Greek Island - Katikies Hotel

d e s t i n at i o n s g r e e k i s l a n d s
D e s t i n at i o n s g r e e k i s l a n d s
Greek Island
Odyssey
Whether you seek romance in Santorini, cuisine in Chios, or
a historic immersion in lesser-known Kastellorizo, there’s a
Greek island to suit every mood, writes Marissa Tejada.
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D e s t i n at i o n s g r e e k i s l a n d s
Dreamy views from Katikies
Hotel on the island of
Santorini (previous page)
A villa with its own private
pool at Belvedere Hotel in
Mykonos (left)
Views from the Marbella
Hotel in Corfu (below left)
and The Santa Marina Resort
& Villas in Mykonos (below)
Culture Corfu
Corfu’s main town is a beautiful example of just
how culturally influenced this northern Greek
island is. A UNESCO World Heritage site, its
ochre colors blend architecture dating from the
island’s Venetian, British and French ruling periods.
Fortresses and archeological sites and are among
the key landmarks. Culture lovers can choose from
museums dedicated to archeology, Asian art or
Byzantine culture. A fourth celebrates the work
of famous Greek poet, Dionysos Solomos. One
of the top resorts, The Marbella, overlooks Agios
Ioannis Peristeron beach. A yacht can whisk you off
to explore the island’s hidden bays and coves that
are only accessible by sea, where you can discover
pocket-sized beaches that are complemented by the
deep greens of the island’s forested slopes.
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Romantic Mykonos
Romantic Santorini
Private jets, yachts and helicopters are all part
of the jetset migration that flocks to Mykonos
each summer, and all that glamour and energy
means romantic atmospheres are easy to come
by. Gourmet restaurants featuring celebrity
Greek chefs offer romantic dinner date potential,
while world-class shopping awaits in the island’s
whitewashed and lively central village. The private
beach at The Santa Marina Resort and Villas could
set the scene for a certain ‘question’, or the hotel
can arrange private sailboat excursions including
one to the serene temple ruins on nearby Delos,
the sacred uninhabited island of the ancients.
The Belvedere Hotel is the top luxury boutique
option that arranges a romantic cruise aboard its
private yacht, allowing you to enjoy an evening
meal catered by its gourmet restaurants under the
moonlight and within view of the lively glow that
emanates from Mykonos Town.
With its radiant sunsets, Santorini inspires romance
on a nightly basis. The island is a unique formation
of steep cliffs created after a tremendous volcanic
explosion rocked the land mass 3,600 years ago.
Cascading down the slopes, the island’s cubist
whitewashed homes and blue-domed churches
are a photographer’s dream. Tucked within them is
the Katikies Hotel, where the luxury suites feature
sea-facing whitewashed rooms shaped from the
island’s volcanic rock. The hotel’s K-Club Escapes
services offers romantic chauffeur driven outings to
the best sunset viewing spots on the island. Or, you
can simply hop aboard a private sailboat excursion
that sets off for Santorini’s coastline and around the
inimitable caldera. Spend a few hours swimming in
the caldera’s hot springs with your significant other,
and end the day with a bespoke dinner on-board
with a serene backdrop of the Greek sea, the caldera
and the island.
“The glamour
and energy in
mykonos means
romantic
atmospheres
are easy to
come by”
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D e s t i n at i o n s g r e e k i s l a n d s
The Algarve
Culture Andros
Andros has a rich history of merchant wealth with
a shipping industry that once competed with Great
Britain. That’s how the Greeks coined its nickname
Micra Anglia or Little England. The moniker
was also adopted by the best hotel on the island,
The Micra Anglia, which is situated in the main
town, marked by a blend of medieval, neoclassical
and Cycladic architecture. On an islet nearby, a
Venetian castle, one of four on the island, stands
tall with an arched stone bridge dating back to the
13th century. Museums are plentiful including
the Museum of Modern Art, two archaeological
museums and the Cyclades Olive Museum. The
rest of Andros is rich with green valleys. You can
join a bespoke hiking tour with Andros Routes (+30
6977 334 334; www.androsroutes.gr) to explore the
island’s ravines, rivers and villages that tell fantastic
stories of the island’s diverse population and past.
