This clifftop sitting area at Honeymoon Petra Villas in Imerovigli has extensive southward views across Santorini, including the village of Firostefani (upper left).
Category: Greek Islands hotels
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Rochari Hotel’s seaview bar is an ideal place to have drinks during sunset on Mykonos
Giaros Island appears beneath a sky of glowing clouds in this spectacular sunset view from the Rochari Hotel‘s cocktail terrace on May 18 2011.
Scenic overlook: The seaside cocktail bars at Little Venice usually get top mention in travel forums when people ask for advice about good sunset viewing locations in and around Mykonos Town. We’ve seen some wonderful sunsets from there, from Windmill Hill overlooking Little Venice, and from the rocky seashore just below the Paraportiani Church, too. We’ve also enjoyed tremendous sunset views the three times we have stayed at Hotel Tagoo, a 15-minute walk north of Town in the island’s Tagoo district. Thanks to a tip from an online colleague, this year we experienced a superb new sunset viewing spot for the first time — one that now ranks among our favourites.
In a post on TripAdvisor.com’s Mykonos travel forum, fellow Mykonos Destination Expert jon_rwr had suggested my partner and I go for a drink on the terrace at the Rochari Hotel sometime. I remembered his recommendation on May 18 when we arrived at the Fabrika bus depot following a full day of hiking to four different beaches on the island’s south coast. We had spent hours on our feet and were looking forward to just sitting and relaxing with a drink before dinner — but where? We wanted to visit some place new, with a view … and since the Rochari was just a short walk up Ag Ioannou Street from the bus depot, we took Jon’s advice and headed right there.
Jon’s recommendation was excellent! The Rochari’s sun-soaked cocktail terrace overlooks much of Mykonos Town, including the iconic windmills, with sweeping panoramic views of the sea and other nearby islands. It proved to be the perfect place for us to relax and unwind with a nice glass of wine at the end of our active afternoon. When the blazing sun dipped closer to the horizon, painting rich, warm hues of amber and gold on the clouds and western sky, a distant island suddenly came into sharper view. We had been chatting with Darren, the Rochari’s cheery, affable bartender, while we were shooting photos of the spectacular scene dramatically playing out before us. Darren politely excused himself for a moment so he could grab his camera to take some shots of his own, explaining that we were experiencing a remarkably clear view of Giaros Island. (We realized it must have been a noteworthy sunset if Darren, whose enviable “office” gives him gorgeous views every evening, was compelled to capture it in photos, too).
The sun went down a short while later, but the terrace remained a comfortable and cozy spot to enjoy the evening. Unfortunately, that was our final night on Mykonos this particular holiday, so we couldn’t make a return visit. But we’ll definitely be going back there for more wine and sunsets on our next trip. With its amazing views of Mykonos Town and those stunning sunsets over the Aegean Sea, the Rochari’s terrace will be one of my “must see” Mykonos recommendations. If you happen to drop by for a drink, please give our regards to Darren. And don’t forget to bring your sunglasses — the rays of the setting sun get so strong and intense, you’ll certainly need to wear them! (By the way: The Rochari is a beautiful hotel in a great location; keep it in mind if you’re searching for quality accommodations right in Mykonos Town.)
Below are several photos of the sunset views from the Rochari Hotel cocktail terrace. More photos can be viewed in the Mykonos 2011: Sunset at the Rochari Hotel album on the mygreecetravelblog.com Facebook page.
Cocktail terrace view of the Rochari Hotel’s swimming pool and deck
Rochari Hotel terrace view of the swimming pool and part of Mykonos Town
Terrace view of Mykonos Town before sunset
Me on the terrace, enjoying the views under the hot evening sun
Standing on the Rochari terrace at sunset, with the whitewashed buildings of Mykonos Town spread out below the hotel
A shot from the other direction, with more of Mykonos Town and part of Tinos island providing a backdrop in the distance
The terrace has amazing views of Mykonos Town and nearby islands
Sunset view from a table inside the Rochari Hotel lounge
Giaros island starts to become more visible in the amber clouds below the sun
The sunset reflects in the calm water of the hotel swimming pool
The terrace is a perfect place to enjoy a nice glass of wine or an ice cold drink
Giaros Island starts to take center stage directly below the setting sun
Clouds in the sky above Giaros Island take on an amber glow in the sunset
A great view overlooking Mykonos Town and islands across the horizon
Hotel terrace view of the famous windmills on the hillside above Little Venice
Another peek at the Rochari pool as the sun prepares to dip below the horizon
Mykonos Town spreads out below the hotel; Tinos island is visible to the right
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Things I love about Greece: Waking up to gorgeous views at hotels in the Greek Islands (Part 6)
The swimming pool terrace at Hotel Tagoo on Mykonos offers this view of Tinos island, a short ferry ride from the tip of Mykonos (right)
On a clear day, we could see the whitewashed clifftop buildings of the renowned Santorini village of Oia from our balcony at Hermes Hotel on Ios
Our terrace at Halara Studios in Plaka, on Milos, gave us this sweeping view of the Gulf of Milos and mountains on the western half of the island.
Three islands, three hotels, three superb views: Last month, our 2011 Greek Island holiday took us back to a favourite hotel on an island we have visited more times than any other place in the world; a different hotel on an island we visited back in 2007; and a hotel on an island we had previously seen only from a ferry. All three gave us superb views.
