Are Ikos Resorts really worth it?

If I had a coin for every time I got asked this question, I probably would have built a house by now. Are Ikos resorts really worth it? Are they actually worth the hype? These are very fair questions considering how pricey a stay at Ikos resorts can be.

The short answer to this question is Yes, Ikos resorts are really worth it and I will tell you why. For reference, we stayed at Ikos Dassia in Corfu, Greece for 6 days, the last week in April. Therefore my conclusion is specific to our experience in this resort. However, from research, the Ikos resorts in Spain and Greece are quite similar. I would assume that my experience at Dassia is similar to the other Ikos resorts. 

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About Ikos Resorts

Ikos Resorts are the ultimate 5 star “fly and flop”, unconditional luxury beach front resorts. At the moment, there are 8 Ikos resorts spread across Spain and Greece. They include Ikos Andalusia in Marbella and Ikos Porto Petro in Mallorca. In Greece, Ikos Dassia and Ikos Odisia in Corfu, Ikos Aria in Kos, Ikos Olivia and Ikos Oceania in Halikidiki. Finally, the newly opened Ikos Kissamos in Crete. There is most likely another Ikos being planned but for now, these are the 8 anyone can book.

Now, to answer the question “are Ikos resorts really worth it”? Let me give you 10 reasons why I think the Ikos resorts are worth it.

What are the pros of Ikos Resorts?

1. It is a Fully Luxury Holiday 

Ikos resorts have figured out a way to remain a luxury holiday even though you are technically parenting in a different location lol. As we got out of the car at the entrance of the resort, there was concierge waiting to greet us. Our bags were collected and we were ushered to reception. Concierge took our passports and while we waited, we were served welcome drinks. As far as luxury goes, it does feel like the typical luxury check in received in luxury hotels. 

Aesthetically, there is a minimal feel to the architecture but with rich gold accents. The entire resort has a bougie feel to it, so in terms of luxury, it definitely ticks the box.

2. Digitalised experience

I could not help but notice how things were digitalised. Once my payment for the trip went through, I received an email informing me to download the Ikos app. From then, everything was done via app until we arrived to the resort. I reserved our restaurants for the first 3 days, our daughter’s kid’s club spot and even picked the date for our complimentary car hire experience.

3. All inclusive really means everything is included

I have stayed in a number of all inclusives and Ikos Dassia is the best so far. Most recently, we have been picking half board experiences because we are typically a breakfast and dinner type of family. However, for Ikos, lodging had to be all inclusive which is the only level of boarding offered. Being all inclusive worked out perfectly because I was pregnant and needed to eat every other hour.

The food offerings were fantastic – very tasty, high quality and A LOT of options. Menus were apparently designed by Michelin-star chefs; premium wines, incredible experiences, everything is included.

There were gelatarias where you could just walk up and order an ice cream. Cocktails were strong and not watered down at all (Mr E confirmed this). The quality of red and white wines were also top notch. Basically, this all inclusive restaurant is not like the typical “brit abroad” all inclusives. The fridge in the room was also fully stocked with alcoholic and non alcoholic drinks; these were replaced daily.

4. Seeing more of Corfu

One thing I loved about Ikos Dassia was the intentional focus on making sure hotel residents see more of Corfu. All inclusive resorts can feel quite restrictive and it is easy to stay in the resort for the whole trip. No judgement from me at all but no matter where I stay, I always love to explore outside the hotel/resort.

At Ikos, there is a free bus shuttle to/fro the town Old town daily so there is no reason why you should not see outside the resort. My favourite experience was hiring the electric MINI Countryman cars. They are available to hire for free by guests with a valid driving license for a day. This allowed us spend a day in Pelekas village and Palekritas beach. We were able to see more of Corfu’s beautiful coast as we drove around for the day.

5. Free Add ons

Following on from the free bus shuttle offered, we also took advantage of the free evening boat cruise. This guided tour lasted an hour 15 mins.

