Villa Athena & Villa Nefeli ...
with multiple capacities for hosting a significant number of
persons…
Elia suites and Elia villa are designed in
simple, austere lines and subtle luxury in harmony with the natural
landscape and the olive groves surrounding the village.
The interior layout of the living spaces ensures full
isolation of each space so that guests can enjoy their holidays in true
relaxation and regeneration, whilst at the same time they feel
like home.
HistoryΕlia suites
Εlia suites comprise the following six separate suites located at the
same building: Elia, Athena, Poseidon, Dimitra, Persephone and Pluto.
According to mythology...
As the myth dictates, Αthena,
the goddess of wisdom, was born out of the all-powerful Zeus’s head.
According to yet another version, she was born in Crete from a
cloud that Zeus struck with a
lightning.
Goddess Athena and Poseidon,
god of the seas, contested as to who would become ruler of Attica
and Gods were to decide on the outcome based on the offers those two
would make to the city.
Poseidon pierced the rock with his trident and saltwater
started running, while goddess Athena pierced the soil with her spear
and out came the evergreen olive tree offering its blessed fruit to
mankind.
After her victory, the goddess gave her name to the city of
Athens.
Dimitra (Demeter), one
of the oldest goddesses of the Ancient Greek pantheon, daughter of Cronus
and Rea, was the goddess of
fertility and vegetation, goddess-patron of the earth; along with her
daughter, Persephone, they held
a key role to Eleusinian Mysteries.
According to mythology, when Pluto,
god of the earth’s riches and king of the underworld, led on a golden
chariot Persephone to his underworld kingdom, Dimitra left the mountain
of Olympus and started wondering
amidst people looking for her daughter, Persephone, until Zeus sent Hermes
with a message to Pluto ordering him to set her daughter free.
Thanks to Dimitra’s return, the plants sprang from
the earth’s soil, the crops grew and the slopes turned green with
vegetation.
In Crete, one of
the most beautiful islands of Greece and the entire Mediterranean Sea,
where the east meets west, the legend says that Zeus
was born, God of the skies and thunder, father of all gods and men.
According to mythology, after Zeus seized Europa
from Phoenicia, he crossed the seas and, accompanied by Tritons
and Sea nymphs, carried her to Crete. In the Dictaio
Andro cave of Psiloreitis mountain, Zeus
brought to Crete, along with Europa, the early roots of civilization…
Crete, an island
amidst different seas, filled with sunlight and authentic beauty, is a
journey by itself leading to the Cretan hospitality in the village of Loutra,
Rethymno Prefecture, which at the time of the Venetian rule was a fief
owned by Matthaios Kallergis.
The narrow picturesque alleys, the patios, the arches and the
monumental fountain with its inscription in Arabic travel visitors back
in time.
Eliá (the Greek word for olive tree) is a
symbol of peace, prosperity, fertility and well-being as well as a
symbol of victory for Olympic winners, whereas from its fruit comes the
blessed olive oil… It is a tree associated with ancestral tales and
legends, felt by all people to be a true blessing…
The village of Loutra
is situated in the midst of olive groves with an endless view to the
sea, full of Greek colors, narrow cobbled streets and never-ending
bougainvillea plants, Venetian buildings and the blazons of the Kallergoi
family – evidence of a monumental era.
In the best part of the village,
Villa Athena & Villa Nefeli await holidaymakers, offering a combination
of the traditional Cretan hospitality with modern luxury and comfort.
Both Elia suites and Elia villa are located
next to the village’s square where there is a
spacious parking area.
They are found at a distance of 8 km (5 miles) from Rethymnon,
2 km (1 1/4 miles) from the sea and 8 km (5 miles) from the historical
monastery of Arkadi.
