AD – Affiliate
There are not many places I would go back to on holiday, as there is so much of the world to explore – but Villa Dimelen is one of them.
To be honest, when I first found it I thought it was too good to be true. I couldn’t find anything that came close to the beautiful setting or facilities for the same price, so I took a leap of faith and booked it. And I wasn’t disappointed.
Set on the beachfront in the small resort of Lygaria, Crete, it was everything we were looking for as a family. We spent our days eating on the sun lit terrace, swimming in the private pool and playing on the beach, just a metre away from our front gate.
Lygaria is only half an hour from Heraklion airport so it’s very easy to access but feels like a world away from the hustle and bustle of the city or larger resorts. A winding hillside road takes you down to a small village set on a thin strip of beach, curving around a sheltered bay.
Villa Dimelen is on the top floor of a two storey house, with steps leading down into the private garden. It has two double bedrooms, one with ensuite, and another room with two sets of bunk beds in. It has a spacious living room, well equipped kitchen with a dishwasher and a coffee machine, and a covered terrace with amazing views.
Dimitros, the owner, couldn’t have been more helpful and welcoming from the moment we booked. He has plans to convert the roof of the villa next year providing even more space to enjoy the fantastic views and star filled skies.
The garden was equally impressive with the fabulous pool and decking built up to the top, so you could easily keep an eye on the kids and take in the view out to sea. The mattress style sunloungers felt like we were in a luxurious hotel and I could have sat there all day.
It also had a relaxing seating area alongside a built in BBQ and pizza oven, with charcoal, wood and tools provided. The kids were more than well cared for too with a lovely play hut and slide as well as inflatables, buckets and spades, and snorkelling gear.
A bonus was the use of two double sea kayaks. It’s not something I have done before but I loved paddling round the bay and even J had a go as there were adult and kids’ life jackets provided.
The only small issue was parking. There is a car park seconds away from the villa but as the resort can get very busy during the day, if you go out it can be difficult to find a space and you may have to park a bit further away.
Although to be honest, next time, I’m not sure we would really leave the villa and may just take a taxi from the airport! This time we visited Knossoss and the Watercity water park, which were both on the outskirts of Heraklion and lovely day trips, but the true joy was just relaxing and enjoying days of doing not much at all!
Shopping and eating with allergies
As an allergy family, we take a lot of food with us and love the convenience of self catering. There was a small shop just a quick walk along the bay where we could stock up on the basics – and even buy Oreos and safe ice lollie! – but ideally you would need to visit a supermarket in Heraklion on the way from the airport to have supplies for the week.
There are three tavernas along the seafront. Two are mainly bars but serve snacks and pizza, while Sirocco, a few doors down from Villa Dimelen, served a full menu. We took our allergy cards and spoke to the owner before visiting. He was very willing to accommodate us, communicated well in English and had clear allergy knowlegde. Most dishes are grilled meat or fish with chips, rice or salad so as it’s all fresh, simple, whole ingredients which are generally easy to make allergy friendly.
Easy, relaxing and rejuvenating
My favourite thing about the villa was simply how easy everything was. Usually, when you visit the beach, you have to pack a bag, take snacks, worry about sand getting in everything and trek somewhere when one of the kids needs the toilet. On this holiday, we simply turned around and went back into our villa!
The days were split between the pool, beach, wandering to get an ice lolly from the shop and eating fresh food with a glass of wine, overlooking the bay.
I am already dreaming about another family holiday at Villa Dimelen but I also think it would be great for two families travelling together, or as a holiday with friends (I might be secretly thinking about a girly escape for our 40th birthdays!).
Book with 10% off!
We loved our stay at Villa Dimelen so much that I wanted to find a way to help other people enjoy it too.
So Dimitros has given me a code for FreeFromFarmhouse readers to get 10% off if you want to book for next year, plus he will include two children’s tickets for Watercity water park!
You can book here using code EMMA2020
(This is an affiliate link so I will get a small discount on my next stay for every booking using the code, but the price to you is the same – well actually 10% off!!)
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