Disclaimer:Β This post contains affiliate links, meaning that I will earn commission when you buy from my link. This comes at no extra cost to you, and supports me with sharing my best travel tips with you.
Staying at Athenea Villas was never part of our original Zakynthos itinerary, but I am so glad that we did! The villa complex was very well taken care of, and so were we.
In the short time that we stayed here, the owner Athina has become such an inspiration to us. So in this post, I am sharing why I loved our stay at Athenea Villas so much!
PS: Are you planning a romantic getaway to Zakynthos with your loved one? Check out these unforgettable things to do in Zakynthos, especially for couples.
How we ended up staying at Athenea Villas
Jordi had planned a surprise trip to Zakynthos for my 30th birthday, but at the end of his surprise trip we still felt like we wanted to see a lot of the island. So we decided to ditch our original return flight to London, and book a return flight for 2 days later instead.
Obviously, that meant that we also had to book accommodation for the two extra nights we were now staying in Zakynthos. We didn’t want anything too pricey because we knew we weren’t going to spend much time at the accommodation. And after seeing some pictures, we loved the looks of Athenea Villas, so we booked it.
Our room at Athenea Villas
Because we knew we were not going to spend much time at the hotel, we went for the “Panoramic Villa – 1 Bedroom, Sea view”, which is the only type of villa without a private swimming pool.
After we fell in love with the pictures we had seen of Athenea Villas, the real thing did not disappoint when we arrived at our Panoramic Villa. Each villa has its own decorations, which are all inspired by Feng Shui and a mix of different cultures. Our villa was so pretty!
Living room and hallway to bedroom and bathroom:
I love how spacious and nicely decorated the living room was. It definitely looked like we had seen it in the pictures (below pictures are all taken by me):
Best of all, our villa looked and smelled so clean and we had no insects at all. We could even eat outside on our balcony without being surrounded by wasps. This was a remarkable difference compared to other hotels in Zakynthos we stayed at.
Our villa had anti-mosquito devices plugged in, and had daily cleaning by the lovely Dimitra. Every time we came home after a day of exploring, the villa looked absolutely flawless.
Kitchen:
Apart from the full size fridge to keep our drinks cool, we haven’t actually used the kitchen. But I just wanted to let you know as part of my review that there is a fully equipped kitchen available.Β
Bedroom and Bathroom:
The bedroom and bathroom both have a mirror attached to the wall, so Jordi and I didn’t waste any time in the mornings waiting for a mirror. While I was doing my hair and make-up in the bedroom mirror, Jordi used the mirror in the bathroom to shave and do his hair.
I loved all the space I had on the table underneath the bedroom mirror to put down all my make-up. And the mirror even has a spotlight above, so I could actually see what I was doing.Β
The bedroom comes with lots of pillows to choose from, and we slept very comfortably. The bathroom has a toilet and a shower with shower curtain.
Balcony
I have saved the best for last, because my favourite part of our Villa were the views from the balcony. If you’ve come to Zakynthos for peace, quiet, relaxing and soaking up some sunshine, then Athenea Villas is the perfect place to do that:
Our balcony was split between a lounge area on the left hand side, and a dining area on the right hand side. As I mentioned before, this is the only place in Zakynthos where we could eat our breakfast outside without being harassed by wasps.
Even if it’s a cold or rainy day, you can still enjoy these amazing views from the living room:
Sunrise at Athenea Villas
If you are staying at Athenea Villas, make sure not to miss the sunrise! To get to the best sunrise spot, you just need to follow the path between the private swimming pools and the sea views until you see this bench on your left hand side:
From this spot, you can see the famous Turtle Island in the sea, and the sunrise behind the Turtle Island. How romatic is that?!
The staff at Athenea Villas
There are only 8 villas in Athenea Villas, so everything feels very personal. Although we didn’t spend a lot of time in our Villa because we spent most of our time exploring Zakynthos, we did have a lot of contact with the owner Athina and the cleaner Dimitra, who are both lovely! They really made our stay at Athenea Villas so special.
