Phaea Blue, a member of SLH | Elounda, Crete

It is amongst my personal top 10 hotels I have stayed at. Decor was amazing and the setting was beautiful. The rooms were spacious and comfortable and were kept clean with towels that were expected of a five star hotel. All the staff went the extra mile and management were present and available. Breakfast was truly a wonderful experience as was lunch and dinner. Only thing I would criticize is the lack of bar service at the pool area. The beach facilities and service were excellent. We enjoyed the movie theater which was comfortable and professional equipped. |Well done to the team

This is hands down one of my favorite hotels. From the moment we arrived - everything was total perfection. The welcome greeting to the amenities, to the activities to the accommodations. The food was as extraordinary as the service - we came away feeling like everyone we encountered there is now a good friend! ||Highly recommend the traditional “pop up” dinner - which was absolutely spectacular. We also loved going out on the boat and having lunch and swimming. ||Every meal was incredibly delicious… and every person we encountered was so helpful and kind- from the general manager to the food and beverage manager… the executive chef and Maria who served us each morning. ||The rooms are stunning and comfortable. My husband and I shared a suite with our two daughters. We hated to leave - but as they reminded us, we must leave in order to come back. And we WILL be back.

We recently stayed 4 nights at the Phaea Blue resort for our 10th anniversary . The hotel was nicely situated and check-in went smoothly. Service was very pleasant. The room was nice, although we were situated right above the restaurant so we weren’t able to enjoy the terrace without restaurant noise. The pool area is nice, but a bit dated. We did use the pool one day, but beware the pool is not heated so a bit chilly. Breakfast each day was very nice, with a cooked to order and/or small buffet - we really enjoyed it. The concierge was very helpful with local restaurant recommendations and transportation. We tried the casual taverna one night - it was good, but very expensive compared to the restaurants in Plaka that had good (even better) food and views, and were a 7 minute walk down the beach. The other onsite restaurant was also very expensive compared to other local options. We didn’t get a chance to try the spa (was booked on the only day we had free) or the beach area (too windy/cold for the beach). All in all, a good, but not great visit. I would classify this as a 4-star hotel.

If I could add another star to Phaea Blue I would! |From the moment we entered this exquisitely designed hotel we were welcomed with warmth, enthusiasm and champagne! After being shown the extensive library and other public areas, we were whisked away to our beautiful suite with private pool in a “buggy”, available to take you anywhere on the vast property at a moment’s notice. We were happiest, though, to walk almost everywhere, taking in the spectacular grounds—flowers in full bloom, cypress, palms, herbs, lavender, produce garden… Beginning with a lavish breakfast buffet each morning and ending at Blue Door, Anthos or on top of the property in the garden, we will remember the many delectable and interesting bites and sips—freshly squeezed juices and Greek wines—for a very long time! Blue Door is quite special—not only is the food exquisite but you’re right on the water and, on one of the nights we were there, local musicians played for us—a dream! Not to be missed is the farm-to-table dinner, offered twice each week in the middle of the produce garden—what could be better than food grown by staff and local farmers and local vineyards?! Dinner is served family style and the chef keeps delivering small plates of whatever he’s inspired to cook on any particular evening—a most beautiful education in Greek culture! There’s so much to do right from the hotel—walk to Plaka or take the hotel launch to Spinalonga, another must! The beach is smooth rocks with crystal clear water! The staff was spectacular with exploration advice, restaurant recommendations, arranging for cars to take us anywhere and to bring us back “home” whenever we were ready! We weren’t surprised to meet several people who return to Phaea Blue year after year and we hope we’ll be back one day soon! Thank you everyone!!

The way you are pampered makes you feel home. The kindness and professionalism of the staff is something absolutely worth. Always available and attentive. The restaurant on the seaside, Blue Door, is a place with an idyllic view, you forget you are in a hotel, you feel like being at lunch or dinner with friends. Here too, impeccable service and excellent cuisine. Breakfast is truly unique, quality and courtesy. The beach is located in the most beautiful part of the gulf, in front of Spinalonga island. We were very satisfied with the cleanliness of our room and in general. A totally relaxing holiday in a place with a unique view.

My daughter and I have enjoyed a wonderful week at the Phaea Blue. The staff as others have said are all warm, friendly and very helpful; the food is outstanding, rooms serene and views beautiful. We particularly loved the idyllic Blue Door restaurant where the food and views are delicious. We really enjoyed our evening at the Farmer’s Feast communal dinner in the vegetable gardens and broke bread with Californians, Texans, the Dutch, Germans and Greek families. We also took a trip to Spinalonga having read The Island a few years ago. The only issue with the Phaea Blue is the Meltemi wind which of course the hotel can’t control. The winds were very, very strong all week. We managed to swim a couple of times but the waves were large and it was impossible to read a book or grab a drink on the beach without books and glasses flying away and breaking.|We walked into Plaka a couple of evenings for cocktails and supper at local tavernas. Giovanni’s was particularly good as was Gorgona. We also took a €30 taxi into Agios Nikolaos which is a charming little seaside town full of colour and character. We ate overlooking the lake at Gioma Meze; do book a table if you can. The views were to die for as was the food! Despite the winds, we had a super week at Phaea Blue. Thank you everyone!

