Aquila Rithymna Beach

hi everyone! i want to recommend this wonferful hotel and its great personnel and team. everything is pleasant, cosy and relaxful. six pools, amazing water park, great animation team etc.

we had this vacation with my wife and two daughters age 4 and 7 and it was perfect. thanks a lot for everything, we had much fun Tamir

We have recently returned from a 8 night stay here and absolutely loved it.

Even though we went probably in the peak summer holiday period it didn't feel crowded.

We stayed in a garden room with an interconnecting room for our two children. The room was spotless and modern. The air conditioning in the rooms worked exceptionally well to the point you could feel cold at night if not under the duvet. During the hottest part of the day we would return to our room for a break from the sun and be in the cool of the air con.

The staff in the entire hotel were brilliant. Very welcoming and helpful and fantastic with children. We found this hotel so accommodating and great for young families.

The restaurant staff were so lovely towards both our 6 year old son and 2 year old daughter. I remember our daughter was fondly greeted with a smile and "ah the baby with her baby" (she would bring her doll to some meals).

Our son also made a friend of a male waiter in the Greek restaurant who matched his high energy and played high fives with him.

We always felt completely at ease and even if our two year old had meltdowns, or the children made a mess at mealtimes no issue was taken at all. All staff were very understanding of life with young children.

Towards the end of our holiday our boy tried out the children's club and our daughter the baby club (the latter goes up to age 3). Both were fantastic.

Our boy absolutely loved the children's club and kept wanting to back. He was in the minority of English speaking children in the club during our stay but the staff spoke English and it didn't phase him in the slightest. I also think that in itself is a wonderful experience to be immersed around others speaking different languages. Our boy is quite a confident child so I do think it can depend on your child's character as to how well they adapt to the children's club. However the staff do make every effort to welcome and involve all of the children.

They do tons of stuff with the children in the children's club, games, crafts, pool time, movies. They can also get them involved in having parts in a play. The club puts out an itinerary out for the week so you can see what they get up to.

Our daughter also did really well in her baby club, again the staff for this club were fantastic also. They had plenty of toys and they have their own infant pool right outside (its very shallow so perfect for tiny ones). They give them a splash around in this.

Both children were given lunch and our daughter had great naps with the baby club.

The baby club for eg the morning session cost 10 euros but was worth it. The staff were very reassuring and said that if there were any issues, or if she was unsettled they would call me. We also had a rundown of what they did during her stay on collection.

As we had some child free time we even managed to use the spa facilities which is all included and is incredibly relaxing.

The food was delicious, we particularly loved the Italian and Greek restaurants. I would highly recommend booking meals for these restaurants as soon as you arrive as spaces can go quick. There's an app you can download which can give more info on themed nights and can enable you to book restaurants. We tended to just speak to the lady in the lobby to book meals in.

When we went to the Greek restaurant on the friday we watched traditional Greek dancers and guests were also invited to join on stage which was great fun.

The pools were great, it was reassuring having lifeguards on duty. For the water park this includes checking ages and sizes of children for the big slides. Our 6 year old was too young for the big slides but having gone down the slides (which are great fun) you can see why.

At the water park our children loved the infant slides and splashing in the water. We tried out all pools, it was nice to mix it up each day.

There is a lot to explore and do around the hotel. The children's entertainment discos and magician shows in the evening were brilliant and enjoyed by us all. I also enjoyed doing the water dance aerobics with my boy .

We took one day trip out of the hotel complex for a boat trip to see pirate caves but we did not get bored staying around the hotel during our 8 night stay. We found it incredibly safe and I would sometimes walk our daughter nearer the coastline in the stroller at night to get her to sleep.

We also never had an issue with getting a lounger at any pool. The beach also has tons of loungers and parasols so its very easy to get a space. There's also a walk way so it's easy to take a stroller.

The hotel is right on the beach so you watch some beautiful sunsets too.

The beach is shingle sand with rocks in the sea. Definitely take water shoes with you, we took ours from home and our own snorkel set. We had no trouble walking on the beach or swimming in the sea with water shoes on. If the sea is a little rough it can make the water cloudy and with seaweed. However when the water is calm the sea is clear and snorkeling is great fun, you can see little fish all around you.

The beach is also a turtle nesting beach, we were lucky enough to see two little turtles make their way to the sea from a nest. A very special experience for us and our children.

We ate outside for every meal. However it can be hot when the sunsets in this area. I would recommend taking mini portable fans to cool children down during this time, this helped our two.

The main restaurant can get more crowded at busy times, but if you go earlier it's not an issue. We tended to go for breakfast around 8am and dinner around 6.45pm.

You do have to pay for water so would recommend using the local supermarkets just outside the hotel complex to fill water bottles up including for your hotel room.

We did half board food wise and that was plenty for us.

At nighttime we found we had a couple of mosquitoe bites, so would recommend bringing some antihistamines with you , plasters and something like germoline just incase. We also used citronella bracelets for all of us including the children and the jungle spray so wasn't too much of a problem. Children didn't get bitten at all.

As we were in the water and sea a lot we found we had some small peel on our feet (the children were fine) so plasters and our small first aid kit came in handy.

The grounds of the hotel are also beautifully maintained with some sleeping cats. Our children liked watching the mother cat and her kittens playing at nighttime near the flower arch.

We had such a wonderful holiday at this hotel and have all come away with some really special memories of Crete. Wishing we were still there and would love to go back.

Thank you for a fantastic time.

Well maintained hotel, very friendly and professional staff, good delicious food, wide selection. Many pool and very nice kids club, a toddler club with babysitter service at a small fee which dramatically improved our vacation. The photo session is good, we were with talented Vicky, we find it a bit pricy.. The night shows and music were very entertaining. The water park is very nice and well maintained.

The bad - the elevators are old and uncomfortable, at augest there are very few places with AC outside the room. The heat even at the pool is hard. The kids club fans are not adaquete for an adult at an augest heat wave.