Elounda Gulf Villas & Suites ★★★★★

We booked the hotel’s luxury transport from Heraklion Airport, and upon arrival we were greeted by warm and welcoming staff in the reception area and given a refreshing juice drink while our cases were taken to the villa. We had booked a villa, so as to enjoy the luxury of our own private bedrooms. Later in the day, relaxing by our private pool, we were idly discussing whether hedonism was a Greek word. We decided it must be!

The pool blended into the darker blue of the sea beyond. An overhead olive lent us its dappled shade, and bright bougainvillea added a splash of crimson to the white and blue palette of our paradise. Inside our villa, a large and beautifully furnished living room opened to the terrace and pool, and picture windows welcomed the view, creating that blur between inside and out that spells true relaxation. Our bedrooms were both large, super-comfortable and decorated in soft pastels. The en-suite bathrooms came with marble luxury and each with its own hydro-massage bath.

It was heavenly also, to sit on the hotel terrace with a fresh, generous breakfast spread in front of us, gazing across the gulf to the distant horizon. In the evening it was even more beautiful, sat on the terrace of our villa in the warm air under the star-studded sky, watching the lights of the little boats come and go in front of the dark shapes of the islands.

Of course, our villa had its own well-equipped kitchen, which was great for coffee and snacks, but our idea of bliss was not to be cooking! We couldn’t have surpassed the restaurant in any case. The food was superb, served in the dining area next to the pool in the Ala Carte Daphne Restaurant. There is excellent room service as well, with a full menu for those evenings when we just had to linger by the pool as the sun went down.

Spa treats and beach trips, jaunts to Elounda and shopping therapy in Agios Nikolaos were all a delight and stole away our days in a whirl of holiday hedonism. It’s definitely a Greek word.