Afandou Beach Resort Hotel

Neilson fans for many years but our first visit to Levante. We travellled with a large family of 11 ranging from 7months to 75 years old - all with different hopes for our holiday. We all really loved the resort - despite it being so big...be prepared to do plenty of walking - especially if you want to spend a lot of time on the beach - as it is a very long narrow site. The big pluses: Transfer time is about 40 mins from airport Staff - they are fantastic - from the tennis team (thank you all Gregor, Amelia, Archie and ? Joe). Fitness and beach teams -too - just great. Recetionists are all very helpful. Also the kids clubs were fun and very active. Although only a few of ours used the bike team facilities - but again - were really impressed with their help and facilities/support. Only one of ours was going to kids club and they thoroughly enjoyed their time. But lots of positive words about the kids club from others. The restaurant staff work incredibly hard but always very approachable. Interesting and I feel a plus generally is that the site also has people who come from a Scandinavian company called Apollo. So lots of opportunities to meet up and share experiences and all activities. The rooms are comfortable wth good clean, well equipped rooms with a small fridge, coffee and tea making facilities. Plenty of wardrobe space too. The cleaners are great. Towels are provided for the room and a towel per person for the beach. The range of activities are great with something for everyone. The traditional awards night was fantastic with i think they were called The Drifters - a three team harmony of soul and mowtown singers from Cape Town - superb music and everyone was up dancing by the end of the night. Free cold water dispensers are around the site so you can always get plenty of water. The food was excellent. This included a range of salads and raw vegetables, dressings, dips - plenty of hot choices with a few regular staples for the younger fussy child. Some simple baby/toddler foods too. Plenty of calrity re allergens etc posted around the restaurant. Hot meal options at all meals with an interesting range. Cold water served at the table for you every meal. The site has a good atmosphere with plenty of swimming pools (although the water is a tad chilly in October ) A lovely warmer baby pool and the lane pools which was great. The beach is good and facilities and staff on the beach are really helpful.... A lot more to say about the social events - which are significant. Whatever your interests there will be something you want to go to Also good places to visit if you want to escape the resort - all within an hour. The slight negatives: The Fitness - I think called HIT and WIN that are at the site are right beside the tennis courts and often very loud music plays whilst you are playing or having coaching. The swimming pools (main big ones) are a touch chilly in October. But okay if y ou are brav

We have just returned from Levente. This was our 6th Neilson experience and like others have commented the shared resort does not create the same friendly vibe we have experienced in other resorts. Limited opportunities to meet/ mingle with other guests. The hotel bar is too small for volume of guests especially when the evening entertainment was on (not enough tables/ small cramped area). The hotel was fully booked and dinner was very busy and noisy with queues for tables. The food was excellent, great choice and variety. We needed to go to dinner when it opened at 6.30pm to ensure a table for 10. The rooms are pleasant and the resort benefits from all the usual facilities. Some activities that are shared with Apollo guests need to be booked at reception, on a daily basis with people queuing from 7.15am. My husband was very happy with the sailing kit and instruction. The bikes rides were great, you need to go inland to avoid the run down feel (rubbish, derelict buildings, caravans parked on the side of the road, subsided road surface, nappies floating in the sea) of the immediate local area. The bikes are a bit tired (2022) and some are needing replaced, I experienced skipping gears and buckled wheels, My friends front wheel almost fell of her bike as the front wheel axle came lose during a cycle, luckily she spotted it sticking out! The yoga classes are the best I’ve experienced at a Neilson resort, mostly run by Apollo rather than Neilson staff. The fitness deck was however far too small for the volume of people trying to join the classes. Equal volume of guests on the grass due to limited space. We turned up 20 mins early to ensure a spot on the deck. Our biggest gripe was with the kids clubs, far short of our previous experiences. Not making the most of all the fabulous facilities available and a bit lacklustre at times. All 3 of our children attended less than 50% of the time, commenting that they weren’t as good as at previous resorts. No teenage kayaking, boat trip, pool olympics, slip and slide, SUP wars etc that the kids have loved in other resorts. This was partly caused by Neilson merging age groups (something we’d experienced with Mark Warner previously but this was the first time Neilson had merged clubs during school holidays, there were plenty of kids so it didn’t appear to be due to lack of numbers) resulting in older kids perceiving the club to be too babyish and staff not sticking to their daily activity planner. Our 11 year old didn’t want to face paint but did want to play tennis and football (which he didn’t manage to join as the activities were either cancelled at short notice or staff didn’t stick to their daily plan). We still had a lovely holiday but it wasn’t up to the usual Neilson standard. We have always thought the premium Neilson price was worth it for the positive kids club experience which we were disappointed with on this occasion.

