Ana-maria Pavlic
We recently stayed at Pilot Beach Resort with our three-year-old daughter, and we believe that a 4-star rating is a fair assessment of our experience.
The location is stunning, with beautiful views and an amazing sandy beach. The resort itself is very attractive, featuring lovely gardens and well-maintained surroundings.
However, we stayed in a Superior Bungalow in the garden area, and the bathroom was quite outdated and would definitely benefit from renovation. We experienced a few issues during our stay: initially, there was no hot water, and later, the toilet broke. It is unfortunate that such a beautiful hotel, with many renovated rooms, has not yet fully updated all of its bathrooms. We noticed on the site that some bungalows in other areas do have renovated bathrooms.
The food was delicious, with a good variety available at both breakfast and dinner. We especially appreciated the children’s “Tasty Corner.” However, we would suggest expanding the fruit selection and offering more healthy protein options for children, in addition to items such as chicken nuggets and fish fingers which unfortunately are very deep fried.
The evening entertainment was excellent, and our little girl enjoyed every show. The train ride to the lake is a must-do activity, and the boat trip to see the turtles was a wonderful experience. We also appreciated the complimentary anniversary cake for my husband’s birthday.
Overall, Pilot Beach Resort is a beautiful hotel that offers a very enjoyable family holiday experience. With some improvements to consider, particularly regarding the older bathrooms-it could provide an even better guest experience.
Ειρηνη
I stayed at Pilot with my family for four nights, and it was a wonderful experience for all of us.
The food was excellent, with a truly outstanding cuisine. All the waiters were extremely kind, attentive, and helpful, and the reception staff were equally friendly and professional.
The rooms were clean and comfortable. There were plenty of activities for young children, making it a perfect choice for families. The swimming pools were lovely, and the beach was beautiful and very spacious.
Even though the hotel was fully booked, it never felt crowded. There was always enough space for everyone, and thanks to the large grounds, it was easy to find a quiet spot and enjoy some privacy.
I would definitely recommend this hotel to my friends. Great location, exceptional cuisine, and excellent service – everything was simply perfect!
Jari
This is an excellent hotel to stay. I was with my wife and 14 and 11 year old daughters. They absolutely loved the pools, the beach, and the atmosphere. Now this comes with a few caveats.
The food was better than in similar price range 5 star hotels in Turkey, but the resort is smaller, so not that much variety. I would have also liked them to enforce no-shorts policy for men during dinner. It doesn't feel very high-end when the Germans are with their shorts all around.
The same goes for "no reservations" policy for sunbeds. What you tolarate, your guests suffer. Each and every sunbed was reserved each morning on the main and beach pool. (Mostly) The Germans put some book or towel on the chair and then go to have breakfast. Then again, the beach has a lot of space and the smaller pool near the accommodation always had free seats.
The service is absolutely great, when you get it. But you don't always get it, especially not in a reasonable time. Yet, whenever someone is available, they are attentive, caring, and professional.
If we are coming back to Crete anytime soon, most likely we are coming back here. There are some drawbacks, but I like to focus on the positive and this was a very positive vacation experience for the whole family.
Vlad Leucuta
Best place to come with the kids. Family friendly resort with lots of pools for every taste, amazing beach with the finest sand I've seen so far.
The resort is an oasis of green, lots of trees and bushes, and is very quiet, no loud music or stuff like that.
The food is also very tasty and the cretan food specially.
Staff very friendly and helpfull.
Anca Daiana Savici
Second Year at Pilot Beach Resort – Great Location, Poor Service
If you are travelling with young children, this resort is exceptionally convenient. We stayed in one of the beach-front rooms, and having the room, beach, restaurants and pools all within a few minutes’ walk makes family holidays so much easier. Going back to the room for a nap, changing clothes or grabbing something you forgot takes only a couple of minutes.
The beach itself is beautiful, and the food is another major highlight. There is plenty of variety, the quality is good, and there are enough options for both children and adults. These are the reasons we decided to return for a second year.
The biggest disappointment: the service
Unfortunately, the service does not match the quality of the resort.
The staff appear to be understaffed and overworked, and while I don’t blame them personally, the guest experience suffers because of it. Too often we felt ignored rather than welcomed.
As I am writing this review, I have been sitting at the bar for over 10 minutes. Three different employees have walked past, looked directly at me, and none of them has offered to take my order or even said hello. Sadly, this is not an isolated incident.
Limited drinks and slow bar service
The coffee is good, but the drinks selection is surprisingly limited for an all-inclusive resort. There is no fresh lemonade, and most soft drinks are bottled. Fresh orange juice is practically the only premium option, and ordering one often feels like you’re asking for a favour.
Waiting times at the bar are consistently long, which becomes frustrating throughout the day.
Kids Club needs better organisation
The Kids Club was another disappointment.
Although it is supposed to be open during the advertised hours, we visited twice and found nobody there. On another occasion, we were asked to leave around 3:30 p.m. without any explanation.
For a resort that markets itself as family-friendly, this should be much better organised.
Room maintenance and housekeeping
Our friends were initially placed in a room where the air conditioning didn’t work and only fans had been provided, suggesting that the issue was already known. It still took another full day before they were moved to a different room.
Our first room also wasn’t cleaned properly. After we were moved, the second room was much better, but housekeeping still wasn’t quite at the standard expected from a five-star resort.
Final thoughts
Pilot Beach Resort has enormous potential. The location is fantastic, the beach is beautiful, the facilities for families are excellent, and the food is genuinely very good.
The biggest weakness is the service. This doesn’t seem to be the fault of the employees themselves, but rather of management, which appears to have too few staff and insufficient organisation.
