Hotel Review: Mill Houses, Santorini, Greece, 2011

A big part of traveling is, of course, finding a decent place to sleep. That said, I'll post hotel reviews from time to time if a hotel really stands out to me in either a good or bad way. I have nothing but positive things to say about Mill Houses Hotel in Firostefani, Santorini, Greece. Let me preface this by explaining that I broke my leg and tore ligaments in April, 2010. I needed surgery and now have a steel plate in my limb. At the time of this trip, my walking was not yet 100 percent, but I managed to push myself and make it around Athens, Delphi and Crete. I even hiked up to the Parthenon, albeit very slowly. Santorini, however, was a real bitch! It's absolutely gorgeous; Santorini's towns sit on top of volcanic mountains, which surround a caldera. Everywhere you look are beautiful views of white and blue buildings and the deep blue water. It's amazing, it's like being inside of a painting... but in order to get around, you have to navigate flights and flights and flights of steps. If you want to reach the top of Firostefani, you can take a bus, taxi, mule or cable car, but if you actually want to walk down any of the side streets, you need to do it on foot -- and then navigate the steps. Ordinarily, this wouldn't have been that big of a deal to me, but when we arrived it was raining and our hotel was down about 70 steps. They were steep, slippery and there were no railings. Jon asked if I wanted to change hotels, but I refused. This one is right at the water's edge and got great reviews. It was a bit pricey, being over $200 a night, but I felt that the splurge would be worth it. I was determined to make it to the lobby, so I slowly climbed down, doing my best to keep my balance and not reinjure my ankle. Along the way, a very buff hotel staffer noticed me and told me to stop where I was. He then grabbed our luggage and said, "We'll get you a high room" and ran up the steps (with our luggage). We followed and found that our room was almost at street level, only about three steps down. It had a balcony and the most magnificent view of the caldera and neighboring town:

The good service didn't stop there. Mr. Muscles disappeared for a few moments as we unpacked, then returned with glasses of champagnge. He told us that if we needed anything -- toiletries, food, a laptop -- that we should just call and someone would bring it. This way, I wouldn't have to walk down those stairs. He was just so warm and welcoming, and didn't make me feel embarrassed about my (temporary) disability at all. As for the room itself, it was fantastic! It was made of some kind of stone or stucco so it looked as if we were inside of a white cave. We had a full working kitchen that came with plates and utensils, a big, comfy bed and a bathroom with a waterfall shower. The decorations were minimal, but very tasteful; some candles, a couple of paintings of Greece, some flowers. It was very inviting and homey, and looked more like an apartment than a typical hotel room. True to their word, they brought us whatever we needed without question, and were always friendly and accomodating. But the best part was that view! Mill Houses is right next to several good restaurants so we tried most out. We loved eating terrific food as we watched the sun set over the caldera; we then walked the 50 feet back to our place and continued to stare out at the water. You'd think that after four days of this, we would've gotten sick of the vista, but we wanted to stare and stare at it forever. Santorini has many decent hotels, both upscale and budget, but Mill Houses was the perfect choice for us. I'd definitely stay there again. Five stars!