We have just spent a week at the Labranda Kiotari Bay resort in Rhodes and I was having a bit of trouble deciding how best to talk about our experience! It is also known as labranda kiotari miraluna resort.

I’ve decided it is probably best to talk about the resort overall here and I will do a full room review once our complaint has been dealt with. I feel like the 2 experiences were so different that they need their own posts!

Flights To Rhodes International Airport

We booked our package holiday through Tui, we do prefer Tui for booking our holidays whenever possible as they always give us the best experience and customer service.

We flew on what looked like to be a pretty new aircraft with these handy little seatback phone holders! They were big enough to hold an iPad / tablet too.

There also had a usb socket so that you could charge your phone / tablet during the flight. The flight out was only around 3.5 hours which is great when you have little ones.

We did get advance warning of our flight being delayed and I think it ended up being around 2 hours later than originally planned when we landed.

Where is Labranda Kiotari Bay?

The Labranda Kiotari Bay also called Labranda Kiotari Miraluna Beach Resort. Kiotari is located on the East side of Rhodes island.

It features 410 rooms, spread across a vast resort area. The listing states there are a couple of main pools but there are loads of pools dotted around the complex.

It is around 60 minutes direct transfer from the airport, or 90 minutes if you use the Tui transfer. The hotel is rated 4* by their own rating and Tui have also given them a 4T rating.

How long is the transfer to Kiotari?

We just opted for the standard Tui coach transfer, which we instantly regretted when we still hadn’t left the airport over an hour after we had already landed 2 hours late.

The transfer took around 90 minutes with all the drop offs that had to be done – which in the middle of the night with 4 tired children seemed like an absolute ETERNITY!

We would definitely recommend private transfers which are around 80€ each way although it is still close to an hour it would have been worth it.

Check In

We checked in at 5am so there was no waiting around at the front desk as we were the only ones checking in from our coach transfer. The hotel has a 24-hour reception

They had kindly made us cheese and ham sandwiches and little salad pots to take back to our rooms.

We were given little red plastic tokens to swap at the bar for your reusable cup to use during your stay. However the kids went up to the bar many many times and asked for drinks and were given them without taking their cup or a token. We also took our own cups as the ones they use are tiny.

You’ll also get cards for your pool towels. These can be collected from the Spa and exchanged every other day for clean ones.

There is no drinks limit at the bar so I would recommend grabbing one of these drinks carriers so you can bring back more than 2 drinks at a time (really handy if you have lots of you like us!) You can grab them over at Holly and Ollie .

What Pools are at Labranda Kiotari Bay?

Pirate pool

We probably spent about 75% of our holiday sat down by this kids pool.

Right next to it you’ll find a bar serving drinks inc beer and cocktails – however the all inclusive doesn’t cover any of the ‘known’ cocktails. They had a very small selection of their own cocktail mixes that you could have.

There is also a Gelato station but it is not included in your all inclusive and the ice creams are around 2-3€ each. This was disappointing as I have never been to an all inclusive that didnt have some sort of ice cream included with the snack bars.

Pizza restaurant snack bar freshly made pizza – this is included in your all inclusive and you can have as much as you like! The kids definitely got their moneys worth in pizza over the week.

You also have the greek snack bar by the Pirate pool (can you see why we thought this was the best place to stay?!)

They served Gyros, Hot dogs, chips and fruit (usually watermelon and peaches) this was 100% the BEST food on resort, Gaz rarely bothered going to the buffet for lunch and the kids also preferred to eat here or the Pizza bar.

---

Covered toddler pool

We didn’t end up using this little outdoor pool as the sunbeds were always taken by the time we came down (we don’t believe in getting up at ridiculous hours to get a sunbed so just grab whatever is left!)

---

Main Pool

Around the main swimming pool is where you’ll find most of the daytime entertainment. Again we couldn’t get a sunbed so didn’t sit around it much, but we liked being by the pirate pool anyway.

There is a swim up bar with seating in the water but it is also accessible from the poolside. The water aerobics was always busy and looked really fun!

---

Pool with slides

Next to our room was a pool with 2 water slides. These were only operating between 2.30-5pm. There didnt seem to be any staff manning the pool or slides so it was a bit of a free for all.

---

Trio of pools

Opposite our block you’ll find a trio of pools, a shallow pool in the middle with 2 deeper pools either side. Towards the main entrance end you’ll find a snack bar serving drinks and some very limited snacks and of course ice cream (extra charge)

The only downside to these pools is it the main through road from the main road to the entrance and coaches and lorries are constantly up and down it, so it’s not particulary peaceful.

---

Pool by Block 700

Outside our block we also had a small shared pool, we didn’t use it and it was never very busy it was mainly used by those with the rooms under ours as their terraces opened onto it.

Spa at Labranda Kiotari Bay

Along with being where you collect your pool towels, the Spa offers a range of treatments and has an indoor pool (adult only) and sauna room.

