Bella Vista Appartments Sissi

9/Sept/24 Stayed at Bella Vista 2years ago.Been taken over again, the only staff from previous visit is Vangelis he works the bar. I feel so sorry for him having to deal with all the customer complaints at the moment would not suprise me if he leaves at end of season too, he's the only asset the hotel has got and trying his best to deal with it all. When the owners daughter Georgia works the bar the price of your drinks are never the same even when your order is the same, thankfully vangelis sorts it later. The pool is filthy and so murky you cant see the bottom its full of insects, and the edges have a tide mark of algae so i wouldn't risk getting in it. The snack bar isn't open,but every afternoon around 4oclock the owners sit in the snack bar area to eat their meal and have a glass of wine,something we'd loved to have done but sadly not this time, i found it quite rude of them to do it to be honest especially when the hotel advertises a snack bar open. The smell of their lunch wafting around the pool area sets stomachs a rumbling. Its 7euro in a taxi to the nearest supermarket as its in the village also the nearest restaurant and pub. We were aware of that when we booked and that was fine for us but like many here today sitting around the pool we like to have snacks at lunch time with a glass or two of ouzo. Even if you could walk the village for supplies in this heat it would wipe you out simply carrying it back. Walk the village and taxi back with the shopping so add the extra 7euros on to the bill We won't be returning i would have preferred to give a zero star but couldn't, the star I gave is for Vangelis

I have been staying at this hotel for the past 20 years, multiple times a year. As part of that I have been a customer that did not know the family that run it, but also became a friend of the family that run it, as most repeat customers have. For the 2024 season, and maybe more, the family who own the property have leased the business to another family. With this in mind I had no alarm bells about staying as usual. Having the original family not there would be a massive change for me as they are a key part of my holiday, however as I previously said, I originally stayed here without knowing them and had wonderful holidays, and loved the Bella Vista. So this year I decided to have my holiday like it was my first time staying here. I was aware and ready to get used to processes, menus, etc were likely to be different, but the key elements, the pool, the location, the relaxing holiday, the lovely rooms, the lovely grounds would all still be there for my holiday. I'm writing this review also to address a few points raised in another review from July 24 as although we are all welcome to our own views and that is important, I think its important to keep customers updated and reassure those regular customers and new customers who have booked holidays here. We arrived at 11pm and found our name on a notice on the gate as usual, informing us the room number, however no lights were on through the apartment areas which are filled with stairs and steps, I used my phone torch and already knew where the apartment number we needed was, so went straight there. If you were a new customer the lights being off would cause a big problem and a health and safety issue due to the steps etc. With all new businesses there will be teething problems, and I trust that these lights will be back on when it becomes dark moving forward and that the new managers simply haven't got into the swing of these lights going on. Reception has been the Bar for the 20 years I've holidayed there. There is an old reception room downstairs, but its locked and says that reception is at the bar. The room was one of the oldest rooms, and one I like for the rustic charm, wooden beams and stone floor. It was as always clean, a lovely view, lovely bright curtains and clean linen and towels. The linen was changed, the towels were changed regularly, the bins were emptied and the apartment was clean at all times. In the other July 24 review posted on here it refers to the room as being like a prison cell, i have stayed in all the types of rooms here, and this stay was the most basic room, which is what I requested for convenience, and there are certainly no rooms here that could be described as anything close to a prison cell. There are plenty of photos on here of the rooms and balconies, and also on the Bella Vista Website you can see all the room photos. The aircon in every apartment is in the bedroom(as far as i recall), and is suitable for the whole apartment, we slept one person in th

Terrible apartment dirty pool no reception closed down rooms are like prison cells . Only one air con unit that works for €10 a day room stunk of mould . The staff are running say they cannot speak English which is convenient. The photos on website are nothing like how this place is now. Green mould swimming pool, an absolute dive. Have been told the owner leased the property to new owners and has no control over the new owners running into the ground. No hot water do not come here .

Nowhere offers a better view of the sunset than the Bella vIsta. Fairly priced drinks, nice friendly staff and atmosphere. I come here often for drinks, and food, never had a bad experience. Favourite place in Sissi

Just came home from a ten night stay at Bella vista and loved it. Spotlessly clean rooms and a lovely pool area. Irene is the perfect host with the biggest smile and couldn't do enough for us. Vangelis behind the bar is so friendly and helpful. We'll be going back. Thank you Bella Vista.

