Eftalou Hotel



About
Looking for a place to stay in Eftalou? Then look no further than Eftalou Hotel, a charming hotel that brings the best of Eftalou to your doorstep.
Guest rooms offer a refrigerator, air conditioning, and a desk, and Eftalou Hotel makes getting online easy as free wifi is available.
You can also take advantage of some of the amenities offered by the hotel, including room service and a concierge. In addition, guests can enjoy a pool and an on-site restaurant during their visit. As an added convenience, there is free parking available to guests.
If you like Greek restaurants, Eftalou Hotel is conveniently located near Golden Beach and I Eftalou.
We’re sure you’ll enjoy your stay at Eftalou Hotel as you experience everything Eftalou has to offer.
Location
Reviews
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OK the facts: Flight ok - 3 hours 10 Gatwick to Mytilene. Thomson flight (very cramped legroom on our flight but bearable). straightforward arrival, luggage collection, finding transfer coach, helpful rep. 1 hour 40 transfer to hotel, but beautiful scenery, very careful coach driver who took it slowly and ok commentary from transfer rep. Very quick check in at hotel. Very hot but wonderful sea breezes throughout the day.
The Hotel: about 40 rooms, kept very clean throughout, plenty of areas with comfy chairs, tv etc if you just want to sit and read etc. The rooms: certainly big enough for 2 and I believe there are larger family rooms. Basic but clean, plenty of storage and wardrobe space. Comfy beds (we slept better than at home!!) All rooms have (free) air con, fridges and tv's (TV is all greek though with one channel showing random english speaking programs!!) and terraces with table and chairs. We were in room 313 looking out over the gardens and to the sea. Originally in a room on a floor lower but were changed on request with no problem or hassle at all. The aircon only works if the window and terrace door are shut (they have sensors) and the window has a flyscreen fitted so you can have fresh air without the insects!! Very hot in August so the aircon was a Godsend (25 deg overnight on lowest fan setting worked best for us!!). Fridges are only stocked on demand, so if you want anything putting in just ask at reception. No tea/coffee making facilities so take a travel kettle if that’s important to you. The bathrooms are fine although the one fault is the shower. Fairly small shower cubicle with nowhere to stand shampoo etc apart from floor. The shower fittings for some bizarre reason have been sited at waist level so you have to have one handed showers. Easy to get used to but not ideal. Plenty of hot and decent pressured water at all times and no sudden cold water surprises!! Rooms are cleaned every day, towels changed every 3 days I think but just ask for fresh if required. You need to take your own beach/pool towels as they are not provided.
There were a few mosquitos out and about but nothing major.
There is a book exchange on the 1st floor. A bit low on English books but I’ve left 9 so please please people, keep adding to it – it makes a big difference to us readers!!!!
Its sister hotel (Sunrise) is a minute up the hill. Possibly a slightly more luxurious hotel great for cocktails and the view but outclassed by the Eftalou in terms of charm, the pool and grounds.
The Pool: absolutely fantastic!!! Good sized pool,very warm, very clean (refurbished 3 month ago) and cleaned every night. It is in beautifully kept gardens, palm trees, vines, flowering shrubs. Plenty of shady areas with tables and chairs. We prefer a pool to the beach and this one was the best we saw all holiday. Very quiet in the mornings, an abundance of sunbeds (there was a a huge extra stack that was never touched while we were there) and plenty of umbrellas. No-one getting up at 6am to reserve a bed. It got a little busier after lunch as people from other hotels and some of the locals come to use it but it never got noisy, rowdy or overcrowded. 2 small shallower pools attached for children which they seemed to love!! Lovely, lovely pool area, kept immaculate by the staff.
Food: Breakfast was certainly adequate for most people. Continental options (cheese, meats, tomato,hard boiled eggs etc) Hot food (eggs, bacon, or sausage) plenty of breads, cakes, cereals and yoghurts etc. You won’t starve! Would have liked to have seen some fresh fruit – it is tinned, but hey, there are plenty of shops selling fresh if you want it and there are lots of fig trees in the gardens!! Attached to the hotel is the excellent Fantastico Pizzeria. Amazing pizzas, but lots of other fabulous choices as well. Superb spit roasted chicken, huge salads and a good choice of mouthwatering Greek specials every day. Even the fussiest eater will be very happy!! Run by Maria and ‘the boys’! A great team who can’t do enough for you.
Facilities: There is free wifi and a pc if you don’t have your own laptop. The hotel runs a shuttle bus to and from Molyvos 4 times a day. Very strange times though and we only ever used the 11pm home from Molyvos. The public bus service is ok – 1.40 euros each way regardless of where you’re going but the last one back from Molyvos is about 9pm. (bus stop right outside hotel) Taxis to and from Molyvos are a fixed 5 euros. Molyvos is the medieval town 3 kms away. Very beautiful narrow cobble streets that wind and meander up the hill to the castle at the top. You can wander for hours, through tiny courtyards, shops, archways of flowers and have stunning views across the bay. It is all cobbled, quite steep at times and very hot work!! Anyone with mobility problems will possibly struggle. The whole village is set on a steep hill and looking up you can see the balconies for some of the restaurant precariously overhanging!! A much easier route is to the harbour area which is lovely. Plenty of restaurants and bars (we didn’t have a bad meal in any of them). Livelier bars and music down by the beach. It took us about 10 minutes for a slow wander from the bus drop-off to the harbour (it’s still hot work!) as the road slopes up and then down but it is beautiful views over the sea with some lovely bars etc on the way if you want a breather. A Taxi/car/scooter can take you virtually to the harbour if walking is an issue. Very traditional and greek with the fishing boats, octopus drying in the sun. Wherever you choose to go in Molyvos it’s very relaxing, not rowdy or touristy and a great place to just relax and people watch. The bars seem to run until about 3am if you’re a night owl.
