We spent 2 weeks at Villa Cleoboulos on June, and it certainly lived up to its reputation.
The villa is set in a spacious, well stocked and well maintained wrap-around garden, with plenty of flowering shrubs, and fig, pomegranate,lemon/lime trees, and grape vines, although we were a bit early in the season to sample them! There is a really good sized swimming pool, which, just like the garden was well maintained and cleaned regularly. (Every other day).
Although the villa is secluded and not overlooked, there is also a wall around the garden, which affords additional privacy, Within the garden is an outdoor kitchen and barbecue area, with a table and seating for 8, and around all of the villa are shaded terraces/patios, all with good quality outdoor seating. (Sofas, occasional tables etc).
Inside, the property is spacious, light and clean. There are 3 bedrooms, 2 on the first floor and one on the ground floor. The main bedroom is en suite, and has a large patio sized balcony, equipped with two good sized outdoor sofas and a coffee table. There are also excellent views of the surrounding countryside from here too.
The other first floor bedroom has a smaller balcony, and there is a bathroom opposite. The ground floor bedroom opens onto one of the terraces, and again, there is a bathroom immediately opposite. This bedroom is positioned so that it's away from the kitchen and lounge area, so no need to walk through. Internally there is everything you could possibly need; crockery, cutlery, dishwasher, washing machine, fridge'freezer. In the kitchen area there is a table and chairs, (there are also table and chairs immediately outside the kitchen on the patio overlooking the pool, if you wish to breakfast al fresco). The lounge is well furnished with sofas, armchair, coffee table etc. Towels and bed lined were changed at the end of the first week. There is air conditioning throughout the villa, and electronically operated shutters on the outside of the windows provide additional security, and also keep out the early morning sun.
The villa is on the outskirts of of a small non-tourist village called Pilona/Pylona/Pylonas, (take your pick!), and there is a small, but good, bakery there, along with a small 'corner shop', the opening hours of which are a bit hit and miss, and the range is limited. Both of which are about a 4 minute walk from the villa. A larger supermarket is around a 15 minute walk, 5 minute drive away, where you can get pretty much everything. Additionally, we had a couple of large deliveries from ABC Supermarket. We placed our first order before we left the UK, and had it delivered the day after we arrived. That worked well.
It will take about 40-50 minutes to get from the airport, and a taxi costs around 80 Euros. We booked in advance with Getredy2go as there were 5 of us, so we needed a minibus, and they picked us up and took us to the villa with no problem. Instead of hiring a car, which we originally intended to do, we used them to take us out and pick us up at night, which meant we didn't need a designated driver. (Maybe not the cheapest way of doing things, but certainly the most convenient). We did however have a scooter for the duration, (useful for popping to the supermarket), and a couple of quad bikes from time to time.
The best trip that we would recommend , is to visit Symi. It's a one hour ferry ride from Rhodes, (capital). Ferry fares are advertised from 8 Euros, but I think to get one of those you need to go on the 3am sailing and work as a cleaner for the duration of the crossing! We paid about 30 euros, plus 150 euros for the round trip taxi journey. The island is very picturesque, with pastel coloured houses clinging to the steep cliffs either side of the harbour. If you do go, try the Symi shrimps.
The two best meals we had out during our time in Rhodes were, one at the Lindos Blu Hotel, in the a la carte restaurant, which is open air and overlooks the bay. Both the food and service were exceptional. The other was at Christof's in Lindos. Again, fantastic food and great, friendly, but not over familiar, service.
One of the best things about the villa is its owner, Fiona, who contacts you before you arrive, to answer any questions you may have, or deal with special requests.
I could go on, but in summary, if you book this villa, you definitely won't be disappointed. It's great.
