Mitsis Royal Mare

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Mitsis Royal Mare – Our Honest Review

We’ve just returned from a week at the Mitsis Royal Mare in Crete, travelling as a party of eight, and I wanted to leave a completely honest review based on our experience.

Overall, we had a really lovely holiday. There were things we absolutely loved and a few things we felt could be improved, so hopefully this helps anyone considering booking.

🏨 Arrival & Our Room

We arrived in the early hours and received a really friendly welcome. Check-in was quick and easy, and we were actually upgraded to a private pool room, which was a lovely surprise.

The staff took our luggage to our rooms, which was especially appreciated after travelling through the night.

The only real downside for us was the room itself. I’m not sure whether we were allocated one of the older rooms, as I know some rooms have been refurbished, but ours could definitely have done with a bit of a revamp.

That said, it was very clean, spacious and practical, with plenty of cupboard and drawer space and everything we needed. The air conditioning was also excellent.

Our room had a hairdryer, robes and slippers, and toiletries including shampoo, conditioner, body wash and body cream. There was also a minibar which was stocked daily with wine, beer and soft drinks such as Coke, Fanta and Sprite.

So although the overall finish of the room wasn’t quite what we’d expected from a hotel of this standard, we really couldn’t fault it for cleanliness, size or facilities.

🏊‍♀️ Pools & Sunbeds

We spent most of our time around the main pool.

There were eight of us and we went down around 8:30–9am every morning. We had absolutely no problem getting eight sunbeds together.

For the whole week we were there, we never saw anyone struggling to get a sunbed, so based on our experience, I wouldn’t say sunbeds are a problem at this hotel.

The pool is saltwater, which can sting a little if you get it in your eyes or mouth, but it certainly didn’t bother us enough to stop us enjoying it.

The hotel grounds are also beautifully maintained — everywhere was clean and well looked after.

👨‍👩‍👧 Is it Suitable for Children?

I’d read a few reviews saying the hotel has more of an adult atmosphere and that there isn’t much for children.

Personally, I wouldn’t let that put you off if you’re travelling with children.

There were quite a few families and children while we were there, and we saw children happily playing in the pool, using inflatables etc.

For us, it felt like a good mixture of adults and families rather than an adults-only type of atmosphere.

🎵 Daytime Entertainment

This was probably one of the weaker areas for us.

There was aqua aerobics in the morning, followed by things such as water polo and darts in the water during the afternoon.

There was music around the pool, but it was very quiet — almost too quiet at times. I completely appreciate that not everyone wants loud music around a pool, but you could barely hear it.

We personally felt there could have been a little more going on during the day.

We didn’t spend any time at the second pool down towards the beach, so I can’t comment on the entertainment or atmosphere there.

❤️ The Staff – Absolutely Incredible

This deserves a section of its own because the staff were genuinely the best hotel staff we’ve ever experienced.

Every single member of staff we came across was friendly, polite, welcoming and smiling.

Nothing ever seemed too much trouble.

The service was fantastic throughout the hotel, whether around the pool, in the restaurants or in the bars.

100% credit to every member of staff at this hotel.

If we could take the staff from the Royal Mare with us to every hotel we ever visit, we absolutely would! 😂

They really do make the hotel what it is.

🍽️ Food & Restaurants

We visited all of the à la carte restaurants during our stay and, overall, they were fantastic.

The food was delicious and the service was incredible. Again, nothing was too much trouble.

The only one we weren’t particularly impressed with was the Pan-Asian restaurant.

Compared with the other à la cartes, we felt it was on a completely different level. The staff were friendly and helpful, but we didn’t find them quite as attentive as elsewhere, and unfortunately the food just wasn’t to the same standard for us.

Everyone has different tastes, of course, so this is purely based on our experience.

The main buffet restaurant was exactly what you’d expect from an all-inclusive hotel. There was plenty of choice and something for everyone.

I wouldn’t say it was amazing, but equally, I wouldn’t say it was bad. It was perfectly decent and we always found something we enjoyed.

🌯 Beach Bar

We visited the beach bar a few times for lunch and absolutely loved the chicken gyros.

They were so good that we went back more than once!

🏖️ The Beach

The beach area is lovely and the views are beautiful.

The sea is absolutely crystal clear and gorgeous.