On Mykonos, we stayed at Hotel Tagoo for the third time in as many visits. We’ve been to Mykonos so often I can practically picture the views with my eyes closed, and I also never forget the scenery from the balconies and public areas at Hotel Tagoo. (If you’ve been following my posts about Greek Islands hotel views, you’ve already seen numerous pictures showing the wonderful views from Hotel Tagoo.) No matter how often I visit, I never get bored of looking at the sea and nearby islands, or the mountains, beaches and coastline of Mykonos itself. For this trip, I requested the same room we stayed in our first time at Hotel Tagoo — the cozy and semi-secluded #19, on the east side of the property — and I was glad it was available for our stay. Although #19 has only a partial sea view, rather than a full-on panoramic sea and island view like many of the rooms positioned at the front of the hotel, I like it because I always sleep exceptionally well in that room. I don’t know why, but I always wake up feeling more refreshed after a night in that particular room than in any other. What’s more, the afternoon sun doesn’t seem as hot or intense on room 19’s terrace, like it does on other balconies, so I can spend more time sitting there without feeling like I’m going to melt.
After several days on Mykonos we travelled to Ios for the first time. We had “seen” Ios several times before — through the windows of the FlyingCat 4 ferry en route to Santorini — but we had never set foot on it. We stayed at Hermes Hotel in Agios Ioannis, a hillside area high above beautiful Mylopotas beach, and just a short walk from the island’s main town, Chora. Although views from our hotel room balcony were partially obscured by a building in front of us, we could still gaze across the Aegean Sea and, if the skies were clear, see the whitewashed buildings in the village of Oia on Santorini. When we wanted completely unobscured views of Ios scenery, all we had to do was walk up one flight of stairs to the hotel’s breakfast room & bar, which had a comfy outdoor sitting area, or down several flights to the huge sea- and valley-view swimming pool terrace. (The pool was just being cleaned and filled during our visit, so we couldn’t take a swim, but we did enjoy the terrace for suntanning, taking in the scenery, and watching the hotel’s herd of goats in the field below.)
Our third island stop was Milos, which we had visited once before in September 2007. Last time we stayed at a hotel on the edge of the port town of Adamas; this holiday we wanted a complete change of location and scenery, so we stayed at Halara Studios, which is literally on the edge of the mountaintop village of Plaka, the capital of Milos. Being high up and on the edge meant we had outstanding views of farm fields, the Gulf of Milos, and the mountainous western half of Milos. If our visit had been just a few months later in the summer, we would have enjoyed incredible sunset views from the Halara Studios terrace, too. Nevertheless, we won’t soon forget the scenery because on our last full day in Milos the island got thrashed by a vicious thunderstorm, and our terrace provided an excellent front-row seat for watching lightning strikes and the dramatic, dark stormclouds swirling over western Milos.
Below are photos of our views from Hotel Tagoo on Mykonos, Hermes Hotel on Ios, and Halara Studios on Milos.
Enjoying a glass of wine on the terrace for Room 19 at Hotel Tagoo Mykonos
The cozy terrace for Room 19 sits on the east side of the Hotel Tagoo property
Part of the view from the terrace for Room 19 at Hotel Tagoo Mykonos
The terrace overlooks another nearby hotel and this old stone wall
It also overlooks the balcony for the room next door, but still feels fairly private
Our terrace at Hotel Tagoo gave us a partial view of the sparkling Aegean Sea …
… which is a gorgeous blue in the morning but takes on a molten silver hue under the blazing afternoon sun. Sunglasses are definitely required to enjoy this view — the sunlight reflection is so intense, it’s almost blinding!
A late afternoon view of the sea from one of Hotel Tagoo’s many levels
When I’m in the Greek Islands, I enjoy watching cruise ships and ferries come and go … this is a view from the Hotel Tagoo swimming pool terrace of a cruise ship approaching the nearby port of Tourlos (also known as the New Port)
The hotel’s pool terrace has a good view of ships docked at Tourlos
This is the view in the opposite direction, looking towards Mykonos Town
From the pool deck, my camera can zoom in on three of the famous Mykonos windmills and the Paraportiani Church (right) near Little Venice
Looking straight ahead, there’s a fabulous view of the sea and nearby islands
An early morning view from the Hotel Tagoo swimming pool deck
A late afternoon view from the Hotel Tagoo swimming pool deck
Enjoying one last look at the view before leaving Hotel Tagoo to travel to Ios
At Hermes Hotel on Ios, we could see the Aegean Sea and mountains near Mylopotas beach through our balcony doors
The balcony for our room (Room #2) gave us this view of the Aegean Sea and a graceful palm tree on the hotel grounds below
From our Room 2 balcony, our cameras could zoom in on Santorini island
We had this view of the valley when looking out the door to our room
Sitting areas outside the Hotel Hermes reception entrance offered excellent views of the sea and parts of Ios; this was a popular place for hotel guests and other people to enjoy the scenery while relaxing with breakfast or a drink
One of the features we loved most about Hotel Hermes was its sea-view outdoor café-bar terrace where we ate breakfast or had an afternoon coffee
Part of the amazing view from the hotel’s café-bar terrace
The café-bar deck was my favourite place to take in the views
The café-bar terrace overlooked the sea and nearby valley …
… had this view up the road to Chora, just 10 minutes away by foot …
… this view of the upper part of the valley near the hotel …
… and this view of the lower valley and the scenic Ios coastline
Another view of the coastline far below the Hotel Hermes
The café-bar terrace had this view of the mouth of Mylopotas Bay …
