What an incredible villa, located in a beautiful location. It has everything a home away from home needs and is very relaxing, especially the balcony and patio area where we spent most of our time when at the villa. The kitchen is well equipped along with the living area where books, beach supplies, music facilities and even games were provided which all came in useful. During our stay we walked to all the local areas including bars, restaurants and the beach although a rental car is recommended if you wish to view more of the beautiful island.
Overall we had a brilliant holiday and cannot wait to return.

Fantastic Villa - had everything you could possibly want or need! 3 different seating areas guaranteed sun all day! The villa was very clean, comfortable and well kept
Very close by was a shared beautiful clean,warm pool. Though it was shared, we very rarely saw anyone else in it.
The other villas are close by, however, very private.
6 minute walk to Plaka Square (down the Donkey track) to 4/5 gorgeous restaurants. Our favourites were Takis and Harokopos! Beware of free Raki! Goes down too well!
It is about a 30 minute walk to Almyrida beach but well worth it! I would suggest a taxi back though as it is uphill and in 36deg heat we only walked it once!! Not for the fainthearted!
Norman and Dawn (the owners) have been brilliant, before, during and after our stay, and answered all of our questions virtually before we asked them.
All in all, we had a fantastic holiday and would definitely stay in Villa Emilia again.

What a beautiful villa! The villa was fully equipped with everything we needed throughout our stay from buckets and spades to hairdryers.

Our favorite areas were the wonderful gardens and several patios with tables and chairs where we enjoyed bbqs at night and lounging during the day, all of which had access to both sun and shade which was perfect for us when the temperatures rose.

We found Plaka was a charming village and a great place to eat at night, surprisingly much closer to the villa than we anticipated meaning we ate there almost every night enjoying the variety of bars and restaurants.

We also loved Almirida beach which is just down the hill (a few minutes in the car or a 20 minute walk) which has many restaurants lining the beach to sit and watch the sunset.

Overall we fell in love with both the villa itself and the surrounding area and would love to come back next year!

Having been a little burned by a poor choice in holiday accommodation last year, I went into booking 2015's self-catering holiday with a degree of scepticism. Nobody's fault but mine (to quote the song), but one tries to learn from their mistakes. Didn't Einstein have a theory about those that didn't.

We started in opting for the Greek islands. Having spent a numbers of years holidaying in Crete, Corfu, Zakynthos and Paros, I decided to use what little knowledge I had in picking our for us - Crete it was to be. I opted to take us to the West of the island, having previously spent time in Elounda and its surrounding area. We found a number of properties around the Chania Prefecture, and Villa Emilia seemed to fit our (rather demanding) criteria, so we took the plunge. And how glad we are we did.

The villa itself is sat atop the beautifully peaceful village of Plaka, which is located about 3kms away from the nearest beach (Almyrida). Do be aware, if you're taking young kids then a car is probably a good idea. The walk to and from Plaka village to the villa is as easy or as testing as you want it to be, but it's all uphill, but for those wanting regular beach - as we did - a car's recommended. It's two minutes down and up, and really nothing, but you'll appreciate the wheels for sure, especially with kids. Plaka village boasts a number of pretty taverna, all serving typical Cretan cuisine in a charming village square. One would also be encouraged to check out the wonderful Italian restaurant on the eastern route out of the village. There's a couple of mini/super markets selling the basics, but for more adventurous stocks you might need to venture further to Almyrida or Kalyves. The villa enjoys unparalleled views across the Souda Bay, and after a day on the beach, or spent traipsing around the many locations of interest in and around the area, nothing beats a glass of wine on either of the patio areas prior sundown.

So to the villa itself. Perfectly appointed in the hillside, it shares a perfectly-sized pool for a few spritely lengths in the sun with three (I believe) of the other villas on the 'estate'. Not that you'd have thought it - we more or less had exclusive use of the pool throughout our fortnight. Villa Emilia also boasts a 'sundeck' which seems to catch the sun the whole day through. Given its lofty elevation, the villa enjoys cooling breezes off of the sea in the North, but never is it chilly at all. The villa offers a ground floor 'living area', with well-stocked kitchen and dining area, as well as a sizeable lounge area. The property is fully WiFi connected, if a link to the 'real' World is your thing. The kitchen had everything and more you're going to need (even down to an electric fruit juicer which'll no doubt encourage you to make fresh each and every morning), and even the most grand, demanding family will struggle to need anything more. The two bathrooms are exactly what they need to be - clean, fitted with showers and a bath upstairs, and untarnished bathroom furniture. The bedrooms - two - will easily suit a family of four, but I do believe there's chance to make more sleeping space caseneed, both have access to one balcony impressively overlooking the Bay. I aren't exaggerating when I say everything you need - and more - is catered for. Don't even bother taking or buying inflatables and beach toys for the kids - there's plenty to pick from hidden beneath the stairs.

I don't need to sell Villa Emilia on the basis of the amenities it has to offer - they're all listed on the website - but in terms of a quaint, quiet, comfortable place to spend a couple of weeks in the Cretan sun with the family, then really you need not look any further than this property. I would be at pains to recommend this to anyone that would need it, it's no exaggeration to say we've had the finest family holiday we've had yet. We found the location excellent, you're on the doorstep of some beautiful scenery for hiking or driving, and again a couple of minutes away from the buzz of the beaches nearby. The local eateries will more than adequately meet your demands, and the relative peace of Plaka will prove perfect respite in the evening.

Special mention must be afforded to both Dawn and Norman, the villa's owners. Throughout the enquiry procedure, booking and all thereafter, the communications have been nothing but exemplary, helpful, and never at one point have we struggled for any further information we might've needed...even as far as menu recommendations in Lake Kournas (which is a must if you're with kids - one doesn't often get the chance to pedalo alongside a turtle). Top marks to our hosts.

A bloody lovely holiday.

We stayed in Villa Emilia October 2014 – The Villa was better than expected – fully equipped with everything we could have possibly needed throughout our stay – from microwave and orange juicer to candles and insect repellents. The Wifi was available but we didn’t use it while we were there. The villa is of the highest quality and the views are simply stunning – looking over the bay from the balcony with a glass of local wine as the sun goes down was idyllic. We also had a private garden terrace unlike the other villas! The pool was lovely and clean (refreshing in October – a little too cold for first thing in the morning). We spent a lot of time in the local village of Plaka and couldn’t have felt more welcome - the restaurant food was amazing and the owners couldn’t do more for you. Over all the villa, location and the holiday in all was fantastic and we will be going back to Villa Emilia next year – Norman and Dawn couldn’t be more helpful – thank you for making our stay at your villa a fantastic and memorable one.