We were delighted to have stayed in Aspasia's beautiful house. It is very well located, right next to a fabulous bread shop with excellent coffee (open at 5 am. Hallelujah if you're jet-lagged!) and within close walking distance to the central markets where we shopped often. We have 2 small children, so cooking at home at odd hours was important. The house is also in the best part of the old town, towards the centre right of the port, just back from the tourist area on the foreshore. It is less touristy and more authentic, surrounded by a wide choice of very good tavernas. We loved walking to the lighthouse and to a little children's park at the curve of the walled part of the old town where we found a fabulous vegetarian taverna called To Staki.
Aspasia, our host, is one of the warmest people I have ever met. Her loveliness just radiates and my children adored her, even my sceptical little 2 year old boy. She thoughtfully brought them little gifts the day we left. She also took the time to help us locate everything we needed on the first day; walking us around and waiting while we did emergency food shopping. She even organised a taxi for us from the airport. A bottle of wine, raki, juice and jams were left for us as well.
The house is beautifully maintained and very comfortable. It is quiet, despite its proximity to the sorrounding tavernas. The beds are comfortable and there is plenty of room to unpack our month's worth of clothes. The communal kitchen/sitting area downstairs is small but that is a natural feature of the old houses. I loved our stay and hope one day to come back for a lot longer. My only word of cautious is to be prepared for the stairs. Our children, while young (2 and 5) are agile and strong but other guests with young children should think about whether they can handle it. We also couldn't leave them unsupervised on the roof. There is nowhere for the children to just run about. This is not the fault of the house, however. The house is faultless; it's just something to think about if you travel with children.
Thank you, thank you Aspasia. We would recommend your house without reservation. It was a very special introduction to Chania specifically and to Crete in General.