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Review submitted by sonia from manchester (Submitted: 19 Aug 2012)
this is the second time we have rented villa maria, the villa, the gardens and the pool are all lovely,the supermarkets are not far away, we walked to the local ones, and we tried a few of the local restaurants, all very good value with good food, we got about a bit in the car too, plenty of places to visit, and as the villa is close enough to th. sonia and patrick penny national road, its easy to get anywhere on the island, the villa has the peace and quiet we love, but close enough to everything we need, we would recomend villa maria as a lovely holiday home to visit, and we cant wait to go back again, many thanks, and thanks also to larry and irene, whose help was fantastic,
Review submitted by Kevin from Stockport (Submitted: 31 Jul 2012)
What a great time we all had at the Villa Maria, Great location, just 5 minutes ( by car ) from the many bars and tavernas on the beach road.
Nice clean villa and we had a welcome pack waiting for us. Larry and Irene were a great help and gave us fresh linen every week. The pool kept clean and was a god send on those hot lazy days. Ideally situated to explore the Island. The Cretan Kitchen Dimitris at the bottom of the hill was a great place to get a takeout from, (recommend the mixed meat platter) There was a Lidl supermarket 10 Minutes away, just off the beach road in Platanies for all our shopping needs. A special thank you to Larry and Irene, who were always on hand to help us if we needed. A trip to Rethymnon town is a must at night, the atmosphere is brilliant. We found a little beach/ cove just off the beach road which for most of our stay was nice and quiet, as yet undiscovered by the tourists and only a handfull of Cretans. Would recommend to family and friends and we all look forward to returning next year, this time booking direct with the owners
his address is on one of the pictures.
Review submitted by karen from st andrews (Submitted: 16 Aug 2010)
myself and 3 friends had a fantastic time at villa maria. the weather was great, the property was lovely and clean, easy to find. car hire is essential to visit rethymnon take advantage of shopping oppurtunities. booked tour for samaria gorge walk and visited kourna fresh water lake, recommend auqarium ner heraklion . beautiful area and friendly locals. hoping to book again very soon
Review submitted by Karen from Fife (Submitted: 24 Jun 2010)
I went to Crete with three of my friends, and the villa is a must for a nice relaxing holiday by the pool and is in a ideal situation to explore the Island. The villa had everything we needed and it looks better than the photos portray. The neighbours, Larry and Irene were very helpful telling us some nice places to visit and Stelios came round to clean the pool every other day. The villa is approx 1.5 klm from the beach and a couple of tavernas and supermarkets, and a 5 min drive to the busier tourist resort of Platanias where there is a good choice of tavenas and a Lidl supermarket. We hired a car from the company the owner recommended and found the villa very easy via the maps and directions he provided. A BIG thank you to all concerned.
Review not verified by RentalSystems* (Submitted: 11 Sep 2009)
We booked this holiday from Ian via his personal email address we saw on one of the villa photos, and got a very good deal.
The villa was brilliant and much better than the photos. Very clean, and with everything we needed.Its an ideal spot to explore the island if you wish or just laze by the pool which was beautiful.a few tavernas at the bottom of the road, and plenty more a five minute drive on the beach road to Platanias, this is the best place to shop for groceries, there a Lidl on the road opposite Skyparks in Platanias.
A visit to the main town of Rethmynon is a must especially at night. Car hire is essential and again Ian managed to get us a good price via the hire company he uses.
I have already booked to go back again next year, a special thank you to Irene and Larry also Stelios the guy that looked after the pool.
Review submitted by Keith from Lancashire (Submitted: 31 Aug 2009)
We enjoyed our stay here. A relaxing holiday mostly spent by the pool.
Review submitted by Mark from Lincoln (Submitted: 2 Sep 2008)
This Villa is a must for anyone wanting a quiet relaxing holiday. The locals are very friendly and the buzz of the tourist area ia a short drive away. A car is essential. Thanks Ian for an excellent holiday and please thank Larry and Irene who mad us feel very welcome.
Review submitted by Catriona from Leicester (Submitted: 1 Aug 2007)
The villa is ideally placed to visit different parts of the island easily. It is set in a quiet location but only minutes by car to shops and tavernas.
The villa had everything we needed and was very comfortable.
I think in fact that the photos on the website don't do the villa justice as it is much better in reality.
Will definitely recommend to friends and will consider returning myself.
