Our Stay at the Proteas Blu Resort, Samos

After two and a half years in the UK, it was time to brush the dust off our passports (newly and pointlessly renewed three years ago) and dip our toes into international travel once more. For our first foreign holiday since September 2019 we chose a package with TUI, the Greek island of Samos, and a B&B stay at the adult only Proteas Blu Resort, just outside the town of Pythagoreio.

Why choose a package holiday? I’ve written more about our decision, along with other thoughts about travelling post-pandemic and post-Brexit.

Returning to Travel – Has It Changed?

Arrival and Check-In

The Proteas Blu Resort is only a 15 minute coach transfer from the airport. We wind our way down a driveway from the main road; first impressions are that it’s very clean and elegant, all shiny floors and pink flower displays. In all honesty though, it’s not the greatest start from the hotel. The welcome drink goes down a treat but then we’re left for over an hour in the lounge while everyone is shown to their rooms one by one. By one person. Naturally we’re last. I’ve been awake for 30 hours now. We’ve travelled long haul and got from home to hotel room quicker than this.

Our Room

Our double room is on the first floor of the main building, below reception and the Panorama Restaurant. It’s spacious, with plenty of storage space and plug sockets (plug, not USB so don’t forget your adapters). There’s a couch, which quickly becomes a dumping ground for, well, everything. We have a balcony with views of the sea and Mount Mycale on the Turkish mainland opposite. Bright pink bougainvillea tumbles down the side of the building.

The bathroom – unusually for Greece – has a bath and a shower, and a proper shower screen rather than a curtain which sticks to you every time you shower. There are mini toiletries, bathrobes and slippers. A pair of which may have found their way into my suitcase home, to replace the ones “borrowed” from our Milan hotel seven years ago.

Water, beer and soft drinks are in a mini bar, with all items priced at €3. Yes, beer costs the same as a bottle of water. Housekeeping do leave plenty of free bottled water each day though, and there are a couple of bottles left on arrival (along with bananas and a bottle of local wine). We did find that we were charged for beer on a couple of occasions when housekeeping hadn’t left us replacements, although we found this evened itself out by the end of the week.

Dining & Drinking

The main restaurant at Proteas Blu is the Panorama, located in the main building above reception. This is where breakfast and dinner buffet is served. If you’re not on a half-board option, dinner is €30 per person (excluding drinks). You don’t need to wait to be seated, but you will be asked for your room number if you want to charge costs to your overall bill. The outside front terrace seats are the most sought after, where you can gaze across to Turkey as you dine.

There are plenty of great salad and dessert options, and a decent variety of main courses, although sadly the quantity was lacking – I think I went up between refills. Worth €30 per person though? Probably not. The breakfast was great though, with all the usual suspects available. Tea and coffee is served to the table, everything else is buffet service.

There’s also a seafood and fish restaurant located in a boat above the beach. Reservations should be made at reception as there are only limited covers available each evening. Sadly we couldn’t find any information regarding menus or prices.

In fact, I find that there’s something of a lack of info regarding the resort on the whole; we get a list of opening times for facilities but not much else. At the very least, the cost of the buffet dinner at Panorama should be made available; especially as there are few other evening dining options available in the immediate vicinity.

We tended to have lunch at the Simplicity poolside restaurant – portions are generous and definitely shareable between two. There’s a stripped back version of the Simplicity menu available for room service too. The club sandwich is a perfect snack option, and is served from 11am until late.

There’s a lounge bar next to reception, although apart from on arrival we never saw this staffed. Our bar of choice was the Cavo Pountes beach bar, the perfect spot for a coffee, a beer or a cocktail. The drinks menu and costs are the same at all of the bars; cocktails are strong and contain generous amounts of alcohol.

The live music down at the Cavo Pountes bar was, well, mildly entertaining. Maybe all the crowd pleasers were in the second half of the show – we didn’t stick around long enough to find out.

The Proteas Blu Resort

The resort tumbles down a hillside to a beautiful pool overlooking a narrow pebbly beach with loungers, daybeds and hammocks in the sea. The shoreline is very rocky underfoot. I rued not bringing our water shoes, which were still sitting, forgotten, on our bedroom floor.

