Романтический отдых в Элунде Romantic getaway in Elounda

In early September, my husband and I decided to go to Crete for a week. We love this island and Greece in general, we have been to this country twice already. Gathered almost suddenly, a week before the desired departure. Usually we carefully choose a hotel in advance, but this time there was no time, so we just looked at which of the operators had good offers for the "fives". We chose Natalie Tours (especially since we had already been with them once in Crete, in Rethymnon) and the Aquila Elounda Village hotel.

The hotel stands on the shores of Mirabello Bay, near the fishing village of Elounda (and a short drive away is the city of Agios Nikolaos). The landscape is very picturesque (however, it’s like this everywhere in Crete), there are many expensive hotels and villas around, few tourists - that’s why many celebrities come here on vacation.

The hotel is located like steps on a cliff, small buildings alternate with detached bungalows, forming tiny streets, alleys and slopes.

There are only 46 rooms in the main building, the rest of the rooms (about 160 of them) are in bungalows, overlooking the sea and the garden. We lived in a bungalow with two rooms.

The rooms are great - spacious, modern, with lots of light and air. Our room with a balcony and sea view is decorated in white, gray and blue. There are more than 10 types of pillows to choose from - it was unexpected and pleasant, since I am just in this sense picky.

The atmosphere in the hotel is very peaceful, calm and cozy. Elounda Village is ideal for a romantic getaway for two and is therefore positioned as a hotel for couples. The silence is just fantastic, it is broken only by cicadas, birds and the sound of the surf. You will not find a single noisy company here. Almost all of them are in couples: newlyweds who rarely leave the room, couples with “experience” who wanted to run away from their children for a week (just like us), elderly Europeans touchingly holding hands.
There are very few guests with children (according to the rules of the hotel, there can be no more than 12 at the same time), so there is no noise at all, nothing prevents you from enjoying the silence and each other.

The food is excellent too. A large number of fish, fresh vegetables and fruits, cheeses, natural yogurt. From meat - a wonderful young lamb, pork. From the freshest seafood there is a chance to try soft octopus. And everything is cooked in olive oil. The dishes are served with excellent local wine (Crete does not export it due to limited quantities).

Freshly squeezed juices from sweet oranges, grapefruits, strawberries (drinks at lunch and dinner, as in all hotels in Crete, are paid separately). In addition to the main restaurant, there are two more where you can eat for money. In one of them, I ate an unforgettable goat cheese baked with honey and cumin.

The sea is very clean, deep blue.

There is a gentle entrance, along the sandy bottom, there is a descent to the depths by stairs. The coastline and the pier are remarkable for the picturesque dam in the form of huge concrete sandstones that protect the coast from being washed out (there is no sand here, it is imported). In addition, there are three saltwater pools and some rooms have their own pools. Beach towels and sunbeds - free of charge. By the way, Aquila hotels have a blue flag certifying the cleanliness of the sea and beaches.

In general, the hotel is very, very pleased. Nothing particularly exotic, of course, but for a quiet holiday in a paradise, this is an ideal place. I'm going now, if possible, to send my parents there.