After years of island hopping around Greece and numerous visits to Athens, we had yet to explore more of mainland Greece. Parga Beach Resort ticked all the boxes for us – a quieter town with fewer crowds, a 5* rating, a beachfront location, and resort service, including a private pool suite. We stayed for seven nights over the May half-term, and the reality lived up to the images and reviews we’d seen online.
In this post:
Booking and Location
Parga Beach Resort sits directly on Valtos Beach, around a 20-minute walk from Parga town.
After plenty of research and comparisons between British Airways Holidays, TUI, Jet2 and direct bookings, we settled on a Jet2 booking primarily due to flights from our local airport, the relatively small price difference between a standard room and a private pool room, and free child and infant places.
We booked over a year in advance due to the amazing deal we found. If we were to go again, we would not be eligible for the infant place, so it would work out cheaper to book BA flights and book the resort directly.
We opted for the bed-and-breakfast rate, which comes as standard with the room. You can also opt for half board with a Dine Around programme that includes selected à la carte meals depending on the length of your stay, or Ultra All-Inclusive.
Aktion Airport
Flights to Parga operate to Aktion National Airport (PVK) near Preveza. Whilst the airport is relatively small, it has a huge number of summer visitors heading to destinations including Parga, Lefkada and Preveza. The airport was struggling to cope with the huge numbers of passengers arriving for half term. From getting off the plane to leaving the airport, it was well over an hour. The passport queue was huge and slow-moving, and our bags took a long time to arrive.
The transfer itself takes 60-90 minutes, and there are lovely coastal views along the way, so it did not feel particularly long.
Arrival and Check-In
Coaches can’t pull up to the resort, so you’ll be dropped off on the main road or by the beach and be picked up by a minibus. Sometimes the minibus only takes the luggage, and you’ll have to walk down. Private transfers can pull up right at the entrance.
Check-in was quick and efficient. We were slightly concerned about arriving on a package holiday coach, as we’ve been stuck in huge check-in queues before when we’ve arrived somewhere at a similar time to a coach, but it turned out only one other family was checking in at the same time. We were informed about the Parga Beach Resort app, which lets you book activities, order room service, choose a cleaning time, and more. We were also given our complimentary beach towels.
As there was a queue for the resort buggy service, a member of staff personally escorted us to our room and explained everything we needed to know along the way.
Our first impressions were excellent!
The Suite
We stayed in a Perfect Bliss Suite with a Private Pool, which can accommodate 2 adults and 2 children or 3 adults and 1 child. Located close to reception in a row of three suites, we quickly realised we’d been fortunate with our allocation. Our pool was noticeably larger than the neighbouring pools, which was down to luck. There was also a separate bedroom, unlike the other rooms, which were more open-plan. The standard layout includes a double bed and two sofa beds.
The main bedroom opened onto a separate outside area and the same pool.
The other part of the room consisted of two sofa beds (we asked for this once we arrived), with a lovely view of the pool.
We received a complimentary bottle of local wine on arrival with a personalised note. This was a nice touch.
The bathroom was large and had everything we needed, including plenty of complimentary toiletries in miniature bottles and lots of towels. There were even scales, which I hadn’t encountered in a room before. Everything was immaculately clean.
We were pleasantly surprised by the pool’s depth and size, as we’d expected something more like a plunge pool. The screens provided a little more privacy, though one of the main walkways to reception was to the left. The pool was also very clean and was serviced for about 30 minutes each morning.
The bed next to the pool would have been better as two sunbeds. The cushions rolled everywhere, and the material got very hot or wet depending on the weather. For this reason, we may opt for a higher-category room which has two sunbeds.
There was plenty of storage space, enough plug sockets, reliable Wi-Fi and excellent housekeeping throughout our stay.
Other Room Types
There is a huge range of rooms and suites, so it is worth looking carefully at the layouts before booking. The resort is still expanding, and we saw some under construction during our trip.
Current room types include:
- Premium garden room (sea view options available)
- Eden suite (or Eden suite with attic)
- Aura Suite
- Horizon Suite with sea view and kitchenette
- Grand Bliss Suite
- Perfect Bliss Suite with private pool
- Aura suite with private pool
- Penthouse bliss suite with plunge pool
- Maison Bliss Suite with private pool
- Beachfront panorama suite with jet tub
- Beachfront bliss suite with private pool
- Beachfront Maison Suite with private pool
The Resort
We loved this resort. It never felt busy, despite being half term. There are eight pools spread out across the resort, with two central pool areas. There are also plenty of sunbeds on the beach with food and drink service.
One of the highlights was the gardens throughout the resort, where you’ll find orange trees, olive trees and bougainvillaea, creating a peaceful atmosphere.
Room Service
We were on a bed-and-breakfast rate and often used room service for dinner. Our pool area made a lovely spot to eat, with a table right next to the pool. The menu for room service was very similar to that of the pool bars and restaurant.