From the moment we parked our car, Athina showed us around our villa and the rest of the villa complex. We could tell from this tour how passionate she was about Athenea Villas. She even prepared a Zakynthos guide for her guests, which lists all of her favourite places. When she noticed that her Zakynthos guide was missing in our villa (guests like it so much that they take the guide with them), she printed and laminated a new one for us.Β Β
By the time we got back to our car to collect our suitcases, another lady said hello to us. This lady turned out to be Dimitra, the cleaner at Athenea Villas. She asked us in which villa we are staying, and before we knew it she took our suitcases and brought them to our villa. She was so friendly and helpful.
Once we settled down in our Villa, we thought it was a good moment to sort out the pictures and videos on our phones. We had to change the memory card of our phone to make more space for new pictures and videos, but we couldn’t find the pin to open the memory card slot. So Jordi went looking for Athina and explained to her what he needed, and sure enough she gave us a needle that could open the memory card slot. This is the level of service you don’t see often at chain hotels.
Even though we booked a villa without a private swimming pool, Athina would give us an update every morning and every evening (whenever she saw us outside) about which villas would be empty that day and which pools we could use if we wanted to. We didn’t have the time to swim in one of the pools, but we definitely had the opportunity every day if we wanted to. I have to say that we stayed at Athenea Villas in September (which is the end of the season), so I imagine you won’t be this lucky in the busier months of the season.Β
When we checked out, Athina wasn’t around and so Dimitra took the key and our payment. Everything was sorted when Dimitra asked us if we had time to wait, because Athina wanted to say goodbye to us. While we were waiting for Athina, Dimitra brought us a full bottle of water with two cups. She even brought us a plate with different types of melon which she had cut into small pieces for us. How sweet is that?!
Athina arrived before we could even finish the fruits, and she had a gift with her. She gave us a small statue of a green and golden sea turtle with Zakynthos written on it. She told us that according to Feng Shui, if we place the turtle facing East, it will bring good luck to us. It was such a lovely gift, that we placed it in our London flat facing east.
It was at this point that we had a long conversation with Athina and Dimitra, and we found out that Athina bought the place as a plot of empty land. She designed the whole villa complex with an architect, and oversaw the construction of it. Even to this day, she is always looking for improvements she can make to the villa complex. Her next projects are:
- Create a garden at the place where we watched the sunrise. This is now a barren piece of land with benches, picnic tables and umbrellas on it from where you can watch Turtle Island. But I’m sure it will look even better once Athina created her garden here.
- One of the Panoramic Villas without private pool will get a private jacuzzi on the balcony. I mean, how lovely is that?!
Jordi and I felt so inspired by Athina’s passion for Athenea Villas and how she treats her guests, that we are thinking of doing something similar once we both retire from our corporate jobs.Β
Places to visit near Athenea Villas
Like I said, we stayed the extra 2 nights in Zakynthos to explore more of the island. So I might as well show you the places we discovered near Athenea Villas:
- Keri Beach (5 minute drive from Athenea Villas)
Keri beach is within walking distance from Athenea Villas, but if you prefer to go by car it’s only a 5 minute drive. The beach offers views of Turtle Island and it’s another great spot to watch the sunrise.
- Keri Lighthouse Restaurant & Ionian Sunset Cafe (15 minute drive from Athenea Villas)
Just a 15 minute drive away from Athenea Villas are Keri Lighthouse Restaurant and Ionian Sunset Cafe. Both offer amazing views over Keri’s coast line, but I preferred the views at the Keri Lighthouse Restaurant.
- Agios Sostis & Cameo Island (15 minute drive from Athenea Villas)
Also a 15 minute drive away from Athenea Villas are Port Agios Sostis and Cameo island, which are both very pretty places.
- Porto Limnionas & Porto Roxa Beach (40 minute drive from Athenea Villas)
Porto Limnionas and Porto Roxa Beach are a bit further away from Athenea Villas at a 40 minute drive. But Athina mentioned that Porto Limnionas is one of her favourite places on the island, so we just had to check it out.Β
I definitely recommend adding Athenea Villas to your bucket list:
Travel Photography for Couples
Learn more about taking your own travel pictures as a couple in my book:
As a travel couple, do you ever wish to travel back to a place, just to take better pictures together? I sure know I do! Thatβs why in this book, I am sharing everything we wish we knew about taking pictures together when we first started travelling as a couple. Read more…