Lily's Cottage - villa in Rethymno - Neas Fokeas

We had the absolute best time at Lily’s, Lily was so nice to us and we were very well taken care of. We loved the apricots from the apricot tree in the garden, Lily’s home cooked food, chilling by the lovely pool and gazing over the terrace! Can’t recommend enough❤️

Lovely, clean, cosy villa with everything you could need. Lily was there to welcome us and gifted us lots of local delicacies to try, including a huge home made cheese pie and a fabulous cake. Then, later in the week she even made us a delicious moussaka to enjoy. Couldn't fault anything.

A true gem of a place it’s just perfect and a brilliant place for a vacation. Quality abounds from the garden with wonderful apricots and lemons for you to use, right through the cottage in which you want for nothing. But the biggest asset is lily she’s passionate about you enjoying your stay and the cottage reflects her values. Nothing’s too much trouble and her cooking is second to none. If you’re not impressed with your stay here you’re never going to be happy anywhere!!!

Lily is a fantastic host- she immediately made us feel welcomed! The villa was absolutely gorgeous, clean, and had all necessary equipment. I am definitely coming back here, and I can not recommend this villa enough. Best holiday of my life.

We have just returned from spending eight days at Lily’s cottage close to Rethymnon. I will begin by saying that I’ve been renting holiday properties for over thirty years and during that time a handful of the owners stand out as having been very kind and considerate people. On top of that very select group of people is Lily, the kindest, most generous and thoughtful host I have ever met. She is exceptional. From starting the booking process there were polite and friendly messages at every stage with helpful directions to meet her on the day of our arrival and the person who turned up was no surprise, she was an absolute delight to meet. More surprises awaited us on arrival at the cottage where we were greeted with a lot more than we expected including a selection of local foods to taste and the most delicious spinach pie she had made. The house was exactly as we expected it to be but the things the pictures can’t tell you are things like how very comfortable the beds were made with top quality linens and that sitting room and garden furniture too was extremely comfortable. The views from the windows of the coast and sea which was turquoise in colour for most of the time we were there were superb and better still from the roof terrace. The garden is a peaceful spot with lots of pleasant places to position a chair to make the most of the sun or the shade (under an olive tree) whichever is your preference. Lily’s generosity didn’t end with a spinach pie but also went on to include the most delicious moussaka so in addition to being an excellent host, she’s an excellent cook going way beyond expectations in her kindness and generosity. I recommend hiring a car because while the house is in a quiet spot, a five-minute drive takes you to main roads and you can be in a lot of interesting places very quickly. Rethymnon itself is a beautiful town with many excellent restaurants and interesting shops and out of season it was pleasant without being crowded. You can be in many places in a seventy-minute drive. There are plenty of grocery stores close by too from independent shops to Greek chains and of course Lidl. It was our first trip to Crete and we thoroughly enjoyed everything about the island and the many people we met, I know it won’t be an only or last trip and I do hope Lily keeps her house available because if it is, I wouldn’t look to stay anywhere else.

This was probably one of the best holidays I’ve had. We arrived at the cottage and it was absolutely picturesque with a beautiful view of all of Rethymno. Lily was an amazing hostess and welcomed us to her home with homemade moussaka. The hospitality and care that I received in Crete was unique and I will definitely be coming back to this cottage for a relaxing holiday in the future.

We stayed at Lily’s cottage for 5 days and it was amazing. Lily was always available and replied to our questions immediately, before and during our stay. When we arrived in the evening, she waited with some freshly baked pie for us, which was so delicious and the best thing that anyone could with for after a long journey! The cottage is very clean and the beds are extremely comfortable. The garden is very big and well-kept. We will definitely come back.

I have just returned to the UK after a wonderful stay at Lily’s Cottage. I have travelled all over the world and I can honestly say that Lily provided the best hospitality that I have ever encountered, and the cottage was beautiful! I cancelled my trip (due to UK restrictions) and then later rebooked and Lily was incredible flexible and understanding throughout. When I finally arrived, Lily greeted us at the property and provided us with an absolute delicious lunch and a stocked fridge full of fruit and drinks! Lily was on hand throughout our stay via Whatsapp to provide wonderful recommendations. My girlfriend and I had such a lovely time at the property and are desperate to visit again one day. The property itself is lovely, the pool area is great and the location is very good with Rethymno town a 12 min drive away and is equidistant between Chania and Heraklion and also not too far from all of the main attractions of the island. Lily, thank you so much for everything. See you again one day! Matt