Nice, quiet place. Very friendly and accomodating staff.

The Matala View Pension is a friendly relaxed location to spend your break. My partner and I stayed there for 3 nights last May, and were really happy with the service we received from the proprietor Georgia and family.
Matala View has 8 rooms, with 3 on the second floor having their own balconies.
We had room 7 which was very quiet and located near the back of the complex. It had air con a fan, venitian blinds a shower basin and toilet.
The breakfast area was situated outside at the front of the pension in a nicely shaded quiet area. For breakfast we had cheese omelette, bread butter and jam, fresh orange juice, 2 rounds of coffee and a battenburg style cake, this cost us €5 (£3.95) each.
Overall the pension was just what we needed, I'd recommend staying there

We picked out Matala View from the excellent website and were not disappointed.
There is no sea view but that is reflected in the price. It is so close to the centre yet quiet. The road leads to a 'path' including clambering over rocks which leads to the unspoilt 'Red Beach'.

We stayed in a studio which had a balcony which was useful for breakfast, aperitifs and drying our towels. The ensuite shower room was functional and the basic cooking facilities and fridge were useful. Manolis and Sofia were very helpful but not intrusive. They let us know about a local festival in Mires - its the second time we've been to an 'Ochi' Day parade - its a national holiday in Crete. .

Having first visited Crete 40 years ago and seen the ghastly development at Malia recently, we were pleased that, despite tourist development - as evidenced by new coach parking facilities - Matala still retains some character. Matala beach is a bit scruffy apart from an incongruous but very useful new supermarket! The man-made caves and the relics of its hippie past (some of them human) add interest, but our main purpose was to explore nearby unspoilt beaches. We had hired a car for the easy drive from Heraklion to Matala, and it was useful to get easy access to Kommos beach which is perfect for nude snorkelling.

We were very much out of season - October half-term - but the weather was warm enough to lie on the beach and not too hot for sightseeing and walking. We enjoyed visiting the archaeological site at Phaistos, but it requires a lot of imagination to decipher the rubble. Of course, all the treasures are in the museum of Heraklion. We had a late flight home so we were able to enjoy an evening stroll in the pedestrianised centre of Heraklion which is very attractive.

As expected, there was not much nightlife but we found good places to eat. Our favourite was in the next village - Pitsidia - Mike's Gyros Restaurant was cheap, friendly and authentically Greek - we could look at what was cooking before choosing - the stifado was superb.

Obviously its a different experience in high season, but for a beach holiday and fabulous sunsets, it was an ideal place for a baby-boomer autumn break. We would definitely stay at Matala View again.

We had problems with Europcar after returning home (they added a huge amount to our card - this was eventually sorted out by the credit card company). It might be worth considering using a local car hire company, especially out of season.

Not sure how this place earns such rave reviews. It is certainly adequate but some of the places close by looked better. The hospitality of the owners is without question but we found that to be the case in other places in Greece.
We stayed in room number 12 and this is to be avoided. Some may consider the outside toilet and shower a novelty, especially when nature calls and it is raining, and the plumbing problems just more character but we thought it unacceptable.
The room had a sink bench and a cupboard above with a list to port. It was just plain tacky.