Elite Residence
Elite Residence is a 15-room hotel at Kalamaki, a small seaside village on the south coast of Heraklion prefecture, three minutes’ walk from the sea. It scores 8.6 on Booking.com across 111 reviews, while its Tripadvisor page holds only 5 reviews, all at Excellent, so the Booking.com record carries this review. Rooms are modern and well equipped, the rate is about 46 euro a night, and the walls are thin.
Crete Locals has no commercial relationship with this hotel. We earn a commission if you book through the availability links on this page, at no cost to you and with no effect on what we write; both ratings were read on the date in the table.
Hotel information
| Hotel | Elite Residence |
|---|---|
| Address | Καλαμάκι 70200 |
| Type | Air conditioning · Airport shuttle |
| Style | 15-room hotel and apartments at Kalamaki, on the Messara bay of the south coast |
| Signature | A rooftop suite with a sunset terrace, at the cheapest rate in this batch |
| Rooms | 15 rooms and apartments, several with well-equipped kitchens |
| Review record | 8.6 from 111 Booking.com guests; Tripadvisor holds only 5 reviews, all at Excellent |
| Sub-scores | Staff 9.2, cleanliness 9.1, wifi 8.3 on Booking.com |
| Watch for | Thin walls, with hallway noise reaching the rooms |
| Rate | About 46 euro a night in our records |
| On foot | One minute to the shops, three minutes to the sea |
| Airport | Heraklion (HER) about 65 km northeast, roughly an hour and 10 minutes |
| Booking.com rating | 8.6/10 (111 reviews) |
| Tripadvisor rating | 5.0/5 (5 reviews) |
| CreteLocals score | 8.1/10 · read the verdict |
Booking.com and Tripadvisor scores checked on September 28, 2026.
Location
Elite Residence is located at Καλαμάκι 70200, in Kalamaki Heraklion. The map below shows the exact spot; Google Maps and Waze give turn-by-turn directions.
Who Elite Residence suits, and who should skip it
Elite Residence suits travellers who want a clean, modern, well-equipped room in a quiet village a minute from the shops and three from the sea, at the lowest rate in this batch. It suits short stays and touring stops. Anyone who needs a pool, a restaurant or soundproofing between rooms should book at Matala or on the north coast.
Advantages
- 8.6 on Booking.com across 111 reviews, with cleanliness at 9.1
- A rooftop suite with a terrace, and sunsets guests single out
- Rooms with well-equipped kitchens, and air conditioning guests call quiet
- A minute’s walk from shops and three minutes from the sea
- About 46 euro a night, the cheapest property in this batch
- A lift and free parking, with airport transfers arranged on request
Disadvantages
- Thin walls, with noise from the hallway reaching the rooms
- Only 5 Tripadvisor reviews, so one platform carries the evidence
- The basement room has smaller windows and less natural light
- No pool and no restaurant at the property
- Wifi scored 8.3 on Booking.com, adequate rather than strong
- Kalamaki is a quiet village, so evenings mean a short drive for variety
The rooms: 15 keys, including one on the roof
Elite Residence runs 15 rooms and apartments, and the two categories guests write about sit at opposite ends of the building. The rooftop suite has a terrace with a sunset view and is the one to ask for; the basement apartment is large with a well-equipped kitchen and smaller windows, and the guest who stayed there reports enough natural light to be comfortable.
Expect a serviced apartment rather than a hotel. Reviewers describe very clean rooms, modern bathrooms, tasteful furnishing, quiet air conditioning and everything working as it should, and the recurring caveat is acoustic: the walls are thin enough that sounds from the hallway carry into the room.
Kalamaki, and what 46 euro buys on the south coast
Kalamaki is a low-key village on the Messara bay, west of Matala and below the Phaistos ridge, with a long beach, a handful of tavernas and shops, and none of the Matala coach traffic. The hotel sits a minute from the shops and three from the water, which in a village this size means everything is on foot.
The value is the story. At about 46 euro a night this is the cheapest property in this batch, and the sub-scores show no corners cut where it matters: cleanliness 9.1, staff 9.2, and guests reporting fully equipped kitchens, a lift and free parking. Reviewers in four languages describe the same combination of clean, functional and well located.
What is missing is what you would expect at the price. There is no pool, no restaurant and no bar, so the hotel is a base rather than a destination, and the thin walls mean a noisy neighbour is your problem too. Ask for the rooftop suite if it is free, both for the terrace and for the distance from the corridor.
How to get there
Fly into Heraklion airport (HER), about 65 km northeast, roughly an hour and 10 minutes by road across the Messara plain.
Hire a car for a stay at Kalamaki, because the south coast villages are spread out and Phaistos, Gortyna, Matala and Kommos beach are all short drives; the terms to check are in our car hire guide for Crete. Pre-book a transfer if you would rather not drive after landing, using the operators in our guide to taxi and transfer services in Crete, and note that the hotel arranges transfers on request. Within the village everything is walkable.
The Crete Locals review
Elite Residence earns 8.1 from us. An 8.6 across 111 Booking.com reviews is a fair record for a small property, cleanliness scores 9.1 and staff 9.2, and the 5 reviews on Tripadvisor tell us nothing either way.
As a place to sleep on the south coast this is hard to fault at the price. Modern rooms with kitchens, quiet air conditioning, a lift, free parking, a rooftop terrace with a sunset, a minute from the shops and three from the sea, for around 46 euro a night. For a touring couple working their way along the south coast, it is a sensible stop.
The limits are the thin walls and the absence of facilities. Guests raise the noise between rooms and corridors more than once, which at this rate is a reasonable compromise but worth knowing, and the hotel provides no pool, restaurant or bar, so the village supplies the evening. The Tripadvisor sample is too small to test any of this.
Book Elite Residence for a couple of nights at Kalamaki in the rooftop suite, with a car and dinner in the village. Book at Matala or on the north coast if you want a pool and a restaurant on site.