End with a specially prepared meal incorporating
the bountiful local produce grown at Andros’ farms
and fruit orchards.
AD
To Greeks, Chios Island is synonymous with some
of the country’s finest natural foods. It’s lush with
citrus groves, its ouzo liquor is famous for being
sweet and subtle, and even more special is the
island’s mastic, which is an aromatic gum and resin.
Chios is the only place in the world where mastic
is found and its villages, called mastichochoria,
grew wealthy from producing it. Joining a private
tour with Mastic Culture (+30 22710 76084; www.
masticulture.com) offers an insight into mastic,
with a hands-on demo of how mastic is harvested,
followed by rustic lunch under the shade of mastic
trees. After a visit to local food culture museums,
you can end the day with an exclusive private dinner
prepared at a traditional mansion in Kampos town.
Stay at the Argentikon Luxury Suites amid a garden
filled with fruit trees, and enjoy the elegance and
luxury of a palatial estate that was once the home of
the Genoese Argenti family for 200 years.
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Photo: Getty Images
Foodie Chios
Enjoy historic old windmills near the port (above) on Chios Island, along with palatial estates such as Argentikon Luxury Suites (below left). On Andros, stay
in luxury at the The Micra Anglia (below right) with its blend of medieval, neoclassical and Cycladic architecture
“chios is synonymous with some
of the country’s finest foods”
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D e s t i n at i o n s g r e e k i s l a n d s
AD
Crete is the birthplace of the healthy and delicious
Cretan diet and Cretans are fiercely proud of what
comes naturally to them. The best of Cretan food
culture is incorporated in an exclusive Vintage
Routes (+30 28103 02881; www.vintageroutescrete.
com) tour that chauffeurs you to the Heraklion
countryside with a local food expert. Education
about Cretan wine takes place in the form of
tastings at the island’s best wineries. Decide on
your favourite labels, including some produced
with the local Vidiano grape variety, and end the
day with a specially prepared, five-course Minoan
dinner prepared by a celebrity Cretan chef and in
a cozy village restaurant, before heading back to
the coast to a luxury villa at Grecotel Amirandes.
The impressive palatial paradise is a modern
interpretation of ancient Minoan palaces, swathed
in classical Grecian décor and set among olive and
palm tree gardens and sparkling lagoons.
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Tour the Crete countryside
and vineyards with Vintage
Routes (above, left ) and
enjoy classic Cretan cuisine
at Greocotel Amirandes
(top, and above right)
Sunset at Lerapetra, a town
on the southeastern part of
the island of Crete (right)
Photo: Getty Images
Foodie Crete
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Explorer Paros
A favourite summer haunt for celebrities like Tom
Hanks (who owns a Parian villa), the island has a
lively mix of things to explore, from the local art
community and gourmet restaurants, to the trails
that lead along the coast, dotted with whitewashed
windmills, cubist homes, an ancient town and
charming harbours. Polos Tours (+30 22840 22092;
www.polostours.gr) guides hikers down sea-facing
walking trails, some dating back to Ancient Greece.
Adventurists have the sea as their playground, as
the island’s weather conditions offer excellent
windsurfing and kitesurfing potential. With its
private beach, art gallery and graceful gardens,
The Astir of Paros shows off the island’s complete
cosmopolitan character, with attentive service and
décor that reflects the clean lines and bright white
architecture of the surrounding Cycladic landscape.
AD
Explorer Kefalonia
Kefalonia, an island ringed with scenic bays and
carved with mountainous slopes, is made for
intrepid explorers, particularly at Myrtos Bay,
which is a swirl of turquoise shades and idyllic
beaches surrounded by dramatic cliffs. The island
is dotted with several picturesque villages including
Fiskardo and Assos. Kokolis Private Tours (+30
26710 24476; www.kokolis.com) whisks you through
the island’s highlights and includes a hike through
the natural phenomenon of Drogarati Cave. Take a
private boat to explore Melissani Lake and its cave,
gliding between the walls of dazzling stalactites
and stalagmites. Your day of exploration can then
end with a luxurious rest at the Petani Bay Hotel,
which is known for its panoramic sea views and
memorable sunsets.
