honeymoon part 3: Crete

All good things must come to an end and our Greek honeymoon could not have ended in a more relaxing location.  If Athens was all about being a tourist and Santorini was all about living in luxury, then Crete was all about spending time together as newlyweds.  Matt and I stayed in a resort on the eastern end of Crete, and since relaxation was key, we barely left the premises.

The Blue Palace is impressive and majestic.  The lobby is grand, there are numerous high-caliber restaurants, a handful of remarkable pools, diverse bars and even a funicular!  We booked the corner suite and as they brought us to our room, several employees mentioned that our room was their favorite in the entire resort.

Because they knew we were celebrating our honeymoon, The Blue Palace had a massive bouquet of flowers and an assortment of wedding cookies displayed in our room at our arrival.  They also presented us with a chilled bottle of champagne and a large bowl of fresh fruit.  Kind gestures such as this go a long way with Matt and me.  We were sufficiently impressed! 

Our first dinner was at my favorite of all the restaurants at The Blue Palace.  Blue Door is a Greek restaurant located outside, right on the beach.  At night they serve by candle light and earlier in the evening, patrons have a gorgeous view of the sea.  The atmosphere is casual but the food is anything but.  Herbs in blue planters function as the centerpiece and old fishing equipment serves as decor.

While the grounds of the resort are breathtaking, there was plenty to do in our suite to occupy most of our time in Crete.  Our corner room had the largest private pool and outdoor patio space.  We ventured down to the main pools a few times, but with this ocean view and lounge set-up, it was hard to be social with our fellow resort guests.

Since our room faced east, we knew we could catch a killer sunrise, if only we could get ourselves up that early!  I'll admit, as beautiful as it was, we only made it outside one morning of our trip. That one day though, wow, it was stunning.  Definitely worth the lack of sleep.

All the restaurants at The Blue Palace are incredible, but another one of the most popular is Isola. Obviously, Italian food is one of my favorites, but more importantly, the restaurant overlooks the main pool and is in the heart of the action at the resort.  We loved the view and the food and found our very favorite Greek wine,  Melissinos by Paterianakis.

To stretch our legs one afternoon, we ventured off the grounds and took a stroll to the nearest Plaka.  The sun was hot, but the walk was only about 1/2 hour so we managed without too much trouble :)  There was a darling little town filled with cute shops, outdoor Greek cafes and glorious water views.  Matt and I love grilled or charred octopus so appreciated the octopus drying in the sun.  Talk about fresh seafood! And the doors!  Greece has amazing old doors and I couldn't help but photograph as many as possible on our trip.

Lucky for us, there were plenty of places to grab a drink at The Blue Palace, but our two favorite are where we spent most of our happy hours.  The first, and the best, was our own patio, of course.  Even though the sun set behind us, the sky turned the most pleasing shade of pink each evening.  We bought bottles of wine in plaka and enjoyed the view, just the two of us.  When we were feeling more social, we visited the pretty patio off the main lobby, Arsenali Lounge Bar.  The decor was modern minimalist and the cocktails were inventive.  We spent time sipping drinks while we watched the sky go from blue, to pink to black. 

As if the resort wasn't good enough on it's own, they also offered various activities and excursions.  We took a beautiful boat ride towards the main city of Elounda that you can read about in this post (Cruising Crete).  Another afternoon we participated in a private wine tasting event.  Our sommelier poured a variety of Greek wines and told us the heritage of each.  At the end of the tasting, we were left alone with a full glass of our favorites and a lovely view.  I love when my educational activities include getting tipsy!

In addition to the planned activities, it was fun to explore the resort grounds.  The Blue Palace is built into a mountain and has quite a few buildings for the different types of accommodations.  There are bungalows, suites, and private villas.  The grounds are reasonably extensive and there are gorgeous views around every corner.  One of my favorite things about Greece are the olive trees that grow everywhere; pretty and functional!

On the days that were more low-key, we spent our time at the main pool or down at the beach.  The lounge chairs and umbrellas blend so nicely into their natural environment.  No ugly plastic beach chairs here!  Our days included reading books, sipping cocktails, and eating seafood salads and sandwiches at Isola Beach Club.  Relaxation at it's best.

It's hard to believe, after two glorious weeks in Greece, we finally had to go home (to our separate apartments in separate cities!). The hotels and islands that Matt chose were perfect and I am already planning our five year anniversary trip back to Greece.  Even though this holiday was special for sentimental reasons (and because we really splurged on accommodations), Greece has easily become one of my most favorite countries to vacation.  Thank you Greece.  You were the honeymoon of our dreams.

See more of Greece in our Honeymoon posts from Athens, Santorini, and Crete. Or follow our hashtag #GersJustWannaHaveFunInGreece on Instagram.