Reviewed By: TMC Editor, Lydia House
Pros
It’s beautiful and luxurious
The beach is all inclusive and includes service to sun lounger and you can order all inclusive room service with no extra cost.
If you’re deluxe you get a private free shuttle from the airport, Tattinger in your room (and on tap) and access to additional quieter pools and beach area. And an exceptional restaurant.
The food in some restaurants is incredible.
It has a great kids club and playground
Cons
It’s expensive
The spa therapists seemed inexperienced
You have to pre book a lot of activities and restaurants before you arrive
There are queues for the restaurants when they open
The timings of restaurant and kids club openings could be better to suit families
Overall thoughts
IKOS Aria makes holidaying with children as easy as it can be. With a fabulous kid’s club and babysitters, highchairs dotted everywhere, and all-inclusive room service with kiddie amenities on call – it’s hard to find something they haven’t thought of. And hey, who can complain when there’s Tattinger on tap? However, I did find the pre-booking of the spa, creche and restaurants a little irritating, and there was a slight lack of flexibility when we were there. The extortionately priced spa and treatments were a disappointment, and even though the staff were so friendly, the service was sketchy in parts. Most of the meals we had were incredible, bar one, and we loved riding our bikes around the resort and playing in the multiple pools and on the glorious private beach. Could you do it for less? Probably. But the ease of it all was pretty brilliant.
What is it?
A luxurious all inclusive resort in Kos, Greece that has deluxe bungalows, multiple restaurants and pools and a private beach. The resort also has a nightclub, lobby bar and spa. You can hire bikes, organise tennis lessons and take part in classes like pilates and yoga. There’s a kid’s club, an open air theatre and a babysitting service.
Was it worth it?
As much as we loved our stay I think overall it was overpriced. I’ve stayed in quite a few 5-star hotels that aren’t all-inclusive and I’ve spent less and still experienced many moments of luxury. The spa was extortionately priced and both my husband and I found our therapists to be inexperienced. We may have stayed on week 1 of the season and we experienced unusually bad weather but the service and reaction to this situation wasn’t great. The staff were so friendly and welcoming and happy to help with anything but things like the open air restaurant we booked carried on as usual even in the rain, there were queues everywhere for restaurants that seemed empty when you went in, drinks or orders were forgotten and at moments it felt a little bit like Faulty Towers. Things improved as most things do when the sun came out, but little things like ordering seafood linguine and receiving penne pasta were just a bit off from what you’d expect when paying so much.
Would you recommend it?
I would but I’d suggest going a little later in the season once the staff had found their feet. I’d also make sure you book all of your restaurants before you go. Personally I’d swerve the spa unless you have a free treatment as part of your package. It just wasn’t worth the money. Make sure you go to Seasons restaurant for lunch or dinner if you’re Deluxe and put your children in the kids club so you can enjoy a lunch or two at Ouzo. The Spanish restaurant Oliva and Asian Anaya were also great. And make full use of the all-inclusive offering for room service so you can feed your children when the restaurants aren’t open and don’t be scared to ask for something that’s off menu that your children normally eat like a bowl of strawberries or banana.
Facilities
– 8 restaurants
– A variety of pools including adult only and kids
– Sports centre
– Bike hire
– Luxury rooms
– Spa
– Kids club
– Babysitters
– Playground
– Small shops
– Nightclub
– Open air theatre