Numo Ierapetra Beach Resort

The highlights of our stay really were Tina's yoga lessons and Petros' fitness courses. We also enjoyed a high quality massage. Surprisingly good for swimming and snorkeling was the private beach of the hotel. Due to the rocks (under water), plenty of fish can be seen. (But you should know where the underwater rocks are in case you are swimming in a rough sea.) Staff was friendly and forthcoming. If you do not like the music at the main pool, you can use the other (quiet) pool or the beach loungers further from the pool bar. We enjoyed the pool bar service (e.g. its "Acai Berry Bowl") every day, calling the service from the beach lounger's call button. Both breakfast buffet and dinner buffet were nice. (The dinner buffet repeated after 1 week, but we stayed only 8 nights.) Minor complaints are: one of the self-service coffee machines was not working on two mornings, which lead to longer queues for the coffee. And the flax seed ran out three days before the end of the season (and was not filled up again). The door knob in our room was not properly working, so we could not lock the front door from inside. But apart from these minor complaints, everything was very comfortable, clean and pleasant. We were also extremely lucky with the weather: 22° water and 26° air temperature in the first week of November; so we did not do a lot of sightseeing, but rather enjoyed the snorkeling, swimming, fitness courses and yoga lessons. Compared to Tenerife, this was less expensive and equally enjoyable. Overall, the hotel is a great place to get away from the busy world and relax.

We went for a quiet holiday, choosing this adults only hotel as it was situated by the beach on what seemed (and was) a quiet spot on this south coast of Crete. It had two nice swimming pools and plenty of loungers around the pools and on the beach. It was booked as a British Airways package holiday, and notably came with a discount but also during this end of season period complimentary half board. We choose a more expensive room with its own private swimming pool (more of a plunge pool) with separate sleeping and living area. The room was clean and daily cleaned to a high standard. There were two TVs but with limited programme choice. However, the wifi was good so we used our tablet and a HDMI cable which we had brought with us. There was a coffee machine which we also used to boil water for tea. Just outside the hotel ws a small shop where milk could be purchased. A nice touch was the complementary wine and fruit that awaited us on arrival. There was also a complimentary voucher for 15 minutes at the spa which succeeded in inducing us to book an hour's treatment! The dining area had both inside and outside areas and there were plenty of staff. There ws an excellent selection of food both for breakfast and dinner (we did not try the lunch). There was a bar by one of the swimming pools which only sold drinks - adding some food choices would have been nice. The hotel I think excelled for its fitness opportunities - a good small gym and various outdoor (and hydro) classes. There was also an open air film each evening - it was end of season so on the cool side but blankets were provided by the staff. We did not have a car so used taxis and the hotel has negotiated standard prices - for for example it was €10 into Ierapetra town. A walk around the old town and fort was worthwhile; there is a very small arceological museum; and varius eating places. Although this was a 'quiet holiday' we found time for a 14 km walk to the Myelonas Waterfall (worthwhile even though no water at this time of year) and a 10 km walk to the Vainia Tower north of the resort. We also visited Agios Nikolaos for the Olive Oil farm (see separate review), the quite extensive archeology musem and lunch by the lake. The reception area deserves a particular mention. Large and airy (and a bar which ws not operational during our stay) always staffed with at least 2 or more very helpful and friendly receptionists who could give advice on the surrounding area etc. All in all, it exceeded our expectations in most areas.

We thought that from every perspective, this hotel provided an excellent service, in a quite remote location, and that the staff team made every effort, all of the time, for our comfort. The food was excellent, the facilities in the spa and gym were first rate (Petros was very helpful and supportive, and the masseuse was top class) and the bar staff looked after you at the pool side in a every way possible. A very nice stay!

Stunning hotel! Beautiful views and great service. The best pool area we have ever had. Good variety of food. Some live music in the evenings would be a nice touch. A very relaxing week in a secluded spot…it’s at least one and a half hours from the airport.

If TA allowed 2 separate reviews I would do a 1 star review for management and a 5 star review for hotel and staff. Here’s why…. The 5 star bit…. The hotel is beautiful - set on a lovely stony beach. There are plenty of comfortable sunbeds and lots of places to sit and have a drink or just relax. The rooms are good although I wouldn’t recommend paying extra for a room with terrace as ours was nothing like the pictures - a basic room gives everything you need. The breakfast buffet was plentiful and could be excellent with a few tweaks. The complimentary yoga and fitness classes were superb - credit to Tina and Petros who were both excellent instructors. All staff were friendly and helpful - not always what you find at the end of the season. Now for the 1 star bit…. There just don’t appear to be enough staff so getting served a drink at the bar, or a table at breakfast takes far too long. The same friendly person is allocating tables, clearing tables, find mugs when they run out etc… Breakfast could be excellent - a more interesting variety of fruit is needed. Every day there was orange grapefruit and melon but no pineapple, figs, papaya, pomegranate etc.. Also queuing up for coffee is not what I expect in a 5 star hotel. There are 2 serve yourself coffee machines (with queues) and a barista serving excellent coffees but with a 5-10 queue as mostly he’s working alone and having to find mugs when they run out - management should ensure more staff are preparing coffee - surely that would be an easy solution. Evening meal - This is the worst part of my experience here. The evening buffet is poor. The food is generally luke warm and unappealing. After eating the buffet for 2 night we decided we should try the second restaurant but discovered there is only a very limited set menu (no choice of starter or dessert and a choice of 3 main courses including 1 vegetarian) - the menu is the same for a whole week so if you don’t like the menu you have no other option for the week!! The restaurant looks lovely - I don’t understand why it’s not better utilised by offering an al a carte menu. Again this is a management issue - a missed opportunity for a better dining experience. There are no other options at the hotel so plan on hiring a car or getting a taxi to a local restaurant. In summary there’s a lot to love about the hotel and it really could be excellent with a few changes!