The Villa was totally amazing. It was beautiful inside and out and had everything we needed for a fantastic relaxing holiday. The pool area was amazing with a tv (for the World Cup Football), a bbq, oven and everything you needed to cook outside. A hot-tub, shower, toilet, you didn't need to go inside for anything except sleep or if you fancied it a sauna, a quick workout and then a game of pool in the games room (which also had another TV!) We were all totally blown away with this villa. You do need a car though as the town was a 15 minute drive away. Would definitely recommend this villa, it has absolutely everything you need for a fantastic holiday!
Skaleta · Rethymno · Crete
Aelia Residence
15+ people, six bedrooms and four thousand square metres of olive grove — behind one gate, for one week, entirely your own.
Begin at first light
- guests
- 15+guests
- bedrooms
- 6bedrooms
- m² indoors
- 410m² indoors
- m² estate
- 4,000m² estate
- m² lawn
- 850m² lawn
- m² private pool
- 100m² private pool
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ἐλαίαelaía — the olive
The house is named after the tree it stands in.
Aelia sits on a low rise above Skaleta, on the north coast of Crete, with olive trees running right up to the edge of the lawn and the sea a shade of blue you can see from the upper terrace.
It is a large house arranged as a set of places — water, table, play, wellness and six quiet bedrooms — so 15+ people can share a week without ever having to share an afternoon.
The grove
First, the trees. Then the house.
- 4,000 m² fenced estate
- Private gated entrance
- Olive grove on three sides
Four thousand square metres of walled hillside, and a grove that does not stop at the wall.
The estate is fenced along its whole boundary and entered through a private gate, so the grounds belong to one group at a time. Beyond the wall the olives keep going — down the slope, past the village roofs, to the water.
That distance is the point. There are no shared paths here, no neighbouring balconies, and nothing to negotiate before breakfast.
The house wakes
Four hundred and ten square metres, and one open middle.
- Open-plan living with fireplace
- Fully equipped kitchen
- Air conditioning throughout
Living, dining and kitchen run together, so the first person up is never alone for long.
The main floor is a single connected space: a long lounge with an open fireplace, a dining table under a run of pendants, and a kitchen equipped for a group that intends to cook rather than book.
Travertine, warm plaster and an ironwork stair give the house a material, lived-in character.
The water
A hundred square metres of it, and a smaller one alongside.
- 100 m² pool, 1.5 m deep
- 10 m² children's pool, 0.5 m
- Heating available on request, in season, for an additional fee
The pool is the centre of the estate — with a separate children's pool half a metre deep beside it.
The main pool runs to 1.5 m and holds the whole group. The 10 m² children's pool sits directly next to it, which means the adults never have to choose between swimming and supervising.
Loungers on the lawn, a hammock in the shade of the olives, an outdoor shower, and towels that someone else folds.
The long table
Lunch does not move indoors.
- Covered outdoor kitchen
- Gas grill and full appliances
- Upper terrace pergola
A covered outdoor kitchen with a gas grill, a full run of units, and a table that seats the group.
Glass doors and a remote-controlled cover mean the outdoor kitchen works in wind and in full sun. There is a grill, refrigerator, oven, dishwasher and sink — the whole apparatus of a long, slow, unhurried meal.
When the light drops, the same meal moves one floor up to the pergola on the terrace.
The group splits
Three rooms, three different afternoons.
This is the hour a large group stops agreeing on anything — and the house is built for exactly that.
Swipe through all three rooms
01 / 03
Home cinema
A screening room on the lower floor. One guest can also sleep on the cinema sofa.
Billiards
A Chevillotte table, with room to actually walk around it.
Bedroom with a view
One of six private rooms, opening to its own balcony above the grounds.
Off the clock
Four rooms for coming back to yourself.
A six-seat heated spa outside, and a sauna, gym and massage room on the lower floor.
Swipe through all four spaces
01 / 04
Heated spa whirlpool
Six seats, with aromatherapy, phototherapy and a waterfall. Its own shower and WC alongside.
Sauna
A timber cabin on the lower level, a few steps from the gym.
Gym
Treadmill, cross-trainer and free weights, in daylight.
Massage room
A dedicated treatment room — a private door, not a corner of the lounge.
Gold
The terrace gets about forty minutes.
- West-facing upper terrace
- Timber pergola and outdoor dining
- Sea view over the grove
The upper terrace faces west over the grove, and it is the reason people stop talking.
Columns, a timber pergola, floor-level lighting that comes up as the sky goes down, and a view that runs across the olive canopy to the sea beyond Skaleta.
It is also the quietest table in the house, which is worth knowing when 15+ people have been together since breakfast.
Six doors
And then the house divides again.
Six bedrooms across three floors. Twelve real beds, plus two sofa beds and the cinema sofa — 15+ in total.
Swipe through all six bedrooms
01 / 06
The suite
King bed, en-suite bathroom with shower, and its own television.
The balcony room
Opens onto a private balcony looking over the grounds.
The twin
Two singles that can be joined into a king on request.
The rose room
A warm lower-level room with a double bed, sofa bed, television and desk.
The quiet room
Set away from the stair, for whoever needs the earliest night.
The sixth bedroom
A double bed and sofa bed on the lower level, with its own television and desk.
Blue hour
And the grove goes quiet.
The lights come up under the water and along the steps, the terrace holds the last of the heat, and for the rest of the week nobody has to go anywhere.
The full walkthrough
Forty-nine photographs, in the order you would meet them.
The complete estate in eight chapters — arrival, grounds, open-air living, shared interiors, private rooms, the lower level, blue hour, and the playground.
The guest book
The house, remembered by the people who stayed.
Five stories of long days by the pool, room for everyone and the small acts of hospitality that turned a beautiful house into a memorable week.
—The setting
Northern Crete, with the old town half an hour west.
Skaleta is a working coastal village, with shops, tavernas and sand beaches minutes away.
The estate sits between the sea and the hills, which puts both the coast road and the mountain villages within an easy morning. Three bicycles come with the house.
Distances below are given as directions, not drive times — those depend on the season and the road you choose.
- SkaletaBeach, shops and tavernas, on the coast below
- PanormosFishing village and small harbour, east along the coast
- Rethymno Old TownVenetian harbour and old quarter, west
- Arkadi MonasteryInland, in the foothills
- Ancient EleuthernaExcavated city and museum, inland
What previous guests said, and when they said it.
Both awards are shown with their original year. Neither is a current rating.
9.7Booking.com Traveller Review Award
Top 10%Tripadvisor Travellers' Choice
—Last hour
Everything is arranged except the dates.
Tell us when you would like to arrive, how many of you there are, and anything that matters to this particular group. You will get a personal reply with availability and rates.
Pool heating, baby equipment and additional housekeeping need advance notice and may carry a fee.