Royal Marmin Bay Boutique & Art Hotel
Royal Marmin Bay Boutique and Art Hotel is an 88-room hotel built against a cliff between Elounda and Plaka, looking across the water to Spinalonga. Royal Marmin Bay scores 8.9 on Booking.com across 390 reviews and 4.4 on Tripadvisor across 984. The setting is the reason to come and the reason to check the practicalities: this is a steep site, and how you feel about that will decide the week.
We have no commercial relationship with this hotel. Crete Locals earns a commission if you book through the availability links on this page, at no cost to you, and it does not affect our verdict; both ratings were read on the date in the table.
Hotel information
| Hotel | Royal Marmin Bay Boutique & Art Hotel |
|---|---|
| Address | Elounda, Lasithi |
| Type | Adult only · Air conditioning |
| Style | Cliffside boutique hotel between Elounda and Plaka, facing Spinalonga |
| Signature | Private-pool rooms on terraces above quiet swimming water |
| Keys | 88 rooms and suites across the levels of the cliff |
| Dining | Samurai Sushi Bar and Restaurant on site, plus a welcome wine tasting on the first night |
| Terrain | Steep; buggy service and outdoor lifts move guests between levels |
| Getting out | Plaka is a taxi of about 10 euros; Elounda is a 30-minute walk |
| Watch for | Repeat criticism of the poolside lounger mattresses |
| Airport | Heraklion (HER) about 75 km west, roughly an hour and a quarter |
| Booking.com rating | 8.9/10 (390 reviews) |
| Tripadvisor rating | 4.4/5 (984 reviews) |
| CreteLocals score | 8.1/10 · read the verdict |
Booking.com and Tripadvisor scores checked on September 25, 2026.
Location
Royal Marmin Bay Boutique & Art Hotel is located at Elounda, Lasithi, in Elounda town. The map below shows the exact spot; Google Maps and Waze give turn-by-turn directions.
Who Royal Marmin Bay suits, and who should skip it
Royal Marmin Bay suits couples who want a private pool with a view of Spinalonga and quiet water to swim in. It suits guests happy to take a buggy or a lift between levels rather than walk. Anyone with mobility difficulties should weigh the terrain carefully, and anyone wanting to walk to a village for dinner should know that Plaka is a taxi ride rather than a stroll.
Advantages
- Cliffside position with sea views across to Spinalonga and Elounda
- Private-pool rooms that guests describe as spacious, bright and worth the money
- Quiet, tranquil atmosphere even in early July, per recent reviews
- Complimentary wine tasting on the first night
- Samurai Sushi Bar and Restaurant on site for Japanese cooking
- Buggy service and outdoor lifts to move guests around the slope
Disadvantages
- Steep hillside site, which guests flag as difficult for anyone with mobility issues
- Poolside mattresses draw specific criticism in more than one review
- Plaka needs a taxi of about 10 euros, because the roads are narrow and unwalkable
- Elounda is a 30-minute walk, which is a long way back after dinner
- 4.4 on Tripadvisor across 984 reviews is the weaker half of this batch
- 78 of those reviews sit at Average, which is a visible share
The rooms: 88 keys, and the private pool is the one to book
Royal Marmin Bay runs 88 rooms and suites across the terraces of the cliff, and the private-pool categories are the ones guests single out. Reviewers describe them as spacious, beautifully decorated and bright, and say the supplement was worth paying, which is not what guests usually conclude about private pools.
Ask two questions before booking: which level your room sits on, and how you reach the sea and the restaurants from it. The hotel runs buggies and outdoor lifts precisely because the answer varies, and a room at the wrong height is the difference between a relaxing week and a daily logistical exercise.
The view, the sushi bar and the walk to dinner
The outlook is the product. From the terraces the view runs across the bay to Spinalonga, the Venetian island fortress that later became a leper colony and is now the most visited site in eastern Crete, with Elounda spread along the shore. Guests describe the water below as calm and good for swimming, and the atmosphere as quiet even in the first half of July.
Dining on site includes Samurai, a sushi bar and restaurant, which is unusual for a hotel of this size in eastern Crete and useful given the geography. That geography is the catch: Plaka is a short taxi ride of around 10 euros because the roads between are narrow and not made for walking, and Elounda is a 30-minute walk each way. Guests who assumed they would stroll out to a taverna each evening have had to adjust.
How to get there
Fly into Heraklion airport (HER), about 75 km west, roughly an hour and a quarter by road via Agios Nikolaos. The hotel sits on the coast road north of Elounda, on the way to Plaka.
Pre-book a transfer, since the last stretch is a winding coastal road and the hotel entrance is on a slope; the operators are in our guide to taxi and transfer services in Crete. Hire a car if you want Spinalonga, Vai, the Lasithi plateau or Sitia under your own steam, and check the deposit and insurance terms in our car hire guide for Crete. Boats to Spinalonga leave from both Plaka and Elounda, which is the trip most guests make.
The Crete Locals review
Royal Marmin Bay earns 8.1 from us, and the score is a compromise between an exceptional setting and a mixed record. The position is genuinely rare: a cliff terrace facing Spinalonga, with quiet water below and private-pool rooms that guests say justified their price. Guests who booked those rooms write the warmest reviews, and the complimentary wine tasting on arrival is the kind of small gesture that sets a week up well.
Against that, 4.4 across 984 Tripadvisor reviews is the weakest large-sample rating in this batch, with 78 reviews at Average. The specific complaints are not dramatic, and the one that recurs is oddly mundane: the mattresses on the poolside loungers. When a hotel at this price point and with this view collects repeat criticism about sun-lounger padding, it suggests attention going to the spectacular and not the routine.
The terrain deserves a clear warning rather than a footnote. This is a steep hillside. The hotel provides buggies and outdoor lifts, which works, but guests with mobility difficulties should ask precisely how their room connects to the restaurant, the pool and the sea before they commit, and should consider whether a flat site would serve them better. Everyone else should simply expect to be driven or lifted rather than to wander.
Book Royal Marmin Bay for a couple’s week with a private pool and a Spinalonga view, and budget for taxis to Plaka and Elounda in the evening. Book in Elounda itself if you want to walk to dinner, or a flat coastal resort if steps and slopes are a problem.
