Name: Aelius Hotel & Spa
Address: Kato Gouves, Kato Gouves, 70014, GR

Aelius Hotel & Spa

Crete · Greece

17 reviews shown

10/10

Exceptional

08 Jul 2026

Kerry

Wonderful welcome from wonderful staff. Nothing feels like too much trouble. The standard room was basic but was perfectly sufficient for our needs and cleaned every day. The hotel has a boutique style with 2 nice outdoor pools and one indoor, next to the small but sufficiently equipped gym. Unfortunately we did not have time to try out the spa treatments but the staff were also very nice in there. We were half-board and found the food to be excellent - lots of choice, very fresh and again, wonderful staff.
I travelled with my teenage daughter and we were glad to see a variety of different people and age groups at the hotel, couples, groups and families.
The location is also very good. It is in a quiet area within walking distance (20 mins) of the beach, some shops, tavernas and bars. There are bus stops close by to take you to busier areas such as Heraklion and Hersonissos, which we used frequently. The hotel also facilitates car rental (for the brave) as well as airport transfers, which we used on arrival and were very happy with.
The one and only criticism is reserving sunbeds with towels. The hotel states that they do not allow it but it happened daily and no one acted upon it. It meant that we spent very little of our time in the hotel using their facilities. I think if you have a policy, you should stick to it. It was very frustrating to see reserved beds left for many hours unoccupied.

10/10

Exceptional

19 Sep 2023

Graeme

Great food, especially the dessert tarts.
Snack bar and bar excellent.
Would highly recommend the room with private pool

Leisure Partner

8/10

Excellent

12 Jun 2019

Verified traveler

Private pool but dated room

Booked a room with a private pool, nice pool however the room was disappointing - nothing serious enough to complain about but quite dated decor and very cramped shower over a bath. That being said the staff were brilliant. The location is very quiet, a walk down to the beach through other hotels and back streets (though the hotel offer a complimentary bus service) leads you to the beachfront where there are some small cafes and a few tourist shops.

Partner

8/10

Excellent

31 Jul 2018

Paula

Summer Vacation 2018

Our family vacation at Lavris Hotel & Spa was very nice! Hotel is located near the city centre and beach! We really appreciated the complimentary beach service they offered us. We did not have to worry about parking. The hotel offers a gym , a spa and there were various pools for us to use. We also enjoyed the 15 minute massage that was offered to all of us during our stay. The staff was very friendly and accommodating! The only thing we found was that the bathroom was a bit small and we found the bathrobes to be a bit rundown!

Family

8/10

Excellent

20 Sep 2014

Harry

Nice place for all inclusive type stay

If your looking for all inclusive type of stay near, but not on, the beach, go for it. A lot of the guests were week long residents using mostly the hotel facilities and the nearby beach for entertainment. A lot of activities are planned for guests during the day and evenings. Not at all impressed by the local shops and other nearby hotels. It's the normal Greek chaos when it comes to the street and community organization. We used it for and overnight stay prior to leaving Crete from Herakleon; very easy to the airport.

2/10

Poor

15 Sep 2014

David

Very bad experience

Although we reserved a room with Expedia( we had a flight the morning after and the hotel is 10 minutes away from the airport ) there was no reservation for us at the hotel. The staff was not professional and not really helpful . At the end they agreed to give us a room. The room was old and needed refreshment long ago , air condition was noisy and the rest of the room was really not a place you want to stay in.

The same goes for the lobby and other parts of the hotel .The location of the hotel is also not great and the sea is not next door...

You better stay away from this place..

10/10

Exceptional

02 Sep 2025

YOSHIAKI

great service and people

People are very friendly and kind, the room is always clean, it was comfortable for us.

Friends_and_family Family

8/10

Excellent

21 Aug 2025

Samia

Bien

Leisure Family

8/10

Excellent

19 Apr 2024

Nathalie

L'hôtel est calme et le personnel très accueillant.
Le buffet est très fourni et correct. Par contre les desserts ne sont pas au rdv. Dommage.

Leisure Family

8/10

Excellent

31 Jul 2019

Marjut

Nice and compact hotel. Room was simple but functional and clean. Staff was very friendly. We had all incluse and food was ok but the drinks (soft drinks) were quite diluted. Also spa's staff was professional and the treatments were fantastic. We took massages, facial and body treatments. There were a shop in the same building as the hotel. This shop had very reasonably prices (1,5 l bottled water 0,5 e). Hotel has a free minibus which takes to the nearest beach. Beach was ok. Umbrella with two chairs were 6 e. Would go again to this hotel.

