Why Adults Only?
- Kids are noisy. Which of course is fine. After all, you have to express yourself. But there’s a reason for the old saying, “Children should be seen and not heard.” In an adults-only hotel, children are neither seen nor heard. There’s something to be said about waking up to birdsong instead of screaming kids at the nearby pool.
- Kids are work. Child-rearing is incredibly rewarding, but it’s a 24-7 job. Sometimes parents want a break.
- The market’s there. People are having fewer kids, or, increasingly, choosing not to have kids at all. This creates a market for adult-only accommodations, which leads to competition, which leads to higher quality accommodations. Many resorts are high-end, with luxury accommodations and first class spas.
- Social life. Adults-only hotels are great venues for old friends to re-unite, dancing the night away, touristy day trips or boat excursions. Guests can stay up late, sleep in without any worries, and generally remember what it was like to be married without a brood of young ones.
Crete is a great place for an adults-only getaway. It’s got everything a Mediterranean island has to offer- the sun, the climate, the excellent diet and wine selection, and the friendly, open natives. Best of all, there are upwards of 60 of these specialty accommodations in the fast-growing sector on the island.
Here’s a quick take on the top 8 adults-only facilities in Crete.
Stella Island, Analipsi – Hersonissos
Stella Island’s adults only resort is tailor-made for couples and honeymooners. Stella Island’s unique configuration features a concrete lagoon pool snaking its way throughout the resort, with the effect that all its swim up rooms and bungalows are on the water. Ingenious small islets planted with palms are connected one to another by footbridges following the configuration of the lagoon and allowing access for guests to every corner of the resort. Customers love the spacious, modern rooms which make abundant use of natural materials, abundant use of colored, indirect lighting in the bars and restaurants, and the photogenic beauty of the resort, described as an ‘Instagrammer’s paradise
More about Stella Island Resort
Acro Suites - A Wellbeing Resort, Agia Pelagia
Acro Suites, an SLH (Small Luxury Hotel) in Agia Pelagia, on the north coast of Crete, has perhaps the most intriguing site of any resort on the island. It’s suites cling to the lip of a rocky cliff on a craggy stone headland overlooking the sea, with dramatic downward vistas from it en-suite pools and patios. The design of the suites is just as unique, using a lot of native stone, natural tile, and featuring platform-style couches and beds. Some patios and pools were blasted out of the living rock, giving a rock tunnel-enclosed vista toward the horizon.
Seaside A Lifestyle Resort, Agia Pelagia
About 25 km. east of Heraklion, Seaside Resort is another of those stunning cliffside resorts that seem to spring out of the rock, with the churning sea below and open views to the horizon. It offers loft suites of 40-44 square meters 450 sq. ft or so, including private pools. Décor includes lots of exposed wood, rattan rugs, interesting wall treatments, natural materials, eclectic furniture and indoor plants. It has a spa designed to resemble a sea cave, and a yoga and fitness studio. Resort gets high marks for cleanliness, quality, and courtesy.
More about Seaside A Lifestyle Resort
Pnoe Breathing Life, Heraklion
Pnoé Breathing Life is a wellness hotel just east of Heraklion’s Katsanzakis International Airport. Building materials include local stone to firmly root the resort in its locale, imported tile from Italy and Spain, and subtle use of the old building in the geometric design of some walls. The resort has 60 suites.
Buildings are low, with long roofs, and lots of louvered windows and large skylights divided by small wooden beams which cast an interesting pattern of barred light and shadow.
Pnoé Breathing Life is noted for its tranquil atmosphere, its beautiful design, the food, and its caring and attentive staff.
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Ikaros Beach Resort & Spa, Malia
Ikaros Beach resort is a 5-star resort on the north coast of Crete, near the village of Malia. If peace and quiet is what you seek, Ikaros Beach fits the bill nicely. It’s is one of the most highly-rated resorts in all of Crete. The resort is built on a rocky promontory with beautiful sandy beaches within a couple minute walking distance. Architecture is traditionally Cretan, with liberal use of native stone, massive pillars, stone-paved walkways, and exposed timber.
Ikaros Beach gets very high marks for its location, cleanliness, service, and affordability.
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Minos Palace Resort, Agios Nikolaos
This hotel is built at the south end of a small, privately-owned peninsula which affords a nearly 360-degree view of the sea, with the bright lights of popular tourist town Agios Nikolaos just a kilometre across the waters of Agios Nikolaos Bay- close enough to swim to, if you’re feeling exceptionally fit. For pedestrians, the town is still pretty close- about a 30-minute walk.
Minos Palace has 148 units, some of which have private pools, two a la carte/buffet style restaurants, two bars, an infinity pool with terrific views of Agios Nikolaos Bay, a spa and beauty centre, its own beach, and grounds that are very well laid out with abundant grass, trees, shrubbery, and footpaths.
More about Minos Palace Resort
Asterion Suites & Spa, Platanias – Chania
Asterion Suites & Spa is a 5-star facility towards the western end of Crete’s north coast. It sits right on the beach, and was recently renovated. It gets almost uniformly 5-star reviews, and is noted for its serene locale, scenic sea views, and well-appointed, amenity-filled rooms. A good two-word description of Asterion Suites is “relaxed opulence.” Asterion earns praise from customers for its service, its food, and its spotlessness. This Traveler’s Choice Best of the Best award-winning facility offers 67 rooms and suites, some with swim-up suites with private pool.
Royal Marmin Bay Boutique & Art Hotel, Elounda
Royal Marmin, Greece’s first certified energy efficient hotel, is about 10 km north of Agios Nikolaos. The hotel’s environment is very quiet, near the northern end of Elounda Harbour. The view is to the east, across the Harbour, with, with the brown hills of the uninhabited Spinalonga Peninsula across the way. Nearby is Spinalonga Island, a former leper colony and Crete’s second busiest tourist attraction after Knossos.
The hotel grounds are built as a descending terraced series of buildings, with the roof of the large central building being used as the main swimming pool. It offers spectacular panoramic views, one of the finest that you will find in any hotel, anywhere in Greece. It features traditional Cretan architecture.
