CASTELLO BOUTIQUE SUITES

If I could give more than five stars, I genuinely would. From the moment we arrived at Castello Boutique Resort & Spa, we felt something that is becoming increasingly rare on holiday – complete relaxation. Within minutes, the stresses of everyday life had disappeared, replaced by an overwhelming feeling that we were exactly where we needed to be. The hotel doesn’t just provide accommodation; it creates an atmosphere where you can truly switch off and simply enjoy every moment. The entire team deserves enormous credit. Every single member of staff greeted us with genuine warmth, smiles and enthusiasm throughout our stay. Nothing ever felt like too much trouble, and every interaction felt sincere rather than rehearsed. Two people, however, deserve a special mention. Epthimios was simply outstanding. His knowledge of wine was exceptional, and every evening he guided us towards the perfect bottle to accompany our meal. His recommendations never missed the mark and genuinely elevated each dining experience. Beyond that, he was incredibly friendly, engaging and somehow always seemed to know exactly how to make every guest feel special. As fellow football fans, our nightly conversations became something we genuinely looked forward to! Jennifer was equally wonderful. Friendly, knowledgeable, professional and always happy to help with anything we needed, she represents everything great about Greek hospitality. One moment perfectly summed up the attitude of the staff. I asked whether they could make an iced coffee, barista style. They admitted they hadn’t made one before, but rather than simply saying no, they embraced the challenge with smiles and enthusiasm. The result was fantastic, and it perfectly demonstrated the team’s willingness to go above and beyond to make guests happy. It’s that attitude that separates good hotels from exceptional ones. The housekeeping team also deserve huge praise. Our room was immaculate every single day, maintained to an exceptionally high standard, allowing us to return each afternoon to a space that felt fresh, comfortable and inviting. The food throughout our stay was absolutely exceptional. The evening à la carte menu was nothing short of outstanding. Every dish arrived looking like a piece of art, beautifully presented and bursting with flavour. Each evening became an experience rather than simply dinner, and it was consistently one of the highlights of our day. Breakfast catered for absolutely everyone. Whether you wanted fresh fruit and cereals, continental options, a full English breakfast or freshly prepared dishes from the à la carte menu, everything was plentiful, fresh and of excellent quality. It was the perfect start to every day. The hotel itself is beautifully maintained, peaceful and stylish without ever feeling pretentious. It strikes the perfect balance between luxury and comfort, allowing you to completely unwind. We also fell in love with Sissi. What a beautiful village. It offers everything you could want from a Cretan escape – charming harbour views, welcoming tavernas, friendly locals, peaceful walks and a wonderfully relaxed atmosphere that encourages you to slow down and appreciate life. It still feels authentic, and that’s something incredibly special. We arrived hoping for a lovely holiday. We left with memories we’ll treasure for many years. To everyone at Castello Boutique Resort & Spa, thank you for your kindness, professionalism, humour and genuine hospitality. You made us feel less like guests and more like friends. We cannot recommend this hotel highly enough and will be talking about it for a very long time. Until next time… ευχαριστώ πολύ. ★★★★★

This is really lovely hotel but again 4 star not 5 The staff are all excelleant, especialy the reception staff and the bar staff, they could not be anymore pleasant and helpful if they tried, always smiling chatting asking how your holiday was going. The bar staff would daily bring little treats around the pool, nice touch Our room was beautiful overlooking the pool and the church and there was nothing to complain about, the cleaner came in each day, and we had fresh towels as needed, lovely cake and free local greek drink left for us each day The food was nice but the restaurant a little under managed, no spoons with tea and coffee, no clear direction on arrival and the soup always cold. The menu is varied and very nice but the salad bars and starters all very much the same night after night. We ate out locally every lunchtime as we were half board but also ate twice in the week in the local greek restaurant. We attended a Greek night at Amelias, it was fantastic The sunbeds were very worn in places, ripped cushions and the parasols were not very secure. There was room for more sunbeds and i dont see why they cant have enough sunbeds for all guests seeing its such a small hotel

We chose this hotel as I'd rather 48 rooms (like this hotel) than 480 rooms and you do trade facilities for that choice (there was a small gym and a spa). Good size room with a fridge (no drawers but plenty of hanging room) . Plenty of hot water, towels decent and tea/coffee/ kettle in the room. The 'mountain view' from the balcony wasn't wrong but we actually overlooked waste ground with the mountains in the distance. Our room was really clean; but my usual comment applies of when they say they are a green hotel so hang towels up if you don't need them changed ,as usual.... they were changed every day! Pool towels provided, pool area nice but sun beds could use a varnish and some parasols were really hard to put up. Music in the background but not thumping thank goodness. Food. This is where we come unstuck...the hot food was tepid at best...every night whatever we had. The dining staff are lovely but on our first day we walked in and they just look at you so we had to approach and say "do we sit anywhere?" , what's the drill sort of thing. The evening has a buffet style set up but you are handed a small menu card also which we figured by the third night they expect you to order from but no direction was given or explained. This food was then brought to you so if you chose from the buffet first, you would then sometimes get the menu card afterwards? Bit confusing so some guidance on your first visit would be useful. Overall, the staff were all lovely, everywhere was clean, drinks from the bar weren't overpriced and there was some evening entertainment but we didn't partake. In my opinion, this is really a 4 star hotel, not 5. They certainly fall down a bit on attention to detail. A prime example is we arrived about 10pm so had missed our evening meal. Nothing was mentioned about food but I had a few bits as had anticipated our late arrival. On putting some water in the fridge the next day, we found two wraps, water, fruit and juice..obviously meant as our out of hours meal but no one mentioned this! A few tweaks would make all the difference but we did enjoy our stay.

