Located in North Nicosia (Lefkoşa), Cyprus, Cratos Premium Hotel is primarily known for its extensive casino offerings, attracting guests seeking a blend of luxury accommodation and gaming excitement. Reviews present a mixed but generally positive picture, highlighting strengths in its culinary experience and casino perks, alongside areas for improvement, particularly concerning seasonal climate control and staff consistency.
The Casino Experience 🎰
As a casino-centric hotel, Cratos Premium's gaming facilities receive significant attention. Patrons praise it as "the best Casino in North Cyprus," commending the "very nice and kind waiters and supervisor." The staff within the casino are noted for being "highly responsible and courteous," contributing to a pleasant gaming atmosphere. Guests also appreciate the provision of "premium beverages" and a "lavish dinner" offered to casino patrons, enhancing the overall experience.
However, a recurring and significant concern across multiple reviews is the air ventilation system within the casino. Non-smokers, in particular, find the "high level of smoke" to be "nearly impossible to survive there after a couple of hours." One review explicitly states the "ventilation system of the casino is very, very bad," making it "incredibly difficult" for non-smokers. This suggests a notable drawback for those sensitive to smoke.
Hotel Facilities & Services ✨
Dining 🍽️
The hotel's food receives widespread acclaim. Guests consistently praise the "amazing food" and "extremely good" desserts. One reviewer specifically highlights the desserts as exceptionally tasty compared to other hotel experiences. However, there are mentions of delays in the casino restaurant service, with one instance taking 20 minutes for a simple toast. The breakfast buffet also receives criticism for its drink service and the presentation/freshness of the cheese section, which were described as "prepared very carelessly" and dried out.
Spa & Wellness 🧖♀️
The spa facility is a definite highlight. One reviewer and their wife spent a day there, enjoying "a couple of treatments," and found the spa staff "excellent," treating them "incredibly well" even as non-residents. This suggests a high quality and welcoming spa environment that comes highly recommended.
Staff & Service Quality 🙋♂️
Opinions on staff service are quite polarized. Some guests describe staff as "helpful and good" and "excellent," suggesting positive interactions. Conversely, other reviews report a starkly different experience. One comprehensive negative review describes hotel staff as appearing to "hate the customers," with "sullen expressions" and a lack of warm interaction, calling the environment "incredibly soulless." This inconsistency suggests that guest experience with staff may vary significantly, impacting overall satisfaction for some.
Room Comfort & Climate Control 🌬️
Room comfort is a mixed bag, with a significant issue identified concerning air conditioning. Guests visiting in warmer shoulder seasons (e.g., April) report that the air conditioning was "shut down" because it was "not the season for air conditioning," leaving only heating available. This led to rooms being "too hot," necessitating open windows and resulting in mosquito bites. There were also complaints about humid rooms smelling strongly of cigarette smoke, despite being non-smoking rooms, and inadequate ventilation. This seasonal policy on AC can significantly impact comfort for guests sensitive to temperature.
Outdoor Areas & Sea Access 🏖️
The hotel's "beach and pool are very nice," providing attractive leisure options. However, outdoor activities, including the sea and open swimming pool, are closed during colder months (e.g., January). Additionally, the sea can be "harsh to swim" during certain seasons, leading to a recommendation against Cratos Premium for those purely seeking a sea holiday. Finding towels for the pool or beach was also reported as "incredibly difficult," indicating disorganization.
Location & Accessibility 📍
Cratos Premium Hotel's location is considered good, being "close to Girne (Kyrenia)," with a taxi ride taking "around 15 minutes" to the city center and costing approximately 300 TRY (as of January 2025), which is deemed reasonable.
Overall Summary and Recommendations ✅
Cratos Premium Hotel offers a luxurious experience with an emphasis on its casino. Its strengths lie in its generally high-quality food, particularly the desserts, and the attentive service within the casino. The spa also receives positive feedback. However, potential visitors should be aware of inconsistent staff demeanor, significant issues with casino and room ventilation (especially for non-smokers), and a rigid air conditioning policy that can lead to discomfort during unseasonably warm periods. The hotel's suitability for a sea holiday varies by season due to sea conditions.
The hotel is best suited for:
Casino Enthusiasts 🎲
Those primarily interested in a lively gaming environment with premium service at the tables and complimentary offerings.
Food Lovers 🍲
Guests who appreciate excellent buffet dining, especially the desserts, and are less concerned about minor service delays.
Spa Seekers 💆♀️
Individuals looking for a relaxing and well-serviced spa experience.
However, it might be less ideal for:
Non-Smokers Sensitive to Smoke 💨
Due to reported poor ventilation in the casino and potential smoke smell in rooms.
Guests Needing Consistent Air Conditioning 🥵
Especially during shoulder seasons when AC might be unavailable due to seasonal policies.
Beach-Focused Holidaymakers 🌊
As sea conditions can be harsh, and outdoor facilities are seasonal, and towel service can be challenging.
With some "minor improvements" in ventilation, climate control flexibility, and staff consistency, Cratos Premium Hotel has the potential to be an even more compelling destination for a wider range of guests.
