Arina Beach Resort

Amazing spa ! I was with Eleni and Emma Excellent experience 🩷

We stayed at the adults-only private pool area of Arina Beach Resort as a couple, expecting a more exclusive and vibrant experience tailored for adults. While the privacy and calm atmosphere can be appreciated by some, we found this section of the resort surprisingly quiet—almost too quiet at times, to the point of feeling a bit boring. Considering this is an adults-only area, we expected a more attractive and engaging setup. The beach bar in this section was open for very limited hours, and we felt this space had much more potential. It would be wonderful if the bar stayed open longer, offered a wider variety of drinks, had livelier music, and even a TV for sports or entertainment during the day. Small changes like these could significantly improve the overall adult experience and create a more enjoyable atmosphere. What truly made our stay special was Dimitra, the lady serving drinks at the bar. She was by far the highlight of our experience. Despite working alone—handling drinks, service, and cleaning—she remained incredibly professional, warm, and attentive. Her strongest quality is her communication with guests. She creates a genuine connection with people and makes everyone feel welcome and valued. Her kindness and positive energy added something truly meaningful to our stay. If we ever return to this part of the resort, it would honestly be largely because of Dimitra. She is a real asset to Arina Beach Resort and deserves recognition for her outstanding service.

Excellent! Spent 1 week in this hotel with a group of 11 family members and it would be hard to find fault. Excellent buffet choice, top marks to the main restaurant manager and his helpful staff. Themed restaurants were also a hit; the Asian and Seafood coming out on top. Rooms were spacious and cleaned daily to a good standard. Entertainment programme good, our family enjoyed the waterpolo and darts. I could go on but would only be listing the positive points … One negative; we brought tennis equipment to play in the evenings but can only play until 6pm which is unfortunate as cooler in the evenings, too hot for us during the day so we didn’t play. Agree with other reviews that this is probably not the best option for young people/ couples. Hotel a little remote, with not much in the immediate vicinity. We would return to this hotel. Thanks to the hard working Arina Team for making our stay so enjoyable!

Nice stay, very good entertainment with Kieran.

Just returned from a 7 night stay at Arina Beach. What a fantastic place! We went as a family of 3 with my 7 year old daughter. The hotel is incredible, so clean everywhere, the staff are constantly clearing away empties. We had a family room on the 2nd floor overlooking the heart shaped pool and the sea, it was cleaned daily and fridge re stocked with water and soft drinks. The hotel is literally on the beach! My daughter absolutely loved the animation team - Michel, Mona, Kieron and Leo were all so lovely! She loved the kids club and the mini disco each night along with family darts and aqua gym at the main pool. The evening entertainment each night is brilliant but the best was the African Acrobatic Show - incredible! The waterpark at the hotel was so much fun for all of us! We ate mainly in the buffet restaurant and found the food to be great with lots of choice for everyone. We did also eat in the Asian restaurant which was fantastic - definitely recommend. Marina at the main pool bar was amazing and always so friendly and also Albi on the bar inside. The drinks and cocktails were all lovely and my daughter loved ordering her mocktails! Myself and my partner had a massage in the spa which was so nice. We have been to some lovely hotels but this one tops them all. We cannot fault it and although it was almost full it didn't feel like it as its very spread out and no fighting for loungers but I imagine that may be harder in peak season as it was starting to get busier when we left. Honestly we were so sad to leave and already talking about coming back next year!