This is more a 4-Star hotel. Rooms are well equipped but the whole environment does not breath the extra star they claim. The first days all sun bed’s already claimed in the morning, while in the welcome letter it’s requested not to do. Walking through the hotel to our room in the back, the smell of the sewer was not very nice, and was there every day, so structural problem. The staff is very friendly and makes sure you can relax.

We have just returned from a week in this hotel and felt we needed to share our experience so future travellers know what to expect. The reason this hotel is classed as 5* is because it is rated on the number of rooms to the facilities it provides so as less than 50 rooms & offering a spa & gym it gains a higher star rating however there are areas that do not reach its 5* status. The good points- hotel very clean, polite staff, room nicely decorated & great air con. Nice chilled vibe and music around the pool. Not so good - on several occasions we had no hot water for a shower. We went to reception to raise this & was told someone would look at this. The next evening it was better but then went back to luke warm. We saw a manager who listened and said it would be fixed. In all fairness he sent a nice note,a bottle of wine and offered us a spa treatment. All very nice but we needed a hot shower We also tried to raise this with Jet2 via WhatsApp only to be asked 100 questions by Jetbot! Needless to say I didn't waste my holiday time on this. We saw the Jet2 rep who visited the hotel 5 days after we arrived, she took notes, said she would raise our issues and call us the next day to check if it was fixed. No call ..... Again 1 day of hot water and that was it. You will also see another review regarding lack of hot water so this is not a room issue. I decided not to feedback any more as we only had 2 days holiday left but the manager knew our room number or could have found us around the pool to check if things had been resolved. Our bathroom had a small badly fitted corner shower with a broken soap dispenser but instead of fixing it or replacing it another one was added to a different wall - definitely not 5* quality. At breakfast alot of pleasant staff faff around with no real manager to guide them. I totally agree with other reviews regarding tinned fruit at breakfast, lack of choice and hunt the teaspoons as they are hidden away every day! Ham & cheeses were not in a cool covered area and flies were on them. We never ate in hotel except for bfast but looking at the quality of bfast compared to the brilliant restaurants in Sissi I dont think we missed out. Some of the furniture and fittings were worn and not maintained. The last morning of our holiday a new bfast menu appeared so they are trying to make improvements but I think they may be lining up for more complaints as instead of keeping it simple with fried,poached & omelette they offered eggs benedict which my husband took a gamble on. 1 thin slice of white bread, 2 eggs and a cheese sauce arrived. The mushrooms at breakfast are not fresh but frozen and watery with no taste and scrambled eggs are powdered. As the average age is 50+ at this hotel it would be lovely to turn it around & guests to return but I heard others complaining too. Please see pictures of shower, chairs in restaurant and tables around pool. Sissi is a lovely town with wonderful restaurants and amazing food so it would be great if the hotel could step up and provide what it advertises - a 5* holiday. Too be fair this hotel could be a little gem with some investment and good management.

Hotel building and facilities have potential and nice little resort. Staff friendly but lacking in training. Feels like a lack of leadership, organisation and attention to detail. Examples of why this hotel is not 5* We arrived at midnight and had to carry our suitcases up stairs. Snack was left in fridge, average and contained meat and dairy despite being notified that one person was a vegan well in advance by email. Bed was made up for a couple, not friends which they knew we were. We had a maisonette room and paid for an additional person for 3 nights £210. Despite this we had to ask 4 times for the extra bedding, towels, mug, glass etc. This had been arranged in advance. Food was average at best. less good than local tavernas, there were flies around the salad and fruit. We were charged for water with our meal which I thought was ridiculous. Tables not made up correctly, had to ask for teaspoons to stir coffee. Asked for oat milk which came in a little jug one day but mostly in a cup. The Spa was overpriced, more expensive than the UK. Wine was expensive compared to other venues in resort. We bought wine that was superior from the supermarket next door for 25% of the cost. Cocktails were poor. This hotel could be 5* but it is not.

