Ilios

They gave me a different room from the one I booked. It was very basic, with glass doodles, and felt like it opened right onto the street. When I tried to address it, they treated me very rudely. I told them I could understand Greek, but they didn’t care. I’m really unhappy with how this was handled.

We paid when we arrived around 11:30 or 12:00, since our Booking.com reservation had the “pay at the property” option. I paid cash, but wasn’t given a receipt. That didn’t worry me at first, but later, because the reservation was linked to a credit card, I was concerned we might be charged twice. I went back to reception after researching and making phone calls, and had to ask two or three times before they finally emailed the receipt. The first room they took us to was nothing like what we had reserved. It was on the ground floor, dark, cramped, and felt like a bunker, with no proper windows. There was only a small opening covered by a shade in the bathroom, plus a tiny opening in the kitchen. It felt closed in and claustrophobic compared with the bright, open room shown in our booking. The handles had just been painted, so paint came off on our hands. Staff told us to wrap toilet paper around them when we mentioned it, which was laughable. The sink was clogged and drained slowly too. Only after I pointed out that the room didn’t match the Booking.com reservation did they offer us the room we had actually booked, with a balcony, more space, and more natural light. I felt they had knowingly tried to put us in an inferior room in the hope we wouldn’t notice or complain. To me, that was deceptive and highly unprofessional. I’ve booked stays through Booking.com and Airbnb in many countries and traveled extensively, and had never run into this before. The second room was acceptable for 42 euros a night, though the bathroom was uncomfortable: cramped, poorly ventilated, and with no shower holder. The curtain kept touching us, and the toilet got wet because it was in the same shower space. The beds weren’t very comfortable, but manageable. The kitchen was almost unequipped, so cooking a proper meal wasn’t realistic, though we could make something simple. The balcony had comfortable chairs and a good view, but its door scraped loudly across the floor whenever we opened it. Guests shouldn’t have to double-check their booking and insist on getting what they paid for. That should be handled transparently from the start. I’m attaching videos of both rooms so other travelers can see what happened.

The host went out of her way to help when our VIVA wallet card wouldn’t work, and the problem was sorted that same day. That consideration really stood out. My boyfriend and I visited in September 2021, and found the room clean and soundproof, with a soft double bed and pillows, a mini balcony, air conditioning, a TV, and everything we needed. It’s easy to get to the ferry port, and there are mini markets, taverns, and bars with reasonable prices nearby, as well as beaches with clear water. Ilios Studios deserves more stars. We’re looking forward to coming back.

The beds were really uncomfortable, and the air conditioner seemed to bring in lots of mosquitoes. We had a very uncomfortable time trying to sleep. The location and service were good, but the rooms fell well short. I’d suggest the owners replace the mattresses and deal with the bugs.