Venardos Hotel

This friendly hotel enjoys a quiet yet convenient hillside location approximately 250 metres from the sea. Whilst it has hardly any close neighbours, it actually stands roughly in the middle section of Agia Pelagia and is therefore just a short walk from the little fishing harbour, from a cluster of appealing tavernas and from two of the resort's beaches.

With 42 guestrooms, Venardos is one of the larger hotels on the island and as such offers a good and for these parts rather unusual range of facilities, including a sauna, a Jacuzzi and a well-equipped gym for those who like to maintain their exercise routine whilst on holiday. And yet the atmosphere remains appealingly personal, for the hotel's owner Tassos and his family are always on hand and go out of their way to make sure that all their guests feel at home and well looked after.

The rooms are spread across several small buildings that have been attractively designed with arches, wooden trellises, blue shutters and pan-tiled roofs. Each has a good-size balcony or terrace with a table and chairs and views of either the pool, the sea, the gardens or the countryside. The interiors are smartly furnished in traditional style with dark wood and pastel-coloured fabrics, and each room comes equipped with air-conditioning, satellite TV (limited English-language channels), small fridge, telephone, hairdryer and free WiFi, as well as a compact en-suite shower room.

A hearty breakfast buffet sets you up for the day, with a changing daily display of seasonal local produce and home-baked treats offered alongside the usual staples. After that, you can decide whether to walk to one of the local beaches - some sandy, others pebbly - or just relax by the pool; the terrace that surrounds the pool is almost enclosed by the different wings of the hotel, making it an appealingly sheltered spot on windy days.