Giorgos & Konstantina hosted us for 10 days in this modern apartment in a traditional Cretan house. It’s an authentic Airbnb experience living right next to the hosts in a quiet mountain village of Perivolia. Some magic happened there, we felt so welcome as if we were a part of their community.
Prior to our arrival Konstantina messaged us all the instructions on how to get their. She also greeted us personally almost at mid-night and showed us around the apartment. We then headed to Gialites taverna which was open late and where her husband Giorgos was playing that night traditional Cretan music (and in-between the songs he sneakily paid for our wine ;-) cheers!).
The apartment is ideal for a couple. It is very thoughtfully built, combines fresh modern look with a touch of traditional elements, such as the exposed stone wall in the bathroom and natural coolness (we didn’t even have to turn the AC on)! Kitchen is fully-equipped, but almost every day we ate out either in the nearby village Elos which has a few tavernas or at Gialites taverna a bit further away. Elos village also has a little grocery shop and a baker who also comes a few days a week right next to the house with his van (open back door for the cookies and the side door for the bread and pies if you are lucky).
We enjoyed starting our days with a cup of coffee right outside our apartment, greeting neighbors and chatting to our hosts. Giorgos & Konstantina are super friendly and always shared a few stories about their lives and tips on where to go. Konstantina also spoiled us a couple of times with home-made tasty treats: little kalitsounia pies, cookies and dolmadakia. Their friendly neighbor lady also treated us with cherry tomatoes.
Having a car is a must. We explored local beaches from Elafonisi & Kedrodasos to a bit more remote ones in Palaeochora & Gialiskari.
Highly recommended if you want a relaxed stay in a Cretan mountain village away from the crowds.