A very nice resort with fantastic facilities. The room was spacious, the many pools were never crammed and amongst the many activities available there was plenty of space to relax. The restaurant had a very good choice of food and there was always plenty of local dishes and seafood. The only reason that I have given it only a 4 was the surrounding countryside and beaches were at time a bit grim with litter and refuse. However the resort and its beach was very well maintained. The staff as you expect from Neilson were fantastic and the sailing team were particularly helpful and knowledgeable. I’d definitely return.

We thoroughly enjoyed our holiday at Levante. Positives: Great location Lovely meals. Always a good variety of tasty dishes Flexible dine in days. Can buy additional days if you so wish Comfortable beds Clean spacious rooms with ample storage Good sports facilities and equipment Friendly staff from the hotel, Neilson and Apollo Rhodes town lovely for a visit. Lindos lovely too but really busy Negatives: Slow check in at midnight. Other Neilson resorts give you your room key on the transfer bus Noise from other guests shutting room doors and talking in the corridor outside room from 6am. Please remind guests to be considerate at the welcome meeting. The doors are noisy but can be closed gently and quietly. This drove me mad during our stay No padel coaching despite it being advertised on the website

Pros: Direct flights from Edinburgh meant that we didn’t have to stay overnight in London. Enthusiastic, friendly, helpful & tolerant Neilsons staff. Wide selection of good food & friendly restaurant staff. Not too sure that the bar staff are happy though. Sufficiently spacious, clean accommodation. Firm but comfortable mattress. Quiet AC. Good tennis coaching. Helpful cycling & watersports team. Plenty of mountain and road bikes. Good variety of rides. Lots of swimming pools including a 25m sports pool with permanent lanes. Six tennis courts & two (very popular) padel courts. The Social tennis was very popular & great fun. Our sports poolside accommodation was handy for many activities (but it’s a long walk to the beach & we could hear dogs barking at night). The Ice bath next to the tennis courts is great for cooling down after activities. Adjacent to water bottle refill point. Well anchored Sun umbrellas meant that convenient shade was available around all of the pools. Cons: With Rhodes being so far South the temperature can get very hot, even in September. This is fine for swimming but can be a problem when playing tennis & cycling etc. The concept of a social table, open to anyone, whether they’re on their own or not, is normally one of the highlights of our Neilsons holidays. However, at Levante it was not well advertised nor well attended. There was no happy hour nor a mix and mingle, no photographer as per other Neilsons resorts. Evening entertainment is limited so plan to go to bed early and catch the sunrise at breakfast. The Neilsons gym instructor had the music turned down to a sensible level but the other instructors would often have the music turned up way too loud. This is the noisiest Neilsons resort we’ve been to. Many of the fitness/dance classes are for the Apollo customers only. The “Vibe” at Levante is different from the other 8 Neilsons that we’ve done. The Scandinavians are not unfriendly but there's little opportunity to mix with them. The prevailing wind is offshore & often gusty which can make it tricky to get back to the beach on a windsurf. The beach is pebbly so take water shoes. The cycle team’s office could be moved away from the stench & flies coming from the adjacent sewage system. Levante was our 9th Neilsons holiday and although there are issues with this resort we may well be back.

Stayed here as a family of four, kids 18 and 19. Something for everyone; sailing, beach, mountain biking, tennis, padel, 3 large outdoor pools, waterskiing. The food was a fabulous buffet with a huge variety of healthy food. Room was spacious and clean, the whole resort was well kept and the Neilson staff all very enthusiastic and helpful. The hotel is shared with guests from Apollo, a Scandinavia activity tour operator, which added to the vibe with many fun fitness classes around the resort. Located 40mins from the airport and equidistant between Rhodes town and Lindos, so you can easily get a bus to see the historic sights. If you like activity holidays then this is a lovely place to stay. It is big but it offers everything, well.