sun palace hotel review

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By Dave Smith. on 4th Aug 2002

Dave Smith.'s Ratings

Accommodation	8/10
Food	10/10
Customer Service	10/10
Resort	9/10
Value for money	10/10
Overall value	10/10
Dave Smith.'s recommendation

Good Points

Bad Points

General Comments

We have just spent a very enjoyable two weeks at the Sun Palace Hotel in Faliraki. The hotel facilities were excellent, with food and drink of some description or other available from 7am until midnight. Although they may have had a problem earlier this season, the problem has most definitely been rectified as it was all very well cooked, presented tasty and interesting. They even had a " healthy low fat option" for breakfast. I fail to see how anyone could not find something from the vast display to please them. They had a children's option, which although limited ie Chips and burgers/ chicken nuggets/ fishfingers the adults were also interested in this option!. The staff were all efficient, friendly and helpful with nothing being too much bother for them.

The pool was very deep about 5ft in the shallow end and sloped steeply and very quickly, although it did have warnings around the pool that there were no lifeguards on duty to patrol I felt that it was not really the type of pool that I felt comfortable in, not being a very strong swimmer myself I was really confined to the shallow end and had to swim back and forward dodging all the inflatables.

Our room was on the second floor, and adequate. The maids came in daily and were very good. The hotel was a little tired looking with the carpets etc, but perfectly acceptable. However, the air-conditioning was not really very effective and the temperatures that we recorded in our room on our thermometer was in the region of 80F at midnight!.

The only complaint that I really have about the hotel is that it really is more for families and not couples on their own, who do not want to be bothered with kids running around causing mayhem day and night. We were not able to find anywhere that was quiet enough just to read the paper and relax either in the daytime or at night. We had to go up to our room and then there were children playing along the corridors outside the rooms shouting and playing hide and seek. There was only one small lift that could take 3 people and it was constantly being used by children playing in it, although the staff did their best to keep them out of it.

Faliraki deservers a better reputation than the one that has been afforded it by the TV program Holiday Reps. We were in two minds to cancel our holiday when we saw the program, but decided to give it a look and make up our own minds. Which I am pleased to say was a pleasant surprise. The Faliraki that we saw was nothing like the TV program, although we did not venture into the clubs (being a little bit over the 18-30s scene) and some more, but we did go down to the Bar Street and Club Street areas in the evening and all we saw were people having a good time and not causing anyone any problems. In fact, there was a definite carnival atmosphere is was really lovely everyone was so friendly and not a sight of any bother.

If you decide to book any excursions, don't book them with the tour company or your holiday rep at the welcome meeting, but wait until you have looked around and compared the prices or local travel offices. Try Sofia's Travel (which is just across the road from Sun Palace) - and say Hi to Manolis who runs this office. He is very helpful and will go out of his way to explain and advise on all the tours on offer. I thoroughly recommend him. We would never book through the reps again because you end up on the same trips as the local companies and it will have cost much more than the locals charge.

Must mention Lindos and the Acropolis this of course is a must on the visit list (watch out for the prices here and compare a few shops before you buy anything). And of course you must visit Rhodes Old Town. Take a walk around the little alleyways off the main shopping areas and you will be rewarded with a sight into the true untouched Old Rhodian buildings worth a look.

All in all a most enjoyable two weeks - very hot, but there again that's what we go back to Greece year after year for, isn't it?

Total Respect: +6