Naturally, all this is found at the bottom of a hill. There’s little shade on the steep walk back up so pick your timing carefully if your room is near the main building at the top. I came over all “delicate-Victorian-flower” on Day 1 and Mr Fletche had to go seek out water for me. On the second day we spotted “the bus stop”. This is where you can call for the little golf cart to take you back up the hill. Game-changer.

The daybeds on the beach are the best if you fancy a mixture of sunshine and shade. A bit of creative construction with a beach towel or two (take some of those fancy clips if you can – or hair grips work too!) gives coverage if you’re a delicate pale flower like Mr Fletche. Regardless of the shade, remember to slather on copious amounts of suntan lotion.

Out and About

I had visions of strolling the mile or so into the town of Pythagoreio for a sundowner or two, or to pick up essential room supplies. However, the walk is alongside a main road with no pavements, narrow bends and lots of hills. Definitely not recommended. A taxi is €7 each way; reception at the Proteas Blu can arrange this. The taxi drop off and pick up are at the same point, at the top of the main shopping street. There are plenty of places to eat and drink; I recommend Theory Street and Corner Bar for cocktails, and La Strada and Remataki for food. Oh, and Orange Gelataria for ice cream. There are also gift shops, local boutiques and minimarkets, along with plenty of car rental and boat trip vendors.

If you’re visiting in the daytime then make sure you pay a visit to Blue Street, a stunning little narrow street decked out in those classic Greek white and blue colours.

Kokkari

Kokkari, on the north of the island, is definitely worth a visit. There’s a plethora of cocktail bars and traditional restaurants lining the waterfront, and plenty of little shops for souvenirs or essential supplies. If you’re travelling with TUI there’s a coach transfer service two evenings a week, and you get four hours in the town – ample time for sightseeing, eating and drinking.

We could have booked a boat trip from any of the multiple vendors along Pythagoreio harbour but we decided to continue the No-stress theme and booked a TUI excursion. Boarding at Pythagoreio, this full day trip takes in the east coast of Samos, sailing along the Mycale Strait, with a swim stop in Posidonio and three hours of beach and BBQ time at Megali Lakka.

The walk from the boat to Megali Lakka beach is along a short but rocky trail. Those wearing flip flops struggled a little so pop on a sturdier pair of pumps. Especially as you’ll have to pop back to the boat if you want the loo.

The beach is sandy but the shallow waters are extremely pebbly – I wouldn’t recommend going in without water shoes. If you fancy a swim I’d recommend you swim from the boat at Posidonio instead. You get about 20 minutes swimming time, there’s a ladder into the water or you can jump from the boat if that’s your thing. It is definitely not Mr Fletche’s kind of thing.

So what did we spend?

With TUI, 7 nights B&B at Proteas Blu for 2 people in a double/twin room with sea view was £1420 (including online discounts and promotional offer). This doesn’t include the €2 per person per night hotel tax, paid on departure. There are plenty of other accommodation options on Samos, both with TUI and through other operators.

We spent £106 on excursions: the evening trip to Kokkari and the Boat Cruise to Megali Lakka. And we spent £550 on food, drink and other expenses (including taxis to Pythagoreio and supermarket supplies).

Reflections on our stay at Proteas Blu

Despite a few niggles, Proteas Blu was an ideal hotel for our first foray back into travel. It offered us that little bit of luxury and tranquillity we were craving. In fact, the overall vibe on Samos was tranquillity and relaxation. We would have liked to have been a little closer to the town rather than having to pay for taxis, as food and drink were costly at the hotel. And although the staff were friendly and efficient, customer service in some areas were a little lacking. We’re also aware that a lot of hotels and resorts are finding their feet again after two years of practically no foreign tourism and so we were happy to cut them a little slack.

I fall in love with every Greek island I visit, but with so many more to explore I’m not sure whether a return to Samos would be on the cards. However I do highly recommend Samos for a perfect Greek getaway without the crowds and over-tourism that plague other islands.