Review submitted by Pauline from Villa Galini 2 Rethmynon, Crete. (Submitted: 20 May 2007)
Beautiful surroundings, good location but carhire essential. Villa excellent with everything we needed and we were very well looked after both before and during our stay.
Review submitted by Julia from England (Submitted: 3 Nov 2006)
We thoroughly enjoyed our week at Villa Gallini which is brilliantly located for site-seeing but nice and quiet for a relaxing holiday. The pool was an added bonus for our menfolk who were brave enough to swim in late October! Our thanks for a most welcome break and the chance to explore Crete.
Review submitted by Rory from Spokane, Washington, USA (Submitted: 2 Nov 2006)
My wife and I were both very pleased with the villa; the accomodations were excellent and actually more than we really needed!
Unfortunatley the weather was not that good the week we were there so we were not able to enjoy the pool, however, the pool was very clean and would have been enjoyable had the weather cooperated.
One downside for those used to them: the villa is not equiped with a clothes dryer. This really was not that much of an inconveniance though: with the clothes hung on the drying rack provided, near the portable radiator, the clothes were dry within a day-just plan your laundry accordingly!
We were there for our honeymoon and would defintley return if we get the chance.
Review submitted by Ruth from Northamptonshire (Submitted: 26 Sep 2006)
We had a wonderfull honeymoon in Crete and the villa was just right. Plenty of space so for a party of 6 it would be cosy.
The pool was lovely and although it was deep it was perfect for cooling off after a day out veiwing the sights.
The villa is in a good location for sightseeing and we managed to get to almost all four corners of Crete within 2.5 hours driving.
I would be wary of taking very small children here because of the depth of the pool and the lack of a high banister on the landing area.
The kitchen was well equiped and Kirsten was only a text message away with any problems, she also gave us good ideas on where to eat and shop.
The garden and pool area was secluded and mature.
It is clear this villa is well looked after and had everything we needed for a two week break on the island.
Review submitted by Geoff from Walsall England (Submitted: 28 Apr 2006)
Our only caveat is that the pool was deep and had little water when we arrived. No problem for us adults because it was early season and probably too cold for swimming but we had a 3 year old and the danger for her needed constant attention; falling into water was less dangerous than hitting a solid base. Having said that, the croc. was very popular with her!
Owner reply:
We arrived at the villa on 21st April the pool has just been given a complete overhaul and as you can see on the picture taken on 22nd April the pool was full to capacity 1.65 metre deep.
Review submitted by amanda from crete (Submitted: 8 Sep 2005)
Fabulous villa in a great setting, pool was a bit of a problem went green for 5 consecutive days was sorted out. I think the description should be better as it had beach towels,hairdrier and the best washing machine Ive had when staying in other villas in Greece. I will be recommending to friends and family and hope to stay there again in the not to distant future.
Owner reply:
Just got back from the villa 25/04/06. Pool has now had a complete overhaul and is looking great.
Review submitted by meunier from france (Submitted: 27 Aug 2005)
Lovely house and very good "wecome"by Kristen and Mr I Wood.
Review submitted by Judith from Maidenhead (Submitted: 13 Jul 2005)
It was one of a group of five(?) villas, all with their own pool, set in gardens surrounded by bouganvillea, honeysuckle, and hibiscus. We really appreciated the well-thought out way in which none of the pools were over-looked. At the back of the property were olive trees, and somewhere in the distance I swear we could hear the occasional distinctive screech of a peacock!
A car is almost an essential here, though for the hardy it is possible to walk the 1 kilometer to the nearest taverna and supermarket, and another 1/2 kilometer to the beach and clean sea.
The 3 bedrooms of the villa were reasonably well equipped, although the room with the double bed is definitely the smallest. The balcony, which 2 bedrooms lead on to, was ideal for that pre-dinner drink in the sunshine, and for star gazing at night - spot the shooting stars too.
Downstairs the kitchen was equipped with all the essentials, though if you use the hot plates, please note that they're covered by little metal lids, and work much better without them!
Plenty of places to sit and sun worship, or cool down outside.
One nice touch was the pool toys - none of us quite managed to sit on the inflatable crocodile, but not for want of trying! The pool, however, does have some teething problems. Our representative, Kristen, was very helpful and responded rapidly to our call for help when the pool seemed to be flooding the cleaning mechanism - for which many thanks.
All the representatives were helpful, pleasant and efficient - what more do you need?
All in all, a thoroughly enjoyable holiday in a great setting.