Explore the streets of Paros
(above), a favourite summer haunt
for celebrities like Tom Hanks
The Pentani Bay Hotel (left) on the
island of Kefalonia
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D e s t i n at i o n s g r e e k i s l a n d s
Enjoy the medieval architecture
synonymous with Rhodes while
overlooking yachts at Mandraki
Harbour (left)
Stay in one of five luxurious suites
at the Kokkini Porta Rossa in
Rhodes, which was once a knight’s
mansion (below right)
“Surrounded by aquamarine waters,
Rhodes has an impressive medieval walled
city where the pages of history books
come alive”
Photo: Getty Images
Turquoise water views over
Rhodes from the town of Lindos
(below left)
Historic Rhodes
Surrounded by aquamarine waters, Rhodes has
an impressive medieval walled city where the
pages of history books come alive. Rhodes Wonder
Private Tours (+30 6944 390 535; www.rhodeswonder.
com) chauffeurs you to the Old Town, with
its 13th-century ramparts; the opulent Palace of the
Grand Masters and to the Lindos Acropolis where
a donkey can assist you up 292 steps, should you
prefer not to hike it. You can stay amid history too,
at Kokkini Porta Rossa, housed in a beautiful home
built in 1475. Centrally located in the picturesque
streets of Old Town, the property was a knight’s
mansion before it was converted into a Turkish
mansion with five luxurious suites. An exclusive
excursion organised by the hotel takes you to the
mountains to visit the less frequented or “forgotten”
ancient ruins of the historically-rich island.
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D e s t i n at i o n s g r e e k i s l a n d s
Stay
Katakies Hotel
+30 22860 71401
www.katikies.com
The Santa MariNa Resort
and Villas
+30 22890 23220
www.santa-marina.gr
The Belvedere Hotel
+30 22890 25122
www.belvederehotel.com
The MarBella
+30 22610 71183
www.marbella.gr
The MicraAnglia
+ 30 22820 2220
www.micra-anglia.gr
Argentikon Luxury Suites
+30 22710 33111
www.argentikon.gr
AD
Grecotel Amirandes
+30 28970 41103
www.amirandes.com
The Astir of Paros
+30 22840 51976
www.astirofparos.gr
Petani Bay Hotel
+30 26710 97701
www.petanibayhotel.gr
“kastellorizo’s Ottoman style
mansions surround a calm
harbour”
Kokkini Porta Rossa
+30 22410 75114
www.kokkiniporta.com
Mediterraneo Kastelorizo
Hotel
+30 6973 676 038
www.mediterraneo-megisti.com
Historic Kastellorizo
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The sunrises over Kastellorizo
are just one of the island’s many
draws (above)
Dive into the waters from
Kastelorizo Megiste, a waterfront
boutique hotel (right)
Photo: Getty Images
A mere three kilometres from the Turkish coast,
this tiny island in the Dodecanese is a historic
wonder. Famous names like Eric Clapton and
David Gilmour are among those to discover this
southernmost Greek island where Europe ends and
Asia begins. The island’s Ottoman-style mansions
surround a calm harbour of yachts and fishing
boats. In town, the Mediterraneo Kastelorizo is a
waterfront boutique hotel known for its luxurious
suites. The hotel arranges historic walking tours that
explore an Italian market and the remains of baths
and schools dating back to Turkish occupation. A
guided mountain hike leads through archeological
ruins and the remains of an old castle. You can
also explore the island by boat to discover the Blue
Grotto and the spectacular blue light created by the
refraction of the sun into the sea cave. Another boat
journey lands you onto the uninhabited shores of
St. George – the island’s own island getaway.
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