Carob Garden EcoHouse invites you to spend a relaxing holiday by the sea. Relaxed because you don’t need a car every day, because you will find everything you need for a pleasant holiday in your immediate vicinity. Relaxed also because you enjoy a certain privacy and sleep in a quiet location.
Three well-furnished studios with large balconies are available in a prime location. Ideal for individual travellers, families and small groups (up to 7 people). The minimum rental period is 3 nights.
Some background information on the name: Carob (Ceratonia siliqua in Latin) is a tree species, native to Crete, specialised in dry and warm locations. A remarkable specimen of it stands in the centre of the garden and serves as a wonderful shade provider for our guests.
Urs, your host, is a MSc in Forestry by profession and takes great pleasure in his trees in the garden of the guesthouse. The ornamental shrubs are also a splendour, as they blossom practically all year round.
The house
The house was built in 1987 and has been gently renovated step by step, more intensely since the summer of 2021. Nevertheless, it has retained its typical Greek character. All studios are similarly constructed:
- Apartment #1 on the ground floor: Combined room with new French double bed (160 x 200 cm), new closet, solid wood table, well-equipped kitchen, air conditioning and a wood stove. Bathroom with shower, WC and washbasin. SW-facing balcony with sea and mountain view, dining table, deck chair and sunblinds.
- Apartment #3 upstairs: Combined room with two single beds, divan (can be used as a bed for persons < 1.75 m), wardrobe, new fancy and well-equipped kitchen and air conditioning. Bathroom with shower, WC and washbasin. SW facing balcony with view to the sea and the mountains, dining table, deck chair and sunblinds
- Apartment #4 upstairs: Combined room with two single beds, divan (can be used as a bed for persons < 1.75 m), wardrobe, well-equipped kitchen and air conditioning. Bathroom with shower, WC and washbasin. SE-facing balcony with view of the sea and the garden, dining table, deck chair and sunblinds.
- Apartment #2 in the basement serves as private accommodation for the host and is not rented out.
The following are available for common use:
- The garden with its tables and chairs.
- The garden fireplace for fine barbecues.
- A washing machine (one use per week included in the rent).
- Plenty of parking in front of the house along the road (is officially a cul-de-sac).
Makry-Gialos
Makrigialos, or as the locals prefer Makry-Gialos, is THE holiday destination of the Greeks! So, for “normal” Western Europeans, it’s something of an insider tip.
Makry-Gialos offers individual travellers exactly what they are looking for: An authentic Cretan village with around 2000 inhabitants that also lives in the winter months. There are all the necessities of life here, even a medical laboratory for COVID tests. Most of the infrastructure stretches along the old coastal road. The first row of houses is perfectly shielded from traffic, so that the 2 km longshore area is reserved for pedestrians for swimming or a stroll. The surroundings of Makrygialos are characterised by greenhouses for vegetable crops and extensive olive groves. But there is also extensive fallow land, which allows for a high level of biodiversity.
Due to the tourist demand, there are some seasonal offers, for example the day trip with the pirate ship to the neighbouring island of Koufonisi. Coffee houses, some tavernas and especially the shops are open all year round. On Friday morning there is a small market in the old village centre.
Geographically, at 35°N and 25°E, we are almost at the southernmost tip of Europe – many sunny days guaranteed! Especially in the winter months, clouds often accumulate on the mountains, which is where our good drinking water comes from. As in Ticino, there can then be a kind of northern foehn, which in turn provides a lot of sun on the coast.