The beach itself is pebbly rather than soft sand, so it can be difficult to walk on, but this didn’t bother us.

The sea can also become quite choppy, so I’d definitely keep an eye on younger children when they’re in the water.

🌙 Evening Entertainment

Again, this wasn’t one of the hotel’s strongest points for us.

Around 5–6pm they start setting up around the pool for the evening entertainment, which we thought was slightly unusual.

During our stay we saw a pianist, dancers and acrobats.

Everything we saw was enjoyable enough, but personally, we wouldn’t say the evening entertainment was the best we’ve experienced at an all-inclusive hotel.

We actually spent quite a few evenings at the rooftop bar instead, which we absolutely loved.

🍸 Rooftop Bar

The rooftop bar was one of our favourite places in the evenings.

It has a lovely atmosphere, comfortable seating and a great cocktail menu.

One thing to be aware of is that the cocktail menu changes between daytime and evening.

For example, you can get a Woo Woo during the day but not in the evening, while a White Russian is available in the evening but not during the day.

And one thing you absolutely HAVE to try is the homemade lemonade.

Honestly… it is AMAZING! 🍋

🏨 Hotel Facilities

There are plenty of facilities around the hotel, including:

• Beach towels, available from the toilet blocks each morning
• An on-site minimart for bits and pieces
• A spa
• A gym
• A jewellery shop
• A clothing/bag/jewellery shop
• An arcade area with snooker tables and activities for children

My husband and son also used the gym during our stay.

🚕 Hersonissos

One evening we decided to head into Hersonissos.

We booked a minibus taxi for the eight of us and paid around €50 return, which personally we thought was quite expensive considering it was only around a 10-minute drive.

We had a walk around the harbour and the town.

We personally prefer traditional Greek places, and Hersonissos wasn’t really our cup of tea. To us, it felt more like a strip of Benidorm than the traditional Greek experience we were looking for.

We also ate out that evening and unfortunately didn’t have a great experience with the food. We had two meals that we didn’t particularly enjoy, and one of the meals had meat that was actually raw.

That could obviously have just been the restaurant we chose, so I wouldn’t necessarily judge the whole of Hersonissos based on one evening.

🚤 Our Boat Trip – THE Highlight!

This was honestly the best day of our holiday.

We booked through Nikos, who you’ll find through this Facebook group, and I cannot recommend it enough.

He picked us up from the hotel and took us out on a yacht.

The best part was that we were the only people on the yacht, so it felt incredibly private and special.

We had:

🤿 Snorkelling equipment and stopped to snorkel and see the fish 🔥 An onboard barbecue 🍉 A beautiful fruit platter 🥤 Unlimited drinks ☀️ An entire day out on the water

It was absolutely incredible and definitely something we’d do again.

If you’re staying at the Royal Mare, I’d highly recommend looking into this trip.

⭐️ Overall Thoughts

Would we return to the Mitsis Royal Mare?

Yes, I think we would.

It’s not a perfect hotel and there are definitely areas that could be improved — particularly the finish of some of the rooms and, for us, the daytime/evening entertainment.

But the things that really stood out were the cleanliness, beautiful grounds, fantastic facilities, amazing à la carte restaurants and, above all, the staff.

The staff genuinely made the holiday for us.

We had a fantastic week, made some lovely memories and really enjoyed our time there.

So if you’re looking for a completely honest opinion from someone who has actually stayed there, I’d say:

Don’t expect the most modern rooms or the best entertainment you’ve ever experienced, but expect incredible staff, beautiful surroundings, great restaurants, a gorgeous sea and a really relaxing holiday.

For us, the positives definitely outweighed the negatives. ❤️🇬🇷

The best worker in this hotel is Maria from the man hotel bar. Very kind and amazing woman, thank you for service.

We have just returned from a week’s holiday at this hotel and I have to say that we had the best relaxing time. We travel a lot and have been to many places over the years, however this hotel tops all others we have experienced.

Their customer service is outstanding. Staff are so attentive and helpful. They met all our expectations and beyond. I emailed them before our arrival to make a special request and response was very quick and met all our requests throughout our stay.

We tried 2 of the A’ la carte restaurants- Mediterranean and South American and enjoyed both. Spa experience was also great and definitely recommend it. We are definitely returning to this hotel. Thank you to all the staff for making our experience a very memorable one 🙏