This is a long overdue review. Hotel is a gem, the design is minimalistic in style, calming, clean, serene, even. room was comfortable, had Nespresso coffee and water daily. We are platinum elite status through Bonvoy and received a generous room upgrade, view of the sea and larger room with balcony. What really shines is the people, we received the warmest welcome I have ever encountered in my life at any hotel, Theodoros came up the hill to greet us, at the gate, the minute our car arrived, took care of luggage and walked us down the lovely stairs to the reception area. She did something unexpected, she asked if we wanted to get settled and relax and then come back for information about the hotel and area or if we wanted to do that then. What a smart and thoughtful way to treat guest. Not everyone (me!) wants a fire hose of information when they arrive. The pool is beautiful as are the grounds. Spa is fantastic!!! We used the facilities daily, loved the stream room and cold plunge, and the pool....swimming from inside to the outside was delightful, we were the only guest there every single day. Very cool. What really shines is breakfast, food is all made from scratch, some of the best focaccia we have had, and the little donuts stuffed with chocolate, dreamy. Love the fresh greens and all the toppings for salad, fresh pomegranate seeds and the local seaweed (delicious!!) and the homemade lemon olive oil dressing. Great selection of all kinds of food, eggs, fresh honeycomb, nuts, pistachios are amazing, red in color not at all like the ones in the USA. The real star is the breakfast team, AMAZING. I looked forward to seeing the hostess, she is the BEST, always smiling and warm, I hugged her on my last day, she is really special. And Amar...(if I spelt it wrong I apologize) he was the kindest, sweetest hard worker of all time. It is his first season at the hotel and he bent over backwards for us. He was indulgent! He worked so hard to get me the perfect decaf cappuccino every morning, if it wasn't right, he insisted they remake it to my protest. he was incredible. He also perfected my husbands ice tea every morning and made one to go. ice tea is not common in Europe and it was a nice surprise that they made it perfectly for my husband, it was and is appreciated.
On our last night, we got a knock on the door, and a cart arrived with champagne (yes real champagne not sparkling wine) and assortment of the most descant sweets, we thought it was a mistake and said we did not order anything, he insisted it was for us. A lovely note was included from Theodoros, WOW! handwritten and sincere. What a treat! This place is truly special because of the people. Theodoros, checked on us many times throughout our stay to make sure we were enjoying our time and asked for honest feedback, she is a stand out in her profession as manager. We would come to back just to see her and her team.
1) We took the bus, easy to do, front desk helpful in explaining where to pick up. 2 euros per person each way. The person who takes the money on the bus is a gem, we told him where we were going and he made sure to give us a heads up to get off the bus.
2) do the hike from Fira to Oia, breathtaking and our favorite thing we did. Yes took bus to Fira to begin our hike and took bus from Oia back to Fira then a bus to Messari. Taxi are EXPENSIVE, we would rather spend our money doing things or at restaurants
3) took bus to a winery too, great experience, they dry farm, and the wine is delicious.
4) walk into the town, totally easy to do, it is small, but has what we needed, We ate at the same restaurant every night, absolutely perfect for its, we were often the only tourist there, a real local place, food was perfection and prices very good for Santorini.
5) book car in advance for transportation to hotel, it will be less stressful.
6) Platinum status was acknowledged and the perks amazing, the room upgrade and breakfast were perfection.
7) there are (2) grocery stores you can walk to, fun to buy greek products to bring home, try the oregano chips, delicious and make sure to bring home some Greek olive oil, olives etc. and some spices, the oregano is different then what you can buy in the USA, very good.
We were happy we stayed at this hotel, away from the tourist area, offered a much more relaxing experience and for us a more authentic, in our opinion. Easy to take the bus to go to the touristy areas.
Thank you again we truly had a magical time!
Best-Karen and Steve Wright
Gig Harbor WA USA