… and this view towards beautiful Mylopotas beach
Mylopotas beach is just a 15-minute walk down the hill from Hotel Hermes
Another view of Mylopotas beach from the café-bar deck at Hotel Hermes
A camera zoom view of our favourite seaside drinking and dining spot at the far end of Mylopotas beach, Drakos Taverna (right)
The swimming pool deck had views toward Santorini (visible under the clouds near the upper left corner of the photo) …
… and was a great spot to watch the goats roaming the hillside below the hotel
On Milos, the front window to our room at Halara Studios gave us this scenic view toward the western half of the island …
… while the window next to the kitchenette in our studio gave us this view
However, the long terrace outside our room had the best views of all
In the morning, we would enjoy the view with a cup of coffee and, in the evening, savour the scenery while drinking a bottle of wine
When we weren’t hiking around Milos, I spent my time admiring the views
This bucolic scene greeted us when we opened the door each morning
The hillside below us was lush and green, thanks to wet spring weather
Mount Profitis Elias rises 748 meters on the west side of the Gulf of Milos
The white building at left is a farmhouse; the other two buildings are churches that we visited during a morning hike to the seaside village of Klima
We snapped this photo of Halara Studios while hiking to the churches
Our studio was the one with the light blue-coloured window and door on the lower right-hand side, just above the MyGreeceTravelBlog.com logo
Our terrace view included this hillside house, to our upper left …
… and this house, just a few feet to the left below our balcony
This was the terrace view looking straight ahead across the Gulf of Milos
Right below us is a wide expanse of farm fields on the east side of the Gulf
Looking to the right, we could see the west coast of the Gulf of Milos all the way to Cape Vani, the point at the northwest tip of Milos
Some of the mountains along the west coast of the Gulf of Milos
A sailboat passes steep rocky cliffs on the west coast of the Gulf of Milos
I get a kick out of looking at Cape Vani on the northwest tip of Milos because I think it resembles a semi-submerged hippopotamus
Rays of sunlight stream through clouds above Milos one evening before sunset
A ship passes behind Cape Vani at sunset on May 24 2011
Another view of Cape Vani at sunset on May 24 2011
Dark stormclouds threaten western Milos, but we felt only a few drops of rain before the storm system cleared the region
The west coast of the Gulf of Milos at sunset on May 24 2011
A severe thunderstorm lashes western Milos on the afternoon of May 27 2011
Stormclouds above western Milos on Friday May 27 2011
The terrace view I hated to leave when we had to depart for Athens on May 28
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Things I love about Greece: Waking up to gorgeous views at hotels in the Greek Islands (Part 5)
The view from our balcony at the Andromeda hotel in Kalami, Samos
One big miss, two great hits: In my earlier posts about Greek Island views, I recounted how we were “on a roll” in terms of picking places to stay where we could see impressive scenery without leaving the hotel premises. Whether it was from our room’s windows or balcony, or the hotel’s dining area or pool terrace, we always seemed to luck out with amazing views of sea and island scenery and sometimes glorious sunsets, too. Well, that run of good views came to a screeching halt at our very first hotel destination in 2010.
Kos was our first island stop in May 2010, and we stayed at Saint Constantin Hotel in Kos Town. When I booked our room, I knew it wouldn’t have a sea view, but I kept hoping there would be something interesting to see from our balcony or somewhere on the hotel grounds. Unfortunately, it didn’t turn out that way, and we wound up with our worst island views ever. Thankfully, good scenery was less than a 10-minute walk away. (The hotel itself was all right, by the way.)
Patmos was our second island, and the Hotel Golden Sun at Grikos Bay more than made up for the lousy views at Kos Town. I was already impressed by the hotel’s views while still sitting in the taxi that drove us to there from the ferry port, and when I walked onto our balcony I was totally blown away by the awesome scenery. We overlooked the full Grikos valley and bay area, and could even see the coast of Turkey. Mountains obscured sunset views, but Tragonissi Island and the mountains surrounding the bay took on a gorgeous golden glow in the late afternoon/early evening sun, and we got to see rainbows above nearby Petra Bay as a storm system moved over the region.
Samos was our final island-hopping destination, and good views continued at both our hotels there. We spent our first night in the island’s largest town, Vathi (a.k.a. Samos Town), staying at the Samos Hotel (which now also calls itself Samos City Hotel). It was situated on Vathi’s main street — a wide waterfront road that curls around the foot of Vathi Bay. Our second floor room overlooked the bay, with great views of the Vathi ferry port and main street, while the hotel’s huge rooftop pool and bar terrace had tremendous views of the entire town and bay. The next day we moved to the Andromeda Hotel in Kalami — a resort region in the scenic “suburbs” of Vathi, a 20-minute walk away. The breathtaking balcony views of Vathi Bay rivalled the Grikos Bay scenery we had enjoyed on Patmos, but came with an added bonus: direct sunset views.
Though Kos was a complete write-off for views, Patmos and Samos clearly ranked among the best we have experienced. So we can’t complain about Kos; as the saying goes, “two out of three ain’t bad.” Below are photos of our views (and lack thereof) from the Saint Constantin Hotel on Kos, the Hotel Golden Sun on Patmos, the Samos Hotel in Vathi, and the Andromeda Hotel in Kalami, Samos. (Unfortunately, the Andromeda doesn’t yet have a website.) To view some short videos of the views from the Hotel Golden Sun, see my May 12 2011 post. There’s a clip of the view from the Andromeda Hotel at the bottom of this post.
