breakfast was free...although if you wanted it in the room it was $4 (can't remember if it was $4 per day/room or $4 per person)

Food was NYC expensive (I live in the city) without the $ to Euro conversion and then just plain expensive after the conversion. Lunch was 25-35 Euros per person and dinner entrees were about 35-40 euros per person if I remember correctly. Food was excellent, so we ate in the hotel most days for at least dinner.

L' Orangerie was superb and the Asian place was good. The greek tavern (I think it might have been Blue Door?) wasn't any better than the places in Agios Nicolos (sp?) like Du Lac.

As you can imagine, the hotel is adamant that you should not eat anywhere outside of their restaurants--we had to push very hard to get a recommendation of the premises.

Since many of us on this board are reporting stays >4 or 5 nights, the hotel is going to have to get over the fact that you can't eat at their places every night.

Elounda is ok to walk around and Agios Nicolos was better than expected. Getting off the property is one of the reasons I would recommend renting a car for the trip, although getting from the airport to the hotel, especially at night is a bit tough. The car service from Heraklion airport to the Blue Palace was something like $70 each way and the car rental ran me about $250 for the week.

Excellent Stay at Blue Palace!!
 

My girlfriend and I just got back from Crete, and the Blue Palace in mid July. We stayed 4 nights in a room with private pool on the lower levels of the property. In my humble opinion, the lower level pools offered the best views and easier access to the pools, beach, spa, and L'Orangerie.
I have to say that I have stayed at some remarkable places in the past (Ritz in Kapalua, Mandarin Oriental in Miami, Santa Marina in Mykonos, etc) and Blue Palace was probably my favorite. The views, as mentioned above, are breathtaking. Pictures cannot capture the serenity and peace you feel by being on a secluded part of one of the most beautiful islands in Greece.
We arrived via high-speed ferry from Santorini in Heraklion and had the hotel arrange for a taxi to take us to the hotel. The ride was about $70/way and took about an hour, but it was worth it in my opinion because we arrived late at night and didn't need the extra hassle of trying to find our way around a dark island in after a long day. When we arrived, the reception desk staff was very friendly, although I will echo the comment earlier about them not paying too much attention to Platinum status. Our concierge showed us around the lobby and the restaurants before shuttling us to our room in one of the golf carts. She was incredibly friendly and DID remember us the next day when we were asking questions about excursions to the Palace at Knossos (which by the way is AMAZING!).
The food is excellent. We also had free breakfast every morning, and the added extra bonus of free champagne made each morning that much better. :) The pools were great, and each of the lounge chairs were covered with a fresh towel in addition to of course towels available for drying off. The beach is a rock beach, so for those of you expecting sugary sand, you might be a little disappointed. I believe this is mainly due to the infamous Meltami Winds that blow throughout the Greek Isles. This IS something that travelers should be aware of if you are carrying a lot of loose items that can get picked up easily with sudden gusts of wind.
Dinner at L'Orangerie was one of the best I've ever had. They really did outperform my expectations, and the view of Spinalonga Bay made the ambiance that much more special. I only wish they had some type of flood lights out on Spinalonga Island to illuminate it a little more, but none the less, the view is amazing day or night.

I would highly recommend this property to anyone and personally plan on visiting my friends at Blue Palace again very soon.

Has anyone got an e-mail address for the Blue Palace ?? I have tried the one on the web site twice with no joy.

Thanks

This is the contact I have....
Katerina Youlaki
Reservations Manager
BLUE PALACE, Resort & Spa
The Luxury Collection - Starwood Hotels & Resorts
Tel: +30 2841 0 65500 Fax: +30 2841 0 89712
Email: [email protected]

Virtuoso and FHR rates for sure include breakfast. I have noticed lower rates now than when I 1st started to book the hotel, except for the Island Suites which are not really discounted

I wonder if he's Gold or Plat.

I CERTAINLY can't imagine getting that free upgrade again (on an award).. the DLX Suite is certainly amazing. It's what you get when you book an award suite night, for 24K SP. I asked them if I were a Gold, if I might be able to be upgraded to Island suite, and they said "it's possible." But the DLX Suite really is amazing. The Island suite is simply more secluded, with a heated pool with a wall around it. The Infiniti Pool in the DLX is fairly larger I believe, although it might simply be the different sizes of the floorplan.

So far, this is the best property I've seen for a suite award.

But now, I just read a post saying Starwood "has said" they are going to devalue points...

Well crap.

I am considering going to this hotel on July 1...please let me know your perspective.

Also, my sense it you need to say in Athens 1-2 nights on the way in and out?

Are there direct non-stop to any other cities besides Athens which would be great to visit on the way in and out, and also provide nonstop access to LHR?

We stayed at the Bule Palace for 5 nights at the end of May on Points. We were upgraded to a room with a private pool, but no Breakfast was included.

I'm a SPG Gold

Shawn

Breakfast Trick
 

My wife and I honeymooned at the Blue Palace last year when it was a Cat 4. We used double points to get a very nice suite but there were no further upgrades as the property was full. Breakfast was not included.

However, what they did have are fantastic room service assortments for breakfast which are REALLY reasonable, because they are targeted at the 90% of the people who get breakfast included. They are something like 16 Euros each and are fantastic and very plentiful. One breakfast is enough for two and it's amazing. You can enjoy it outside by your pool and it's much better than eating with everyone at the buffet. We did this every morning and LOVED it.

This is my favorite starwood property, and I have stayed at all of them in Greece and many in other countries and the US.. They have nice Molton Brown products (more exotic blends than most properties). Definitely rent a car!

We are thinking about visiting the Blue Palace in September or October this year. Has anyone been there later in the season? When is the latest that you can swim there before it starts getting cold? Is late September fine or is the water still warm in October.

Also, I saw that the property is now Cat 5. The website used to say that the high season ended on 9/11. Does anyone know if this is still the case?

Thanks for providing recent descriptions about the property including the "breakfast trick."

What a wonderful, detailed trip report!

We've never been to Greece but are considering a trip there.

I just checked out their website and the hotel looks perfect.

Thanks for the heads up on this property. ^

If you go to Greece then you should also check out the Santa Marina on Mykonos. The Vila Vedema on Santorini is nice but in the middle of the island and not where the best views are.

We were there during the first week of October last year. The water is definitely cold in the pools. I took a dip in the ocean and actually found that to be slightly warmer. There is an heated indoor pool in the gym, and, if you decide to splurge, the more expensive suites have heated private pools.

I am planning to go late May-early June 2007 and called about this. The high season runs from 7/15 through 9/11.

The island suites pools are much larger than the deluxe suite.... The island suites also provide for a large patio with sun chairs

We will--

I love private pools but this is the first Starwood I've seen with them. Does Vila Vedema too?