We enjoyed a wonderful stay at Hara Villa. It was our first time in Crete - indeed Greece - and we totally fell in love with the country and its amazing people....and the villa.
The villa totally lived up to the photos and descriptions on the website - if not better! A lovely home. As a party of 8 adults ( family) the villa provided facilities and spaces which allowed for privacy and communal activity. The fabulous roof terrace with the pool and spectacular views was a very popular location for family meals and relaxation. We enjoyed marvellous late September sunny hot weather, and the villa was perfect for outside living with different delightful spaces to sit in the shade or sun. Every room had its own access to the outside. We particularly loved the garden with its colourful flowers and greenery. The location in the hills was quiet and peaceful but not isolated being near to local villages and 20 minutes from the lively town of Rethymno.
The owner of the villa, Ioannis, and his partner, Chrissi ( excuse my spelling!) were lovely friendly people and extremely generous with delicious welcoming food and many useful recommendations for local sights, beaches and restaurants - all of which we visited and which exceeded our expectations. We were particularly interested in the history of Crete, both ancient and modern, and Ioannis was a knowledgeable guide to the cultural contexts. We would like to thank Ioannis very much for his kind attentions, time and generous invitations. Etouri representatives - Kostas and Robert - also extremely helpful.
The villa is well situated as a base to visit the many interesting villages and ancient sites of Western and central Crete. Nearby was the must see monastery at Arkadi. Both beautiful and impressive. We also loved the reasonably near village of Margarites, a centre for Cretan ceramic production - I wish we could have carried more artefacts home! We had a lovely meal there at Mãntalos restaurant- recommended!
Knossos was an hour and a half drive - near Heraklion- but of course really has to be seen. Also the marvellous Venetian port of Chania and the spectacular West Coast mountains.
Overall, we could not recommend Villa Hara enough and very much hope to return next year to continue our exploration of this fabulous country.
Oh, and did I mention the house cat? ❤️ An extra special bonus! We miss her already! But don’t worry, if you are not a cat person she will keep away :)