Really, I did read in the brochure that it was about that time, that is great I read somewhere on a website that it was going to be about 4 hours. My husband will be pleased. We land at some stupid time in the morning like 2.30am, i am sure we said we would not do night flights again with small children!!

Is there loads of stops or does it go direct to Lerapetra?

Hi Michelle we had one stop only, but other's from different flights had none. I think that because it is a fairly long transfer they try not to have any stops, but mind rest assured it's certainly no 4 hours. maybe someone was confusing our time to the local time of arrival.
Have a lovely holiday Michelle. Night flights are a pain but we went in the daytime, left our house at 11am(our time) and still never arrived until gone 11pm anyway at the hotel anyway (local time).

Hi all (and a special hello to Clare - I will phone or text real soon when ive caught up with real life lol) I finally post my review on the hotel.

Where to start! We had a great time. The food was fine, drinks were fine save for charging you for cocktails etc but that is normal and all inclusive running out at 12 midnight, the pools and slides were fab, the beach was fine provided you had your beach shoes (although did see a little jelly fish), we even managed to get beds everyday (and only got up at 7ish to get one), the shop in the hotel was actually cheaper than in the town and at duty free prices so very good, the staff and cleanliness was fine, and all in all I was very impressed. Even the entertainment was ok. Also the kids clubs were good too.

My only complaint would be the snack bar got a bit repetitive and I would have liked nicer cake in the afternoon with my cuppa! oh and a bellboy would have been nice lol

Just a piece of advice, whilst I remember, make sure you have at least factor 40 for the kids as there were a few who got 2nd degree burns and the price of suncream over there is extortionate. Also there are sea urchins on the rocks so definitely need those beach shoes.

And thats it my holiday is over - boo hoo!

Hope that helps

Redcrop xx

Hi All

Well i am glad everyone enjoyed there self as much as we did we arrived home the day most of you were arriving...It takes a few weeks to get back to normal,we were lucky we had a good few days of good weather to get all the dreaded washing dry...YUK thats the worst of a 2 week holiday ..!!..Well i have been back now a few weeks a distant memory now..I have booked up for next year 7th July a week after our kids stop school..I have booked another FC holiday this time to the royal park at elenite looks good we were at Bulgaria last year and enjoyed it we were at the other side Obzor bay..the rui helios and enjoyed our holiday.Well thats our kids back to school already.So our holidays are now well and trully over.

i think i see somewhere there is no kettle in room??? is this true can you hire (cant be arsed to look thru pages) and what is the tea like out there

Hi the tea is weak lol and there really is not a kettle in the room and you cant hire them either! I just took a travel kettle and some tea bags and it was fine!

Redcrop x

you want to drink tea when theres free lager

LOL ,Broncoblue. lol.hahahaha
Good Enough for ,(MY FAMILAY.)
Not enough time to worry about that tea time thing!!!
Beer ,Food, Beer, Food, SUN, SUN, SUN,
Iam visitinng for the 2nd time next year (June 6th 08 ).

2Adults + 3 Wee Kids .
, And hope for High stanards.()
Just as last year !!!!!.... we hope it is good fun.
My 8yr old asked if he could go back . WOW !!!

ha ha ha im not drinking nooooo tea all boooooozeeee boooozeeeee booooozeeee its for the little un no sleep without her cuppa.

oh well off tomorrow so off to do loads of last minuite stuff

hi all,
have just booked up for next june and by what i have been reading so far it can,t come quick enough for us now.
myself partner and three son,s aged 10 and 3 and 1 will be going for two weeks on the 6th june flying from cardiff, would just like to know if anyone has been that time of year and could tell us how hot its likely to be around then, also can how far is the village from hotel do we need to bring buggy for little ones or is it in walking distance?
also what trips are there for people to go on would be a great help?
cheers guys hope to hear back from you soon
happy holidays everyone

Hi Shushu

Weather in June will be great (sunny and hot).

Its about 15 minutes walk into town (with a little one) along the promenade which starts just outside the hotel so I think you might find a buggy useful (don't forget a sunshade as the walk is right out in the open). However, if you don't want the hassle of taking a buggy, you can hire one from the 1st Choice kids clubs reps (I can't remember how much it is, but I'm sure you could find out from 1st choice.

There are the usual First Choice excursions (which we didn't go on because we thought they were too pricy), Chrissy Island, The Water Park at Hersonnisos, and some others which I can't remember. If you want to visit Chrissy island, you can save a fair bit of cash by booking tickets at the harbour rather than through the 1st choice reps. Be aware, because of the location of Ierapetra if you want to travel round to see things you will have to drive a long way.

I hope you have as good a holiday as we did - I'm sure you will!

Regards

Andy

hi there andy,
thanks for replying to my questions i,ll be on to FC about the buggys as i dont fancy carrying all the suitcases buggy and chasing my two boys all over the airport he he.
been looking at chrissi island on here did you go if so what was there as there does,nt seem to be much from what i can tell here? will take your advice about booking down at the harbour though always found myself that its cheaper to look around and not do it all through the reps.
anyway thanks again i,m sure we,ll have a fab time out there first time to crete been to other parts of greece and always found that it was good so no worries mate.

hi again can anyone tell me how much it would cost to upgrade to a sea view as i,ve just checked my invoice and we,ve got a mountain view which surprizes me as we have paid almost £2500 for this holiday and thought we would of had sea veiw regarless.
anyone upgrade themselves whilst over there which maybe would be cheaper than going through FC ???
any info on this would be very welcome guys cheers

Hi shushu, not sure about changing the room when you arrive but why don't you send them an e-mail direct and tell them that you would like a room with a sea-view, it's always worth a try. If they say no then maybe you will have to do it through F-C but I'd definately give it a go http://www.petramare.com/en/index.html

Shell

Hi Shushu when we booked we booked a mountain view but then decided we would change to a sea view. We just phoned up First Choice Toppings I think and they amended it for us for about £50 well worth it!

We went to Chrissi Island and the kids really enjoyed it and if we did not have such a youngster ie. 18 month it would have been great cos you really get a lot of time to yourself as the reps look after the kids.

I wont mention the near death experience on the way back lol which was due to adverse weather conditions!

Also £2500 is actually very cheap for a holiday - I now know this as trying to book for next year and cant seem to get cheaper than £5k ouch lol its cos there are 5 of us and I was looking at 4 stars! I will have to lower my sights I think lol

Redcrop x

If you are booking with First Choice on the net it sometimes pays to check out Eclipse Direct as they are the direct selling side of First Choice and their holidays can come out cheaper, we found this when we booked the Petra Mare a couple of years ago. Don't do tour op's now as we make good savings going DIY

It also pays if you are looking online, to price match flights and rooms! This goes for First Choice and Eclipse! You can sometimes get very unusual prices prior to confirming your booking. Try it, It works

cheers guys for all your info its a great help to hear other peoples views and ideas. i,ll definatly try a few of them out before we go.
thanks again

hi everyone,
was just woundering if theres a cash machine near the hotel or do we take it all cash and travelers cheques?
Is the rates good for the euors this year been to bulgaria last two years so behind on whats what in greece ect?
anyone tell me whats the village like for holiday makers is it good prices ect?
any help with these matters would be a great help guys cheers