Enorme Santanna Island

The hotel is very modern and visually stunning, which made a great first impression. However, my overall experience was affected by poor service, miscommunication, and cleanliness issues. During my stay, it became clear that the hotel was understaffed, especially for how busy it was. There was a mix-up with my room upon arrival, and although I had informed the hotel in advance that it was my birthday, the complimentary birthday gesture was given to another guest. This felt quite careless and disappointing. My room also had a serious issue with ants. They were coming from the sink area and even ended up on my suitcase. I understand that it’s a hot country, but I still expected a properly cleaned and maintained room. When I reported it, the receptionist questioned whether I had anything sticky in my suitcase rather than acknowledging the issue. I was given insect spray, which helped temporarily, but no one followed up to clean the room afterward. The bedding was also not changed daily, and the room did not seem to be deep-cleaned at all, likely due to the staffing shortages. One of the most upsetting moments was during dinner at the buffet, where I accidentally ate pork due to incorrect food labeling. This was particularly distressing for me because of my cultural and dietary restrictions. When I brought it to the attention of a staff member, all they said was, “oh, wrong sign,” with no apology or concern. It made me feel like the issue wasn’t taken seriously. There was also a lot of miscommunication between staff. My guest and I had a late flight and requested a late checkout three days in advance. We confirmed it daily with the reception team and were told by the night staff that it would be best to extend the larger swim-up room, which we agreed to. On the morning of checkout, I was suddenly told I had to vacate the room. The manager was in a rush and said the room had been rebooked last minute. When I mentioned we had already arranged a late checkout, the manager told me her staff aren’t trained to handle those types of requests. That response really stood out to me—it showed a lack of proper training and communication within the team. Overall, it’s a lovely hotel in terms of appearance, but the service and management really need improvement. With better communication, attention to detail, and properly trained staff, it could be a much more enjoyable experience.

We visited as a couple for 2 weeks in June & had a fantastic time; The hotel is very new & modern boutique style, we had a top floor room (as we requested) overlooking a small pool with a decent sea view, the room was small with a small balcony but was big enough for us with a nice shower. The bed was extremely comfortable & I believe that all rooms come with aircon and a large ceiling fan as standard. There are two large pools and a couple of smaller pools, as per other reviews you need to be up early to get sunbeds by the main infinity pool, but we found that there were always beds available at the other large pool no matter what time of day (I believe that they added a lot more new beds to top pool while we were there). The beds are good quality and generally very clean (not always). We never had a problem getting sunbeds during the whole of our stay but only went by the main pool on about 5 occasions as we didn't always get up early. We found the food to be of very good quality and we tried lots of Cretan dishes while we were there, which almost always surpassed our expectations. There were always lots of options to choose from and the menu varied from day to day, so much choice with the fresh breads on offer and a great selection of deserts (my favourite!). The breakfast experience was improved for the second week when they changed the egg & omelette station to cook to order which to me was a big improvement. We tried all 3 A La Carte restaurants (no problem for us to book as we were there for 14 nights) which were all very good. Initially we had to book via the concierge but it was changed to an app based system on your mobile after a couple of days (another big improvement although I believe that visitors on a week or less stay struggled to get more than the one booking due to availability). We found the staff at the hotel to be excellent overall, special mentions to Maria & Qossay in the Buffet restaurant, Ritsa on Reception and Michalas at the top bar, definately 5 star service! I believe that they have been struggling to find enough staff which is limiting their restaurant/bar capacity, and it is obvious that some of the staff are inexperienced so the senior front line staff have their work cut out but all did a fantastic job while we were there. I think that this hotel is ideal for couples looking for a quiet relaxing break (not so suitable for families), and there were lots of younger couples there during our stay. Overall we felt that it was excellent value for money, and the management do appear to be taking note of the reviews and making improvements to the service so I'm sure that it will get even better. One thing we would have liked to see would have been more music sessions especially in the evening as it is often quite quiet after dinner, although we did enjoy the DJ sets that were on and the background music played by the bar man at the Aperol Spritz stand (sorry we forgot your name!)

We really enjoyed our stay here , amazing views and really nice hotel overall, it must be really new also . I don’t have a negative thing to say about it , everything was stunning ! The best thing is definetly the bars in the hotel . A lot of cocktails to choose from and really nice service . Also special thanks to Vagelis , he must be the bar manager because we saw him in all the bars and he helped us a lot and answered all of our questions . I would definitely come back !

