Ismini Apartments

All in all a perfect stay. We stayed here with our one year old for a small week at the end of April. The apartment had everything we needed. We had lunch and breakfast at the apartment, dinner we had outside most of the time. What the other reviews forget to mention is that the beds are brand new and very comfortable. Ismini was, as you can also read in other reviews, very friendly and helpful. The garden and direct beach entrance are all you need. We definitely recommend this place and would come again.

Ismini was a very welcoming host (we even received a freshly baked cake on arrival!) and the property was just perfect! It felt like a home rather than a holiday apartment, it was super clean and had beautiful antique furniture and wooden features. The garden was beautiful and led directly onto the beach where we could use private loungers. We have a one year old and he loved playing in the garden on the toys provided and also felt very at home here. Can’t recommend highly enough.

We have been going to Kalives for 20 years now and 15 of those years have been spent at the Ismini Apartments which says it all. The Apartments and House are well situated with a big lawn and gorgeous colorful flowers. Open a gate at the end of the garden and and you are on the beach where there are high quality umbrellas provided for the sole use of clients. Ismini is very welcoming and kind with a cake on arrival, fresh oranges and grapes when in season. The accommodation has everything you need, is kept very clean and if you have any problems Ismini is always there to help. Tavernas and shops are two minutes walk away. Perfect!! Beryl and Mark

Originally we (my wife and me) went to Crete to travel around. We looked for a convenient place to stay which will be close to tourist attractions. When we entered this wonderful house and garden we decided to spend most of our time there, and actually gave up most of our travelling plans. As Israelis, who live just 10 minutes from the beach, it is relatively difficult to impress us with beaches, but this was outstanding. The direct access from the appartment to the garden and from there straight to the beach is just fantastic. But above all we found great people who made every possible effort to give us an unforgetable holiday. We shall be back.

Ismini's place was so relaxing! The complex consists of two small houses with "balcony" bedrooms for 3 people each, a bigger 2-storey house for 4 people, and the house where Ismini herself stays. The buildings share between them a huge lawn that is surrounded by flowers and trees. The apartment complex is located between a restaurant and a hotel, but due to the tall trees and bushes along the perimeter you don't notice these neighbours. All of the buildings have terraces facing the lawn and - beyond that - the beach. We loved that we could cross the lawn and go directly out on to the beach, where Ismini has set out umbrellas and sunbeds - exclusively for her guests and at no extra charge. We (my husband and our 5-year-old) stayed in one of the small houses. The house has good and sturdy furniture - loved the beds! - and beautiful old lamps. The terrace was wonderful: we ate all our meals there. The staircase to the bedroom and the bedroom floor are not creaky, so you don't have to worry about waking up your child when you go to bed later at night. The house has a window (and an extra door) facing the main road - but you don't hear any noise due to excellent sound isolation; and there is a blind and a pretty curtain that together shut out the road also visually. There is cleaning twice a week, when you also get clean linen and towels - we appreciated this very much. The air-condition works well, and so does the cooking stove. We absolutely recommend this place. Thank you for being such a nice host, Ismini, and of course - for your delicious cake :)

Είχαμε προγραμματίσει να μείνουμε στο Ismini's Apartments για μία εβδομάδα, και μείναμε μία εβδομάδα επιπλέον γιατί ήταν τόσο τέλεια. ΄Hρθαμε με το μικρό μας κοριτσάκι και ήταν απίστευτα και γι' αυτή. Το σπίτι και τα δαμερίσματα έχουν όλα όσα χρειάζεστε. Είναι καθαρά και όμορφα διακοσμημένα. Φαίνεται ακόμα καλύτερο απ' ότι στις φωτογραφίες. Τo σπίτι είναι μεγάλο και καλαίσθητο, τα διαμερίσματα έχουν περισσότερο το στυλ σπιτιού στην παραλία. Αλλά το καλύτερο μέρος είναι σίγουρα η μεγάλη αυλή, μπροστά στη θάλασσα, τα πάντα θρεμμένα με αγάπη από την Ισμήνη. Η Ιμήνη είναι τέλεια, και μας βοήθησε με όλες τις πληροφορίες, τα εστιατόρια τριγύρω είναι καλά και όχι πολύ ακριβά, εκτός από την παιδική χαρά στην αυλή, υπάρχουν δύο ακόμη παιδικές χαρές πολύ κοντά οπότε είναι το τέλειο μέρος για παιδιά. Η παραλία είναι επίσης τέλεια, μία από τις λίγες παραλίες της Κρήτης που δεν πάσχει από τους ισχυρούς ανέμους. Θα θέλαμε πολύ να επιστρέψουμε! Συνιστάται ιδιαίτερα!…

The Ismini Apartments were very nice. Ismini is an older woman who is very friendly and keeps beautiful gardens. The pictures on the web site are absolutely accurate -- the beach is just across the lawn. The beach right in front of the apartments is next to an outlet of cold spring water, and a very short walk around the breakwater takes you to the main beach where the water is warmer. The benefit is that the beach right in front has few people on it. The only negative to the Ismini Apartments is that they are on the Kalives town road and get some road noise -- mostly from motorcycles. It's not terrible -- I used earplugs at night and got used to it during the day. I happily recommend the Ismini Apartments.

I loved it here. The place is very clean. I stopped in the house which had a lounge and kitchen, downstairs toilet. Upstairs two bedrooms and bathroom. The main bedroom has a balcony which overlooks the bay. Outside there is a beautiful terrace and a large garden which leads to the beach. It is in a really good location with mini supermarkets and local shops and bakeries within two to five minutes walk. The local eating places are also very handy. Ismini heraelf cannot be more helpful. The bay itself is beautiful. I would definitely recommend Ismini's and hope to visit again as soon as is possible!

The location was brilliant, so close to the beach and yet in the centre of Kalives. and set in a beautiful garden. Ismini is such a lovely lady! She made us two cakes while we were staying! She was so friendly and helpful. We hope to return with our family at some point.

We spent two weeks at Ismini's apartment in April 2015 with our 19 month old son and had a great time. The big garden and the many toys and swings kept out son busy. Ismini was very generous with her time and advice on where to eat and shop. The local tavernas delivered to our apartment. The apartments have been recently renovated and look very nice. There are nearby mini markets with very good local products. We would recommend this place for families with young children.