Our balcony at the Saint Constantin Hotel in Kos Town looked directly onto the balcony for a room at the hotel next door. Thankfully, our balcony doors had dark-tinted glass to provide a bit of privacy
If we peered over the balcony and looked to the right, we could see the street
This was our view, looking to the left
The hotel’s breakfast area had a view of the street …
… as well as the ground-level swimming pool and bar terrace
This is what the street outside the hotel looked like
At the Hotel Golden Sun on Patmos, our balcony had this fabulous view of Grikos Bay, Tragonissi Island (right) and the coast of Turkey
Our balcony, on the Hotel Golden Sun’s upper level, gave us a panoramic view of the entire Grikos valley and bay area
To the left our balcony overlooked the small harbour on Grikos Bay
To the right, our balcony overlooked Tragonissi Island and Kalikatsou Rock
The outdoor breakfast terrace had terrific views of Grikos Bay …
… as well as the surrounding hillsides of the valley above the bay …
… where construction of new luxury hotels and villas is underway (happily, we weren’t disturbed by any noise from the work activity there, or from lower in the valley where workers were finishing the new 5-star Patmos Aktis Suites & Spa.)
In the main town of Vathi on Samos, the rooftop terrace at the Samos Hotel offers tremendous views of the city, the port, and Vathi Bay
Our balcony overlooked the Vathi ferry pier (plus other balconies on our floor)
Here’s a daytime view of the ferry port from our balcony …
… and a night view of houses on the hillsides above Vathi Bay
To our left, we could look down the main waterfront street in Vathi
At the Andromeda Hotel in the Kalami area of Samos, our room had a narrow, small balcony with a really, really big view
To the immediate left of our balcony were some luxury rental villas on the hillside
Also to the left were views of Vathi Bay
This is the first view we saw each morning when we walked onto the balcony
We rode bikes to the scenic seaside village of Kokkari on the far side of the bay
To the right we had views of houses on the Kalami hillside above Vathi Bay …
… as well as other bay-view balconies on our floor. (I know it doesn’t look very private, but hotel guests tended to watch the scenery and sunsets, rather than their neighbours, whenever they sat on their balconies.)
There was a long, narrow terrace overlooking the bay next to the Andromeda’s breakfast room; if we got up early enough, we could eat outside (those tables were popular, and almost always occupied).
During breakfast, we watched tour boats travelling to and from Kusadasi, Turkey
The Andromeda had a huge swimming pool with great views of Vathi Bay
At the bottom of the hill, the hotel had a private seaside sunbathing area …
… with great views of Vathi Bay and the surrounding hillsides
Each evening, almost everyone at the Andromeda Hotel relaxed on their balcony with a bottle of wine while watching the gorgeous sunsets
This was one of the sunset views we enjoyed watching from our balcony …
… and this was another — we saw a beautiful sunset every night
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Things I love about Greece: Waking up to gorgeous views at hotels in the Greek Islands (Part 4)
Enjoying the view from our private terrace at Fildisi Boutique Hotel on Astipalea
Return visits: Our 2009 Greece holiday took us to four islands, and on two of those we made return visits to hotels we had stayed at once before. That’s something we rarely do, since we generally prefer to experience new hotel surroundings whenever we return to a destination we’ve already seen. But we had particularly liked both of these hotels, so we were anxious to stay there again.
Astipalea was our first stop on this particular island hopping holiday, and we stayed at Fildisi Boutique Hotel near Livadi, a peaceful farming valley below the island’s main town, Chora. It was early in the season and the Fildisi had only a handful of guests; in fact, the owner, Elias, was still getting the swimming pool, terrace and some of the other rooms ready for the summer. When Elias picked us up at the Astipalea airport to drive us to the hotel, he said he was upgrading us to the “VIP Suite.” We had no idea what that meant until we arrived and discovered it was a large studio-size room with an enormous two-level private terrace. The spacious room was great, but the jaw-dropping views from the huge deck stole the show. (To be honest, I don’t think there is a bad view from anywhere on the Fildisi property.)
Amorgos was island destination number two, and we chose Yperia Hotel in Egali, one of two port towns on the island. We were embarrassed when the Yperia’s owner, Antonis, picked us up at the port when we arrived shortly before 7 in the morning on a gargantuan Blue Star Ferry that had left Astiplea at 5.30 with fewer than two dozen passengers. The drive to the Yperia took less than one minute — we could easily have walked there with our suitcases, which we were barely able to squeeze beside us into Antonis’s tiny sedan. (Mind you, there is no sign on the hotel, so we could just as easily have walked right past the place and missed it.) Antonis assigned us a second-floor room right above the hotel reception and breakfast area. It had two balconies that overlooked the hotel swimming pool and gave us views of the Egali ferry pier as well as sunsets over Naxos island. The room also had a window facing the mountainside behind the hotel; it gave us views of Potamos, a picturesque village where had three memorable sunset dinners at the wonderful Kamara Cafe (which, we later learned, is owned and operated by Antonis’s cousin, Christoforos).
Naxos was our third island, and we returned to the Lianos Village hotel which we had enjoyed in 2006.
Mykonos was our final stop, and Hotel Tagoo was our hotel choice there for the second year in a row.
Below are photos of our views at Fildisi Boutique Hotel, Yperia Hotel, Lianos Village and Hotel Tagoo.
Every room at the Fildisi has this view of Astipalea’s Chora and Kastro (castle)
The private terrace for our “VIP Suite” at the Fildisi Hotel was unbelievably bigger than the hotel room itself.
The top level of the terrace was furnished with this giant canopy shading a teak dining table and chairs, while the lower level had two lounge chairs for sunbathing.
