Porto Bello Royal

We went for the Porto Bello Royal via the Tui website and after exploring all of the reviews decided this was the one. It's a really nice hotel with great friendly staff. Ruud I'm calling you out here, nice guy. Despite some people stating the food is bad we really didn't find this to be the case at all. It was buffet style so not really 5 star but it truly was very good with a great selection and themed days which mixed it up nicely. The bar staff were great and the drinks are, I would say, good. Mostly local spirits but very drinkable! They don't skimp on the pour either! We had our 10 year old with us and she spent the entire day in the pool, great for us! They also provide kids entertainment each evening which is very popular, and quite funny too. The nearby town of Kardamaina is worth a visit, take the bus it is so cheap. It is on the flight path so you certainly see and hear the planes go over but to be honest it wasn't that bad. I have to say, as many have, it really isn't a 5 star hotel. But it is very good, lovely staff, and yes I'd go back!

I want to start off this review by saying we had a great time with the extended family. We really enjoyed playing on the beach and in the sea. However when you pay for a 5 star hotel you expect 5 star standard. I am sure in its heyday this hotel was a 5 star hotel but the reality of this hotel now is it would be lucky to achieve a 4 star. The main areas of the hotel leave a lot to be desired - paint flaking, missing toilet seats, rubbish left in places for days, the hotel flag is ripped, letters missing from signs, shoddy bathrooms, not suitable baby changing facilities, freezing cold pools. Sadly I could continue this list. The food was average in the main restaurant which was a lot better than the speciality restaurants. The room was ok but for a 5 star I would expect some form of biscuits or snacks. There was no iron and the hairdryer was painfully slow! This hotel is advertised by TUI as being family friendly - I am not sure who decided this but clearly they haven’t taken a toddler into consideration. If you need a pushchair then you either have to walk a long way around or use a very dodgy lift! There are stairs everywhere! When we mentioned to TUI the staff were rude and the hotel looked tired we were told it is the end of the season - this is an inadequate explanation. On the second day I did mention a few concerns to the management including very rude staff which was dealt with swiftly. I would like to add this was only a couple of staff the majority were friendly and warm. We did have a great time but that’s because we were determined to have a wonderful time after looking forward to it for so long. Safe to say we won’t be retuning to the hotel. We just hope the management can invest in the property and bring it back to its former glory.

We stayed 12-19th July with children aged 11-13. This is a lovely hotel. Staff are friendly and because all of the pools are so spaced out it never felt too crowded even in peak season. Food is fine - what you expect from and all inclusive. Likewise drinks. By the end of the week we went into town and ate out for some variety and if we’d stayed for longer than a week we would have eaten out more / undertaken some day trips. The hotel is very relaxing which is what we needed. The spa is lovely, Chloe in particular is a great ambassador. I had a umber of treatments if you can get Sideris (sorry if spelt wrong - the older chap) he is extremely good. The treatments are expensive and the booking procedure a bit complicated / took a long time. I felt under pressure to leave reviews which I didn’t like but the treatments were very good. We went to town a couple of times. Worth getting the jus timetable as we had to wait ages for a taxi and reception was not helpful in this regard. I asked three times for an extra bathrobe as three of us in the room And had to request extra towels. Eventually given but did not feel that reception was helpful. I found that limited information was given on arrival. For example nothing about the water sports / pedalos. No information about booking a La carte restaurants. I felt that reception was not as helpful as it could have been. Housekeeping very friendly, did restock mini bar but not cleaning room everyday and just left sheets on the bed rather than making them up. Water park was good, children enjoyed. No need to spend ljj on beer than a couple of hours. Extra charge but we knew that before we went. We are at the Greek restaurant a couple of times, it was lovely, particularly as on the beach. The beach is nice, plenty of au beds, rocky when You first get in but then Turns to sand. Highly recommend beach shoes. Overall, We had a fab week. Would I return? Not Immediately as plenty of other places to explore but we did really enjoy.