The Luxury Travel Magazine
The Luxury Travel Magazine
A vacation in Greece offers a wealth of sensational sites to see, exquisite food, a captivating history and vibrant culture, and of course, the wonderful Greek people. One place to visit in Greece is Rethymno, Crete, known for all of this and so much more.
Rethymno has been forged by with a pantina of influences left behind by a occupying powers over the past millenniums. The Minoan period ( 3000 BC-1100 BC) and the Byzantine periods (330 AD-824 AD and 961 AD-1204 AD) bestowed Rethymno with involute history, from the Minoans who introduced pottery and the first Byzantine period who introduced the Arkadi Monastery. The Venetians (1204 AD-1669 AD) built its Venetian Harbour, and the Fortezza; a limestone fortress built in 1580. The Ottoman period (1669 AD- 1898 AD) left behind the hammam, still used in spas here. The things available for exploration in Rethymno are therefore ample, so visitors are never at a loss wondering what to do in Crete.
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"A modern lifestyle with a touch of Cretan custom makes Rethymno a refined city."
HOTELS
CASA VITAE VILLAS
Casa Vitae Villas in Rethymno’s old town is a must on those lists of places to visit in Greece. Guests can stay in one of three Ottoman and Venetian-inspired villas restored in 2019; Villa Myrthia, Villa Amaryllis, and Villa Daphne.
All villas offer amenities including an exclusive terrace with breakfast and a swimming pool, differing only between their quirky lamps and floors. Second floor Villa Daphne has a spacious balcony with views of Rethymno old town. Casa Vitae Villas’ guests value the tranquil experience amongst accessible shops, eateries, the beach, and cultural locations including the Archaeological Museum of Rethymno. Guests will get a best-of-both stay with this combination of serenity in a lively Cretan town.
AVLI LOUNGE APARTMENTS
Avli Lounge Apartments was 16th Century housing in the Venetian era. In 1987, CEO and Creator Katerina Xekalou brought Avli to Rethymno’s old town as homage to a high-spirited courtyard of her childhood. Today, Avli lifts one’s spirits with homey décor sprinkled around the hotel and courtyard.
Avli’s ten suites are inspired by a different colour with amenities alike, and the 37m2 Brown Penthouse suite, the 36m2 Green Junior suite, and the 35m2 Red Junior suite all feature an in-room bathtub jacuzzi. Additionally, the 37m2 Orange Junior suite, the 37m2 Champagne Junior suite, the 36m2 Blue Executive suite, and the 36m2 White Executive suite, have a jacuzzi in the bathroom area. The blue and white mosaic jacuzzi on the hotel’s roof should also be sampled for a dip with sweeping views of the old town.
Guests can also try a wine-tasting session in Avli’s wine cellar, one of Greece’s largest restaurants’. Exuding a family atmosphere throughout the décor and the staff’s warm approach to guests, Avli Lounge Apartments is another home away from home, as well as being one of the best luxury hotels in Crete.
ARCUS SUITES
Those searching for more sequestered stays will find Arcus Suites in Argiroupoli Village a treat, and it’s only a half-hour drive southwest from Rethymno near the White Mountains. The accommodation’s Venetian cobblestone walls and arches reveal its Venetian influence, and its five suites are inviting with their earthy colours and muted lighting. The Kidana Family Superior Suite is the largest at 105m2, with two levels and an 18m2 terrace for six. The suite’s back also leads to Arcus Suites’ lush 400m2 garden with a 40m2 pool. Arcus Suites’ location means undisturbed getaways, and its surrounding mountain area is equally appealing.
One can hike amongst the White Mountains, the views speckled with traditional buildings below Argiroupoli, calming the mind. And the enchanted-looking Argiroupoli Springs, approximately a 20-minute walk from Arcus Suites, is a great spot to rest on one’s hike or shorter strolls.
