Luxury family friendly villa just 10 minutes walk from the beach with private po

We travelled from Ireland to stay at Villa Catani for 12 nights in June 2019, our party was made up of 6 adults and 4 teenagers. We all had a wonderful holiday in Crete and the house was a fantastic base for exploring all of this beautiful region of Crete.

Our host Kostas met us at the villa and had kindly prepared a delicious homemade Greek snack for us which was very welcoming after our late-night flight. He was an excellent host and extremely helpful throughout our holiday with any queries we had.

The house provided plenty of space for everyone with lots of outdoor seating areas to relax. The house was very spacious with a great pool there were plenty of sun loungers and shaded spaces to sit if needed. The house has beautiful views over the olive groves and in the evenings the views of the sunset are spectacular out to the sea.

The air-conditioning was great, silent and very cooling. The villa was cleaned twice during our stay and we were provided with clean sheets and towels.

We enjoyed may evenings BBQing and eating outside at the large dining table. We also walked to the local restaurants at Kalamaki, we can recommend Nesaki (excellent pizzas) and Salavantes.

We did many trips from the house including a trip to Balos Beach and Elafonisi beach, two of the most amazing beaches in the world and to the local beaches of Kalamaki and Iguana beach.

The house is close to the beautiful city of Chania (10-minute drive) where we enjoyed lovely dinners in the evenings and great shopping.

We hired a private boat for the 10 of us from Chania and had a wonderful day with Manos and Billy on the traditional Greek boat https://www.manoscruises.com/ We went snorkelling, jumping off the boat and we enjoyed an amazing BBQ prepared by Manos on the boat. This was one of the highlights of our trip.

The waterpark is only a 15-minute drive away, it was very well organised and we spent the whole day enjoying it.

We loved Crete and staying at Villa Catani made it a very special holiday. I would highly recommend it.

We were a mixed group of 10 people with an age range from 06 months to 71 years old. The villa lent itself perfectly to our group. The downstairs is almost like a separate flat with lots space and a variety of beds plus lots of toys etc for the children. There is also direct access to the garden. The rest of our party was spread around the ground and first floors. The villa is very well appointed and we were all extremely comfortable. There were at least 5 different outside sitting places which we used according to time of day, where the sun was, who was around etc.

It was a 10 minute walk to the sea from the villa and then another 5 minutes along the coast road to the beach. We had a choice of 5 beaches which were all walkable from the villa and many restaurants and shops. Bit difficult with a pushchair though as the climb back up the hill to the villa would be a bit tiring and hot with small children.

I recommend Balos Beach (without small children) but if you go please go early. Absolutely stunning. We left the villa at 07.30 and were parked by 08.45. There is then a 2km walk to the beach but it is worth it. We left at 11.00am and met hoards of people arriving. Some had to park 5km before the main car park as the beach became so busy. That means a 7km walk to the beach which is too far! I would suggest getting there early or don't go at all. Samaria was closed on the day our group (without children) wanted to walk it but we walked the Irini Gorge and did a few other walks out of the book.

Kostas was very helpful with the few queries we had and I can thoroughly recommend staying at Villa Catani.

We were welcomed to the villa by Kostas who was waiting to show us around and provided us with some delicious hot home-made snacks. There were 12 of us sharing the villa and we found it spacious with lots of really good seating areas outside and the kitchen was well equipped. We used the local taxis quite a lot and found them very reliable and their prices were reasonable. The restaurants in Kalamaki were good, but if you want to go to Chania it is only a short taxi ride away. Chania is well worth visiting during the day for sightseeing and it's lovely to have an evening meal at one of the harbour restaurants.

We were a large group of 13 and an infant, spanning 3 generations, and this villa was perfect for us, with room to spare. The outside space is huge, with 4 different covered balcony areas for dining and relaxing, with all the gardens, the pool area, and the large barbeque. Bedrooms were spacious and the kitchen had everything we needed. The furnishings were excellent quality, comfy couches , decent outside chairs and tables, and decorated in a homely style with art work , mirrors etc.

Unlike other properties we have stayed in, the owners didn't remove all useful things left by previous occupants, so we had lots of herbs, spices, olive oils,l washing powder etc that we could use, even beach towels that had been left behind. Very helpful.

Kostas greeted us warmly on arrival - an excellent host - with some home made snacks and a bottle of wine, which was unexpected and very welcome.There was even a variety of blow up airbeds at the pool and childrens' toys downstairs . I would recommend this villa to large groups who like places with masses of character - this Villa has loads. Kostas couldn't have been more welcoming and helpful. We hope to return there again one day.

Thanks so much to Kostas and Katerina for letting us stay at their wonderful villa. Location is absolutely perfect, we were a family of up to 11 at one point all mixed ages from 18-50. You can walk down to the beach or take a short drive/cab so some of the other beaches. Supermarkets 10 minutes away, chania town and platanias with restaurants, bars & clubs also just a 10/15 minute cab/drive. The villa is perfectly equipped for large groups, you never feel on top of each other. Also perfect for families with small children as well as teenagers and adults. We fell in love with Crete and will hopefully be back soon. Thank you again for an amazing holiday!