Restaurants
Right by the beach, you’ll find the main à la carte restaurant. There’s also a ‘snack’ area with a menu similar to room service (pictured). This was also the location of breakfast on the last few mornings.
The resort currently has three restaurants: Iporia, Kokona and Lianolia. Iporia is the beachfront option used for the breakfast buffet and also serves an à la carte lunch and Mediterranean buffet dinner. Kokona focuses on Greek and Epirote food, while Lianolia is the resort’s luxurious Veneto-Epirote dining option led by two-Michelin-starred chef Georgianna Hiliadaki.
When we arrived, we headed straight to the Iporia restaurant, and the service was extremely quick.
Breakfast
During the first 3 days, breakfast was served at Kitron, next to the pool bar, due to renovations in the main breakfast area. Tea and coffee were served at the table, though it was filter coffee.
For the last four days, breakfast was served by the beach, and coffee machines were available. These tended to create queues. Breakfast was buffet-style for all guests with a fantastic selection of hot and cold items.
Bars
Drinks could be ordered from the Kitron Pool bar, all restaurants, on the beach or as room service. The menu is the same for all.
The Pools
Having the pools spread across the resort created a much quieter atmosphere than you often find around one huge main pool. Many guests preferred the pools with bars and sunbed service.
This pool had a shallow area for children and sunbed service, and it was one of the busier options.
There were also some lovely quiet pools. Some Garden rooms had sunbeds outside their room, around one of these pools (right of photo):
The heated children’s pool was always very quiet. We spent lots of time here:
The Beach and Parga Beach Club
The resort is right on Valtos Beach, which is one of the most beautiful beaches in the area. The sea was always very calm during our stay, and the beach was a good size, with different sections of sunbeds and areas to lie with a towel. The resort has a large section of sunbeds available for exclusive use by resort guests.
By the end of the morning, all the sunbeds were usually occupied. We didn’t see much early-morning sunbed reserving either, apart from some of the front-row spots.
We were asked for our room number early in the day, and it was easy to find someone to order food and drinks.
Events
The hotel doesn’t have ‘entertainment’ like many resorts each night, but they do put on some well-executed weekly events. Many guests opt to have dinner at Kokona. Once a week, there’s also a very popular Greek Night with music and dancing. There’s also a White Night with a DJ and cocktails, by the beach. The resort also hosts occasional open-air cinema screenings. For kids, there’s a singalong with a character twice a week near the kids’ club.
For us, this was a good balance. There was enough going on without the resort ever feeling noisy.
The Grounds and Other Facilities
There’s an on-site wellness centre with a good selection of beauty treatments, massages, and hammam experiences. Next door, there’s a small gym, and there’s a yoga and fitness platform overlooking the gardens. The activity programme also includes some fitness sessions throughout the resort as well as yoga.
Kids
The luxury childcare association runs the Phiome kids’ club, and it can be booked online. It’s free to use and open for ages 4-12.
There are morning and afternoon sessions Monday-Saturday. Sometimes the children stayed on site; other times there were treasure hunts and trips to the beach. This is one of the best kids’ clubs we’ve experienced.
We visited the games room on the last evening, and it was well set up, with good air conditioning and a mini-library. It’s in the same location as the spa.
Check-Out
All food, drink, and services were charged to the room and payable at the end of the stay. The total bill included the €15-per-room-per-day tax paid at 5-star hotels in Greece. This was an easy way to settle the bill rather than having to pre-load an account or carry cards around the resort. A minibus was waiting for us to take us to the transfer coach.
Parga
A large hill and Parga Castle separate Valtos Beach from the town of Parga. It’s walkable via an extremely steep hill, then downwards through the old town.
There’s also a frequent water taxi for just €3. Many guests used this to go into Parga for dinner each night. You’ll get lovely views of the castle along the way, and the journey is just 10 minutes.
If you do decide to walk, it’s well worth taking the opportunity to explore Parga Castle. You can look across Valtos Beach on one side and out towards the red-tiled roofs of Parga on the other. There are also some lovely bars and tavernas at the top with reasonable pricing.
The town itself is well-worth a wander. You’ll find lots of boutiques, souvenir shops, pharmacies, bakeries and more. Along the waterfront, there are lots of tavernas, and you can also walk to Kryoneri Beach in just a few minutes.
Loyalty Club
Parga Beach runs the Lush Community Loyalty Programme. Membership is free and includes direct-booking discounts and special offers, plus the ability to earn and redeem points on future stays, as well as discounts on spa treatments and room upgrades. You’ll also find deals on the resort’s offer page.
The main benefits of booking direct are the pricing and complimentary transfers to the airport or port for stays of 5+ nights. It can work out much cheaper than a package that books a room and includes free transfers, and then booking flights separately.
Final Words
We had a fantastic time here, and it exceeded all our expectations. We wanted to visit somewhere on the mainland coast of Greece, but we’ve found a very special resort we will return to!
The private pool, beautiful gardens, huge choice of quieter swimming spots and easy access to Parga made this one of the most relaxing resort stays we’ve experienced.
