Lindos Imperial

This is such a mixed review from me but fundamentally the website completely oversells the offering! For example the noodle bar, burger project and souvlekari offered during midday and 5 pm is no more than a couple of the trays at either the snack bar at the slide pool or at the beach cafe! It unfortunately is the quality of the food that lets this hotel down. It is wonderful there are so many different a la carte restaurants but usually it was only the starters they did well, after that some of the food was inedible, as was the majority of the food at the buffet restaurant. One day the scrambled eggs for breakfast tasted of fish! Its to be noted that the steak restaurant isn't even open. The senior staff went out of their way to be extremely helpful, which was appreciated as we were not able to get our booked room until day 3. We wanted a sharing pool but were upgraded, although this sounds good in practice it wasn't what we booked or wanted. On the plus side we can talk confidently about the different types of suites available! The private pools around rooms 2006 are quite small inside but offer complete privacy with tall fences around, but be aware these fell extremely packed in. We moved to a larger suite for night 2 with a private pool that was next to the sharing pool and this was a much better size room and the terrace / pool area felt far more spacious and not so enclosed as the oppressive walls aren't there. We were very satisfied with our sharing pool room, same large size suite with a fab large pool that the kids loved swimming in with the friends they had made in neighbouring rooms. Such a shame it wasn't ours from the start. There is certainly room for improvement however, the finishings are shabby, the pool ladder isn't connected well for example. Then there is the issue of some of the staff being quite rude! Don't ask for the nuggets in a box at lunchtime the server will literally bite your head off! Or ask the waitress at breakfast if she wouldn't mind not leaning over you all to clear the plates away as we are still eating, she will give you a serious talking to! There is some serious customer service training required. One of the lifeguards got a little over friendly with my boys and used extremely racist language which we brought to the managers attention. It was dealt with in a professional manner and the lifeguard found my kids to apologise the following day. I really wish our holiday had been what we were expecting, but it really fell short. The complex is great, the golf buggies a blessing if you need to get about but it just doesn't deliver. If it had been rated 3 star we would have been very happy with our holiday but you aren't paying 3 star prices. Its located on a rocky / almost building site beach but it does boast a great watersports centre. We didn't manage to get a bed on the baech once. There is a great sandy beach next door and is well worth a visit. Lindos is beautiful, we went once for dinner by taxi, took around 20 minutes and also in the day by boat which took an hour. Relaxing at The Lindos Yacht Club with amazing food and wonderful coktails finally made us feel like we were on a perfect holiday! Just dont expect that feeling at The Imperial. We chatted to a few different holiday makers and everyone suffered some kind of room issue, usually not getting the room they booked on night 1. Hopefully these issues were just teething problems after opening up.

Outdoor Yoga , under the shade of a pergola with a view of the sea every with Mrs Nefeli was an absolute dream and no extra cost. This combined with the abundance of fresh food and delightful settings made this a relaxing a refreshing holiday. The sea was so clear and there is an amazing spot to snorkel and hand feed shoals of fish (I will let you work out where that is). The Activity pool was enjoyable for the kids however the food was not rotated well and the bar service were generally poor . The staff did not seem happy there at all. Compare that to the lunch time buffet staff and the beach bar staff and you could be forgiven for thinking you were in a different hotel. I have already looked for dates to go head back there this year!

We arrived after midnight and were greeted by Antonis at reception check in. He was genuinely welcoming, efficient and took time to explain everything. He is a real asset to your team as he was always happy to help with any questions we had throughout our stay. We were then transferred by golf buggy to our room, 1158. Our driver said it was one of the best rooms and he was so right. Our large first floor balcony overlooked the Relax pool and beach. Wow! it was perfect. The room itself was large which was perfect for the 3 of us. Plenty of hanging space and hangers. Drawers and other storage cupboards, plus a very powerful fridge. You can stock up from the hotel or local mini market. Our driver noticed there were no sandwiches or water in the fridge and promptly brought some for us given our late arrival. The bathroom was also large with bath/overhead shower and double vanity. Our room was cleaned and fresh towels provided daily. The Belvedere buffet restaurant was well organised. All staff wearing masks and gloves were extremely friendly, courtious and helpful - nothing was too much trouble. Food was served to you at the various food stations including salads, soup/bread, pasta, roasts, veg, deserts, and also breakfast was served here. There's plenty of choice and portions are very generous. Your temperature was also taken on entering the restaurant and hand sanitiser stations are everywhere. We were there for a week 29/8-5/9 and ate at 4 a la carte restuarants : Wok Asian Meze Meze Greek Tapas Mexican Italian All were superb, adjacent to the main pool which was a lovely setting and these are all waiter service. I'd like to thank Taulant for making our Italian evening so wonderful.. he worked so hard and was so engaging. Then a big thank you to Gavriela who was our waitress in both the Wok and Tapas restaurant. You make reservations using the hotel app. This is also used for contacting reception to report any issues. We had a couple of minor fixes and we received an immediate response and the faults were fixed within 2 hrs. The app also provides further details including hotel map, facilities and details of the restaurants including menu (4 courses at each!) again, all generous servings - you have been warned ! The lobby bar is great, although the lights could be dimmed a little to add to the ambience and there is also wonderful seating outside. There is a further bar at the Relax pool area which was very handy for us and also another trendy seating area where some evening music/events were held ie White Party, Shisha/cocktail nights. It was great to use both the bar or enjoy the atmosphere from our balcony with our drinks/nibbles. The relax pool is great, but it is what is says on the tin... if you're wanting music and real action then use either the main pool or activity pool. You can use inflatables and they are welcome as it is very hot at the moment so nice to cool down. The parasols are spread out for social distancing and we had no problem getting sunbeds. You can also obtain pool towels from reception FOC. The hotel itself is extremely clean and beautifully furnished and it's design is like that of a village with small blocks of rooms, all slightly different in appearance. The bus stop is directly opposite the main entrance and you can also go to Lindos for €15 return by boat from the beach. The beach is pebbly and I would highly recommend beach shoes as it can be very uncomfortable under foot when entering the water. There is also the beautiful Glystra beach which is a 15-20 min steady stroll to (turn left when coming out of reception, follow the road passed the mini market turn right at the stop sign. There is also a sign to Glystra beach. There are sunbeds (not sure of cost) small bar and changing area. The sea is so clear and heray.... it's wonderful soft sand. There is also a car hire desk in reception and also within the Lindos Breeze hotel - opposite and to the left of the main entrance. This hotel was a real find and we thoroughly enjoyed every minute of our stay here. The decor, the grounds, the facilities, the delicious food.... but most of all the staff, regardless of their role, were genuinely friendly. Thank you to everyone at Lindos Imperial for your warm hospitality, we will return.