Kerry Conway: Kiani Beach Resort Hotel Review

In January, I was lucky enough to win an Instagram competition where we won a 7 night all inclusive holidays at Kiani Beach Resort in Crete. We decided to book for the April Easter half term and have just returned so I wanted to write a review on it as they are always helpful for me when I am looking at reviews of hotels before booking.

Location

Kiani Beach Resort is just outside the village of Kalyves in Chania, Crete and on the beach of Kiani Akti which is an award winning beach. Our transfer from Chania airport was about 30 minutes and there are a few other towns around 30 minutes away as well but you are not really able to walk anywhere to explore. The hotel has a private section of the beach which is just next to the pool so it was about a 5 minute walk maximum from our room and you can walk further down the beach where we found a little restaurant, bridge to walk over and a larger section of beach but that is about it. You do have beautiful views of the mountains though which I could not stop looking at!

The rooms

The rooms were what stood out to us as 5 star as opposed to any other hotels we have stayed at before. They were beautiful, had everything we needed and very modern and contemporary. It was big, lots of wardrobe space, 2 bathrooms which is fab for all 5 of us getting ready and we had a double sink as well which was very nice. It also had a big balcony with a little laundry airer on the wall as well. I also love how they do have 5 in a room as we have been struggling to find that, we normally have to book 2 rooms which means me and Warren are separated all week which is very annoying. These rooms also have a little kitchenette area with fridge, sink, coffee machine, plates and glasses.

It was also nice to have the two levels, the older 2 girls were upstairs with their own bathroom and wardrobe, so it almost felt like they had their own room and privacy which they loved and they still had a window up there with a lovely view as well.

The pools

The pools were amazing, there were 2 outdoor pools both with a kids splash park next to them and a heated indoor pool as well which was actually welcome when we needed to keep them kids out of the direct sun but they still wanted to swim. The octopus kids pool had lots of shade coverage which was good and better for smaller kids I'd say as our girls couldn't quite swim in it as it was shallower. The water was cold in April but you could get used to it, me and Warren did go in with the girls for a bit which was fun but you did feel super cold when you got out. The main pool also had swimming lanes for those who wanted to do lengths in the morning. They also did an Aquafit class everyday in the indoor pool which Sienna and I joined in a couple of times and really enjoyed!

The food

Kiani Beach resort is an all inclusive hotel but you can also upgrade to All inclusive plus. All inclusive includes -

All daily meals, snacks & ice cream (cones or tubs)
Local cretan wine (red, white and rose),
Local cretan draft beer,
Local non-branded spirits (ouzo, Raki, Gin, Tequila, Rum, Whiskey, Brandy, Vodka),
Fresh juices (Apple, orange, multi, grapefuit and pineapple)
Local fizzy drinks & water
Branded self-service coffee/tea/hot chocolate & iced coffee.
(Soya milk and almond milk was available at breakfasts)

All inclusive plus includes the above but also these extras -

40% off the Roof top restaurant,
Premium branded alcoholic drinks,
Sparkling wine,
Premium cocktails & mocktails,
2x 375ml bottles of wine per person per day,
Premium beer,
Branded hot chocolate, tea and coffee,
Barrista coffee

(the snack fridges open 11am-11pm)

We thoroughly enjoyed the food, there was the standard buffet you typically get at all inclusive hotels but also a specials being cooked. One night we had Greek chicken gyros, there was a chinese night, a carbonara on the Italian night and also Roast pork with bbq sauce. They were all delicious and so were the desserts! The pancakes at breakfast were also good, they had crepe style pancakes at one restaurant and American scotch style at the other one so we alternated. The coffee was also really good and I loved how they had a coffee machine in the hotel room. We didn't upgrade to all inclusive plus but still wanted to coffee pods each day so we just bought them at reception for one euro each. I also loved how they did iced coffees in the machines as well and had soya/almond milk for them as well. The only thing I would say was sometimes the labels were incorrect or in the wrong place so it may be tricky for those with allergies to know exactly what they're eating.

The kids club/activities

I know kids clubs are a rather controversial subject however you could dip in and out of activities here and not leave your kids at kids club all day if you didn't want too. The kids club staff were amazing and were around all day telling you what was on, what times things were and were also around to help with childcare a little bit as well. For example, various times throughout the day, they would be in the park area helping out with the children so you knew they were in safe hands if you wanted to pop and get a drink or go to the toilet. They would also come and watch the evening shows - we watched the circus one night and Roma sat at the front with one of the kid club staff on her lap watching it while we sat and the back having a drink which was nice. The girls didn't actually do any of the kids club activities except the mini disco in the evenings but still managed to build a good rapport with the staff. They also had a mascot monkey who would do the first song with the children and would walk around the restaurant to mark the start of the disco.

The entertainment

The entertainment for children was amazing, they had the kids club you could go to in the morning (10-1) and afternoon sessions (3-7pm) leaving them alone but then also fun activities throughout the day like darts, tennis, water polo etc that you could just join in if you were free.

They also had bouncy castles every evening from 5-7pm and 2 parks on site available to use 7 days a week. The larger one over looking the beach was the girls favourite one.

They also had an adults & teens schedule of activities throughout the day as well. They let Sienna join in this one with me despite being 11 - we took part in the Aquafit which was really fun but they also did pilates, yoga, zumba, table tennis, darts etc and would come round during the day so see if you wanted to join.

They also had some rides dotted around and claw machines you could use for 1/2 euro and table tennis, table football and an arcade section under the main restaurant so there was a fair bit to do for older children/teens. They also had a large grass area by the beach bar and kids were doing gymnastics or playing football there. They also had a volleyball and tennis court.

Of course, there was also the beach you could play on and the sea you could go in which we did one morning as well. There is also an excursions office in the reception, we did 2 excursions but I will do a different blog post on those.