We stayed here during the first week of May 2026. As a young married couple (late 20s/early 30s) we enjoyed our stay but would suggest this hotel is definitely more catered to families with young children rather than couples or groups of adults. It’s close to Heraklion airport but there isn’t much to explore near the hotel itself. We made good use of the bus service to Heraklion to explore the various tourist attractions. We had an annex room at the complex across the road. Upon arrival we were escorted to our room on a golf cart by a very friendly porter. He made polite chit chat and gave us some useful information about the hotel. The room was clean and the bed was comfortable. The mini fridge was always fully stocked with bottled water and soft drinks which was appreciated. On the 3rd floor of the annex, we had a lovely view of the beach - however I’d definitely like to book one of the beachside bungalows on our next visit as that looks like a spectacular view from the room! We did feel like we were away from the main atmosphere of the hotel because of the distance across the road. It was quite a walk to where all the amenities were. The annex pool and bar was very quiet compared to the other pools in the main complex, which was perfect for us as a couple looking to relax. Dimitria at the annex bar was incredibly attentive and constantly bringing drinks and snacks over. She is an asset to the hotel - fantastic service. The pool was VERY cold the day we arrived as the weather wasn’t great (overcast/cloudy in the high teens low twenties), but it was warm enough to sit out on the sun loungers. The pool itself was in the shadow of the annex building for most of the morning, hence why it didn’t warm up until later in the day when the sun got to it - which seems a bit of a design flaw. The pool got more comfortable through the week as the weather improved. We spent some time at the main pool earlier in the day as we found that to be warmer (as it got sun on it all day), then we would go back to the annex pool later in the afternoon for some peace and quiet. We used the gym once during our stay, but found it to be quite small. We’d have liked to have used it more but there wasn’t much room to stretch or use the free weights. The restaurants were good! The food at the themed restaurants is good but I wouldn’t say it’s all that special compared to the main buffet - all the food is of a good standard so the individual restaurants didn’t particularly stand out. The food was very fresh. We’ve found at other AI hotels the food can sometimes be left under lights for too long but this food was constantly refreshed and topped up. I was a bit disappointed with the service in the Dia restaurant. The restaurant is advertised as a meat and fish restaurant for evening dining. Upon telling the waiter I didn’t want any fish (the fish was cooked to order and the meat was on a buffet) he gave me an incredibly judgemental look and tone as if I shouldn’t have booked the table if I didn’t want fish. However that was the only negative interaction with a member of staff we had for our entire stay. All the restaurants are essentially buffets, there is an element of self service in each restaurant. It would have been nice to have a true al a carte experience at least for one restaurant to be fully served/waited on at the table. There was an excellent variety of food in the restaurants and everyone was well catered for. I’d say even the fussiest of eaters would find something to eat everyday. The cocktails on the AI menu are great! They’re all made to order and not premixed which we have found at other AI hotels. Dimitri in the main bar provided great service and was a great laugh; making jokes with all the guests at the bar. Though we enjoyed our evenings in the main bar (my husband particularly enjoyed the football on the big screen), the entertainment was definitely more suited to families. The kids disco started at 8:30 and went on until about 9pm. Personally, I think that’s quite late for a kids disco and the main acts should start around 8:30 to cater more for the adult guests. However I do understand this hotel is specifically marketed as a family hotel. We spent most of our time after dinner (during the kids disco) playing cards, as there wasn’t anything else to do whilst waiting for the main acts to perform and we often left before the main act was over because we were tired around 10pm. We also found that there wasn’t much buzz about the daytime entertainment. There was a schedule but we never actually saw any of the daytime activities taking place. I feel this could have been highlighted better. Especially at the annex - no one ever came over to ask us if we wanted to join in with any activities. At other AI hotels we’ve visited there were constantly people telling you when things were happening and encouraging participation. Overall we enjoyed our stay at the hotel, but we won’t return until we have children as we feel the hotel is better suited to families than childless couples. When we do return, we’ll definitely be booking a beachside room!

We stayed at Arina Beach with our 3-year-old daughter and overall had a really enjoyable holiday. The setting is genuinely impressive — the resort sits right on a long, beautiful beach, and there are plenty of pools to choose from. The dedicated kids’ splash pool was an absolute hit with our daughter and is well set up for young children. The resort is kept very clean throughout, which is always reassuring with a little one. The buffet is generally very good — a solid spread with plenty of variety. However, some items gave the impression of being recycled day to day rather than freshly replenished. The bread could taste stale, and the donuts and cakes occasionally seemed like they’d been sitting out too long. The dessert selection leaned heavily on a mousse-like, Angel Delight-style base — fine occasionally, but repetitive. I also noticed jars of dried candied fruit that I’m fairly confident were not being regularly refreshed. Small things, but worth addressing. The cocktails were below par — even accounting for the all-inclusive format. I’ve stayed at comparable resorts and the bar offering here fell noticeably short. The mocktails were worse still. My biggest frustration was the sun bed situation. Despite supposedly enforced reservation rules, by 8:00am a significant number of prime-location beds were already towelled off. If the policy exists, it needs to be enforced — otherwise it’s meaningless. We were also approached three times during our stay by the same spa staff member attempting to sell massage treatments. On one occasion we were clearly occupied and mid-way through a video call with family — this didn’t deter her. It’s an uncomfortable dynamic that doesn’t sit well in what should be a relaxing environment. On a similar note, there was a palpable sense throughout the stay that tips were expected for standard services — including having bags carried to the room. I appreciate tipping culture varies, but when you’ve paid a significant amount for all-inclusive accommodation — plus an additional tourist tax on arrival — being made to feel guilty for not tipping routine services leaves a sour taste. One final suggestion for families: the kids’ disco at 8:30pm is simply too late for most young children. Moving it earlier would make a real difference. Overall, a very good resort in a fantastic location with genuinely lovely facilities for young families — and one we’d likely consider returning to. But several easily fixable issues stop it from being excellent.

