Acro Suites - Where Crete's Ancient Cliffs Meet Modern Wellness

On a rocky precipice above the Aegean, where the island of Crete drops dramatically into sapphire waters, sits a hotel that takes its name quite literally. Acro Suites – from the Greek 'akros' meaning 'on the edge' – perches precariously on the clifftops of Mononaftis Bay, and sisters Danae and Konstantina Orfanake clearly weren't afraid of heights when they chose this spot.

The hotel, which opened its doors properly in 2022, feels less like a traditional resort and more like an architectural experiment in defying gravity. Forty-nine suites and villas cascade down the cliff face, each one seemingly more audacious in its positioning than the last. It's the sort of place where you half expect to see a yoga instructor casually performing sun salutations while suspended over a 200-foot drop.

The Orfanake family hasn't just created a hotel that looks impressive from a helicopter; they've built something that actually tries to justify its dramatic setting.

The hotel sits about 18 miles from Heraklion, close enough to visit the archaeological sites but far enough away that you won't be woken by tour buses. What they've created is undeniably spectacular, a place where the architecture works with the landscape rather than dominating it.

Executive Chef Yannis Rokanas runs the Cremnos restaurant with the sort of passion that makes you believe he might actually cry if you asked for ketchup.

His menu draws from Cretan traditions but with enough modern twists to keep Instagram influencers happy. The ingredients come from local farms, because in 2024, if your hotel restaurant isn't sourcing locally, you might as well be serving McDonald's.

The Bath House, created with Greek architectural firm Utopia Hotel Design, resembles a traditional hammam but with better views.

It's the sort of spa where you can soak in Byzantine marble baths while contemplating whether ancient Greeks had better taste in bathroom fixtures than the rest of us (spoiler: they did).

The wellness credentials are taken seriously here, with a yoga shala constructed from bamboo that looks like it was designed by someone who took the phrase "sustainable architecture" as a personal challenge.

Rooms Carved from Dreams (and Stone)

The Cave Suites represent perhaps the most ambitious feat of hospitality engineering since someone first thought to hollow out a tree trunk.

Cretan sculptors have literally carved these 45-square-metre retreats into the cliff face, creating spaces that feel less like hotel rooms and more like luxurious archaeological discoveries.

Each comes with its own terrace and cave pool – because apparently, a regular pool wasn't dramatic enough – offering what the hotel calls "ultimate privacy in an idyllic setting."

Translation: you can skinny-dip without traumatizing the neighbors.

For those who prefer their accommodation slightly less subterranean, the Wave Suites offer 41 square meters of sea-facing bliss.

These units "embrace the raw aesthetics of the region," which sounds like marketing speak but actually makes sense when you're watching the sunrise paint the Aegean gold from your private terrace.

The Loft suites take a different approach entirely, spreading their 50 square meters across two levels. It's an arrangement that "exudes an exclusive atmosphere from floor to ceiling," which is hotel-speak for "you'll feel properly fancy."

Each comes with the now-mandatory private pool and those panoramic sea views that make you wonder why anyone bothers living anywhere else.

Then there's the Sunset Villa, a 71-square-metre space that comes with what they call a "private infinity glass pool."

It sounds like something from a science fiction film, but it's actually just a very posh way of saying the pool seems to disappear into the horizon. The effect, admittedly, is rather magical.

For larger groups, the Acroterra Villa offers 113 square metres across two bedrooms. It's the sort of space where you could comfortably lose a small child for several hours, assuming you're the type of parent who brings small children to a wellness retreat (which, let's be honest, rather defeats the point).