Falasarna Bay Hotel review: A magical spot in Crete

Falasarna Bay Hotel – Our Apartment

We were delighted with our apartment, which consisted of a bedroom, balcony, living room area, kitchenette and bathroom.

The highlight was undoubtedly the view over Falassarna beach, with the craggy mountain at the southern end adding a sense of drama to the scene. We would leave the door to the balcony open whenever we were in the apartment, to savour the sound of the sea and make the most of the cooling sea breeze.

It’s such a magical sight to wake up to, and our initial 3-night stay became 10, and eventually 15.

The facilities within the apartment were fine. The kitchenette was fairly basic, but I could make up some simple things like pasta or noodles for my son, which was all I needed to do. The bathroom had a washing machine, and the warm weather and wind meant everything dried outside in double-quick time.

Falasarna Beach Hotel – Service

The service was very good throughout our stay, and all the staff took to our son, giving him little treats whenever they could. Reception helped us book our trip to Balos Beach, a few miles up the coast, and also gave us what turned out to be good advice on the area, including nearby beaches and hiking trails.

Why Stay In Falassarna

Falassarna is remote, but a wonderful place to hole yourselves up for a week or two. It’s in the far west of Crete, with wild mountain scenery and the Mediterranean for company.

Falassarna is hardly developed in comparison with other places to stay in Crete. It makes tiny Paleochora seem like Athens in comparison. So all you have is a handful of Falassarna hotels, a few tavernas and beach bars and the occasional goat.

Falassarna Beach is really five beaches in one, so as well as frequenting the child-friendly natural rock pool we would also go on family hikes through dunes and rocks before reaching the superb main beach.

It’s considerably busier in summer than we were there, towards the end of the season. But even then it’s you, this amazing beach and the simple things in life. I cannot think of anywhere to enjoy a more satisfying break from the world than Falassarna.

Departure

Things only went a bit awry after we had paid and checked out, when it turned out our bus service had stopped for the season. We had checked the KTel buses website the previous night and the two previous days. Reception had also advised us that the bus would run.

However it didn’t. the gentleman on Reception was too busy to help, despite having given us incorrect information. Someone else called the bus company. No more buses until April. Whoops.

We needed to get away to move on to our next staging post, Paleochora on the South Crete coast. Now that we were no longer guests, his attitude was quite different – considerably less convivial and helpful. His mistake had partly contributed to the situation, but he wasn’t going to take any responsibility for it.

Around an hour after the bus that never was, a taxi from Kissamos arrived. We weren’t going to make our bus connection to Paleochora, so opted to take the taxi there instead, saving us a lot of hassle for a rather painful price.

Falasarna Bay Hotel – Our Verdict

Despite the last-minute blip, we would have no hesitation in returning. The three of us fell in love with Falassarna, and the Falasarna Bay Hotel was everything we needed.

The thought of that warm breeze blowing the thin curtain inside, and sitting on that balcony sipping a cold beer while watching the last of the sunset afterglow fade away across the Mediterranean, always puts me in a very happy place.

And that’s what it’s all about. Memories of bliss.