The enormous terrace offered an incredible panoramic view of the Livadi farming valley, Chora, the Aegean Sea, and a small beach below the hotel
Part of the Livadi valley viewed from our terrace at the Fildisi hotel
Chora, the coastline and a small beach viewed from our private terrace
I never got tired of the view of Chora and the sea
At the Yperia Hotel in Amorgos, our second-floor room had two balconies. One of them can be seen here, above the hotel entrance and pool terrace
We could see Egali bay through the door to our balcony
This photo, taken from one of our room’s two balconies, shows part of the sea view that we enjoyed from the second balcony
I enjoyed relaxing on the balcony with an ice cold bottle of Mythos beer or glass of wine after a long day of hiking on Amorgos
The balcony was a great spot to watch fishing boats return with their catch …
… and to watch Greek ferry ships come and go from the pier at Egali port. This was the same big Blue Star ferry that brought us to Amorgos from Astipalea
This was our balcony view of the Express Skopelitis ferry arriving at Egali one evening. We rode the Skopelitis to Naxos a few days later; this online album has photos of our journey through the Small Cyclades en route to Naxos.
Our balcony also had this view toward the mouth of Egali Bay
A window in our room faced homes and hotels on the hillside behind the Yperia …
… but also gave us views of Potamos village higher up the mountain
Best of all were the views from our balcony of sunsets over Naxos
On Naxos, we could view the sea from inside our hotel room at Lianos Village
Our balcony was a nice spot to relax with a glass of wine while enjoying extensive views down the southwest coast of Naxos
From our balcony we could see Agios Prokopios beach, Agia Anna, beach, Plaka beach, and mountains in the distance behind them
Palm fronds and colourful flowering plants beside our balcony
Balcony view toward Agios Prokopios beach at the bottom of the hillside
Another balcony view toward Agios Prokopios beach
The Lianos Village swimming pool terrace had terrific views of the southwest Naxos coast and other nearby islands
Swimming pool terrace view of the Agios Prokopios resort area of Naxos
Another view from the hotel swimming pool terrace
Another pool terrace view of the island’s southwest coast
This was our balcony view during our second stay at Hotel Tagoo on Mykonos
Another view from our balcony, looking toward the left
The Hotel Tagoo pool terrace is a great place to relax in the afternoon sun…
… or watch cruise ships and ferries come and go from nearby Tourlos port
Hotel Tagoo pool deck views in the morning, looking toward the left …
… and looking toward the right
A gorgeous Mykonos sunset reflects in Hotel Tagoo’s reception room windows
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Things I love about Greece: Waking up to gorgeous views at hotels in the Greek Islands (Part 3)
A dramatic sunset viewed from Hotel Tagoo on Mykonos in September 2007
Sunsets, sea views & windstorms: 2007 was the year we took our first-ever September trip to Greece, breaking a pattern of travelling in mid- to late May or early June. This particular island-hopping holiday took us to Milos, Sifnos, Folegandros and Mykonos.
Milos was our first stop; we flew there on an Olympic Airways flight from Athens the same day we arrived in Greece. We stayed at the Santa Maria Village hotel near Adamas, the main port town on Milos. Santa Maria Village is a hillside complex of hotel rooms, suites, apartments and bungalows less than a 15-minute walk from the Adamas harbour. The hotel overlooks the Gulf of Milos, and the balcony to our room had views of the gulf, 748-meter Mt. Profitis Elias and other mountains on the west side of the bay, and Adamas. No sunset views from this location, but we did get to see a spectacular sunset from Utopia bar in Plaka one evening.
Sifnos was our second destination. We stayed at Hotel Delfini, which sits directly across from the Kamares ferry port on the far side of Kamares Bay. The hotel has a beautiful swimming pool that overlooks Kamares and the bay. In our room, one of the tiniest hotel rooms we’ve stayed in anywhere, the window and the balcony both gave good views straight down the wide bay toward open sea. We saw some brilliant sunsets during our stay — a stroke of luck considering that a bad weather system moved over the Aegean during our first night on Sifnos, bringing cloudy skies and a fierce windstorm that disrupted ferry travel for several days. We actually had to spend one extra night on the island because there were no ferries going anywhere on our scheduled departure day.
Folegandros was our third stop, and we arrived more than a day late because of the ferry cancellations caused by the weekend windstorm that “stranded” us on Sifnos. We stayed at the Fata Morgana Studios, a small clifftop complex of 14 apartments near the island’s main town, Chora.This place has incredible views, including sunsets! The swimming pool and bar overlook the sea and the mountainous western half of the island, while our balcony gave us even better views — the same breathtaking sea and mountain views, plus sightlines of Chora and the stunning church of Koimisis tis Theotokou (Assumption of the Virgin Mary), perched high on the mountain above the town.
Mykonos was our final island-hopping destination, and this time we decided to stay close to Mykonos Town, rather than at a beach resort like Elia or Platis Gialos where we had stayed three times before. We chose Hotel Tagoo not only because of its many positive reviews on TripAdvisor.com, but also since it came highly recommended first-hand by some people from Toronto we knew who had stayed there the previous year. (I had recommended the Lianos Village to them for their Naxos visit; they loved it and suggested we try Hotel Tagoo next time we went to Mykonos because it had many similarities and they felt certain we would love it. They were right.)
We actually got to stay in two different rooms. Our first room was situated on the east side of the Hotel Tagoo complex, with a semi-private partial sea-view terrace that was cozy, comfortable and quiet. We couldn’t watch the sunset from that terrace, but if we wanted to see it, all we had to do was walk a few flights of stairs to the swimming pool and pool bar deck. The panoramic vistas from there are spectacular; on clear days, you can see several other Cyclades islands including Tinos, Syros, Rinia and sometimes even Giaros. As you can imagine, the sunsets look sensational from up there, too. And for our last night on Mykonos, we got to move into a room with a direct sunset view. When guests checked out of one of the hotel’s front-facing rooms earlier in the day, hotel manager Anna asked if we wanted to switch rooms for the night. We did, of course, so we got to watch a brilliant sunset while enjoying a bottle of wine on the comfort of our own terrace. It was the perfect place to spend our final evening on the island!
