Candia Park Village

Unsuitable for disabled people, handrails are very sparse.. Overrun with small children. Units totally utilitarian apart from an excellent bed. The car parking is along the access road in the main, reducing the width for others to pass. Breakfast food was generally good, but economies were evident, orange drink not orange juice for example. Yet omelettes were brilliant, cooked by a lovely lady. Dinner buffet was not up to 4* standard and expectations. Tap water not available , the charge for a 1 liter bottle of water being 3€, the same in a supermarket being less than 0.5€, hence effectively a dinner tax The taverna was a disappointment, expensive and not a genuine taverna experience when compared to those experienced elsewhere. Wherever the 4* rating came from is a mystery, 3* at very very most.

We spent so long trying to find somewhere in Crete and booked Candia Park based on the reviews, it felt like a gamble as anywhere does when you’ve never been there but we needn’t have worried. We stayed here from 4th-14th October 2024. We couldn’t have been happier with our experience. My husband has run hotels, restaurants and bars for years in the UK and USA, this makes him a very fussy traveller and very critical, he is not easily pleased but we’ve been back a few days and he’s already booked us in for next year! The staff are everything here, they are SO friendly, welcoming and accommodating. From reception to the bar and restaurants to the cleaning staff who bring fresh towels and clean the room everyday, they also made cute bows out of the bed sheets and even made a little bed for my daughters toy that she absolutely loved. These little touches were so appreciated. They work so incredibly hard and still manage to make you feel comfortable and well looked after. We have allergies, mine is very severe/ anaphylactic which is new to me and very frightening. Wherever we ate, the buffet, a la carte or even when we arrived at 11.30pm (and the lovely Maria on reception made us pizza!) they were so reassuring, they checked everything meticulously. Whenever I went to the buffet the super friendly head chef would give me a tour of every single option and tell me what was in it and if it was safe for me to eat, honestly I wish I could have brought him home with me, I felt so bad for inconveniencing him so often but he never gave any inkling that he wasn’t happy to do it and made me feel so safe! It’s the perfect place if you don’t like big, all inclusive hotels, surrounded by other Brits. It feels authentic just like a village and is absolutely beautiful. It’s spread over quite a big area which makes it all the more special, there’s an ice cream parlour, gym, shop and spa, all lovely. There are stunning views from every angle, a private beach with excellent snorkelling and the pool is so relaxing, the kids can have fun playing but the lifeguard makes sure it’s within reason. It’s close to Agios Nikolaos town centre and Elounda which are both well worth a visit. I would recommend hiring a car, it was easy enough online and saved us travelling at least an extra hour on a coach transfer, the hotel was so easy to find from Heraklion airport and took just under an hour. One very small criticism is that our children are 11 and 13 and we were surrounded by babies in every other apartment, whose crying woke us up every morning. I’m sure it was just an unfortunate coincidence and if we had mentioned it, something could have been done but it would definitely be something to consider. Thank you to all the staff at Candia Village Park, we will look forward to seeing you next year and hope you enjoy a well deserved break!