The bus service also runs to Petra and Anaxos the next towns along (about 10 mins away) Much better beaches that Eftalou but a bit more ‘touristy’. We were advised by a local not to swim at Petra as none of the locals will so I’m guessing there may be an issue with the water quality?
Lesvos is a beautiful island. A very diverse mixture of volcanic barren areas, beautiful pine forests and miles of olive groves. If you like to get out and about it doesn’t have much to offer in terms of historic or interesting places to see, but it is lovely to drive through the tiny villages and stunning scenery. Be prepared to perform 16 poin t turns if you get lost in any of the villages!!) The roads are good but very very winding. There is a lot of driving in 2nd gear! Looks great for cycling and walking if that’s your thing. We hired a scooter for 3 days (13 euros a day) for local exploring and a car for 1 day (30 euros) though Best car rental organised by reception. We drove south to Kalloni and then west to Sigri, a beautiful sandy bay with crystal water and a lovely taverna. There are showers on the beach and plently of natural shade. It doesn’t look far on the map but it does take about 6 hours round trip stopping for lunch, drinks, views etc!
If you want a quiet, relaxing holiday with plenty of charm and tradition, friendly people and great food then Lesvos is a great choice. If you want MacDonalds, English pubs and fish and chips then it’s not!!! Certainly one of the nicest Greek islands I’ve visited.
Finally a mention to the hotel staff. Walter, Alba and Geoffrey at reception are amazing. Nothing is too much trouble and everything comes with a smile. Everyone was pleasant, helpful and charming – it was a pleasure to meet them all. And of course Andrea the restaurant shaggy dog looked after by Maria!!! Very gentle and sweet with seven puppies by the pool who had just opened their eyes as we left. Spoilt and petted by everyone!!!
We don’t normally revisit places but would certainly come back here. Next time I will pack a cheap shower fitting and a tube of superglue, and also some kind of shower caddy!!! Apart from that it has everything!!!
On the return trip, head left out of the airport and walk for a couple of minutes to the taverna on the beach. One of the best departure lounges I've seen and you can sit by the sea until you see your flight coming in overhead!!
I hope you’ve managed to get something useful from this very long review. We have been so impressed with the Eftalou and the holiday overall – I hope you have the same great experience J



The Eftalou hotel itself was an excellent base 25 mins walk into Molyvos and 20 mins walk to the Eftalou Springs, which were one of our favourite highlights. As for the hotel there are a number of things, which we were a little disappointed with. The hotel itself needs a good clean, the public areas feel a bit dirty and the curtains are littered with dead squashed mozzies. The hotel advertises 3 bars; only 1 was ever open (the one attached to the restaurant/pizzeria). There is a large pool bar, which was never open and a bar in the hotel, which also never opened, it appeared that the management just couldn’t be bothered. The pool area is pleasant and probably the best feature of the hotel, it was always quiet and there was also room to grab some of that hot Greek sun, again the chairs and sun beds are naff and dirty and need updating.
The room itself was pleasantly surprising (in a good way) it was small, however quite good for Greek standards, which tend to be simple and minimal. We actually had a shower cubicle; I have only ever had a shower curtain in Greece. We were in room 312, which was probably one of the best as it had a lovely sea view Then we come on to the most annoying part of all, the hotel's rule is that you cannot bring any food or beverage into the hotel or your room that hasn’t been purchased by the hotel. We found this ludicrous and an absolute scam, there were families who had brought their kids cans of pop and crisps (cheaper option) who were then subsequently swooped on by hotel staff around the pool telling them they were not allowed to do this. I am sorry but for families who cannot afford to buy drinks and food every day this is very unfair and bullish. (We managed to sneak a bottle of red in together with a few packets of nuts......crisps........!!!!)
The restaurant/pizzeria was nice, but became samey after two weeks, the restaurant Boss can be a pleasant chap when he wants but for those who cannot take the Greek/Australian Sarcasm watch out- He called us "whinging pomms" (original eh he's probably right)
The receptionists are half friendly, however the hotel boss seemed a little moody, we were surprised as a lot of the reviews said this hotel was really friendly, anyway I will stop banging on about peoples personalities and get on with the report. The maids that cleaned our room need taking to one side and having a good training/guidance session on how to clean a room. By the end of the holiday I was wiping my finger over surfaces, which were filled with dust, the beds were not made on several occasions and the bins were also not emptied on several occasions (yes those bins in Greece where you deposit your toilet paper lovely!). Also the maids smoke when they are cleaning your room and you can smell this when you enter your room in the afternoon. (Health and Safety!)