Below are photos of our views from the Santa Maria Village on Milos, the Hotel Delfini on Sifnos, the Fata Morgana Studios on Folegandros, and Hotel Tagoo on Mykonos.
This was the view looking straight out from our second-floor hotel room balcony at the Santa Maria Village hotel in Adamas on Milos
Directly ahead is the Gulf of Milos, the wide bay that separates the east and west sides of the island
Off to the right stands Mount Profitis Elias on the west side of the Gulf of Milos
The mountains blocked sunsets from sight at the hotel — but there were many excellent sunset viewing spots in Plaka and Kastro
Our balcony also overlooked the Santa Maria Village swimming pool and bar terrace
The swimming pool and its surrounding terrace had views of the Gulf of Milos …
… as well as views towards the island’s main port town, Adamas, which was only a 15-minute walk from the hotel along the waterfront
The Hotel Delfini is situated on a hill above Kamares Bay on Sifnos
The Delfini has great views of the mountains that tower above the bay and port…
… while parts of the hotel property overlook the port town of Kamares
The Hotel Delfini has a beautiful infinity pool …
that faces straight down Kamares Bay toward the open sea …
… has views of the island’s main port town, Kamares …
… and offers excellent sightlines as the sun sets over the Aegean Sea to the west
Another sunset view from the Hotel Delfini’s infinity pool
The window in our room overlooked the pool and the hotel’s outdoor restaurant area (under the bamboo roof), and had great views of Kamares Bay
Our balcony faced right down Kamares Bay toward the open sea
Our balcony view of the rugged coastline and rocky mountain above Kamares Bay
Our balcony view of a sunset over the Aegean Sea
The swimming pool terrace at Fata Morgana Studios on Folegandros has fantastic views. The island of Paros is visible in the distance in this photo.
This was part of the view from our terrace at Fata Morgana Studios; I say “part” because the second-floor balcony wrapped around the building, offering wonderful views in several different directions
We could see the village of Ano Mera on the mountaintop in the distance
Looking straight out to sea from our balcony at Fata Morgana Studios
A sitting area for the pool bar had amazing views of the island, sea and sunset
The sitting area looks surrounded by nothing but deep blue sea
Our balcony also had great views of Chora, the main town on Folegandros
This was our balcony view of the Church of Koimisis tis Theotokou at sunset …
… and this was our view of the moon high above Chora at sunset one evening
With all those views, I loved sitting on the balcony when we weren’t hiking around Folegandros (which is one of the best islands for walking)
This was the semi-private sea-view terrace for our first room at Hotel Tagoo
To the left was this view of the hotel next door to Tagoo. The hillside in the distance is the Apollonia area of Mykonos island.
This was the direct sea view from our second room at Hotel Tagoo
Our balcony overlooked the swimming pool deck for another hotel lower down the hillside in what is known as the Tagoo district of Mykonos
The upper levels of Hotel Tagoo offer superb views of the sea and nearby islands
On a clear day, the shimmering sea looks silver under the glare of the blazing sun
Standing on the swimming pool deck, two Hotel Tagoo guests watch as a four-masted luxury cruise ship sails out of Mykonos port
Guests watch a sunset from the swimming pool terrace at Hotel Tagoo
The incredible sunset views make the Hotel Tagoo swimming pool terrace a popular gathering spot for guests each evening
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Things I love about Greece: Waking up to gorgeous views at hotels in the Greek Islands (Part 2)
I loved the views of Thirassia island (left) and Skaros Rock (right)…
… as well as the sunsets we could watch from our private balcony at Grotto Villas/Cliffside Suites in Firostefani village on Santorini
Musical rooms: I could describe our 2006 holiday as “Goldilocks goes to Greece,” because that was the vacation during which we kept switching hotel rooms — or even hotels, in one instance — to find one that felt just right.
On Mykonos, we stayed at the Petasos Beach Resort & Spa at Platis Gialos beach — the same area where we had stayed two years earlier. The Petasos sits on a peninsula between Platis Gialos Bay and Psarou Bay, so its property boasts a wide variety of views of two separate beaches and bays. Our first room at the Petasos had a small ground-level terrace facing Psarou Bay and the Aegean Sea, but we didn’t like the room itself. It was one of the hotel’s older units (the Petasos had been undergoing a major room renovation program, but had not yet overhauled the one we were in), and appeared comfortable enough, but felt very dark and depressing. We couldn’t determine exactly what we didn’t like, but since the room put both of us in a gloomy mood, we asked if we could move.
The hotel manager obligingly relocated us to a bright and cheery room on the second floor. Newly-renovated and upgraded, it looked and felt 100 times better than the first room, and had a much bigger terrace with twin sun loungers as well as a bistro table and two chairs. The trade-off was considerably less privacy and a much less impressive view. The balcony overlooked the back of several Petasos Resort buildings plus a row of terraces for all the other rooms on our floor, but also gave us views of Platis Gialos beach and bay, as well as other hotels and buildings on the surrounding hillside. It suited us just fine. And whenever we wanted a change of scenery, all we had to do was take a walk around the resort. The swimming pool bar and deck looked toward Nammos, the trendy upscale restaurant on posh Psarou beach; the dining room faced Psarou Bay and the Aegean Sea; and the hotel’s smaller second swimming pool overlooked Platis Gialos beach and bay.