I was surprised that we had all these freebies which meant that we had the opportunity to tag experiences on to our trip. There were so many free daily activities one could partake in from tennis to yoga to pilates. All these free experiences are on the standard package so anyone who books a stay at Ikos Dassia has this available to them.

6. Incredibly friendly staff

Walking around the resort, we were greeted all the time with smiles on the staff’s faces. There was nothing that was too much for them to do. One way to know how professional staff is, is when they don’t pass you to the next person. Whenever we asked for help, they took it upon themselves to sort the issue out. Even with my experience of luxury hotel stays, only a few have got this part of staff training right and I can say that Ikos Dassia did. Staff would always greet you with “kalimera” and “kalispera“; finished with wholesome chats.

7. à la carte over buffet style restaurant service

For the foodie families, there was so much choice. We did not have enough time to try all the à la carte restaurants but the ones we tried were fantastic. Michelin styled presentation when our meal was served and so many wine choices made the food experience feel quite elevated.

Usually with all inclusive resorts, buffet is the focus while everyone scrambles to book the very few à la carte restaurants. Not at Ikos resorts. There seems to be a focus on eating à la carte before anything else. In fact, once our reservation was confirmed and payment received, I had to book 3 restaurants ahead of our trip.

8. Multi generation holidays

One thing I really noticed was the number of families there as 3 generations. It was not uncommon to see parents, kids and grandparents at Ikos Dassia. My friend who has been to other Ikos properties with her parents and kids confirmed that this is normal with Ikos resorts. 

There is something for every generation and I noticed that the adults-only areas had a fair ratio of older couples. At dinner, it was not out of place to see big table settings of 5 – 10 people. The daily activities offered by the hotel also took older people into consideration. Basically, Ikos is perfect for multi-gen all inclusive holidays where every age group will feel perfectly taken care of. 

9. the Cost is worth it

I will caveat this with saying that this cost I am referring to is due to the ultra luxurious experience. There is no doubt that Ikos is not a cheap holiday. In fact, the first time I had read about it, the comments were brutal. People couldn’t fathom paying that much for a holiday in Europe. However, I can say for a fact that it is very much worth a premium price tag.

Now, I will reiterate that we did not pay the £15k I had read somewhere. We paid a quarter of that for our 6 day stay. I genuinely would not have paid full price for the experience. Nevertheless, I could see why it is an expensive all inclusive holiday. In my opinion, it is not the typical European all inclusive but an elevated experience. 

10. For kids

This is also were the Ikos resorts outshine everywhere else. Although it is not advertised as specifically for kids, it is the ultimate family friendly resort. There is nothing that a child would want that they would not get from Ikos. The kids club in Ikos Dassia is just incredible and I am pretty sure that even a shy child would benefit from it. When we dropped our daughter, I had a peep and it looked like a typical preschool setting. 

There are all sorts of activities for kids to enjoy; including beach activities. We were surprised that my daughter wanted to try the “crazy couch” experience. By the end of our stay, she had made friends with the other children in kids club. There are children’s pools and a splash pad, ice cream stands which were a nice touch for the very hot afternoons. All restaurants had an abundance of high chairs, child friendly crockery, cutlery and of course children’s menus.

What are the cons of Ikos resorts?

The cost

The cost is both a pro and a con, depending on how you look at it. Ikos resorts are expensive. We got a fantastic deal but still, it was pricey. You could easily go to Thailand or Bali and have a luxurious stay for less than what we paid. The all inclusiveness is great and honestly, the experience was wonderful. However, I can understand if people won’t want to spend that much money to stay in Europe when they can fly further afield for less.

ADVANCE app pre booking

Regardless of when you book your trip, you are expected to pre-book at least 3 restaurants. For us, this was fine since I only booked the trip a few weeks before we travelled. But I can imagine that if I booked in January for a May trip, asking me to pre-book restaurants 5 months in advance can be annoying. A truly luxury à la carte restaurant offering should not feel rushed. However, failure to pre-book in advance could mean limited spaces in restaurants in high season.

basic rooms

I will admit that I was not at all wowed by our room. We stayed in a sea view junior suite and whilst it was big and functional, it was not quite memorable. My sea view was not quite fancy enough and the sea seemed so far away. Having stayed in some really luxury hotels with stunning rooms, the typical Ikos rooms are almost ordinary. Don’t get me wrong, it is cute but personally, I did not think it felt super luxury.

