We received the warmest of welcomes from our friendly host Argiro and we cannot recommend her place and her as a host enough. Mariela is a beautiful Cretan villa with traditional features and tasteful, contemporary design. All fixtures, fittings and fabrics are top quality - this really is a luxury stay. We loved exploring and picking herbs from the garden to cook and barbecue with, cooling off in the private pool and relaxing on the peaceful patio with the stunning view of Ida mountain. Argiro thought of everything to make our stay as comfortable and memorable as possible. She left us fruit and made sure that we had a juicer to make fresh orange juice for breakfast, gave great recommendations for local restaurants, bars and secluded beaches, and surprised us on the last day with homemade gifts of raki and honey. She also left wine for us to enjoy on our first night in celebration of her daughter's birthday. The villa is 15 minutes drive from some of the best beaches in Crete and just an hour from Heraklion airport and the famous Knossos Palace. There is a big supermarket just 3 minutes down the road but the villa is in a really peaceful and secluded area. We didn't want to leave Mariela and hope to visit and meet Argiro and her family again!