
More than 40 years have passed since the establishment of the first Civitel Hotel on one of the most splendid beaches outside Heraklion, Crete. These four decades of experience in the industry have enabled Civitel to perfect its hospitality standards and create a unique identity based on the company’s drive to promote the best of Greek civilization, extending civility to guests and fostering civic pride. The name Civitel comes from joining the words Civic and Hotel, reflecting the company’s civic values and honoring Greek civilization.
At the midpoint of its lifetime and after phenomenal success of its first property, Creta Beach Hotel & Bungalows, the company opened its second property – the Akali Hotel in Chania. Both Civitel Crete Hotels are designed to complement each other: Creta Beach boasts an amazing Mediterranean experience while the Akali opens up the magic of the beautiful city of Chania, positioning itself as a superbly mixed leisure and business destination.
After establishing its name in Crete, the largest of all Greek islands, Civitel ventured to the current capital of Greek civilization, establishing two hotels in Athens and extending its hospitality experience to the mainland. Thus, in 2008 the company opened the Civitel Olympic, a vibrant business and sports property located steps away from the Olympic Stadium and themed after the 2004 Athens Olympic Games. Two years later, to accommodate the high demand, it opened the Civitel Attik, also located in the lush green Athens suburb of Maroussi, the upscale business hub of the city. In 2016, Civitel Esprit landed within the premises of Civitel Attik, adding a unique twist in the accommodation experience of our guests.
Today, while all properties offer superb opportunities for tourism and adventure, their conference and business facilities bring the best of both worlds together. Each property is very unique in its offerings, yet all extend warm welcome, high international standards and the enchanting experiences of their locale.
Clean energy and the minimization of pollution are on top of the agenda for Civitel properties, a goal achieved by exploiting the power of solar panels to heat water and where possible using natural gas for cooking and heating. Efforts have also been placed on controlling the use of water and electricity through energy management systems.
An important part of this initiative is recycling, where the hotels have put in place a waste recycling program, an aluminium recycling program and a paper recycling program. In addition, the Creta Beach resort in Crete has used the original natural stone and other eco-friendly building materials during its recent renovation to ensure a more bioclimatic environment and to match the ecologically conscious methods of building on the island. The property also cleans its beaches regularly to ensure their cleanliness. In parallel, only environmentally friendly and organic pesticides are used in the hotels' gardens and to combat mosquitoes when necessary.
Last but not least, the Civitel Hotels Group takes pride in offering the finest local foods and ingredients rather than imported foodstuffs, contributing to less transport costs (and a lighter carbon footprint), while encouraging the local economy.
At Civitel Hotels & Resorts we understand that Corporate Social Responsibility is a very important issue that concerns all of us as it reflects the basic principles of the society in which we live and at the same time ought to keep pace with corporate growth and excellence.
We are committed to continuously improving our Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) strategy and encouraging our partners to implement its standards.