THE VENETO BOUTIQUE HOTEL
The Veneto Boutique Hotel is a sophisticated space, appearing like the streets of Venice in the old town. Now among the luxury hotels in Crete, it was a Dominican Monastery and a Venetian mansion in the 15th Century. Its peach-coloured walls, alongside exposed stonework, complement the plants and flowers dotted around its balconies and courtyard walls.
Its three suite types with modern amenities, the Junior Suites, Standard Suites and Deluxe Suites have rooms contrasting in design and décor. Veneto’s largest suite is one of the four Junior Suites, the 55m2 Room 110. Blue and white with hints of orange reflect that bright, Greek-themed appearance, its two balconies viewing the courtyard below. In contrast, the 48m2 Room 104 has a vintage feel, almost like a tearoom festooned with décor such as tea pots, doilies, and purple, brown, and beige colours. The Veneto Boutique Hotel brings romantic stays full of Rethymno’s culture.
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"Whether one goes sightseeing or tucks into traditional food, Rethymno brings the desire, sometimes literally, allowing travellers to get a taste of this Cretan haven."
RESTAURANTS
VENETO RESTAURANT
The Veneto Boutique Hotel’s restaurant, Veneto Restaurant, opened in 1997, serves local and organic Cretan cuisine. The restaurant’s Courtyard, the Main Hall, and Dining Hall, feature lamps, candlelight, and table flowers, enhancing the intimate atmosphere. The Courtyard and Dining Hall offer livelier dining, and the Main Hall more privacy. The Foukaki, a pork casserole with honey, lemon thyme and wild onions, is a main dish with a recipe said to date back to Crete’s Venetian period.
7 THALASSES RESTAURANT
Those appreciating Mediterranean seafood should dine at Rethymno’s 7 Thalasses Restaurant. The restaurant has a modern minimalist design with an alfresco dining space, enclosed by a glass balustrade with the sea just metres away. The menu, designed by Chef Giorgos Michelakis includes the Ceviche of sea bream served with salmon and marinated with passion fruit, citrus juice and mango; an appetiser with stimulating flavours.
ALANA RESTAURANT
One of the earliest Rethymno old town eateries is Alana Restaurant, running since 1986. Visitors can experience gourmet Mediterranean and Cretan dishes in an outdoor dining area of welcoming vibes and decorated with potted plants like a private garden. Alana serves a dessert fitting with Rethymno’s history – a Mosaic with vanilla ice cream, biscuit, cocoa, chocolate, and almonds. Stellar food in a desirable location is offered here, with guests eagerly awaiting their next refection.
ACTIVITIES
When contemplating what to do in Crete regarding tours, The Unspoiled Spirit of West Crete: Chauffer Driven Private Tour eight-hour tour with Snami Travel is of the varied tours in Greece. Guests are personally driven to destinations, including the Amari Valley and the ancient pottery village of Margarites to partake in a ceramics class. Historians will enjoy visiting the Arkadi Monastery, and with lunch provided accompanied by Patsos Gorge’s rushing waters, one will stay excited from beginning to end.
Alternatively, the Swan Beauty & Spa is for pamper days in Rethymno’s old town. Guests can get head-to-toe refreshed in a 16th Century Venetian and Ottoman-influenced building. The Ottoman influences remain in the Bath of the Sultan, or the Voile de Sultane, a 120-minute treatment of rose and jasmine-scented essential oils and Moroccan Rhassoul clay.
On Urban Adventures’ four-hour evening Gourmet Trail of Rethymnon, guests can sample more delicious food in Crete, including kalitsounia pies, and sip four different wine types, including dessert and white, in a wine cellar of 700 years. Guests celebrate tour guides’ couthy and informative service, making the Gourmet Trail of Rethymnon one of the great tours in Greece.
A modern lifestyle with a touch of Cretan custom makes Rethymno a delightfully refined city. Whether one goes sightseeing or tucks into traditional food, Rethymno allows travellers to get a taste of this Cretan haven.
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