. 11/10, I'd recommend staying here.

We liked the two-pool setup, with separate areas for families and people looking for more quiet. The staff were very nice, and our room was cleaned daily. It's also a good base for exploring nearby beaches if you rent a car. We had a mixed stay at Philoxenia Hotel. We booked last year partly because the advertised kids’ club promised activities and entertainment, which mattered to us as a family. On arrival we learned it no longer exists. There are a few scattered activities, but no real program, so your kids will be with you the whole time. That's fine in itself, but it wasn't what we expected or what we were sold. The hotel site no longer mentions the club, but Booking.com, TUI.com and several other booking sites still do. It seems the change happened at short notice and partner listings weren't updated properly. That's disappointing and misleading. Breakfast was the same each day, okay but uninspired. The coffee was truly awful, barely drinkable and not what you'd expect at a 4-star property. Maybe this sounds petty, but whoever designed the instant coffee machines that use milk powder has a seat reserved in hell. On our last day, storing luggage in a locker cost €2 per piece, which didn't feel like a 4-star standard. The hotel seems unsure whether it wants to be a proper family resort. I wouldn't recommend it to couples, and families should only consider it if they're not counting on services like a kids’ club.