Our family stayed for 2wks in Aug 2021.
Kefalas
The location is off the beaten track, and does require driving on rocky pathway (600m) from the nearest proper road, but it's well worth it. The location is absolutely breathtaking and secluded.
Villa
The villa itself is compact & comfortable, adequately clean, and yes there are insects if you leave food lying around like any place in a natural habitat - we werenāt too concerned, just be disciplined to clean the kitchen after use. Recommend storage of food in jars, Tupperware or fridge. The kitchen is small, and probably could do with an overhaul. All the rooms are AC fitted. TV had issues, but do you really need it on holiday? WiFi is not super fast but adequate, so was somewhat puzzling to have to pay extraā¦ better include it from the beginning. The villaās main electricity operates when a plastic card is inserted into a wall socket, with the main house keys tied together, locking the main door for the evening, meant the whole villa would go dark temporarily. Moreover, we couldnāt leave the dishwasher or the washing machine running while we were out, so plan to run these immediately back on arrival.
Garden
During the day, as it's high up on the hills, the sea breeze is comforting against the heat. If the beach waves are a bit rough due to strong winds, the villaās garden pool is not a bad alternative. At night, low light pollution means you benefit from the spectacle of stars/Milky Way above you! Goats roam the neighbouring olive farms so if youāre an early bird, you may hear their bells. Infinity Pool is cool and always fresh as water supply trickling in, the villa and the garden is fully landscaped and irrigated. Our visit coincided with Figs and small Oranges being ripe - so combining it with cheese, was perfect snack. BBQ hut was very useful extension to the kitchen.
Owner
Pon, the friendly landlord is always readily available for help. We appreciated the 'handsā-on approach whenever we needed him - from detailed directions on arrival to where to go for dinner/shopping. You canāt help but be impressed by the care he gives to his villa/garden, especially compared to the surrounding harsh landscape and terrainā¦ it really stand out as an oasis on top of the hill.
Overall, we were extremely happy with the villa - If youāre looking for a chilled out family Villa, set amongst an unspoilt Cretan countryside, but with all the modern comforts, this is definitely the place to stay!