Just returned from a lovely stay at Bella Vista. Hosts: Irene and Van the man were amazing hosts and go out of their way to make your stay as memorable as possible. Apartment: We stayed in apt 17 - apartment was authentically Greek, no frills but met our needs and provided the essentials we needed on a self catering basis. Don’t expect matching cutlery, plates etc, but hey who needs matching. Bed linen and bath towels were changed frequently. You need to bring your own beach/pool towels. Sunset from our balcony was amazing. Pool: is very deep and only a small part is shallow, however, purchases a noodle and it’s not a problem. If travelling with kids, there is a kids pool but this was not in use and not a requirement for us during our stay. Food: we ate mainly lunchtime at Bella Vista and enjoyed every meal we had. Thanks Mike. Drinks: yiamas a plenty and standard cost for Crete. Chargeable extras available: aircon /safe. Sisi town: is a 20min stroll on foot for those with no physical health difficulties from Bella Vista. We tended to walk into Sisi and get a taxi back for 7€ (just being lazy tbh). We ate in a variety of restaurants and never had a bad meal once. Give Mama Nikki at Neromilos a visit. Overall we enjoyed our stay 100%. Of course you can chose to pull out all the negatives if you wish but I don’t see any value in doing so, as there are far more positives staying at Bella Vista. If your thinking of booking a stay at Bella Vista expect no frills in your apartment, remember it is a 3* and self catering, so no different to what you’d need to supply yourself if holidaying in the UK. Open your heart to the beauty of your surroundings and engage with your fantastic hosts and you won’t go wrong. Thank you BV. Paula, Paul & Maisie xxx

Stayed here for 8 nights on arrival was red hot told if we want air con for a week it’s £80 extra then we had people tax another £10 so £90 added extras plus the safe £21 which we didn’t purchase ADDED EXTRAS u don’t need on a holiday we stayed in rooms 10 and 11 very basic and definitely no good for a week self catering holiday cleaner came in once to change sheets and twice to change towels never once mopped floor or wiped sides ect before our stay and during it the rooms are dated 1970s look and the air con was not great only stays on whilst your in room units disgusting all cutlery and cups dirty we had to wash them all before use also they give u one loo roll on arrival and tell u u need to buy the rest yourselves no wardrobe space for my son so he had to use the spare bed which are rock hard and very uncomfortable the rooms were just disgusting and no sea view if you have young children this is not place for you as pool is 1.2 M deep to 3.4 M so if they can’t swim don’t book here as pool slopes off very dangerous they have s kids pool but was disgusting not cleaned and not enough water in the pool areas were not cleaned once whilst we were there so all sticky and dirty the pool never got cleaned once during our stay and was full of bugs and dirt on bottom and had a green layer all round pool the pool bar was a nice touch but drinks very expensive and the food here was nice but very expensive also don’t open a tab as we did this and a few items got added onto our bill that we never had so avoid this also these apartments are no where near anything so u need a car as it’s a good 20 minute walk to harbour not nice when it’s red hot or £6 in a taxi stallis was £20 in taxi and potomas beach was £20 nice beach you get offered a sea view well it’s behind the trees and u can’t get in sea here as very rocky there are a lot better places to book in sissi than here we definitely won’t be visiting again place is understaffed and very dirty Also on check in your key gets left in door and a note on gate for you

We have recently returned from 2 weeks at Bella Vista....What a beautiful spot ....so pretty with the flowers and the fabulous views . Irene is a star...she was so welcoming and helpful... The food on site is good...the rooms are looked after well... We had no complaints....many steps to the top floor but so worth it for the mountain and sea views over the bay of Malia from our balcony... For those who enjoy walking you can walk on the coast path to the Malia Archaeological site and past it to Potamos beach. .a lovely walk..both places recommended... The other direction to Sissi along a straight road takes about 20 mins but if it is very hot transport may be easier as it is very exposed.... We hired a jeep for 5 days which was wonderful..we saw so many sights...Phaistos ruins....Myrtos and Ierapetra to the south...Milatos cave with it's dark history...plus day trips which can be booked from the Bella Vista... We loved our stay...made complete by Irene and the lovely staff...definitely recommended ....