Mitsis Norida Beach

I will start by saying that we normally go to turkey but wanted a change this year, and this was our first time at a Mitsis hotel. The first impression of the reception area was that is was very dated the staff were all really nice and helpful, we were right at the top of the resort so had to get a golf cart with luggage to our room. The 2 bedroom family room 345 was so outdated the main room is the bedroom with a serrate room with twin beds, there was only 1 wardrobe for 4 of us in the bedroom. No additional draws or storage in the bedroom or bathroom although there was room for it. The decor of the room has clearly not been updated in a very long time and we were really disappointed in the standard given that this is supposed to be a 5* hotel, I completely understand that greek hotels are different from Turkish but the prices are not reflecting the difference in the standard you are getting. It was a real pain if you forget to needed something from the room as it was such a long uphill walk up that getting the golf cart from reception and waiting was easier especially in the heat.... The restaurant on the beach for breakfast lunch and a la carte bookings was modern and pleasant to sit by the sea the main restaurant was noisy and hectic in the evenings. The coffee shop and crepe place were good .The sunbed situation can be a nightmare and we did see staff removing towels if they were left unattended before 9am although the photos give the impression that there are lots of pool areas there are not that many sunbeds around them, so we ended up at the beach for the majority of the time, pebble beach with really clear water, but lots of rubbish glasses, bottles, straws left from the day before could definitely do with staff cleaning up every day. The pool and beach bars were busy and the waits could be long, but I felt sorry for the staff they were working as quickly as they could just not enough of them. Don't expect to see staff collecting dirty glasses with all the contents in black sacks and dragging them around the pool leaving a trail of the waste!! Surely there is a better way to do this, everyday this is how they collected the glasses. The entertainment was outside the main building not a lot going on for my 17&15yr olds we went into Kardamena 3 times to eat and break it up abit. Overall the quality of the food and drink was good and the staff friendly but I would not return or recommend, the older parts of the hotel need updating if they are going to attract people as I said Greece is not a cheap option and if your paying 5* prices you expect to be getting a 5* experience

If you’ve never been to a 5* resort before you will think the hotel is great. If you have been 5* before you’re expectations will not be met as this is a 4* resort at best so save your money and book elsewhere.

Hotel - Clean, spacious with rooms that are well looked after.

Sunbeds - not enough and you have to get up early to obtain yours. By 07:30 they are virtually all gone. Frustratingly, the hotel has more than enough space for extra beds but will claim health and safety reasons for not putting extra out. The towel policy is policed adhoc. The hotel is aware of this issue as we witnessed a constant stream of guests complaining all day every day. However, there are always beds on the beach which is lovely.

Food - Poor repetitive selection and issues around temperature in the main restaurant. If you can eat in the à la carte as much as possible. The selection is much the same but better prepared and in nicer setting.

Drinks - The main positive of this hotel.

Pools - At least two pools have what is best described as sharp pebble dashing on the steps and bottoms leading to people constantly cutting their toes and feet, especially children. Never experienced that before and an odd design choice. Again, witnessed a constant stream of people visiting lifeguards for first aid.

Staff - Mixed bag. To be fair when my wife completed an on-line survey sent by the hotel for her initial reactions and was honest with her thoughts on not being 5* the hotel acted immediately, up graded us to à la carte most mornings and sent champagne to room which was welcomed.

However, some staff are down right rude and lie about what you said when they get your order wrong, which they do a lot (Dea in the main restaurant is a prime example) and some can’t do enough for you (Giorgios) All boils down to the fact there aren’t enough staff.

special mention has to go to the waitress in the à la carte restaurant with two nose rings who tried to take our plates whilst we were still eating our starters because the main courses were ready, lied about the fact the kitchen was closing (there was 1hr 40 left until the restaurant closed) and then threw my wife a mucky luck

Beach/ Beach bar - lovely and very relaxing. The free pizza and giros are worth the wait. The inflatable water park is great fun and the 20Euro per person all day is great value

Entertainment - Middle of the road with most people preferring to play cards or compare foot injuries.

Check out - we were staying at one of the sea view bungalows up the hill from the main hotel. Despite ordering a buggy to collect our cases the night before and calling again on the morning nothing turned up so we ended up lugging them down the hill ourselves. When we complained to reception the man just walked off. We eventually spoke to a female Manager with red curly hair who was genuinely apologetic.