This is a lovely place to stay in Crete. The pictures on the website don't do justice to how fantastic this villa is. It is bright and modern, with loads of space inside and out. There must be someone creative in Stelios' family, as there is wonderful artwork all around inside, which adds to the wonderful character of the place. We virtually lived outside as the weather was so good, but there are different places to escape to, depending on the time of day. I loved the sunrise coming over the bay, while everyone enjoyed breakfast under the olive trees. We lazed around the pool from morning till night, and loved moving chairs around to find different colours by the poolside in the evening. The upstairs verandah was magical too, to enjoy the wonderful views over Stalida and the sea, as well as up into the hillsides all around.
Stelios had left a great welcome set of provisions which were ideal for our late arrival, but there are several bakeries and mini-supermarkets nearby for brilliant loaves of bread and croissants. Stalida has loads of different sorts of places to eat, drink, and enjoy. We enjoyed walking around the place, as there was so much to see. We tried to get into the taverna that Stelios recommended, but it was packed (obviously a good place), but found two lovely tavernas (one on the main thoroughfare, and one off), to cater for our veggie family. Malia has a bigger supermarket, near the town centre crossroads. The sea at Stalida is lovely for early morning dips, but as a family, we preferred the beach up near Palace of Malia, as there is an open beach for people to just set up wherever they want, rather than using sun loungers and parasols. For day trips, we enjoyed Heraklion and the Aquarium, Agios Nikolaos is beautiful and we loved the changing scenery of the Lasithi Plateau. Everywhere we stopped, people were friendly and helpful - we had a lovely holiday. Thank-you Stelios.... x