Topics

1

Where to stay / Helios appartments

« on: July 07, 2009, 10:51:39 AM »

Anybody know anything about the Helios appartments - they seem to be somewhere to the back of Ostraco's and look to be pretty good value. I was planning on just turning up as usual and finding somewhere on the day but I'm tempted to try and book up if there's any decent feedback.

2

Plakias / Taxi fares

« on: June 08, 2009, 10:06:30 AM »

Anybody know how much a cab from Rethymnon to Plak costs?

I've always used the buses before but this year I'm flying in mid-afternoon rather than my usual early morning and while it's easy enough to get to Rethymnon, I'm likely to get there too late for the last bus to Plakias. Trying to decide whether to get a cab or spend a night in Rethymnon or maybe Heraklion and go to Plak the next day.

3

Where to stay / On the cheap

« on: June 21, 2008, 04:11:48 PM »

Right. There's a credit crunch. My annual pay rise was a fraction of the inflation rate and I wasn't exactly minted in the first place.

I'm skint. I can't afford to go to Plakias this year. However, I NEED to go to Plakias this year for my own spiritual well-being and to satisfy my raki addiction.

I have a couple of weeks off in mid-September and I'm quite prepared to take absurdly anti-social flight times and travel about on the local bus, involving spending several hours hanging about at the rather depressing bus station in Rethimnon.

What I'm asking is how much is the cheapest room in Plak and where would I find it? I'm planning on turning up with nothing booked and just looking round. I'll be on my own so on past experience I'll have to pay about three-quarters of the price of a double room to have it to myself. Where should I look? Last time I stayed in Despina's place just beyond the harbour and it was about 30-odd euros a night but that was right on the sea front with a fantastic view. I'm guessing there are probably cheaper places in the back streets with no kitchen and a view overlooking a cess pit. That would be fine by me, so long as it's cheap.

Anybody got any suggestions?

(P.S. I was going to post a nice pic to show why I NEED to go back to Plak this year but it wouldn't upload - any idea how I go about making it small enough without having Photoshop or something?)

4

Where to stay / Addresses wanted

« on: June 21, 2007, 08:32:04 PM »

Hi everyone. I've booked a flight only deal to Heraklion for the last couple of weeks in September and intend to go more or less straight to Plakias and stay there for the fortnight. Does anyone have or know where I can find email addresses or phone numbers for rooms places or for any booking agency in the resort? I've looked around on the net and the only places I seem to be able to find are the more 'proper' hotels which a) I'm not really looking for, I wouldn't use a pool etc. even if it was there and  they would be reluctant to lose out on the cash by letting out a room to a solo traveller. I know I could probably just turn up and find somewhere (is this still the case?) but I'd kind of like to make a reservation before I go if at all possible.

Thanks in advance...

5

Plakias / Is it doable?

« on: August 16, 2004, 03:25:45 PM »

Hi everyone – I discovered Plakias by accident about six or seven years ago when I was travelling on my own with a flight only deal to Heraklion. The plan was to travel around the island and stay at three or four different places over the course of a fortnight. I landed in the small hours and my first idea was to get the bus to Rethymnon and stay there for a day or two to get my bearings but, arriving at around 7am, it just all looked a bit grim so I decided to go somewhere else. The next bus to anywhere my guide book said was promising was to Plakias. So I took that bus and turned up on main drag with just my suitcase and no idea where I really was. It was about 9am by then and most of the bars/cafes were still shut, there was a howling gale, I hadn’t slept for 24 hours, was unshaven and unwashed and really didn’t feel in the best of moods.
Anyway, I wandered around for a bit and then a little old lady came out from one of the supermarkets and asked if I was looking for a room. I said I was and she said ‘come this way’. She took me up a very steep hill, trying to help me with my bags to start with but it was stinking hot so I eventually let her off the hook and carried them myself. We reached a little apartment block and she said this is it, would I like an upstairs room or downstairs – by this point I really needed to sleep and would have taken anything but she showed me an upstairs room, clean and comfy and with a magnificent view over the bay at what worked out to about £10 a night. I took it, naturally, saying I’d spend about three nights there.
Once I’d cleaned up and had a snooze, however, I started to like the place. By the second day the wind had died off a bit and I started to find the various beaches, bars, restaurants and so forth. Needless to say, I ended up staying the whole fortnight and it was just about the best holiday I have ever had.
I met some great people. There was a really nice couple from Prague with a small lad of four who I spent several evenings with. There was an eccentric hippy chap who tried to persuade everybody to go to Damnoni all the time. There was a group of girls who had just graduated from Bristol University who I got to know after one of their number lost her footing in the sea under a freak wave and clattered into me, leaving us both in a naked tangle on the edge of the water – an embarrassing/enjoyable and especially funny way of meeting someone. And then there was the young Greek lad who was on his way to becoming a priest, who was visiting his aunt and uncle just before going to spend a year in a monastery.
The weather, food, scenery and atmosphere made it an extremely enjoyable fortnight, capped off on the bus journey back to Rethymnon, when a dirty great big eagle got upset by the noise of the bus and took to the skies right by my window!
Anyway, this is an extremely long-winded way of asking for some information. Circumstances dictate that I am going to have another fortnight away on my own in the first couple of weeks of September and  I was thinking of doing the same thing again. However, while I’m not really on a tight budget, looking on the net you seem to be able to get some pretty good deals to some pretty good places for about £300-350. While I’d be happy to pay a bit more to go back to Plakias, given the prices I’d be hard pushed to justify spending more than about £500 on flights and accommodation (both in my eyes and those of my bank manager) so I was wondering if anyone can tell me how much I would expect to spend on a basic room in Plakias these days. I’m sure it’s a lot more than than the £10 a night I had before but I’m not looking for luxury – roof, bed, shower, toilet is all I ask. Any advice greatly appreciated.