Семейный отдых на Крите Family holidays in Crete

I’ll start in order, we flew through the Pegas operator, the only drawback I can name is the flight delay when departing from Kyiv, on the way back there were only 20 of us on the plane, so we flew out even earlier than expected and, accordingly, flew in too.
The airport in Heraklion is very old, shabby and not comfortable. Well, this is not so important, although it brings its share of discomfort during departure.
Resting at the St. Constantin Village (www. stconstantin. gr) in Crete from 06/01/2011 to 06/08/2011. Two adults and two children (3 years 8 months; 1 year 1 month). The hotel is located in the village of Kato Gouves east of Heraklion. The hotel itself positions itself as a 5-star, but all operators sell it as a 4-star.

We liked the hotel. Beautiful architecture, cozy territory, a lot of greenery (mostly flowers and flowerpots in pots around the territory), suitability for families with children (everywhere there are exits for strollers, high chairs in the restaurant). The service staff in the bars and restaurant are mostly students from Ukraine, Russia, Moldova and Lithuania, their main Bulgarian. All cleaners seem to be from Bulgaria. The contingent of vacationers is 80% visitors from the former Soviet countries, somewhere else 10% Poles and the rest are French, Germans, British. There are three swimming pools on the territory of the hotel, two large (85 - 155 cm deep) and a small one (85 cm) and one more in the building. More than half of the sun loungers near the pools were always free, apparently the bulk of the people went to the sea. To the sea to go 1-2 minutes at a calm pace. Immediately we get to a small beach, and a little to the right is a large beach. Before lunch we were by the pool, and after lunch we went to the beach. The cost of two sun loungers and an umbrella is 7 euros, but since we came to the beach for 2-3 hours, we did not take them (the children still sat in the sand and played). The sea was warm and even the children were not cold to swim in it. On a large beach, the depth of the sea drops very, very smoothly. From the hotel along the embankment to the left you can walk to the main street of the village (it departs perpendicularly from the sea), where there are many shops. By the way, souvenirs are cheaper than there, I have not seen anywhere else, and there is also a store with a large selection of natural cosmetics based on olive oil.
We got a room in the old building, right above the reception and with a balcony to the bar, this was the only negative, because. when there were evening entertainment (until 22:45) it was noisy. Everything is neat and clean in the room, one large bed, two children in a separate room and a kitchen wall. They cleaned every day, all used towels were changed every two days (but they left so many that we didn’t have time to use them all, about four pieces per person), the bed was changed twice in a week.
Magic show, Greek night, Disco night, etc. were held every two days near the main bar in the evening. But we still didn’t go to them.
We had All inclusive meals and this threatened us with breakfasts, lunches, dinners, a snack bar by the pool and free drinks on site throughout the day. Breakfasts are typical European, for lunch and dinner there is a very large selection of dishes, plus confectionery and ice cream. The restaurant is outdoors and it is very pleasant to eat there. If you plan to go on an excursion and skip lunch, you can order dry rations (juice, water, apple, orange, tomato, sandwich) at the reception until 18:00 the previous day.
Now about where to go. There are many car rentals nearby. If you turn right on the embankment and turn right again behind the large beach, there are three car rentals. If you go left along the embankment, there are also enough rentals. We took a Fiat 500 for 3 days for 120 euros, this price included two child seats, unlimited mileage and full CASCO, civil defense and personal insurance (insurance does not cover an accident that happened off public roads and when the driver was drunk). First, we ordered a car via the Internet, agreed that it would be brought to the hotel at the appointed time, but no one came. We rented a car from Zak's cars. To the topic, the 95th gasoline costs 1.80 euros / liter. Because the car is given with a full tank, then you need to return it in the same way.

I recommend everyone to visit the Cretan Aquarium, it is very close. From the hotel along the embankment to the left a couple of kilometers. You can also walk. Directly along the embankment, the landmark is an abandoned American base with radio towers, in that area the road deviates slightly from the sea, but it will still be clear where to go.
We also went to Heraklion, to the Palace of Knossos, or rather its ruins and the town of Agilos Nikolas to the east of Hersonissos. The town is very beautiful, on the way there, on the highway, there is one monastery, you can take some cool pictures.
And about the weather. We were on vacation in the first week of summer and the sea was already warm, although the guide on arrival said that it was cold. And the air temperature was about 30 degrees. Only in the morning until 8 is cool and in the evening it gets dark.
Check-out at the hotel takes place at 11 am, then leave the luggage in the room near the reception and then have fun as you can. The bus picked us up at 16:30, so even after check-out we managed to have lunch and go for a walk. Everyone in the reviews wrote that they were given a bottle of wine upon check-out. I saw this at the hotel, but for some reason they didn’t give us a present, which I’m glad about, because. I wouldn't know what to do with it (we don't drink alcohol).
Well, that seems to be all. I recommend this hotel to everyone, young and old. If anyone else has any questions, I'll be happy to answer them.