I was skeptical of coming here after reading so many mixed reviews, but don’t hesitate! There definitely are improvements to be made but overall a great stay. A lot of reviews I’d read were criticising the staff & their rudeness however I couldn’t complain, they were all very friendly & happy to help. We did get the wrong drink order once due to rushing but other than that I couldn’t fault them. Room We booked a swim up room however when we arrived it was a small shared pool between 5 room, it wasn’t a problem for us & we still enjoyed relaxing there daily. The room itself was very stylish & clean upon arrival. Food Unfortunately we couldn’t get into any of the ala carte restaurants for the evening as we only stayed 4 nights & they were all booked up. We did manage to book the Brunch & Co for breakfast one day which was lovely. The breakfast, evening & lunch buffet had a good selection that changed daily, I’m a very picky eater & was slightly nervous I wouldn’t be able to find anything but managed to everyday. For lunch the Bites & snacks bar was lovely with delicious options, we definitely preferred this over the buffet lunch. Improvements to be made I definitely think guests would benefit having a map as it took us a while to locate everything as restaurants & snacks share the same location but it’s not stated anywhere. We were slightly disappointed that we couldn’t book any restaurants in our stay & maybe they would benefit from a booking system with a waitlist that lets you know if someone doesn’t show up, as a lot of the restaurants sometimes looked very quiet. Some sort of evening entertainment would be good as the hotel dies a bit at night & it’s not very clear where to go for a drink in the evening. But if you’re considering staying here definitely give it a go

WE just returned from our trip to this hotel yesterday and we had a lovely time. It is a beautiful hotel and the village of Sisi is a wonderful place. Here is a summary of things that I would have found helpful to have in a review prior to going and some feedback for the hotel. Transfer : Going to the Hotel is around 1.5 hours from the airport , we had to drop off at 3 places before us. Coming back , was a direct 30 minute coach to the airport as we were the last people to be picked up . It was all very well organised with Easy Jet holidays. Bedrooms : I had a standard room with a King size bed , it was very comfortable and a small balcony at the back of the hotel. It was quiet and I was very happy there. The rooms were cleaned daily , with a bottle of water every day. The shower was amazing and they provide shampoo , conditioner and body wash. There is also a bath robe and slippers. The bathroom lacks a hook for your dressing gown and a toothbrush holder. The bedroom lacked storage space , drawers etc , but there were plenty of coat hangers and a hair dryer and I had to request an iron which was helpfully delivered to my room. The rooms have a free safe , easy to use. The swim up rooms looked lovely. But we didn't have one of those. But I think it's hit and miss as to whether you really get any sun. Pools : The main pool at the front we didn't use, it's lovely looking. But I found the other pool in the middle much more comfortable. Getting a bed could be a bit of an issue and the hotel didn't really have any clear cut guidelines on rules. One afternoon my towels got taken when I had gone for lunch , another day , no one touched any of the towels. There is no loud music , it's wonderful. The hotel itself is very elegant , calm , soothing decor. There were no children there it felt very peaceful and quiet. Just what I wanted , but perhaps a bit too quiet if you wanted a lively holiday . Food : The food was great. Breakfast was everything you could want. Fresh breads , hot breakfast, meats , veggies , fresh eggs and omelettes - but these aren't made to order. ( I know from other reviews that people were unhappy to find this ) The food is freshly cooked behind the stands and well looked after by the staff who check constantly that things are hot and clean. Big pancake & cereal , bar with nuts , seeds , peanut butter, honey, chocolate. And a huge array of fruit and loads more . It was magnificent. Lunch and dinner were also lovely , with authentically cooked things. Different dishes to try each night , with fresh cooked potatoes in different forms each night. They grow all their potatoes in Crete. I thought the dinners were wonderful , the salad and fruit bar were excellent , I don't eat desserts, but they all looked yummy! The staff can be a bit inattentive and sometimes you have to signal f

Pleasant Stay, but Falls Short of a 5-Star Experience We recently stayed at Enorme Santana Island and overall enjoyed our time, but there are a few important things future guests should be aware of — especially if you’re expecting a true 5-star resort. The Room Our room was very clean, well maintained, and offered enough space for everything we needed. The balcony was a nice feature, though the view wasn’t great — mostly overgrown grassy fields. That said, we didn’t spend much time there, as most of our time was enjoyed around the pool and other areas of the hotel. Facilities & Pools The pool areas were a highlight — beautifully presented with very comfortable sunbeds. However, unless you’re an early riser, be prepared to miss out on one. Guests were reserving beds very early in the morning, and by the time we got there, the main pool area was full. Thankfully, our room was located across a road near a quieter secondary pool, which ended up being more relaxing anyway. Dining We mostly ate lunch at the Italian restaurant, which is included in the all-inclusive package — and it was excellent. The food was fresh and tasty, and even delivered straight to our sunbeds, which was a lovely touch. Dinner, however, was underwhelming. The buffet lacked variety and didn't meet expectations for a 5-star rating. The resort also offers a few bookable à la carte restaurants, but availability is extremely limited — we only managed to secure one dinner reservation, though the food there was noticeably better. Service & Staffing This is where the hotel really struggles. There’s a clear shortage of staff in the bar and dining areas. The staff who were working were doing their best, but it was obvious they were overstretched and exhausted. One even mentioned leaving due to back issues from the workload. Meanwhile, several staff could be seen idling in reception — the imbalance was frustrating to witness and impacted service quality. Other Notes The shower could have been hotter — likely due to water usage during busy times. Also, if you're booking a swim-up room, I'd recommend paying extra for a sea view. The standard ones often end up in the shade all day, which takes away from the experience. Final Thoughts We had a great holiday overall, thanks to the hot weather and good company, but the hotel isn’t quite what it claims to be. It’s clean, comfortable, and has some strong points — but don’t expect luxury-level service or dining. A solid 4-star at best, and definitely not worth overpaying for as a 5-star resort.