Daphne - Huit Chambres Villa, Couchages 16

Just a few minutes’ walk from the stunning beach of Agii Anargiri, Daphne is a rare gem on the island of Spetses, offering space and freedom for a large family or group of friends to experience a truly authentic island holiday. Designed with a bohemian lifestyle in mind, the property comprises multiple options for accommodation spread out around its grounds, creating a sense of privacy and togetherness.

Accommodation at Daphne is laid out over a main house, a guesthouse, and an externally accessed guest bedroom.

Inside the main house: the front door opens into bright, open-plan communal space with a dining table and chairs, a fireplace with stone surround, a smart TV, and a sitting area with comfy sofas.

This space flows through an arch into the well-equipped kitchen, which features large, curvaceous windows, exposed stone walls, a breakfast bar and access to the terraces that run along the front of the property. At the end of the kitchen is a guest WC.

Stairs in the living and dining area lead up to the first floor, which is home to three luminous bedrooms:

• a double with en-suite shower room and access to a panoramic private terrace looking over the wooded hills of Spetses and the sea and also access to a sea-view terrace (also accessed from the first-floor landing) with steps down to the terrace below
• a double-twin with en-suite shower room and access to a sea-view terrace (also accessed from the first-floor landing) with steps down to the terrace below
• a generously proportioned suite with a centrally positioned double bed, a sitting area with a pair of armchairs and a fireplace, access to a private sea-view terrace (with steps down to the pool below), a luxurious in-room bathroom with walk-in shower and free-standing bathtub, and a separate WC. Also a working area with comfortable sitting and a desk with pool and sea views. This suite can be accessed from the double-twin bedroom, or externally from its own terrace.

Inside the guesthouse: situated below the large terrace and pool area of the main house, the guesthouse is laid out over two independently accessed floors.

On the ground floor is an open space with a kitchen-diner to one side, and, to the other, a living area with a sofa, armchair and smart TV that gives access to a terrace looking at the wooded hills. If required, the sofa and the armchair can be made into single beds (90 x 200 cm) to comfortably sleep and extra two people. A corridor links this space to a shower room and a double bedroom with exposed stone walls and a pair of French windows accessed the terrace.

The upper floor of the guesthouse, meanwhile, comprises: a luminous kitchen-diner opening out onto the surrounding terraces; a bright living room with a sofa, an easy chair, smart TV, a fireplace, and French doors accessing a lovely, shaded, sea-view terrace; and three bedrooms:

• a single with access to the terrace off the living room
• a sea-view double
• a second sea-view double with en-suite shower room and its own access to the surrounding terraces

The first two bedrooms share a shower room.

The guest bedroom: the guest bedroom is located between the main house and the guesthouse and comprises a double-twin bedroom with en-suite shower room. The ceilings are a bit lower than in the rest of the property, so this room may be more suitable for guests under 2.00 meters high.

Outside: Daphne is exceedingly generous when it comes to al fresco living. Terraces fan out around and between the main house and the guesthouse, and no matter where you are, you’ll always have a sea-view spot in which to while away the time.

Running along the handsome stone façade of the main house is a long and broad stretch of terrace that offers plenty of options for sitting, lounging and dining. Olive trees whisper in the gentle sea breezes, mature pines scent the air, and views pan out over verdant hills and cobalt blue waters.

At one end of this terrace is the inviting chequer-board pool, which is flanked by comfy sun loungers and umbrellas. Moving on towards the entrance of the main house is a shady hammock, and then, towards the far end, is a dreamy, well-shaded al fresco dining area. Served by an outdoor kitchen with a huge built-in barbecue, a wood-burning oven, a sink and worktops, this is where you'll be able to indulge in lazy lunches and long convivial dinners under the stars.

All the bedroom on the first floor of the main house have access to panoramic terraces, two of which – those outside the suite and the double bedroom - are private. The suite’s terrace looks out to sea and has steps leading down to the pool. The central terrace, accessed from the middle bedroom and the landing, also leads down to the main terrace.

Steps lead down from the main terrace under the shady pine trees to the guest bedroom, which has its own area of terrace and sitting area, and on to the guesthouse, where both the upper and the lower floors have their own shaded al fresco dining and sitting areas.

Spetses is a car-free island (apart from a few taxis, which can book out quickly in the summer season, and service vehicles). Most people move around by bicycle, scooter, quad bike, boat, donkeys and sea taxis. If you wish to rent bikes, scooters or quad bikes, please contact us in advance, as numbers are limited.

As this villa is located on an island, we recommend extra caution when booking your flights to avoid problems or delays with ferries and hydrofoils. It may be advisable to arrive a day earlier and depart a day later. Please contact us for any information or advice.

Due to the nature of the property including terraces, low walls and several drops around the grounds, children must be supervised at all times.

The number of steps that must be negotiated to get into and/or around this property might make it unsuitable for people with mobility problems.

Due to the location of the villa and its proximity to the forest, on days with high wind the use of BBQ will be prohibited by law, in a way to prevent wild fires.
Daphne is situated on the tranquil west coast of Spetses, just a 5-minute walk from the idyllic pebbly beach of Aghii Anarghiri, which has a taverna, a lido and water sports facilities.

Spetses Town, with its harbours, its fishing boats and pleasure craft, its cosmopolitan bars, cafés and restaurants, and its range of independent boutiques is reachable either by taxi, private bus transfer or public transport - from June to September there's a bus every hour between around 10:00 and 19:00.

Diminutive Spetses measures just 7km by 4km and is a quiet, pine tree-carpeted island where private cars are not allowed. Transport is by bicycle, scooters, a few taxis, donkeys, quad bikes and, best of all, boat taxi. Hiring your own boat for the duration of your stay or for a few days is highly recommended, as the coast has many idyllic secluded bays that are most easily accessible from the water.

In recent times, Spetses's main claim to fame is as the setting for The Magus, John Fowles's great novel. Named Phraxos in the book, the island is described by the main protagonist, Nicholas Urfe as "Beautiful. There was no other adjective; it was not just pretty, picturesque, charming – it was simply and effortlessly beautiful. It took my breath away when I first saw it, floating under Venus like a majestic black whale in an amethyst evening sea, and it still takes my breath away when I shut my eyes now and remember it. Its beauty was rare even in the Aegean, because its hills were covered with pine trees, Mediterranean pines as light as greenfinch feathers. Nine-tenths of the island was uninhabited and uncultivated: nothing but pines, coves, silence, sea." Remarkably, Spetses has changed very little since John Fowles, who lived and worked there in the early1950s, wrote that passage.

The island's eponymous main town is full of interest, both historical and contemporary. Like neighbouring Hydra, Spetses had a thriving shipping industry and some local families became extremely rich. One such (though he made most of his money in the US) was Sotirios Anargyros, who built the impressive Poseidonion Hotel in the early 20th century. In the architectural style of the great hotels of the Côte d'Azur, it soon attracted wealthy Athenians and European aristocrats to the island, beginning a trend of affluent, small-scale tourism that continues today.

Spetses's pine-shady interior is crisscrossed by walking trails. From the top ridge, fabulous vistas take in the island, Hydra, vast tracts of the Aegean Sea and the Peloponnese, whose eastern most tip is just over 2km (or a 10-minute crossing) away. This proximity to the mainland makes day trips to Porto Heli and the archaeological site of Epidaurus eminently feasible.

Arrival details will be confirmed by The Thinking Traveller after your villa is confirmed.

The Thinking Traveller can organise transfers and car hire and an agent will be in touch with you once your villa is confirmed.