Pilot Beach Reviews 

We recently stayed at the Pilot Beach Hotel in Crete for 10 nights and overall found it to be a mixed experience.

Starting with the positives, the location of the hotel is excellent and the public areas of the resort are very impressive. The pools, bars, reception areas, and general grounds are all well maintained and create a lovely atmosphere. The majority of the staff we encountered were incredibly friendly, polite, and helpful throughout our stay.

However, there were several issues that impacted our experience.

The rooms are quite basic for a hotel of this standard. I personally found the bed comfortable, but my wife did not. During our stay we also experienced a full day without hot water, which was disappointing.

The biggest concern for us was the food, particularly regarding coeliac safety. Before booking, we contacted the hotel to confirm they could cater safely for my wife who has coeliac disease. While there is a large variety of food available, the overall quality was generally average and the buffet setup creates significant cross-contamination risks. Gluten free food is not separated into its own dedicated area, and food is often prepared or served in ways that make it unsafe for someone with coeliac disease.

We were booked on a half-board basis but only felt able to eat our evening meal in the hotel once during the entire stay. We spoke to restaurant staff twice and were simply told that what was on display was what was available. It was only on day six, after speaking with another staff member, that we were informed separate meals could actually be prepared safely for my wife. This information was not provided in advance and should really have been made clear from the start.

Another issue occurred when the elevators stopped working today. My wife has a disability and struggles greatly with stairs, so this made getting to the restaurant very difficult.

Overall, the hotel has many positives, particularly the setting, facilities, and friendly staff, but there are some important accessibility and dietary safety issues that need significant improvement.

Stayed at Pilot Beach resort in Crete. The hotel is priced as 5* when actually it has some 5* elements but from an all inclusive 5* perspective it falls very short. This was not a cheap holiday and whilst the facilities in the main are more in line with 5* the service provision isn't. So, we arrived in the early hours of the morning to be allocated the wrong room, one that was under par and not what I had paid for. The night check in security guy kept saying if you don't like your room let us know in the morning etc... it transpired that my room wasn't free upon my arrival, but if I had been ok with it then I will have significantly over paid for my accommodation. They should have been honest. The poolside service drinks provision was intermittent based on staff on call or not, so some days someone may come and take your orders other days not. The main bar at night had more staff taking orders than making drinks (all table service) and as such you could be waiting up to 30 mins for your order. If you went to the beach bar during the day, similar staffing issue resulting in over a 25 min wait for a drink. The all day food provision, in the snack bar, is just junk food so not a 'snack' liked described in their app such as hot dogs and so forth, but just ice cream and cakes. No hot drink self service provision without waiter service. Not all the inclusive drinks are in the menus you are given so only by asking can you find out if they are included or not. The all day train to the local lake isnt all day its hourly for only 4 hrs. Overall, looks good but service wise not enough staff and a very cumbersome system for all inclusive in that your room key card is scanned all the time in order to get anything to eat or drink.
The overall view from a number of guests is that the owners are penny pinching and that the bar staff do their best but are under enormous pressure.