Leisure Family

10/10

Exceptional

19 Jun 2019

Verified traveler

Ottimo

L'hotel era molto carino, era ben curato e pulito, aveva due grandi piscine all'esterno.
Il personale era molto professionale ed attento alle esigenze degli ospiti.
Il buffet della cucina era di ottime qualità e varietà.
Nelle vicinanze ci sono delle belle spiagge di sabbia chiara, attrezzate con ombrelloni e lettini.

Lo consiglio a tutti.

Partner

8/10

Excellent

11 Aug 2018

Vincenzo

7/10

Buona struttura, abbastanza pulita, gentilissimi coloro che lavoravano alla reception, unica pecca mortorio da pessima animazione

Family

2/10

Poor

10 Aug 2018

Ian

Terrible

Frygteligt - værelset stank af råd og hotellet ville ikke hjælpe - Hotels desværre heller ikke kundebevidste, øv en dårlig oplevelse

Family

8/10

Excellent

24 Jul 2018

Henrik

Dejligt Hotel venligt personale

Dejligt Hotel hvor vi valgte all inclusive, Hotellet har venligt personale og der er 2 pool områder samt indendørs pool.

6/10

Pleasant

24 Jun 2018

Lars

Zimmerservice und Essen leider durchgefallen.

Der Empfang beim Check In war freundlichem. Man bekam alles erklärt und der Weg zum Zimmer wurde erklärt. Wenngleich bei der Ankunft auch schon auf die optional buchbaren Zusatzleistungen, wie Massage, Mietwagen, etc. angepriesen wurde.
Auf dem Zimmer befand sich als Willkommensgruß eine kleine Karaffe Raki, und etwas süßes Honiggebäck. Die Zimmer waren einfach Möbliert Safe und Kühlschrank und TV vorhanden. Leider keine Sitzgelegenheiten im Zimmer ausser auf dem Bett. Es gab einen Balkon mit zwei Kunststofstühlen und einem Tisch. Das Bad war einfach spartanisch ausgestattet. Badewanne mit Duschabtrennung. Aus dem Gulli am Boden kam schnell der Schaum vom Duschen herausgequollen.
Die Reinigung der Zimmer ließ zu wünschen übrig. Gläser wurden nicht gespült, das Geschirr vom Willkommensgruß stand noch dritten Tag auf dem Balkon. Nachdem wir es selbst in dem Flur abgestellt haben, stand es dort nochmals mehrere Tage. Auch vor anderen Zimmer konnten wir das gleiche Geschirr finden, also kein Einzelfall. Flecken auf dem Balkon Tisch wurden nicht abgewischt. Die Bettwäsche wurde nach 3-4 Nächten gewechselt.
Das Essen war enttäuschend. Das Frühstücksbuffet war langweilig, da jeden Tag der selbe Continental Standard. Griechische Produkte suchte man vergebens. Abendessen haben wir nur einmal benutzt, obwohl wir HP hatten. Alle Gerichte waren das Typische Buffetessen, was es überall gibt. Geschmacklich aber langweilig. Griechische Gerichte suchte man vergebens.

6/10

Pleasant

22 May 2018

Cora

Netter Service

Das Hotel ist auf der Insel gut gelegen. Mit einem Auto kann man viele Sehenswürdigkeiten erreichen. Das Badezimmer war schon in die Jahre gekommen. Die versprochene Badewanne war weder Wanne noch Dusche. Eine Steckdose sucht man dort vergebens. Das Bett war auch nicht wie auf den schönen Fotos und sehr unbequem. Der private Pool ist insofern privat, dass einem die alleinige Benutzung vorbehalten ist. Sonst konnten die Bauarbeiter der gegenüberliegenden Baustelle so wie neugierig Hotel Gäste ungeniert den Pool einsehen. Direkt angrenzend ist ein Wasser Park von einem Party Hotel, dementsprechend ist es bis spät nachts laut. Das Personal war sehr nett und stehst freundlich.

6/10

Pleasant

06 Nov 2013

Verified traveler

Schönes Hotel in abgelegener Umgebung

ein Hotel gut für 2 - 3 Tage aber keinesfalls länger!

Family