Joanna and her husband have been wonderful hosts - they really care and honor the word "hospitality" indeed : they were always very reactive when we needed such things as a blanket or an ice-cube tray :), not to mention the delicious home made food of kretan specialties they offered us now and then.. sometimes by just ringing, for us to discover it in front of the door - very delicate attention! Thanks again for that! The apartment is big and very welcoming, although some hangers or some furniture to store clothes was missing a bit in the 2nd bed bedroom - which has a nice big balcony heading north-east. The room with a king size bed (spring mattress) has a very big storage cabinet. There is a couch in the main room/kitchen, next to the kitchen table, but we used it rarely, as we found the balcony more cosy, rather than sitting side by side on it. It was nice to take the morning coffee on the smaller kitchen balcony, fully heading east. Just for the record and those who'd come in sept-oct, there is a school with a big school yard, used for sports too, right in front of the apt, so it's getting noisy pretty early in the mornings and till midday.. just in case you want to sleep late, that is ;). Joanna has a small supermarket in the building, in case one needs to do small errands - very practical.
Here a few TIPS & infos on top :) : The beach, within 10mn walk, is really nice too, and being situated in a bay, it is one that is protected on windy days (yes, Kreta is pretty windy!) ; in sept, it was almost empty, and compared to lots of other beaches, it is way more beautiful - so it's kind of an underestimated, secret tip in the region, actually. The center of Kasteli/Kissamos is also within foot reach (15mn), there are nice little shops and a couple of totally correct restaurants. The main road is just down the hill and has everything needed (supermarkets, delis, bakery, butcher etc). Kissamos/Kasteli is not a hyper touristic city, which is something that we really appreciated - people live here and not everything revolves around tourism, like in places such as Platanias (dislike..!). The beach restaurant Maria is a great place to eat too !
It is also a great strategic spot in order to explore the surroundings : go to Falassarna Beach (25mn drive), Balos-Gramvoussa (either hike or go by boat), or the really beautiful beach-lagoon of Elafonissi (a walk around the small "island" is highly recommended), or hike the Samaria Gorges (takes a day). You definitely need a car to do those things though.. Chania is also only 35mn away by car ; and so it's also relaxed being only 45 away from the airport from Kissamos/Kasteli. Exploring the north point (around Kolimbari) is also recommended.. You will find a very cute creek in Efrata, and a nice restaurant with a small shop of local products attached, on your way to it (you can't miss it). Paleochora is worth a visit too (more touristic, but very cute). We had no time to explore the area (also south) of Agia Roumeli, Sougia and Loutro.. - cuz it is only to be reached by boat - but I would really recommend to do it, since it seems to be, because of that, a more "wild" and authentic part.
In conclusion, it really is a great place to be.. and to return!