Atlantica Caldera Palace - All Inclusive

“Check out the spa!”

The spa is lovely, Joanna took care of me for a back, shoulder and head massage as well as a facial. I'd definitely recommend treating yourself, really relaxing and rejuvinating.

“perfect”

i was very pleased with my trip to this hotel. especially the entertainment team was amazing!! the shows were wonderful, definetly recommend to check those out. Lukas‘ stage presence was so much fun to watch, he’s so vocally gifted wow! As well as listening to ninette and emma’s beautiful voices, t… more

i was very pleased with my trip to this hotel. especially the entertainment team was amazing!! the shows were wonderful, definetly recommend to check those out. Lukas‘ stage presence was so much fun to watch, he’s so vocally gifted wow! As well as listening to ninette and emma’s beautiful voices, the songs they sung really touched my heart. Another girl part of the team, ksusha, is a beautiful dancer, definetly watch out for the lounge songs i hope everyone gets to listen to her angelic voice atleast once.

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“Average.”

We stayed at Atlantica Caldera Palace in Crete from 9th to 16th May for a family holiday. Overall, we had an enjoyable stay, but there were definitely several areas that I feel could be improved, especially when comparing it with other five-star TUI holidays we have had in recent years. The hotel … more

We stayed at Atlantica Caldera Palace in Crete from 9th to 16th May for a family holiday. Overall, we had an enjoyable stay, but there were definitely several areas that I feel could be improved, especially when comparing it with other five-star TUI holidays we have had in recent years. The hotel is in a good location, with its own beach and some shops and restaurants within walking distance. The coach transfer was straightforward and took around 30 minutes, and taxis were also easy enough to get if you wanted to travel around. Our room was one of the better parts of the holiday in terms of comfort and cleanliness. We paid extra for a sea-view room, which came with a balcony, and the view was lovely. The room itself was a decent size, clean, quiet, and comfortable. The bed was big and comfortable, the bathroom had a bath and shower, and both the air conditioning and Wi-Fi worked well. However, one downside of having the sea-view room was the location. It meant we were about as far away as we could possibly be from the kids’ pool, which was not ideal on a family holiday. While the view was nice, the distance from the main children’s facilities is something families should be aware of before paying extra for a sea view. Food and drink was more mixed. The breakfast was disappointing and, in my opinion, not up to the standard I would expect from this type of hotel. Some of the meat options felt very cheap, especially the sausages, although the chorizo sausage was nice. I tried the scrambled eggs one morning and it honestly put me off having them again for the rest of the holiday. There was an omelette area, but the set-up seemed confusing for guests, with people queueing unnecessarily when they only wanted fried eggs. A clearer omelette station would improve this. The orange juice also tasted quite cheap, although I do understand that with all-inclusive hotels you sometimes have to manage expectations. The daytime food court was actually one of the highlights. There was a good range of snacks and food available, including noodles, burgers, hot dogs and pizzas. However, the area lacked atmosphere. There was no music, and because it was next to the main restaurant that was being refurbished, it sometimes had a bit of a ghost town feeling to it. The hotel itself was clean, and the staff were generally friendly and helpful. Sunbeds were easy enough to get in the morning, even though some people were putting towels down early. The pools looked nice, but the outdoor pools were not heated and were very cold, especially on the days when the weather was not as hot. We knew they were unheated before travelling, but they were cold enough that a lot of people simply would not get in. The kids’ facilities were okay, but again there were areas that could be improved. The kids’ pool was quite far from our room, and the children’s park had no lighting, meaning it could not really be used once it started to get dark. For a family hotel, this felt like a simple thing that would make a big difference. The evening entertainment was on every night and the kids’ TUI disco was good, but because it was indoors it felt quite enclosed. I appreciate we travelled in May and not in peak summer, but I still think the entertainment set-up could be improved. One of the biggest frustrations was the à la carte restaurant booking system. You had to book on the app at 9am each day, and if you missed it, the restaurants were fully booked almost immediately. We missed out on two of the à la carte restaurants because they were fully booked by around one minute past nine. I even set an alarm to try and book, but still could not get in. I also tried to get into the sushi restaurant on the final day and was told no. The staff were not rude, but the response was very much just to try the app, which was frustrating when the system clearly was not working well for guests. Another issue was the main restaurant being closed for refurbishment. This had a noticeable impact, especially on vegetarian options, which affected my wife and children’s meal choices. For a family hotel, I think this is something that needs more attention. Overall, we did have a nice stay. The room was clean and comfortable, the sea view was lovely, the hotel was generally clean, and the staff were friendly. However, the hotel feels like it needs a lot of TLC. At times it had a bit of a cruise ship feel to it, and certain areas lacked atmosphere or felt unfinished. In the last four years, we have had four TUI holidays, including three five-star hotels in Turkey, and I would recommend all three of those over this hotel. For that reason, I personally would not return to Atlantica Caldera Palace, and I would not recommend it based on our experience. Ps one of the photos is an air con unit getting lifted into place whilst a wedding was happening underneath. Genuinly I was stunned at this and if I were the couple getting married, I would have been fuming! Rating: 3 out of 5

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