My wife and I spent the day in the Spa and had a couple if treatments, we then stayed for a meal in your restaurant. Your staff were all excellent and although we were not residents in the hotel they treated us incredibly well. We had a fantastic day, we will certainly recommend you to our friends.Thank you
Booked for 2 nights , is an amazing hotel and amazing food, but on April 24-25 it was. Too hoot we asked how do we put aircondition in the room the answer we got is that is not the season for aircondition and is shut down only available was the heating which was unbelievable, we ended up opening windows which was still hot and we got beaten by mosquitoes as well as our kid which was very annoying
The best Casino in the North Cyprusvery nice and kind waiters and supervisorAll personnel at this casino are highly responsible and courteous. Moreover, premium beverages are served, and a lavish dinner is also offered.
Hotel’s location is good and close to Girne (Kyrenia). The road takes around 15 minutes from hotel to Girne centrum. As of January 2025, we paid 300 TRY for the taxi which is reasonable.Food and deserts were extremely good. We really were enjoyed them during our stay. I can easily say that I have experienced tasty dishes in my previous experiences in other hotels too. However, the first time, I am having that much of tasty desserts in any hotel. Congrats to the team.Moreover, staff is helpful and good. Thanks to their efforts too.Since we visited there during January all outdoor activities were closed including sea and open swimming pool. Even if you wanna try outdoor pool with taking your own responsibility, it is closed due to the chilly weather and season.Service in casino part is also good in general. Sometimes, you can expect some delays in restaurant part in casino. One time, it took 20 minutes to have one simple toast due to the a couple of waiters’ attitude. However, in overall the place was great and it would be unfair to judge badly because of one negative example.Moreover, casino part needs a better air ventilation system because of high level of smoke, for sure. After a couple of hours, it is nearly impossible to survive there for a non-smoking people.During season, sea can be harsh to swim. Thus, I don’t recommend there if you wanna purely experience a sea holiday. It may not be so convenient for you.As a summary, we really enjoyed during our stay. With some minor improvements, the place would be a really good place.According to purpose of your visit, you can enjoy a lot as we do.
The hotel's beach and pool are very nice, but you will also encounter many disturbing situations.I have traveled to more than hundred countries, and I still do, I have stayed in hundreds of different hotels, and I have never seen a hotel on this earth where the hotel staff hates the customers so much from the moment you enter the hotel. Everyone's face is sullen, no one is smiling. You greet by saying "Hello, how are you?", they respond with "Thank you." I have never come across a person who responds with "How are you?", "Are you feeling well?", "Is everything okay?". It was just a simple monologue.In the breakfast; you say "Hello, good morning, how are you?" with positive vibes, smiling face, energetically, and they respond with "Hello, tea or coffee?" with a sullen expression. An incredibly soulless environment. I cannot describe it. The training given to the staff is extremely inadequate, the people selected do not like their jobs or are not suitable for their jobs.This is a 5-star facility, Casino Hotel. People come here to have a good time, not to suffer. From the very first minute, you start arguing with the hotel staff about the procedure of conditioning in the winter season being like this and the procedure in the summer season being like this because the air conditioner's ventilation function doesn't work!!! They changed our room but the room which they've changed had the same problem. Since we didn't want to change our room many times, we tried to ignore this situation, although it was difficult. Especially in Europe, in certain months designated as winter season for environmental protection and energy saving, the air conditioner's cooling function doesn't work but the humidity reducing function always works. We have never encountered such a thing in Las Vegas. In addition, you don't go to Cratos to meet your daily room needs (such as bed, shower, etc.). You go to there to have a good time and have fun. However, whether the room is warm or cool varies from person to person. Some feel warm, some feel cold. The hotel should provide service to satisfy the customers. Just imagine; could it be an air conditioning system that only blows hot air because some customers want it hot?Also, the room is humid and smells strongly of cigarette smoke, let alone a non-smoker, even a smoker wants the room to be ventilated. They should have already ventilated the room before the customer entered the hotel, but they did not do this either. You definitely do not feel comfortable.We have never seen anything like this in hotels in Las Vegas or Macau. Because everyone comes from different parts of the world, people's perceptions of air conditioning vary, and customer comfort is important in these types of Casino Hotels.Also, why do we have to wait 20 minutes every time for the person serving in the open buffet restaurant to bring a glass of drink or bring a glass of tea? You have to wait incredibly long, even though the hotel is not crowded.The lack of a separate drink stand where everyone can refill their drinks on their own is a big deficiency.The cheese section of the open buffet was prepared very carelessly. Most of the cheddar and kashkaval cheeses had dried out because they were kept outside or in the refrigerator long time. They were not ashamed to serve the same products every day. Not a single chef or a manager were aware of this situation.The ventilation system of the casino is very, very bad. People may smoke in casino, but there must a ventilation system accordingly to meet the demand. I can say that inside of the casino was covered in smoke. They do everything they can, to kick us out of the casino. It is unbelievable.It is incredibly difficult to find towels for the pool or the beach. When you ask where you can get a towel, and they tell you "go here and they will give it to you from there". You go to the place they describe you, at that place, they say "no, towels are not given here, you have to go there". You go there and you wait for them to bring towels. It's a disjointed, unorganized hotel.