Review Rating: 3/5
Date of Visit: July 2021
Iolkos hotel wasn’t my first choice of accommodation on Karpathos, but, having left it late actually booking anywhere, the other places I’d shortlisted were no longer available. Still, Iolkos ticked all the right boxes: less than €50 per night (my target budget for the trip), not too far from the port or beach, breakfast was included and it had a pool. What could go wrong?
Starting with the positives: the hotel isn’t far from the bus station, so it’s handy for exploring the island if you don’t have a car. There’s a supermarket just opposite the bus station, too, so you can stock up on water and snacks. The room itself was reasonably nice, with functional air-conditioning and a nice balcony which captured the sun well. The staff were friendly at reception and when I decided to stay an extra night due to a change in my onward travel plans, it was organised with no fuss.
That’s where the good parts end, really. The hotel is on a steep hill and further outside Pigadia than it looks on a map, so not only was the walk from the ferry port with my suitcase an extremely hot and tiring task but even getting to/from the beach during the day was sweaty work. It wasn’t so bad in the evenings, once the sun had set, as the temperature dropped and the walk became more bearable, even nice after a big evening meal to be able to burn off a few calories.
The pool was okay but quite small and partly shaded at times due to it being very close to the side of the hotel. There isn’t much space around the pool for sunbeds either, so it felt crowded even with just a few other guests. I only used the pool a couple of times, preferring the local beach despite the walk.
The worst part really was breakfast. Okay, for €37 a night I wasn’t expecting a feast, but the selection was both mediocre in quantity and pretty awful in quality: the Greek ‘yoghurt’ was the worst I’ve tasted. There was sliced bread but no toaster to make toast and the bread itself never seemed to be fresh. The best thing I could find was some local biscuits, washed down with just-about-drinkable coffee. There wasn’t even any water unless you asked for some.
Overall, I managed to make do with the room for the 5-nights I was on the island, but even at its low price, I can’t rate it above 3/5.