Villa Dionysos | Villa in Plaka, Crete

Positive: The villa itself is beautiful and is located in a lovely village with restaurants and shops within walking distance. We had a wonderful holiday, and the property is in a great location.

Negative: However, there are some things prospective guests should be aware of. As an Airbnb host myself, I understand the challenges of renting out a property and the importance of looking after it. My impression, though, was that because the owner lives in the villa for part of the year, he is extremely particular about every mark or sign of wear. During his regular pool maintenance visits, there were frequent comments about sunscreen despite us following his request to shower before entering the pool, which made us feel uncomfortable. There are also additional costs to be aware of. Electricity is charged separately, which is stated in the booking conditions, but it’s easy to overlook if you don’t read everything carefully. We paid €90 for 10 days, so it’s worth factoring this into the overall cost of your stay. The security deposit was another surprise. Although the listing stated €350, we were later informed that a €1,000 deposit was required. This was communicated before arrival, but I hadn’t realised it could only be paid by bank transfer rather than by card. At checkout, everything appeared to be fine, and we even pointed out damage that had been caused by previous guests. The following day, however, I received several messages. One concerned a bedside cabinet where I had accidentally knocked over a cup of camomile tea during the night. I hadn’t realised any liquid had entered the cupboard. After explaining this, I received the response, “I’ll keep you updated; I believe you’re acting in good faith,” which I felt came across as unnecessarily passive-aggressive. I then received further messages about sunscreen stains on the bedding. I hadn’t noticed them during our stay, and only afterwards was I told that certain sunscreen brands are known to cause permanent staining. We were charged €30 for stain removal and, when this was unsuccessful, a further €70 for replacement sheets and pillows.

Positive: Chalet was very spacious. Each bedroom has its own bathroom. Very clean. Management super friendly.

Positive: The villa is fantastic. Great location. It has all the equipment needed and more. Air-con in all the rooms. Nice pool with plenty of space for a family of four. Beautiful roof-terrace. Everything in working order. Near super-markets and a couple of tavernas (5 min. walk). Short walk (15-20 min.) down to Almyrida with a great beach and many nice restaurants. Super happy with our stay. Would definitely come back.

Negative: The pool was not cleaned often enough. In our 2 weeks in the villa, it was only cleaned once, which is not enough. It got quite oily and dirty. There is no cleaning of the Villa during the stay which is OK, but there should be some equipment so that we could do some cleaning ourselves when needed. The villa was nice and clean when we arrived. Communication with villa management is a bit weird, but I think this is because they use google translate. A clean 10/10 when these small issues are resolved.

Positive: Big kitchen and living room with planty room for two big families to hang out together (11 people). Beautiful view! Perfectly furnished!

Negative: Driveway was very narrow, coming late in the evening we had difficulties to find it - it was a private road, which we were not sure if it was correct one. If you have new car be prepared you will find some scratches on it as some branches will be in your way. Toilet on the ground floor would make our life easier;)

Positive: Great location and beutiful view. Fully equiped and comfortable rooms. Friendly owner

Positive: Villa was perfect! Beautiful inside and out with amazing views. Local restaurants, pubs and supermarkets just a 4 minute walk and beach a walkable distance too. Locals lovely! Perfect location and great communication with the owner throughout the week we stayed. Air conditioning in every room which was a God send! Kitchen facilities top notch. Pool was just right for our family of 4. WiFi great. Villa Dionysos made our holiday perfect!

Positive: House was spotless, beautiful. Location was brilliant - nice and quiet but easy to walk to restaurants and local supermarket. Host and cleaning ladies were super helpful

Positive: The villa was beautiful, locals were lovely and great location

Negative: The beds in the connecting room were very uncomfortable. No WiFi for a lot of the stay. There are cameras in rooms including the bedrooms!!! The owner asked for €800 deposit via Iban despite what it says on the website and promptly kept €300 as we checked out a couple of hours late despite the cleaner saying we could stay until 3! Such a shame this marred our holiday, the Cretans have been so lovely and friendly but this host has left a bad taste.