On Naxos, we were supposed to spend a week at the top-ranked Hotel Kavos above Agios Prokopios beach, but stayed only three nights. The hotel had been getting consistent rave reviews on TripAdvisor.com, and still does to this day, but it wasn’t our cup of tea. The manager, Barbara, was terrific and so were the two young women who worked in the poolside restaurant and bar. And the views were good: the terrace outside our room faced Agios Prokopios Bay on the southwest coast of Naxos, and we could see similar views as well as nearby Paros island from the swimming pool deck. But many aspects of the room irked us, including the thick insect-infested vines above our terrace, and we didn’t enjoy the 30-minute one-way trek to a reasonably-priced breakfast spot at Agios Prokopios each morning (breakfast was not included in the room rate, and we thought Kavos’s menu prices were steep; I would have gone broke getting my daily caffeine fix at €3.50 per small cup of coffee).
While walking to breakfast one morning we passed the Lianos Village hotel, which we could see from our terrace at the Kavos, and stopped in to inquire about room rates. When the receptionist showed us a nice, bright sea-view room costing half as much as we were paying at the Kavos, and told us that the rate included a light buffet-style breakfast (with coffee), we decided to switch hotels. In a bid to convince us to stay at the Kavos, Barbara insisted on showing us some other rooms, including suites, that had better views and more space, but they were all significantly more expensive and, in one case, nearly twice the price. So we declined. Amazingly, Barbara insisted on driving us to Lianos Village, even though it was only a short walk down the hill (didn’t I say she was terrific?). It turned out the coffee at Lianos Village was dreadfully weak, but the breakfast spread was satisfying, the room was comfortable, the views were wonderful, and the price was excellent.
On Santorini, our final island-hopping destination that year, we stayed in the village of Firostefani at Grotto Villas, a caldera-view hotel that was in the process of changing its name to Cliff Side Suites. We were initially assigned Room 119, a windowless Flintstones- style cave room which initially struck us as novel and fun but soon became incredibly frustrating (not to mention a huge pain in the head for me). After two nights we had to change rooms, and totally lucked out by getting switched to Room 110, a small kitchenette-equipped studio boasting a private balcony with million-dollar views — including Santorini’s fabled sunsets. (For detailed descriptions of both rooms and the hotel in general, see my comments in post #3 of this July 2006 thread in the TripAdvisor.com Santorini forum.) Room 110 was wonderful, for a lot of reasons, and we thoroughly enjoyed our time in it. I only wish I could say the same thing about our 2006 Santorini experience as a whole, but that’s a topic I’ll deal with some other time.
Below are photos of our various views at the Petasos Beach Resort, Hotel Kavos, Lianos Village and Grotto Villas/Cliff Side Suites.
Room P208, our first room at the Petasos Beach Resort & Spa on Mykonos, had a stone terrace with views of Psarou Bay and the Aegean Sea
Our terrace overlooked the landscaped hotel grounds as well an upscale residential area on the steep mountainside directly across Psarou Bay
To the left we could see part of Platis Gialos Bay and the rocky peninsula that juts into the Aegean Sea between Platis Gialos and Paraga Bay
The terrace for Room 183, our second room at the Petasos Beach Resort, overlooks Platis Gialos, one of the most popular beaches on Mykonos
If we didn’t feel like lounging beside one of the hotel’s two swimming pools, we could lay in the sun on our terrace instead
To the far left we could see another hotel across the street (actually, it’s the main road that links Platis Gialis to Mykonos Town) …
… as well as a semi-constructed resort building and more hotels lining the steep hillside above Platis Gialos…
…while straight ahead we looked onto Platis Gialos beach, another wing of the Petasos Beach Resort, and the Hotel Petinos Beach next door
To the right are terraces for the other hotel rooms on our floor
The main swimming pool terrace had views of Psarou beach and bay…
… including the trendy, private beach club-style Nammos restaurant and bar
The hotel’s poolside bar and dining room had similar views
Some of the breakfast tables sat on an open air dining terrace …
… with completely unobstructed views of the beautiful blue Aegean Sea
The Petasos has another (smaller) swimming pool …
… with great views of Platis Gialos beach and bay …
… plus the Platis Gialos pier where people can catch caiques — traditional Greek boats that shuttle passengers to popular beaches along the south coast of Mykonos
From our terrace outside Room 1 of the Hotel Kavos on Naxos …
… we could view the Aegean Sea off Agios Prokopios beach, a 15-minute walk away
To the left of our terrace were private homes and villas in the Stelida area of Naxos
The Hotel Kavos Naxos swimming pool had a view of the sea…
… while the pool terrace had views of the coastline on the southwest side of Naxos
From the pool deck, we could watch the sun set behind Paros island
The balcony for our room at the Lianos Village hotel offered a partial sea view toward the Agios Prokopios resort area of Naxos
The lovely swimming pool terrace at Lianos Village had views not just of Agios Prokopios beach, but also nearby Paros island, visible at the rear right of this photo
This was one of the pool terrace views of the Agios Prokopios area
This is a wider swimming pool view of the southwest coast of Naxos; the long, wide strip of sand in the foreground is Agios Prokopios beach
Here’s another view of the sea and Agios Prokopios beach
On Santorini, the shared public terrace outside Room 119 at Grotto Villas/Cliffside Suites had views of Thirassia island, Skaros Rock and Imerovigli village
We were happier when we moved to Room 110, which had a private balcony
The Room 110 balcony offered spectacular views. Visible in this photo are Nea Kameni (the Santorini volcano island, left) and Thirassia island
Here’s another view of the volcano island from our balcony
The view to our right included Skaros Rock (left) and Imerovigli village
This was our caldera view, looking to the left from our balcony
Our balcony overlooked the large swimming pool and breakfast terrace for the aptly named Kafieris Blue Apartments
We had a great view of cruise ships and ferry boats near the volcano island…
… and enjoyed watching the sun set in the distance, centered almost perfectly between Thirassia island and Skaros Rock
Most of the rooms and public areas at Grotto Villas had superb views. As an example, here’s a sitting area outside the hotel’s reception room
This is the view in the opposite direction from the same sitting area
This was the view for one of the larger Grotto Villas hotel rooms
This was the view for yet another Grotto Villas terrace
The swimming pool, situated on one of the lower levels of the hotel, had a great view towards Thirassia island
Breakfast was served on the swimming pool terrace. Some of the tables at the cliff side of the pool had wonderful views of the volcano island
Some of the hotel’s terraces overlooked the swimming pool for Dana Villas, a separate hotel situated even farther down the cliff face below Grotto Villas
And some of the terraces had this view of Skaros Rock (left), Imerovigli village (center rear) and Firostefani village (right)
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Things I love about Greece: Waking up to gorgeous views at hotels in the Greek Islands (Part 1)
On our very first morning in the Greek Islands back in 2004, we were awestruck by this view from our balcony at the Myconian Ambassador Hotel on Mykonos
Va-va-va-view: On our first-ever trip to Greece, we arrived at Mykonos after nightfall and didn’t have a clue what kind of view we would get from our balcony at the Myconian Ambassador Hotel. The hotel employee who showed us to our room opened the balcony doors and assured us we would have beautiful sightlines of the sea and Platis Gialos beach, but most of the area was pitch black and we couldn’t see much more than lights from nearby hotels and houses. It also was surprisingly quiet, though whenever the light breeze blew in our direction, we could faintly hear Greek music being played in the tavernas lining the beach a few hundred meters below us.