We (2 adults and 2 children, age 6 and 8) stayed in June 2026 and had a fantastic time. The resort is a good size, great selection of pools, slides and splash area plus a beach. There was entertainment all day, suitable for kids and adults that you could join in as you wish. Our children were never bored! A special thank you to Michele, Kieran and the whole entertainment team. They made us feel so welcome and made the kids feel really special. The food was also excellent. Highly recommend!

absolutely amazing hotel, already planning to come back next year!! the cleanliness of this hotel is amazing, the food has plenty of options for all, the staff are super friendly. Special mention to the animation team Kieran, Leo. they have been very welcoming and had us joining in all of the daily activities, but also just coming over to see how we are, making our holiday very special. Big mention to Albie behind the bar for being the greatest barman you will ever meet, he is always welcoming us with a smile and friendliness throughout our holiday💛

I chose this hotel because of its "Best of the Best" award, and I arrived with high expectations... AND IT EXCEEDED EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM! On the flight back home, I kept thinking: I absolutely have to leave a review. I don't do this very often, but Arina Beach Hotel truly deserves it. Value for Money: Unbeatable Cleanliness: Exceptional Food: Exceptional (both in the main restaurant and in the themed restaurants) Hotel Staff: Exceptional Special Features: The resort is very thoughtfully designed and planned. Families with children are accommodated close to the playgrounds and water slides, while couples and solo travelers can enjoy quieter areas without being disturbed. For Families with Children: Absolutely perfect! There are plenty of playgrounds and water slides, all maintained in excellent condition. If Arina Beach Resort is already on your list, book it without hesitation! If it isn't... add it! I will gladly return, and I wholeheartedly recommend it!

Location is very good, roght next to the beach. Staff is very kind, food is also delicous and very diverse in buffet. The spa treatment is very good and Mariana, the massage therapist, was amazing. Overall would recommend.

Last day today, so thought if give my honest opinions on this hotel. Location good. Buses easy to navigate to nearby things to see and do like heraklion. Hotel. Staff very nice, seems very clean and tidy. Food was probably best ive had on an all inclusive. Always cooked well and plenty of choice. The bookable restaurant. We booked the Asian one and thought it would be a menu, but it was just a Chinese buffet style place. Something to bear in mind. Pools very nice and clean. Splash park is good for the kids, one or two parts of it not working as they should so maybe a bit of TLC needed. Nothing major though. The only issue I have with the pools is the one closest to the splash park is adults only, which doesn't really make sense. Smoking around the pools and out door areas on an evening is annoying and anti social. Maybe make smoking areas for people who wish to smoke. Beach lovley, and obviously part of the hotel. Sun loungers very comfy. Hotel transfer super fast. Evening entertainment was good.from what I could see. Need a stage area though as its hard to see the show once a few people gather round the floor area where its situated. Overall, had a great time and would come again.

Definitely our best all-inclusive stay so far. This hotel is pure magic! Everything was excellent: the staff, the food, the entertainment, the location, and the breathtaking views. We highly recommend it and would love to come back. Thank you so much for everything, you are doing a fantastic job!

Absolutely lovely hotel - spotlessly clean, fabulous food with good choice of restaurants, great pools and sandy beach literally right on the doorstep. Staff are kind and friendly and whole atmosphere is very relaxed and accommodating. Nothing much to walk to outside of hotel but bus stop right outside with good service.

We stayed in the annex of the hotel,with its own poolside bar, Dimitra, the server looked after us so well all week making the stay extra special. The hotel was great , everything I could have hoped for and more