In contrast, the public spaces were beautiful and felt luxurious.

How to save money off Ikos resorts 

We have established that Ikos resorts are not particularly cheap. However, there are a few ways to make the cost more reasonable.

New Resorts

I noticed that when there is a new Ikos opening, there is usually a “first come” discount. Ikos Kissamos in Crete opened in 2026 and I had seen deals to book early to save up to 30% off. While I hardly advise to book a hotel before it is complete, for Ikos, I would book a new resort. The concept of all Ikos resorts are similar so there won’t be any surprises. 

Deals announced via socials

Just as new hotels are announced on Ikos’ social media channels, deals for their existing resorts are announced as well. A browse on the website showed what deals were being offered in each resort. It is worth following their instagram page so that you are the first to know when any real is announced.

Package Holidays

This was how we were able to save a chunk off our booking. We booked our Ikos Dassia trip via British Airways holidays as a package deal. This package included our flights to and fro London Gatwick airport (with 23kg check in luggage per person) for a 6 day stay in a Junior suite sea view room. We saw some deals on the Jet2 Holidays website as well. However, the BA holidays deal worked out better for our specific dates.

Travel Off season

I am not blind to the fact that we got a great discount because we went off season. We travelled the last week in April. This was after the Easter break and before the May bank holiday so children were back in school. While I understand that this is not a flexible option for parents with kids of school age, it is worth a shout. The same experience, 2 weeks earlier would have cost us £3,250 more for the 6 days just because it was the week of the Easter break.

Is the Deluxe experience worth it?

Once I had answered the million dollar “are ikos resorts really worth it” question, the next question that followed was about the deluxe experience. We skipped the Deluxe experience which would have cost £2k more and stuck to the standard experience. Considering all that we enjoyed in the standard experience, we did not think there was a need to go Deluxe.

The website says the Deluxe experience includes the upgraded dining experience, dedicated concierge service, complimentary transfer to/fro the airport, exclusive beach areas and the MINI countryman could be hired for 2 days. So it looks like it offers an even more elevated luxury experience over our standard one.

I suppose it comes down to preference.

I personally did not think there was much of a difference from the standard. Maybe that was due to us being there off season. I have seen comments about it being difficult to book more à la carte restaurants unless you are on the deluxe experience. However, this was not our experience. Our standard experience was fantastic enough. In our 6 days, we did not once wish we had a Deluxe package.

Is Ikos for couples?

Are Ikos resorts really worth it for couples? When I looked around, one thing was clear. It was very intentional for families. Personally, I did not think it was ideal for a romantic, intimate trip like a honeymoon or anniversary trip. However, I would say that for older couples, it definitely works. Perhaps this is where a deluxe experience could be better; if only for the more secluded side of the beach and the dedicated concierge service.

We saw a good number of much older couples and they did not look out of place. There are adult only areas and pools but they are still located off places like the kids club (in Ikos Dassia). I noticed that it was much older couples hanging out in those adult only areas. Ikos, in my opinion is for families. However, for adults who don’t mind hanging out with lots of kids, it’s a lovely resort as well.

So, are Ikos resorts really worth it?

Ikos resorts are worth it and I’m sure you would have deduced this from my write up. What I will say is that I don’t think I’d have booked it if it was exorbitantly priced. We got the fantastic discount booking with BA Holidays so it felt like a bargain for everything that was included in our stay. 

Would I book another Ikos resort?

Most definitely yes. It’s just the most special place for a luxury all inclusive break with kids. We are currently in our family friendly resorts era. One where we did not have to worry about anything while travelling with our two little children. I’d also love to try its sister resort, Sani which I have heard so much about. That way I can compare them but if I find another great deal for one of the Ikos resorts in Spain, I’ll definitely jump at the chance.

Bisous, Bugo x