Pietra e Mare

I stayed at Pietra E Mare in October 2019 with my partner, and we absolutely loved it. This is definitely a great hotel for couples! From the moment we arrived, we were so welcomed, the staff gave us delicious homemade lemonade whilst they checked us in, and seated us in the lovely open restaurant so we got to enjoy the fabulous view over the sea and down onto the beach. There's so much good to say about this place: Complex and rooms: We loved how the complex was set out, you have the reception and restaurant at together, then you can go down some steps to a cute area with hammocks and bean bags. I think when it's the main season they make cocktails at the bar there but we went out of season. Then if you go down some more steps you come to the pool, which is a nice size, not huge, but perfectly fine to do some lazy swimming in. There are four poster type beach beds by the pool with foam mattresses which are quite comfortable. In the day the staff will attach white sun covers to them, and it's lovely seeing them float around in the breeze. The rooms are on a few different levels. The rooms are not like a tall hotel block, they are really nice traditional white greek buildings, which are really quaint. They were really rustic and felt very authentic. They are almost like little caves made out of stone, and the shower was also made out of stone, which we thought was quite cool. This isn't for everyone, so if you're expecting marble, sleek modernity and the five star luxury of US/UK/Dubai hotels then this isn't the place for you. In the room you have a TV, aircon, a fridge with goodies (you have to pay extra for them), a big bed, shutters so it's dark at night, a safe to keep your things secure, and then other amenities depending on how much you pay for your room. We felt very comfortable here. Our aircon didn't work when we got there but we called reception and someone came to help us straight away. The restaurant has a roof but is open at the sides so it's lovely to get air and breeze whilst you're having food, and you can look out at the sea whilst you eat, and the stars at night. Other facilities: There is a hot tub, but only if you pay for the room which includes that specifically. We had thought from the photos that it would be for everyone to use but it's not. There is a nice outdoor shower by the pool so you can refresh without going back to your room. There is a treatment room so you can have massages if you choose to (I think they were around 100Euros). The pool beds have lots of fresh towels in a basket near them, so you can use these to sit on the beds instead of using your own towels and getting them wet. Food: The food was amazing here! The chef is fantastic. We loved that not only could you call room service and have things brought to the room, there was a member of staff who would sit by the pool and you could ask them to bring you food and drinks to have by the pool. Their greek salad was delicious and they always give you unlimited bread, olive oil and balsamic vinegar with everything you order! We ordered these, and drinks to the poolside many times and the staff were happy to bring it to you. Breakfast was fab! There is a lovely buffet every morning of tea, coffee, juices, toast, pastries, cakes, ham, cheese, yoghurt with a special greek cherry compote, nuttella etc. and a small amount of fruits. We were silly and unfortunately we didn't realise that the hot/cooked breakfast items were also free until the last day, it's just they are made to order so we missed out on all of that! If we'd have known they were free we would have taken advantage of this as you could order eggs multiple different ways, other cooked breakfast items and full fruit salads etc. I saw people complain on other reviews that there was no hot breakfast food offered so I want to make it clear there is! And just ask! :) In the day they have a special menu of a few items during the day, like greek salad, and some sandwiches and fries. The club sandwich is AMAZING. In the evenings there was a full menu of lovely greek food like gyros. That was also delicious! They also make alcoholic and non alcoholic cocktails made to order. And they have other ranges of drinks too. I saw reviews saying there was not much choice of food and drink but we did not think this at all. We found the range was perfectly good. The prices are in line with what you would spend in Mykonos, so we thought it was good value for money. If you go you have to try their amazing desert called Mosaiko, which is a delicious biscuity chocolately thing which their chef makes. Location and getting around the island: We thought the location was great, the hotel is up on a hill so you feel relaxed and away from everything. It's perfect for a quiet calm retreat. Because you have the restaurant and pool there, you wouldn't need to leave the place if you didn't want to! Also, because you have the beach down the hill, you have all you need there. The hill was very steep but it only takes five minutes to get up and down. We worried when we saw some reviews but it's perfectly fine to get up and down! You can also walk for about 20-30 mins up to a little town called Ano Mera, we did this and it was fine as long as you're careful, you do need to walk on the roads in some places but it didn't feel dangerous or anything. The town was definitely worth visiting, we went twice. There are some lovely souvenir shops there, a pharmacy, some nice restaurants and cafes, and a supermarket. There is also a cute monastery and museum which is cheap to visit. Taxis are expensive. The hotel are happy to call them for you, or you can download the 'iMove' app which I recommend. Here you can see how much the cost of the journey will be before you accept it and track your driver, a bit like Bolt or Uber. It's around 20-30Euros per journey most places, so you're looking at 40-60Euros for a journey. So if you want to explore you'd need to rent a car to save money. We didn't feel like we really needed to leave the area or hotel as it's so lovely, so we didn't rent a car. Beach: Kalo Livadi beach is nice, it's lovely looking down on the beach and into the sea. It's quite a small beach, but it was quiet as we went out of season. There are two beach clubs on the beach but again as we were out of season they were closed down. When they are open I am sure there would be noise on the beach. I went to one of the beach clubs in Ibiza and it was really fun, so I imagine it's cool when it's open though. We got a taxi to a different beach - Elia, and that was nice, the beach club restaurant was open and was lovely although a bit pricey. Mykonos town: We thought Mykonos town was OK but nothing special, and the restaurants are very, very expensive. The shopping is good though if you fancy wandering around for a few hours. There is an art gallery/museum which is nice, and the windmills were fairly interesting. Staff: By far the BEST thing about this hotel is the staff. Everyone is so kind and friendly. They were so welcoming and happy to look after us wherever they could. They gave us maps for the few times we did venture out and gave us recommendations for Mykonos and Ano Mera town. We loved the little touches like the welcome drinks and complimentary welcome snacks they left us in the room. The waiters in the restaurants were so so polite and lovely, and we enjoyed chatting with them. The managers were always around and there to say hi to you, we enjoyed chatting to them too as no question was too much for them. You can definitely tell they are small caring team and they definitely made our stay better. When we left they said they really enjoyed seeing us happy and enjoying our holiday. We can't wait to go back, although unfortunately we don't know when that will be due to the current pandemic. I highly recommend this hotel if you want to stay in a chilled out place, sunbathe by the pool, venture down to a beach, eat great food, and experience greek hospitality.

We had the pleasure of spending 3 nights at Pietra E Mare and we really couldn’t recommend the hotel higher. The views from the honeymoon suite were breathtaking overlooking the bay and Kalo Livadi beach. The hot tub on the balcony was a delight. We ate several times at the hotel and the food was outstanding. The staff were very friendly and helpful and always a smile on their face from the reception staff to the cleaning ladies we couldn’t fault them. The hotel is isolated and in off season you really need a car if you want to try different restaurants or locations . The bus which leaves from the beach ended on Sunday 6th October so access to Mykonos town would require a taxi at €25/27 each way We will be back