Rethymno Palace

Disappointing Experience - Not Worth the 5 Stars

I had a very unpleasant stay at this hotel, and I wouldn’t recommend it to anyone. The main issue is the clear preferential treatment given to French guests, while other nationalities are treated much worse. It was very obvious that the best rooms were reserved for the French, while we were given a room that looked like it hadn’t been updated in 10-15 years.

The reception staff was extremely rude, especially the older ones. Their attitude was simply shocking, and dealing with them was a frustrating experience every time. Additionally, the hotel seems to cater mainly to guests aged 60+—again, mostly French.

After we requested a room change because the balcony window wouldn’t close and the street noise made it impossible to sleep, we were moved to a room with mold on the ceiling, as seen in the photos we took.

The hotel is absolutely not worthy of its 5-star rating. Perhaps it was, 10-15 years ago, but now I wouldn’t give it more than 3 stars. One small positive note: the younger restaurant staff were much friendlier compared to the reception. However, this didn’t save the overall experience.

To make matters worse, the sun loungers were always “reserved” by people who weren’t even using them, making it hard to relax by the pool.

In summary, I would never return to this hotel, and I absolutely do not recommend it to others. Stay away!

I’m currently staying at Rethymno Palace. I’m 4 days into 7 night stay. Saturday I arrived to a room with a hot tub that was bone dry and they refuse to fix it, and my tv wouldn’t and still will not turn on. Afterwards I made my way to the “All inclusive restaurant, I sat down and the manager instantly tries to shame me about the table that I was sitting at because it was for four people not 2 (not to mention it was at the end of dinner and no one was in the seating area). Day two I came to breakfast and sat down at a table that was apparently in the smoking section of the seating area. Another “manager” came up to us once again and started to shame me about where I was sitting. I told her that I’m smoking and then she continued to rudely tell me that it doesn’t matter if I’m smoking…. Day three I ask again about the hot tub and they tell me that they DO NOT have technicians that can fix a hot tub. Day 4 is today, I came to breakfast at 10 that was scheduled from 7-10:30am. Breakfast was gone. The staff had cleaned up early and when I asked why there wasn’t any breakfast, she replied to me that I didn’t understand the schedule. So we looked at the schedule and then she said I can bring you something from what they had earlier. I asked her what was for breakfast earlier and she said “breakfast”. I literally had to buy my own breakfast/lunch outside of the “All Inclusive hotel”. I paid for an all inclusive hotel and it’s not. The reviews rave about the staff, but they have been rude, and the attitude is coming from the management. Management leads the rest of the team.

Terrible hotel that doesn't deserve 5 stars.
We were given a dirty room, there was a terrible smell coming from the bathroom, and it turned out that the trash can had not been emptied after previous guests.
The sea water around the hotel is very dirty.
The hotel smells of sewage.
Moreover, very rude service and terrible food.