INTRO Not knowing where to go for hols this year we decided to convert our Tesco vouchers and go for a free holiday. The one place that always seemed to come up was the Corel Hotel in Corfu. All the pictures and info on the net pointed to a good family run hotel in a nice area of Corfu.
LOCATION The hotel is situated on the outskirts of RODA which itself is about an hour and a half from Corfu Town and the airport. The hotel itself is literally a small stones throw from the beach. Alas that's a pebble beach but its still right on the sea. When we arrived I was pleasantly surprised at the location. There's about a 10 mile stretch of water between Corfu and the mountains of Albania. Stick all of this together and you have nothing short of a fantastic location.
THE HOTEL The hotel is divided up in to two main parts. The first being the original hotel block and the second consisting of a block with around 30 rooms running down the length of the garden. The
main section of the hotel houses the usual stuff like the restaurant and bar and some additional rooms. First impressions when you walk in are pretty good. Everything is well maintained, clean and tidy. You are greeted with smiles and welcomes from all of the staff.
ROOMS Being a 3 star hotel the rooms are not top notch quality but what you would expect for a budget room, with basic amenities. Alas there was no TV, but then you don't need it. Unfortunately no kettle either but hey. First impressions of the room are a clean and tidy feel but that changed for us on closer inspection. Your given the choice of a choice at checkin of either a shower room or one with a bath. We took the shower room only to find that we wished we had taken the bath. The questionable shower was actually a tap mixer with a shower attachment. In addition it there wasn't actually anywhere to hang the shower to use it so we were stuck trying to hold it and wash at the same time. The rest of the bathroom was pretty basic and clearly in need of a handyman that actually knew how to paint and plaster. I am sad to say it went the same for the fixtures and fittings, oh and the tap stuck in the on position…….never a good thing. The rest of the room didn't seem to fair much better. I can only say that it looked like someone had had a fight in there. The door to the cupboard had clearly been kicked and broken as had the toilet door which had some large and clear foot holes in it…..each to their own I guess. My other little gripe was the placement of the electric sockets, or lack of there in. Oddly placed and not really useable but they worked so cant grumble to much. On the up side the beds were a 10 out of 10 for comfort. Not and ache or a pain from our 2 week stay. Plenty of pillows and covers and extra if you wanted some. Rest of the room was fine but tended to follow on from the bathroom, just seemed to need a makeover. All the rooms in the hotel had a balcony which was easily big enough for 2 people and a table and chairs. Our room was out in the outbuilding which offered some peace and quiet away from the main hotel.
OUTSIDE in the GROUNDS The grounds were all well very well kept. Leading down from the rooms was a covered walkway (covered by the biggest grape vine I have ever seen). Between the room block and the hotel was the swimming pool. I have to say the pool was very good and heated so a swim was always on the cards. The sun loungers were a little tired and it seemed to be pot luck as to whether ou got one that was broken or one that you could actually sit on. Next to the pull was a little pool bar which served the usual drinks and hot lunch. I did have to question why you had to pay a Euro more for food and around 50 cents more for drinks when the inside bar was only a shout away. All in all the pool area could have done with some new equipment and perhaps a bit of thought on how to utilise the space better.
MAIN HOTEL The main section of the had the breakfast area and eating place for dinner along with reception, pool / snooker area and bar. The little bar wasn't up to much and never actually opened in the 2 weeks we were there but the main bar was the place to be anyway. The min bar area was pretty cool and played host to a number of very good nights. There was a good selection of drinks on offer at some pretty good prices for the area. FOOD Breakfast was nothing short of pointless. We paid for breakfast yet were asked to pay an extra 5 euro's each for a cooked effort. Without that you were stuck with sweet bread, marble cake and cereal that looked like it had been there since the hotel opened. Dinner on the other hand was always very good, good selection and good value .
OTHER STUFF The staff at the hotel were always very friendly, offering some good tips on places to go etc. With out a doubt Nikos is the main guy in the hotel and he alone creates most of the atmosphere. Its worth a trip there just to talk to the guy. You have to pay for Air con, which isn't unusual but it cost another £50 quid for the 2 week stay. You also have to pay extra if you want to store your valuables in the hotel safe. The hotel was on walking distance of RODA town and of a very good sandy beach in both directions.
SUMMARY All in all it was a reasonable hotel. That's the best way I can describe it. I wanted to write more but just cant….. I can honestly say I wouldn't go back to the hotel but would go back to the area. The trip cost about £800 for the 2 weeks but we later found that a better hotel down the road were charging £160 for 2 per week. I know you get what you pay for but I was a little disappointed and could not recommend it to others.
A long time since I was in Greece, some advice from you here would help me make a choice if I should return, would have to do self catering I think, that pebble beach sounds good though.
pennywa 26.10.2007 01:34
Fab review, Penny xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
poshtroika 17.10.2007 22:35
Very useful review. Tips for Greece, go self catering,many are the numbers we meet who are disappointed with Hotels. Doing your own breakfast with fresh bread from the bakery, Yogurt Honey etc is far better. Hand held showers are quite common, you dont waste as much water.
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