They offer a range of beauty treatments including a selection of extra services for children. We didn’t use the Spa but the staff were pleasant and happy to answer any questions you may have.

Kids Club at Kiotari Bay

The Kids Mini Club for the younger guests on Tui is advertised at 2.30-5pm but this isn’t correct.

The club ran Tuesday to Sunday 10am-12pm and again 3-5pm with facepainting before the mini disco. The ‘club’ was just some seating under a small gazebo (which was sometimes switched out for )The club ran Tuesday to Sunday 10am-12pm and again 3-5pm with facepainting before the mini disco. The ‘club’ was just some seating under a small gazebo (which was sometimes switched out for table tennis), it wasn’t secure in any way which was disappointing and meant we didn’t end up using it much at all (Holly did 2 sessions)

Although they have this full schedule of things they are planning on doing, when Holly went all they did was colour in and do jigsaws so she said it was boring and wasn’t keen on going back.

There was a small playground behind the gazebo where they could also play, but this was also open for all guests too. The ‘clubhouse’ which I think is actually just a storage room had several missing windows.

There also seems to be a mini golf course set up but we never saw anyone playing on it or any information of how you could.

Evening Entertainment

The evenings entertainment kicks off at 8pm with face painting. Not completely convinced the quality of the actual face painting matches the poster (We felt like it was like what happens when you order off Wish!) but Holly seemed happy enough.

We only stayed for the entertainment a couple of times because Oscar struggled to stay awake but the couple of acts we saw were great!

We especially liked the Whitney/Tina Turner singer she was amazing and the kids loved being asked up to dance on stage with them.

Upstairs by the Athena lobby bar they also had live music most nights and this seemed to be where the adults sat rather than down by the amphitheatre. It always seemed to be pretty good when we walked through and it was always really busy up there.

Whats the food like at Labranda Kiotari Bay?

Socrates – Main Buffet Restaurant

There is a dress code in the main restaurants and they do stick to it, several groups were turned away mainly for men being in sleeveless tops for dinner.

Breakfast was the exact same everyday other than 1 egg dish which varied on a couple of days. But this is fairly standard for most all inclusives we have ever been too. There was always a long queue for pancakes as they cooked them on the tiniest little hot plate. We did early breakfast one day and couldn’t see any difference to the rest of the breakfast service.

One of the main moans about Socrates was there was never enough clean plates! We would be waiting for new ones to come out at every sitting. Then would have to sift through them to find one that was clean.

Breakfast

For breakfast you can only have fruit juices and hot drinks which are self serve, but for lunch and dinner there is a bar service. Sometimes this was table services, other times you had to get your own drink at the bar.

There didn’t seem to be any way to know which it was without asking someone. When it was table service you would have to hunt someone down to take your order and when it was bar service the queues were crazy and it was quicker to run to the poolside bars.

Lunch & Dinner

The Lunch and Dinner were very uninspiring, no themed nights or real variation in food. I actually found lunch was better than dinner on most days.

There was also some weird queue system going on, they would show you to your table which was fine. However, if for example we were at the front of the queue and need a table of 6, they would wait until a table came available to sit us down. They wouldnt move onto the next group even if they were 2’s & 4’s with loads of available tables. Blew my mind a little!

It meant there were people waiting for tables for ages when there were clearly tables available for them. It would have been much quicker to let people find a table it was never overly busy anyway once you got inside.

They also never had the aircon on so it was BOILING inside and not much better outside.

Themed Restaurants at Kiotari Bay

During your visit you can dine at one of the 3 international cuisine themed on-site restaurants for free. You have a choice of Spanish/Tapas, Italian and Greek. Our neightbours went to the Italian one and said the food was really good – it is also has air conditioning and has a really lovely view over the resort as it is located on the upper floor above the mini mart opposite reception.

Greek seemed to be the best option as we thought being in Greece we should try the local food, how wrong were we.

Sirtaki – Greek Specialty Restaurant

We booked this on the day we arrived and only just managed to get a slot the day before we would be leaving, so make sure you do book in as soon as you arrive.

They seated us quickly and started to browse the menu not realising they would bring out all the starters they offer, without asking us what we wanted. We felt really bad because none of us eat any seafood so most of it went to waste.

We presumed we would be able to pick and choose so would have just skipped the starters or just had the bread. Although this is all the bread we were given for 6 people!

We could order our chosen mains thankfully, although when the starters were served we were SWARMED by wasps. The dining area floor was covered in discarded food and spilt drinks from being used as a snack bar in the day. We did point it out but the staff didn’t seem too concerned.

The other tables around us were too and I ended up moving away with my food to try and escape them but they were so bad we ended up leaving after the mains.

Which was a shame as they were actually really good but I am so scared of being stung I couldn’t sit there any longer.

