Vederi Estate

Set among cypress and oak woodland above an olive grove, Vederi Estate occupies a quiet fold of hills near the village of Prines, six kilometres from Rethymno and its long sandy shoreline. Four stone villas make up the estate, built from local stone and timber in a style drawn from Cretan farmhouse tradition. Each has its own pool, garden, and shaded dining terrace. Three villas, Alkioni, Kalypso, and Kyveli, sleep up to seven guests and pair a fully equipped kitchen with ensuite bedrooms; Kyveli's garden holds olive trees said to be a century old. The fourth, Melpomeni, is the largest, with five ensuite bedrooms, a home cinema, and space for up to ten guests. You can hear little beyond birdsong and the wind through the olive trees from any of the terraces. A car is worth having: Rethymno's old town and beaches lie a fifteen-minute drive away, and the closer village of Atsipopoulo carries a bakery, pharmacy, and tavernas for daily needs. Staff at Vederi arrange home-cooked meals delivered from Prines, along with massage, beauty treatments, and yoga on request. The coastline nearby runs for long sandy stretches rather than coves, a Mediterranean shore reached easily but kept at a working distance from the estate itself.