The other reviews have said it all. We've travelled the world and not even the best 5+ star comes close to SK Place. But what no one has mentioned is the fabulous walking and hiking. Katerina provided us with great advice on where to find the best hikes. Trust her, she knows from experience. We stayed in the Almyra villa from May 5 to June 15 and in those 6 weeks walked / hiked approximately 400 km. Every day we walked at least 8 km and some days up to 20 km. Katerina provided us with easy to follow guide/map books. The routes took us off the main roads and followed dirt paths, donkey trails and gravel roads. We met locals along the way and enjoyed eating at tavernas in small villages. Most of the routes were loops that took approximately 3 hours. We'd start in the morning and finish up just after lunch. Some of the hikes were more challenging (the Imbros Gorge, recommended by Katerina was incredible, we used our hiking poles for this one). We rarely encountered any other tourists along these routes (which we view as a positive), and got exposed to the real Crete. This experience was beyond our highest expectations. Also, if you stay at the SK Place Villas, you have to eat at The Emerald Hotel. The Emerald Hotel is in Plaka (a short 20 minute walk from the villa). One of our...The other reviews have said it all. We've travelled the world and not even the best 5+ star comes close to SK Place. But what no one has mentioned is the fabulous walking and hiking. Katerina provided us with great advice on where to find the best hikes. Trust her, she knows from experience. We stayed in the Almyra villa from May 5 to June 15 and in those 6 weeks walked / hiked approximately 400 km. Every day we walked at least 8 km and some days up to 20 km. Katerina provided us with easy to follow guide/map books. The routes took us off the main roads and followed dirt paths, donkey trails and gravel roads. We met locals along the way and enjoyed eating at tavernas in small villages. Most of the routes were loops that took approximately 3 hours. We'd start in the morning and finish up just after lunch. Some of the hikes were more challenging (the Imbros Gorge, recommended by Katerina was incredible, we used our hiking poles for this one). We rarely encountered any other tourists along these routes (which we view as a positive), and got exposed to the real Crete. This experience was beyond our highest expectations. Also, if you stay at the SK Place Villas, you have to eat at The Emerald Hotel. The Emerald Hotel is in Plaka (a short 20 minute walk from the villa). One of our favourite walks was the "Water Cave" route through Plaka (9 km with 250m vertical along easy land roads). If you time it right, you finish up at The Emerald for lunch.
Stay at SK Place Villas and eat at The Emerald. Life is good.More
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