Kiotari Beach

Head to the back of the resort and you’ll find a small tunnel that gives you direct access to the private(ish) and beautiful Kiotari Beach. It is a stony beach and I would recommend beach shoes as getting into the sea the stones are small and sharp.

There are a couple of showers and a toilet block with some changing rooms also. The toilets weren’t great for cleanliness but it’s handy they are right on the beach.

The beach bar has loads of shaded seating, they do a range of drinks and coktails and also have a snack bar BBQ to the side during the day.

The beach is also worth a visit at sunset. Although it was still a little busy it was a beautiful view.

Watersports on Kiotari Beach

Kiotari Bay Watersports supply all the activities available on the beach. We hired a boat for 1 hour for 60€ and it was worth every penny!

Life jackets all round and a quick lesson on how to use the controls and off we went – We just headed straight out into the sea and anchored down for a swim in the sea!

It was really good fun although the hour soon flew by and we wished we had booked for 2! The sea was cool but not freezing and the water was so clear!

Mini Land Train

Right outside the main entrance you can hop on the mini land train and go on a little tour of the local area.

To be honest there isn’t much to see but it was nice to get out the hotel for an hour and there was a lovely breeze as we went along.

We had the train to ourselves for most of the journey – you can get on and off but we just stayed on and did the whole loop.

It takes you along the main road past lots of beautiful hotels, I was writing down the names of the ones that looked good and then you come back along the sea front.

The round trip is around a 50 minute trip, I guess it would be longer if there had been people wanting to get on or off.

It stops outside the hotel 3 times in the morning and 3 times in the evening with stops dotted along the route.

The pricing was 6€ for adults and 4€ for children for the day.

First Aid (Or lack of it)

It isn’t often we end up needing first aid but Holly managed to throw herself on the floor and scrape her knee. It kept bleeding so we did try and get something to put on it.

A member of staff did come and have a look and said he would find a first aid kit. Despite the sign that said there was a First Aid kit at the bar we were sitting at, he couldn’t find it and told us he would find one and come back, 90 minutes later he hasn’t reappeared so we gave up waiting.

Moon and Stars

If you have any interest in the moon and stars or even the International Space Station you’ll get some really clear views here. With very little surrounding light pollution and virtually zero clouds we saw the ISS every night.

The Wildlife…

Never in my life have I heard anything like the noise that echoes round the resort. The Cicadas (Which looked like massive grasshoppers with wings) are so loud to the point of being unbearable.

It was a bit like on SAS Who dares wins when they put them in the dark room with the headphones on and play sounds to torture them. They could certainly use this!

I know there isn’t much the resort can do about it but it is worth knowing about it before you go. July and August is when they are loudest apparently according to my good friend Google!

Return Flight

Our return transfer pick up wasn’t until just before 10pm as our flight wasn’t until 2.10am (BIG MISTAKE!) We arrived at the airport and checked in, when we got through to the departure lounge….

Yes… delayed for 2 hours! We had no advance warning so wasn’t really prepared for what was going to be a very long night in the airport.

The chairs all have arms between each seat so no chance of getting any sleep. Luckily we had the stroller with us and managed to get Oscar to go to sleep eventually and the shops did stay open so we could get food and drinks.

Fortunately there were also these charging stations dotted about so we could charge the phones to keep everyone amused. They had built in chargers for USB-C, Iphone and Micro B chargers and USB slots for your own cables and even plug sockets. They had these both before and after passport control.

The flight home is 4.5 hours (not sure how there was so much difference?!) but as it was overnight luckily everyone slept for most of it.

Summary of Labranda Kiotari Bay

The resort is in the middle of nowhere really so if you are looking for a holiday where you stay on resort this is ideal. You can go on trips but most things were 1hr + away and really expensive for 6 of us. For example if you wanted to visit rhodes town impressive acropolis it is 56 mins / 54.5 KM away!)

I haven’t included any information about the room as we had so many problems with it, Tui are currently handling the complaint and I didn’t want that side of the review to influence this part of it.

The holiday in total cost us £6309.56 – which included £84 in additional charges to choose our seats as I could see the flight was very full and didn’t want to risk being split up. We booked and flew with Tui and had a shared transfer.

Compared to some of the other hotels we have stayed at (such as Hotel Polynesia and Sol Dunas) we aren’t sure it’s really worthy of 4* rating it has, the restaurants especially let it down.

We did think the resort overall could do with some TLC and they seemed to be really understaffed especially when it came to cleaners.

There was rarely any toilet paper in the bathrooms and most of the toilets don’t have locks on the doors (the ones by the pirate pool and amphitheatre especially) so I had to take one of the kids with me to stand outside everytime I went.

Possibly we could go back if they made some improvements as the resort had everything we wanted on paper, those things just didn’t quite live up to our expectations for a family holiday.

We are already planning ahead for our Christmas break and we would love suggestions of where we should visit next

ChrissyJ xxx