Domes Zeen Chania a Luxury Collection Resort Crete

My stay at Domes Zeen Chania was the worst and most bizarre travel experience I have ever had. It was so disappointing that this is the first negative review I have ever written. TLDR: The property is beautiful, but it is poorly managed, the service is disappointing, and our concerns were handled in a dismissive and disrespectful way.

There were several smaller issues during our stay that we chose to overlook, including broken key cards and lights, luggage that was never delivered, children throwing rocks at guests on the beach, and unexpected gym closures. However, the biggest issue was the 24-hour period that followed: My wife is very pregnant, and we chose Chania to escape the city and enjoy some peace and quiet before our baby arrives. Unfortunately, at around 7:30 AM, our room was filled with extremely loud drilling, hammering, and power-tool noise. The noise was so intense that our room was vibrating. We called the front desk, but they insisted there was no construction and sent maintenance to our room instead.
The construction continued all morning. We eventually left the room and contacted guest relations. Even after providing video of the noise and vibrations, they continued to deny that construction was taking place. Their solution was to offer us earplugs. We declined and asked to speak with the General Manager. We were not looking for compensation or special treatment, we simply wanted a quiet place to relax. The GM assured us that he would investigate and improve things for the rest of our stay.

Unfortunately, that did not happen. That evening, we went to bed early because my wife was exhausted from the morning disturbance. Around 10:15 PM, we were woken by loud banging when staff entered our room for turn-down service. We were confused as we had not received this service on previous nights and had never been told staff would enter our room so late. The next morning, the construction noise started again, even though it was a Saturday and we had expected the issue to be addressed after speaking with the GM. To make matters worse, we had arranged a 13:00 golf cart pickup to help with our luggage at checkout. Since there was still drilling inside our room, we waited outside. No cart arrived. We called the front desk twice and sent two WhatsApp messages before the cart finally arrived 25 minutes later. My pregnant wife was left waiting in the hot summer sun. When we reached the front desk, there was no explanation or apology for the delay or the continued construction noise. Instead, we were rushed through checkout by a team that came across as rude and dismissive. I am sure many guests have had great experiences here, and I am sure the staff are good people. What disappoints me most is how poorly this situation was handled.

There were many opportunities to show some respect and make small changes that could have made a big difference. I sincerely hope management reflects on how this situation was handled and takes steps to ensure future guests do not have a similar experience.

Locations is gorgeous! You get the best sunrise and sunset view. Front desk check in great we had the very friendly Maryceloni walk us through the property etc Our room was beach front with a plunge pool which is a plus. Water was clean and warm. Room was a great size for the 3 of us. Water is replenished daily. You have all the bathroom amenities that one can need. Due to our status with Marriott we received complimentary food basket, reki and wine. You also have access to the executive lounge which has complimentary alcoholic beverages from 5-10pm. Two restaurants , Domes is for breakfast /lunch/snack and then Zamana open for dinner. Menu changes daily. Staff are very friendly, George at Domes over breakfast is a rockstar. Few days we experienced delayed service with coffee and water refills but since George showed but there was great energy flowing. We spent all the time at the beach. It’s rocky bring water shoes or you can walk with your flip flops and take them off before entering the water. Water was perfect, right amount of wave and very shallow. Lifeguard on duty for your safety. Bar service at the beach was slow but not that bad. Overall good experience it felt like an exclusive resort far from everything but there is a trial that you can take to walk to downtown Chania. It’s a good slow paced 30min walk. Follow the harbor and catch the gorgeous view. It’s safe we walked back at 10pm. Some spots are not as lit but there is a lot of food traffic with people walking to/from the resorts to chania. I would definitely be back here ! It’s a seasonal resort only open 7months in a year.

Beautiful property, but disappointing overall experience. Would not recommend.

Domes Zeen is a beautiful property with nice rooms and a good beach, but unfortunately our overall experience was disappointing.

The biggest issue was the transportation around the property. Because the resort is built into a hillside, getting to and from the upper rooms requires a golf cart. Unfortunately, the golf carts were extremely unreliable — we regularly waited 15 minutes or more for one to arrive. Even when calling in advance, we were told to call back when we were actually ready, which made planning difficult. On one occasion, while already on a golf cart, we were asked to squeeze three people into the back to make room for another guest. We ultimately decided it was easier to walk.

Getting a taxi into town was similarly inconvenient. The hotel would not let us arrange one in advance; instead, we had to call the lobby when we were ready to leave, and taxis could take anywhere from 5–20 minutes to arrive. We eventually learned about the iMove app, which allowed us to order taxis in advance — something we wish the hotel had mentioned. There is also a hotel shuttle three times a night, but it only accommodates four people at a time, so it wasn't particularly useful for our larger family.

There were also a number of smaller service issues that became frustrating over the course of our stay. At breakfast, you can order eggs, but roughly half of our group's orders came out incorrectly, making it somewhat of a gamble. When we booked dinner through reception, we were told we were booking the nicer of the two restaurants, only to find out later that we had actually been booked at the other restaurant. That restaurant was quite good, but it wasn't what we had been told or what we had planned for.

The beach itself is lovely and, fortunately, it was easy to get chairs. We also learned that the hotel offers day passes for around $50, and honestly, if I were to do the trip again, I would consider staying elsewhere and simply coming here for the beach.

Finally, while the property is beautiful, there were a very large number of young children at the pool during our stay. If you're looking for more of an adults-oriented getaway, you should expect to spend most of your time at the beach rather than the pool.

I honestly have no idea how this property received a Michelin Key. For us, the overall experience did not come close to what we would expect from a hotel at this level. I would recommend staying at another hotel in the area — or, based on our experience, choosing Minos Beach Art Hotel (a resort that deserves a Michelin Key) instead.

I should note that there was another couple having similar issues, which prompted me to write this as it’s not a one off experience.

Overall, Domes Zeen is a beautiful resort with good rooms and a good beach, but the service and logistics made the experience much more frustrating than relaxing. Unfortunately, we would not choose to stay here again.