The breakfasts are rubbish, we are not big breakfast people, but tinned peaches and the same cornflakes for two weeks began to take its toll, oh and bread, bread and more bread. I know it seems as if I really have it in for this hotel but if these things with a bit of effort could be improved upon would make the hotel a fabulous place because its position, flowers and fauna are lovely.
Molyvos- Well WOW what can we say, one of the nicest places we have been to in Europe and believe it or not comes close to the way the Maldives captured our Hearts. Everyone must go here once in their lives it’s an absolute Gem. From the beautiful Castle to the houses with their terracotta roofs tumbling down the hill, to the cobbled streets, wonderful restaurants high up with views as far as one can see, the ice cream parlours, the harbour, the dogs and cats (don’t worry they don’t bother you) the magic of it all is just so inspiring and takes you breath away.
Molly's bar is a must do as Paul and Martin are great hosts (English lads) and their bar is beautifully positioned overlooking the Harbour, the company and music are great we wondered if they had any jobs going as we really didn’t want to come back. (Let us know lads)
Eftalou Springs- We really enjoyed the bathhouse, however be warned it can reach 50 degrees and is not for those with high blood pressure or those who are no good in the heat. The bath house is full of minerals which may help with certain medical conditions, how this works is that you have to jump into the sea, into the bath then out into the sea.......... and so on.
Best of the West trip - Ok if you like spending 7 hours on a coach feeling a bit nauseous as you ride the bends, however we did see another side to the island and have some good photos and memories. Petrified Forest - not a forest but more of a crater with the odd petrified tree, however big Momma is Special!!!!
Maria the Tour Guide was certainly entertaining, a bit like a school headmistress but in a nice kind of way, she’s harmless really, just totally scared my husband when she bellowed at him to stop video recording as this was not allowed (poor thing turned white with fright).
Finally Molyvos will capture your heart, you will fall in love and never wish to depart. This is Greece as it should be NO neon lights, NO Karaoke. No Hooligans, No Brash bars and dance clubs (we are only 27 honest) Perfection, with excellent hospitality.
Go on give it a try you will love it. We enjoyed our stay in Molyvos so much; we have just booked another holiday in September, this time staying at the Olive Press. (We have never been to the same destination twice so that says something) Any further questions please email us on: dumbchild2001@yahoo.com.
We would definately recommend this hotel to anyone who wants a
nice relaxing holiday...
Molyvos itself is gorgeous especially sitting around in the harbour just watching the world go by and the fishing boats come in with their catch.
Cant wait to visit again - hopefully soon



It is a small hotel with only a few English customers,which was not a problem at all.It is family run,we chatted to the owners daughter in law who was very nice.It is well kept and a very relaxing place to be.Lovely grounds to walk around and it is quiet around the pool area,no problem getting a lounger or finding one in a relatively private spot.
Breakfast is between 8 and 10 am.There is cereal,a selection of bread which I though was very fresh and tasty,ham,cheese and a toasting machine.You could order eggs and bacon at a charge.
The room was surprisingly spacious,the website pictures do it no justice!It was clean and attended to daily including bed change.Good airconditioning and a stocked mini bar- water,soft drinks,beer,wine,spirits all at a very reasonable price.I had no experience of cigarette smoke from the maids in the room.
The hotels restaurant Fantastico is very good.Yes great pizzas but I had the steak,with mushroom sauce.Fantastic! So much so I had this twice during our week stay.
Shuttle service in the morning once and twice in the evening,get there in good time for the morning shuttle as it is popular.Failing that the taxi into Molyvos is 4 euros.To walk home at night it is a nice 25 min stroll.
Eftalou itself is a quiet area,untouched.You can walk down towards the hot springs,the road is very quiet and runs along the sea so you can stop for a swim or just take in the views.Molyvos is a beautiful town,I loved it.There is such a good atmosphere and at night the harbour is buzzing.You are spoilt for choice for restaurants here- the harbour,along the seafront,the main road and as you walk up the back cobbled streets there are some restaurants with balconys with amazing views across the sea.My must do was at the start of the night,a drink at Conga bar watching the sunset with chill music playing,wishing I was there now.
Another good town is Petra,more known for its beach.It is 9 euros from the hotel in a taxi and well worth it.Exploring the old town is interesting,a church is perched high up on a hill.At night the seafront area comes alive with tavernas and a lively atmosphere.I highly recommend the large patisserie on the corner for the best icecream with an extensive choice of flavours.
If like me you are a big animal lover be aware that there are a huge number of starving cats,and some dogs.They rely on any scraps,meals that can be given.I have never seen so many stray animals anywhere else abroad before.There doesn't appear to be any help for them.
All in all an excellant holiday.It is impossible not to relax here,if like me you like some lively nightlife you may be disappointed.A week was ample for me but this is the attraction for a lot of people,certainly the regular holidaymakers.
"We asked for a quiet room and they gave us a back room -quiet indeed, no sea view, but still pleasant view to a peaceful rural setting (olive groves and rolling hills, see my picture)."Read full review
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