We stayed for 11 nights at the Galini arriving at 5 am
to be told our room was down a flight of steps, our first impression of the hotel was not that good, but then it was semi dark, we were very tired ,we have been to other Greek islands and I suppose the standard for 3 star is ok but everything is very basic.

On reaching our room ,which was on the ground floor, my reaction was get on the next plane home, it was like being shut away in a cupboard, a room on the top floor as we requested with a bit of a view would have been better.

The standard of the room was ok, I know the Greeks don't bother with shower curtains, but the shower head hadn't even got a bracket on the wall to sit in so showering with one hand was a real pain.

Sheets were changed every few days, but after 7 days the drains started smelling.

The food was very bland salad and pork every night, breakfast was basically bread and jam or cereals.

Definately hire a car as the hotel is about 2-3 miles from Hersonnisos.

But if you can overlook the faults I have listed you can have quite a good holiday, we made the best of it and quite enjoyed the holiday, but its like most things in life you get what you pay for, we are used to minimum 3 star Spain, if you want the same in in Greece I suppose you'd have to go 4 star.

Hello
We had booked in at the Galini Hotel for 11 nights and arrived very early hours so just went to our room and were initally shocked at the size of it, just about fit our 2 single beds in and a small shower room.

When we awoke we asked to be moved because of the size of the room and the fact that our balcony looked out onto the balcony of another family who had to walk past our window to access their room, so later that day were told we could have another room and were shocked to find out that we were to be taken by car to a block of apartments ( Elenora ) which hadnt been used this summer.

The pool wasnt yet filled but the apartment he offered us was very large and just been renovated and as promised the pool was filled the next day so we moved there with the offer of a lift up and back to the Galini for our meals.

However on the first occasion we asked the girl looking after the apartments to contact the person for a lift, she said she hadnt got the Galini's phone number ! We decided to walk up the hill for our evening meal, and discovered it wasnt really too far to walk for our meals.

The apartment was kept very clean, towels and bed linen changed every two or three days and the pool at the Elenora was kept clean but only had one umbrella for shade over the loungers. Luckily for us at first we were the only ones there so managed to get it, and no problem with people leaving towels here, unlike at the Galini where they were left on the loungers all day and were on first thing in the morning which we found ridiculous as there were only a few umbrellas for people to use and once the towels were on, they left them for the whole day so no one else managed to get any shade.

As for the meals at The Galini, well all we can say is that if you enjoy pork and salad seven days a week then its ok for you ! We found the food very bland and tasteless and ended up eating at the one Taverna we found in Anissaras,which makes it pointless going half board ! Also the dining area was very very hot and stuffy and after finding an available table which someone had already eaten at, the waiter used a hand brush to clean it ! However the barbeque nights were good, and the Greek night, and other entertainment they put on at the pool bar was very good - hello to Costas who was a star !

The location of the hotel was not exactly as stated in the brochure. The beach was about a 15min walk, as stated, but not to a sandy beach, this part of the beach was not used for sunbathing or swimming as it was very rocky - to actually get to a decent part of the beach was a further 15 min walk or 6 euros by taxi to The Captains Bar where you could hire loungers etc.

The beach was ok for sunbathing but if you like to swim in the sea its still rocky and very shallow. We decided to hire a car and found a lovely beach near Malia, and some great resorts near there. If you stay at Anissaras we recommend you definately hire a car if you want to enjoy your stay.

The hotel staff were very helpful especially Costos behind the bar and all the waiters.

We wouldnt stay at the Galini Hotel again, but would definately go back to Crete - not Anissaras.

We think that Olympic should update their brochure about the beach, and suggest that car hire might be a good idea, that the resort is not suitable for people with walking difficulties - oh and definately take a torch !

However, we still enjoyed our holiday as we managed to chill out more and relax by the pool when we hadnt got the car!
Enjoy