We recently stayed at this hotel and have been a number of times before ,all of them very enjoyable, but this visit was really excellent in every way. It is in a beautiful setting with superb facilities but the new, smaller scale, style means an even more marvellous level of personal service by all of the staff. In particular we greatly enjoyed the dining experiences - very good local ingredients were beautifully prepared and served. The beach, pool, spa and gym are all first class and the rooms are excellent in every way with super views. There is some construction going on nearby but it did not impact on our enjoyment of the experience.|I highly recommend the Phaea Blue under the excellent management of Mr Rocos, and we will be returning soon.

First and foremost, the staff here are what makes the place. They are friendly,helpful, kind and attentive. They are a 5/5 and the 4 rating would have been a 3,5 without them.We did have an advantage in having been to the Blue Palace about 6-7 times, with the last visit with our family in 2022 when it was still the Blue Palace.|The SIGNATURE room: We had room 605 which we really liked, partial sea view, view over the pool from the balcony and the terrace outside reception, with easy access to reception and breakfast room( Anthos). There were a couple of niggles but sorted immediately. It has a nice size walk in shower.The fridge is a decent size and plenty of cupboard space. There isn’t anywhere to do your hair other than standing in the bathroom where there is a mirror. There is only one USB in the room which is surprising if it has indeed been refurbished.|TV is a good size and you can hotcast to it. No English channels, BBC doesn’t work and mainly Greek,Italian,French and German channels.yes we are on holiday but it’s sometimes nice to chill and watch TV in the evening/night.|DELUXE SEAVIEW BUNGALOW WITH POOL(713):We spent one night in this room which is not really a bungalow, more like a ground floor room.Not much privacy.The pool is really nice,two sunbeds and an umbrella.Water from the shower seeps into the toilet area.The shower area is very tight and someone with a bigger frame than me would struggle.The toilet separated by a glass panel/ door is also in a narrow area.|Double sink but unfortunately the sinks don’t hold water.The mechanism for the plug does not work.Blackout blinds in the various windows do not fit the description and the room ends up being very light.Aircon is over the bed which is not ideal.The fridge is smaller than the one in the Signature room.This room is also further away from the reception/breakfast area & you may need the buggy.The pool aside, we would not choose this bungalow over the Signature room we had.|The Beach: We love the beach. Never a rush for beds as it’s a beach which allowed for a very large Blue Palace Hotel previously.The sea is absolutely stunning,a beautiful colour, transparent. It was pretty breezy down by the beach during our stay but if it drops you will want it back to harbour you from the heat.The staff here , Stavros( whom we have know for many years), Ilias and Voula are all great.You can also walk along the beach, passing a water sports hut, to get to Plaka. You get to the beach by ordering a buggy on the app.|RESTAURANTS: There only two, Anthos( doubles as the breakfast room) and Blue Door. They both serve very similar menus, whereas I think it would be good to have a different type whether it be Italian, Asian or other. |The breakfast is lovely. There is plenty of choice of yoghurts, cakes, salads, fruits , bread, cheese and you can have omelette, scrambled eggs and other items from an à la carte menu.What a lovely team it is here! Maria, Vaso,Maria, Eleni, Nikos ,Sofia & others look after you so well and are very welcoming.|We only visited the Blue Door in the evening.The food here is excellent & the portions are decent size.The team of Haris,Rena and Dora are wonderful, fun,attentive, kind and know their stuff.The only downside is that both restaurants are, in our opinion, very expensive but if you are on HB or FB then that matters less.|Plenty of nice places to eat out in Plaka( Carob Tree, Ostria,Isla), drinks at the Pine Tree, Despina’s on way tobElounda to name a few! |THE POOL : This was the smallest pool at what was the Blue Palace and it is one of the real negatives of the hotel.There isn’t any shade.Whoever designed it didn’t plan it properly.It needs someone to come up with a solution.We understand that the wind gets up here and this is the reason given for fixed umbrellas and heavy beds but as useful as a chocolate fire guard ! No good for young children/babies for sure and us looking for shade. Generally, the pool area was empty. |THE SPA: There isn’t one! It’s just treatment rooms.|CINEMA room: seems like a waste of space.|WHATS APP “app”: works very well for ordering buggies, booking dinners etc.|CONSTRUCTION: We were told before we booked that there wouldn’t be any outdoor building works which was totally untrue.As mentioned by others you will hear Jackhammers,drilling and general other noise, especially around the beach.|We spoke to the General Manager and Lina about various issues and they promised to do absolutely everything to help us have a lovely holiday and they did.|Must mention Chrysoula ,the lovely “buggy guys” Tasos, young Dimitris and too many more to mention.|Would we go back? Be interesting to see how this develops alongside the new Rosewood Blue Palace! All I would say to the Team there, is “ the devil is in the detail”