We had the most amazing time at Villa Andreas. The communication from Freelance Villas was excellent from booking and throughout the trip, from organising a cot and high chair for our baby without even being asked, to recommending a restaurant for my husband’s birthday and booking us a taxi. The villa itself was very large, immaculately clean and so cool and comfortable with absolutely everything we could have needed. The highlight was the pool area, where we spent lots of our time and felt very safe with our two young children. We loved the location, surrounded by Cretean families who were very friendly. Maria, the owners daughter who runs a great supermarket a couple of miles away was so welcoming and even gave us some vegetables from her garden.
The village of Kamisiana was quiet and extremely welcoming. The small pebble beach was very pretty, both tavernas at the end of the road, Kriti and Vincenzo’s, did delicious traditional food with lovely, warm service, but Paliria, on the road down to the beach and only a couple of minutes walk further, was incredible, such a beautiful spot with fantastic service and food. Make sure to stop in and see Yiannis at Irinula for a cocktail on the way! Tavronitis, a very short drive or 20 minute walk away, has more tavernas, shops and grill houses and two tavernas on the beach, our favourite of which was Almyrikira. Kolymbari, the same distance in the opposite direction, had lots of very pretty seafront tavernas, we really enjoyed Palio Archonitiko and Nikiforos.
The best beach we found for young children was Mavos Malos at Kissamos, a 20 minute drive away. The sandy beach had a very sheltered area at the far left side with no stones and very shallow, clear water and restaurant Maria was excellent for lunch.
The two beaches at Falassarna, around a 40 minute drive away, were spectacular. Chania is definitely worth a visit, it has amazing architecture but does feel very hot, busy and touristy compared to the area surrounding Villa Andreas. We also did a very pretty drive to a taverna with lovely fresh seafood, Waves on the Rock, at Ravdoucha. It’s in a sheltered cove where there is also a few sun beds and a tiny beach bar.
Possibly our best find, as recommended by Yiannis at Irinula, was Frosini’s garden, just a 10 minute drive inland. At this restaurant, set outdoors in a beautiful garden with the mountains as a backdrop, everything is cooked over fire. It was completely different to anywhere else we went and the setting and food are really special. Although there is lots of meat on the menu, there’s plenty of great vegetarian dishes using vegetables from the garden.
I couldn’t recommend the villa or area more, we can’t wait to go back and explore West Crete again!