Review Rating: 4/5
Date of visit: May/June 2018
I just returned from a lovely week in Crete at Ourania Apartments. This was my ninth time on the island, but my first time in Gouves (Kato Gouves, to be precise). It’s a nice area and conveniently close to the airport, but it seems to be lacking a resort centre—everything is quite spread out along the coastline, so getting around involves a decent amount of walking.
The apartments are set back off the coastal road, about a 10-minute walk up a gentle slope and then around a dirt track. Our apartment was a good size but fairly basic: the beds were two singles pushed together, and the bathroom lacked a shower curtain, so water tended to go everywhere. Our toilet must have been beneath a staircase, as the roof was sloped to the extent that I couldn’t stand up straight, but it was easy enough to work around.
We didn’t expect mosquitos to be an issue this early in the year. Still, perhaps because the apartments are set amongst many trees and grassy areas, they were abundant, and I strongly recommend bringing repellent and bug spray! It was probably worse because we chose not to pay for air conditioning, so we left the windows open at night instead.
The staff at Ourania are great. Most days, we had breakfast at the pool bar – the prices aren’t significantly higher than local tavernas, and the Greek yoghurt and honey were fabulous! We paid €11.50 for two continental breakfasts consisting of toast, butter, jam, tea or coffee, orange juice, and yoghurt and honey. Drinks were also priced comparably with local bars.
There is free WiFi, which seems to work well most of the time. Also, they have two fantastic shower rooms to freshen up on your last day if, like us, you have a late departure – these are in a new block behind where we stayed and were much nicer than our rooms.
The beach opposite the road from the apartments isn’t great, but if you turn right, there is a better one just 5 minutes away in front of a large hotel. Alternatively, you can turn left and walk about 20 minutes to what seems to be the main resort beach, just behind Isla Beach Bar.
As for eating out, there are three or four tavernas within a 10-minute walk, the best of which is The Island, just opposite the road you come out of onto the beach road. It looks posh and is quite expensive, but we had a fantastic meal there that absolutely justified the price. For more variety, you must walk either along the coast road or back to the main road, then head west for about 15-20 minutes to reach the main resort centre. This is really nothing more than a road with a few shops, tavernas and bars. It’s quiet but enough to keep you busy for a week. Not sure about a fortnight, though; you’d likely run out of new places to try.
The only other negative about Ourania Apartments—well, more Kato Gouves itself, really—is that it’s right on the flight path for landing aircraft, and it does get quite noisy. Even in early June, several flights arrive through the night. It didn’t spoil our holiday, but if you’re a light sleeper, then it may prove to be a disturbance you don’t want.