Where to start… I could write a book on just how amazing our stay at Casa Rizzato was. It exceeded our expectations in every single way. So, to avoid a rambling review, I’m going to try to keep this factual and useful for others wishing to stay at Casa Rizzato.
For context, we were a group of 4 people (two couples) who traveled to Crete and stayed in Casa Rizzato for two weeks.
The Villa: The photos of Casa Rizzato are fantastic, and we wondered if it would really look the same in real life (you never know). Let me tell you, it’s better! The quality and finish of the villa are outstanding. The time taken to design the interior of each spectacular room is evident. The smallest touches that wow you… frozen beer glasses, a basket of local goods, homemade raki, and a hand steamer for your clothes, among other things, all put a smile on our faces when we arrived and made us feel like royalty. The pool is perfect. The sun beds are the comfiest we’ve ever laid on. The range of areas to sit in throughout the day is a delight. The outside and inside space of Casa Rizzato is simply outstanding. We had a cleaner visit every 3 days, replacing the towels and cleaning the inside of the villa. There is an outside kitchen area with a BBQ and outside fridge which is so useful for days by the pool when you don’t want to be going in and out of the villa all day. We were asked if we could improve on anything, and we genuinely couldn’t think of a single thing.
The Owners: Wow, what lovely people Anna and George are. They live near to the villa and were on hand throughout our whole stay for any questions, problems, or even important advice (where to eat!). They welcomed us very late on our first night (which we thought was excellent service). We had a detailed tour around the villa with a clear explanation of how everything worked. Anna’s passion for the interior and design aspects she and George have worked so hard on was inspirational. The villa finish, amenities, and providing the best service for their guests, are clearly of utmost importance to them both. They both made sure everything was taken care of throughout our stay. If we wanted to ask for any local advice or recommendations, Anna was on hand and responded very quickly. Our only regret is we didn’t invite them round for a glass of wine (or three) during our stay. Next time!
The local area: In the immediate vicinity of the villa (within a 5-minute walk), there are plenty of shops, restaurants, a 24-hour kiosk selling essentials, bakeries (selling the most amazing baked goods and ice-creams), a Lidl, and local supermarket… You could easily just stay local for a whole two weeks and be wined and dined, pick up all the groceries you need and throw in a little shopping too. The beach is only 150m down the road. We went jet-skiing one day and they are a wide variety of water sports right as you walk onto the beach. There is a taxi rank right at the end of the road to the villa. Taxis were often waiting there and if not, it was just a few minutes wait before one showed up. At the time of our stay, it was only 10 euros into Rethymnon.
The wider area (Rethymnon): A 10-minute taxi ride and you’re in Rethmnyon. We enjoyed exploring the many restaurants and bars along the beachfront before you reach the old town. Once you reach the old town, there are many streets where you can get lost in shopping for just about anything and eat the delectable local cuisine. There are plenty of cocktail bars with music if you’re looking for something a little livelier. 10 out of 14 nights we headed into Rethymnon because there’s so much to do, see, experience, eat and drink there. You will need to visit a few times if you want to do it all.
Quick tips/thoughts/recommendations:
- We found restaurants get busy after 8 pm. If you try to walk into some of the busier restaurants after 8 pm, you may not get a table or must wait a while. We quickly learned to book the restaurants the day before we wanted to eat at them.
- If you want to eat locally, Anna and George recommended ‘Finikas Taverna’ restaurant. We had a fantastic meal with local cuisine, and carafes of house wine and would highly recommend it.
- If you want to eat on Rethymnon beachfront, we really enjoyed our meal at Pagliaccio.
- If you want to eat in the old town of Rethymnon, we highly recommend you try Lemonokipos. We sat out the back in the garden under the lemon trees. The food, wine, and service were outstanding.
- The other side of Rethymnon, we had a sunset meal at Prima Plora. We ate here on our last night we were delighted we went for our last dinner here as it was superb.
- Eating and drinking out was very reasonably priced. We were surprised by how inexpensive many places were. We like to splash out on holiday, overindulge and order anything and everything we like no limits… and even then, we didn’t spend as much as we had budgeted for.
You won’t go wrong staying at Casa Rizzato – it may be pricier than other stays in the local area, but you absolutely get what you pay for.
If you’re looking for the ultimate getaway and relaxation… the villa is big enough and outside space large enough to spend your days and evenings there. If you’re looking for adventure, you can venture out, eat and drink yourselves silly, see the local culture… There’s so much to explore within the area you’ll never get bored.
And at the end of the day, you’ll feel