Villa Ioanna - Unnamed Road

We rented Villa Ioanna for the last two weeks of July this year (2018), and it was everything I had hoped for. To begin with, owner Marco Bellacci kindly sent me, unsolicited, links to various car, motorbike and boat rental agencies well in advance of our visit, with recommendations on when to contact them, and when and how to follow up. He took the trouble to tell us about the small jetty and mooring below the house, and so we rented a 16' (5m) motorboat from Alonnisos Boats for the holiday, and used it almost every day to explore Alonnisos and Peristera. The house sits on the northeastern side of Tzortzi Ghalios, arguably the prettiest bay on all of Alonnisos. To reach the villa is about a 15-20-minute drive from Patitiri (over narrow, twisting roads with stunning views and no guardrails, so pay attention!). Once there, you don't want to leave. The peace and quiet are sublime, and the views magnificent, from dawn to dusk.The big veranda and the infinity-edge pool made us feel absolutely spoiled. For a change, and a swim in salt water, you can walk down to the bay and your boat via a rocky path of about 100m. You can also walk from the house via another rocky path to the taverna on the beach (10 minutes). There were eight of us altogether -- four adults, and our four university-age sons. This was pushing the house's limits a bit -- it would accommodate six more comfortably, but can sleep as many as 9 or 10 if necessary. The master bedroom and primary guest bedroom (queen bed and two twins, respectively) are upstairs, on the same level as the kitchen and living room. Both have magnificent views and big doors and windows. Our kids stayed in the large guestroom downstairs, which has its own full bath/toilet. All the beds are great, and the house is decorated simply and tastefully. The kitchen is well-equipped, the wifi works well, and there's lots of new and comfortable patio furniture on the veranda and various decks and patios around the house. There's a nice outdoor grill/oven on the veranda, as well, although we didn't use it because the summer was so dry and we didn't want to risk stray embers setting fire to the dry brush. The house is well- and regularly maintained by the caretaker and his wife and their daughter (only she speaks English). They came at least every other day, delivering water, taking away trash, cleaning the house, even though I believe the house listing says they come every three days. A man comes to check on and service the pool regularly. The lovely Erika was our point person -- meeting us at the ferry, handling all our questions during the visit, making restaurant recommendations, etc. It's a great team. Working with Marco to rent the house couldn't have been simpler or easier, and he couldn't have been nicer, before, during and after our visit. We had a magnificent time, on a beautiful island that remains a rare gem -- and something of an anomaly -- among Greek islands and this age of mass tourism. It takes a bit of time and effort to get to Alonnisos and Villa Ioanna, but then, so do all places worth visiting.

This was with out a doubt, the holiday of a lifetime for my family and me. The villa is simply spectacular, with great beach access, easy drive to the main town and so well thought out and finished that we are booking again for 2019. We used an agency to book the Villa as we were based in South Africa and have never been to Greece before and the service was outstanding but more than that, the personal touch of a hard cover brochure with a personal note from the owner just was the perfect final touch. The sounding vegetation is beautiful and the setting so quiet and peaceful as the yachts come in the bay for the evening and leave again in the morning. If you like a quieter island and an immaculate well priced villa with an island that begs to be explored, this is for you. The island food is amazing and the people very kind and helpful, including the lady who ran the villa for us. The best compliment we can give though, is simply, we will be back.