We read a few of the reviews on this hotel prior to booking and think it was difficult to judge what to expect as they are quite mixed. I think I agree with most points most of the reviews have to say in both good and not so good. I can clear one thing up strait away in that this is not a 5 star hotel. Having said that, it is not as bad as some of the reviews would make out. Room – We had a room on the side of the hotel overlooking the mountains. Those who are not happy with this side of the hotel will also mention the wasteland directly outside the hotel which to be honest isn’t the greatest view but if you avert your gaze up towards the sky then you have some amazing mountains to see. The room itself has most things you need from a room with a large bed, decent bathroom, small fridge and TV. The hanging space is limited if you are staying for 10 or more days. Pool – The pool area is very clean and looked after. We never had a problem with finding a sunbed in the morning and invariably were not out with our towels until at least 10:30am. The mood and vibe around the pool when we visited in June was very relaxed and quiet as the large majority of guests were 55 or over. The music around the pool in the day is a bit hit and miss but if you ask the person working behind the bar they will change to something more to your taste. One thing to note – If you don’t use the ladder getting into the pool and use the step then it is bit steeper then at looks! Restaurant/Breakfast We were B&B do didn’t actually eat in the hotel restaurant in the evening. Breakfast was a buffet that included most things you need and expect in 3-4 star hotel. It could get a little frantic at times as there was no method to seating. Most people just walked in the restaurant and sat where they wanted to without speaking to any staff. That being said, once you had a seat it wouldn’t normally take too long for someone to ask you if you wanted tea or coffee. Sometimes they would ask if you wanted a fried egg or omelette. Bar The staff working in the bar were pleasant and attentive. It would help if the WIFI was better for them so they could take card payments as this was a constant frustration for me and for the staff. I think the card machine worked 1 in every 5 occasions which isn’t a great look for a hotel that is charging premium prices. The drinks available are what you would expect with a good range of beers, wines, low and non-alcoholic beverages including a very nice cocktail called a Twisted Mojito. The bar was actually a really nice area to sit in the shade after laying in the sun. Spa We had a massage in the Spa and in general it is a very tranquil and calm space as you would expect. The one thing I would note is that having had a “deep tissue” massage on the UK and other countries you may want to dial it down in this Spa. Don’t get me wrong the person knew what they were doing but oh boy did she go to town on my legs, feet and back!!! My wife did point out that I should have told the masseuse to relax the pressure so this is probably my fault. There is a nice little pool with a couple of massage spouts after you have been pummelled. Gym We actually chose the hotel because it said it had a gym and was disappointed. It is a very small room with one treadmill, one cross-trainer that doesn’t work and a “sit down” bike that looks like it may have come out of the box in the 80’s. They have a rack of dumbbells going up to 12kg and two benches. That “in my opinion” is not a gym. The other and most important thing it lacks is air-conditioning.

We booked for the first time with Jet2, for which the holiday was to celebrate our 30th wedding anniversary. We took our sons and their partners. I had assisting boarding as very recently had a complex knee replacement; the service couldn’t have been handled any better if they tried as it was so smooth and the staff were happy and professional. We were greeted straight off the plane at Crete and once again the assistance was brilliant. The hotel and staff were great and made us and our holiday feel so special. The hotel and rooms were clean and modern and had a real feeling of quality.we are booking to go away in September and with out a doubt will be going with JET2 - keep up the amazing work

We have returned from 10 days at this hotel. We stayed on a half board basis in one of the superior rooms with individual pool. Overall this hotel has so much potential given its central location, excellent facilities and the gorgeous pool overlooked by a church and mountains, providing a truly stunning view and relaxing atmosphere. However our experience was not 5*. A few examples: The service in the restaurant was always uncoordinated and slow, even when the restaurant was very quiet. The staff are clearly working very hard and are pleasant and friendly, but there doesn’t appear to be an organised system.One time we had to wait 15 minutes to even order our drinks despite 4 members of staff standing there- they would not take our order as only one person working behind bar and there was a backlog. Whilst the a la carte choices in the evening were lovely, the choice of food in the buffet itself was limited and repetitive and in second half of holiday we decided to eat out every night instead. Choice at breakfast was limited with mostly tinned fruit instead of a variety of fresh. Every morning at breakfast ,the staff did not lay out spoons for cereal, yoghurt etc. We, and other guests, had to ask every day for a spoon- why not make them available on the table or by the bowls? It was odd to see staff have this feedback, multiple times, and yet practice not adapt off the back of that. We had a coffee machine in our room and only twice were the coffee pods replaced in our 10 day stay- we had to ask. The shower was cold. Pool loungers in the main pool and tables were worn and a little shabby. Whilst we enjoyed our stay, and these things aren’t deal breakers, you do expect attention to detail when paying 5* prices. If this was advertised as a 3.5/4 star we would have no complaints and would see this value for money, and I can totally imagine that this may have been 5* a few years ago. The place could benefit from a refresh, some polish and addressing the small details when it comes to service to truly make this 5* experience.