When we woke up the next morning and pulled open the balcony doors, our jaws dropped as we got our first glimpse of Platis Gialos in daylight. The view was absolutely gorgeous! Spread out below were dozens of the island’s signature white cube buildings, the golden-brown sandy beach, and the vivid deep blues and tempting turquoise waters of the legendary Aegean Sea.
On all of our Greek Island holidays since then, we’ve always tried to get a hotel room with a good sea view. If the room itself doesn’t offer one, we’re content if there is at least a decent sea view from a public area somewhere else on the hotel property — be it a breakfast room, swimming pool terrace, or other place where we can sit, relax and gaze at the scenery. At home, all we see from our windows and balcony are highrise glass, steel and concrete towers. When we travel on holidays, we cherish views of the sea. It’s even better if we can see some islands and mountains, too. Bonus points if we can watch a spectacular sunset. But a Greek holiday just wouldn’t feel the same if we couldn’t see the Aegean.
I posted additional photos of the views from the Myconian Ambassador Hotel in my June 3 2011 post. Below are photos showing the various different views we have had from some of the other hotels we stayed at during Greek Island holidays since. Some of the views are terrific, and others considerably less so, but with only one or two exceptions, we always got to see the sea without having to leave our hotels.
The view from our balcony at the Rodos Palladium at Kallithea beach on Rhodes
Evening view from our balcony at the Rodos Palladium in 2004
Our Rodos Palladium balcony view of a full moon above Kallithea Bay in 2004
The balcony to our room at the Candia Maris Resort & Spa in Amoudara, Crete gave us this view of sea and mountains in 2004…
… as well as this view of the resort’s indoor swimming pool…
… plus this view of other balconies on our side of this particular hotel building
That’s me on our sea-view terrace at the Santorini Palace Hotel on Santorini in 2004. This isn’t the breathtaking caldera view for which Santorini is renowned (this is the less scenic east side of the island), but it looked great to us. And if we did want to see the spectacular caldera view, all we had to do was exit the hotel’s main entrance and walk 100 meters up a short slope — and there it was.
We couldn’t see a famous Santorini sunset from our terrace at the Santorini Palace Hotel, but we could see the sunset glowing on clouds above Imerovigli village
A view of Elia Bay on Mykonos from the Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas in 2005
Part of the sea view from our balcony at the Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas
More of the sea view from our balcony at the Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas
Houses and rental accommodation on the steep hillside rising to the left of our balcony at the Myconian Imperial Resort & Villas
Our bathroom window gave us a view of more hotel rooms higher up the hillside
In 2005, we enjoyed views of Naxos Town and Agios Georgios Bay from the Naxos Beach II hotel in the Stelida district of Naxos
Another view toward Naxos Town from the Naxos Beach II hotel
Our bedroom at Naxos Beach II had doors that opened onto a stone-paved terrace offering this view toward Naxos Town
Another view from the terrace outside our bedroom at the Naxos Beach II
At the Yria Hotel on Paros in 2005, our room had a large ground-level terrace
This was the view if we looked to the left while sitting on the terrace…
…while, unfortunately, this was the view to the right — overlooking an unattractive overflow parking area
We could catch a slight glimpse of the sea from the Yria’s swimming pool terrace…
…and also see a small section of Paraspora beach, which was just a five-minute walk down the road…
… but the Yria Hotel’s main attraction was its enormous swimming pool. It looked fantastic, but the chilly water was murky from suntan oil
In 2005, we loved this marvellous caldera view from our private terrace at the Phenix Hotel in the cliffside village of Imerovigli on Santorini
We didn’t even have to leave our hotel room to enjoy the amazing view…
…but we preferred to savour the stunning scenery from our sun-bathed terrace
Looking to the left, we had this view of other hotels perched perilously on the steep cliffside high above the sea in Imerovigli
Looking down, we could see the caldera and cruise ships below the town of Fira
And from an upper level of the hotel, we enjoyed this view of the volcano island (Nea Kameni) and the gorgeous swimming pool at the Honeymoon Petra Villas, a beautiful multi-level hotel clinging to the cliffside next door to the Phenix
