Book Phaea Blue Palace Crete with VIP Benefits

The current 47-key hotel is part of Small Luxury Hotels of the World. Its smaller format emerged from the Blue Palace changes in 2024, but PHAEA Blue is distinct from the separate Rosewood Blue Palace redevelopment. The experience here centers on bungalows, suites and a villa, with Cretan food and craftsmanship running through the shared spaces.

In the lobby, a collaboration with the Benaki Museum brings handcrafted Greek pieces into the places where guests sit and gather. Handwoven textiles made by the owners' grandmother add a family connection to the interiors. These are personal objects within a working hotel, not a display removed from daily life. Ceramics by Melina Xenaki appear in both the lobby and guest rooms, while Onentropy contributes sculptural marble works. The effect is more varied than a uniform white-and-blue island scheme, with clay, woven fabric and stone giving individual spaces their texture.

Anthós serves breakfast and dinner in an al-fresco setting. Its contemporary Greek cooking draws on the hotel's organic kitchen garden and regional farms, with vegetables, herbs, local fish and meat at the center of the menu. Sharing dishes is part of the approach, so dinner can unfold through several tastes across the table. The kitchen follows seasonal produce rather than relying on one fixed idea of Greek food. It is a natural place to spend an evening after time by the water.

Blue Door Taverna occupies a former fisherman's stone house beside the sea. Traditional Cretan recipes, fish and seafood give it a different character from Anthós. The building and waterfront setting are as much part of the meal as the cooking, keeping the connection to the fishing coast visible. Family recipes underpin the menu rather than a broad international selection.

At the PHAEA Farmers Feast pop-up, guests pick ingredients with a farmer and executive chef Giannis Kalivretakis. The meal takes place around a communal table in the organic garden, and the cooking includes a traditional method using the soil itself. It brings the source of the food into the evening, with the garden acting as both pantry and dining room.

Votsalo Bar makes cocktails with locally sourced ingredients. The Dessert Balcony pairs Greek and Cretan sweets with an aperitif, while the Beach Bar serves drinks beside the water.

Signature Rooms average 36 square meters and sleep two. Their private balconies overlook gardens and mountains, with a partial glimpse of the sea. A king bed is standard, with twin beds available on request. Marble bathrooms have bathtubs in selected rooms. This category keeps the landscape varied: the view includes the green and mountainous side of Crete as well as the water.

The Deluxe Bungalow Seaview measures 39 square meters for two adults. A separate category, the Deluxe Bungalow Seaview Private Heated Pool, has the same indoor area with its own pool outside. The choice is primarily about how much time you want beside private water, rather than gaining a larger room. Both retain the bungalow format and a sea-facing outlook.

Each Island Suite is named after a Greek island. At an average of 60 square meters, these suites sleep four and have an enlarged veranda with loungers and a private heated pool facing the sea. Original work by Philippos Theodorides and locally made details give the interiors their own character.

The Blue Maisonette Suite takes a different form. Its 67 square meters are arranged over two levels, with a king bed, pull-out sofa and two marble bathrooms for up to five guests. A garden and private heated pool adjoin the living space; the dining veranda and furnished balcony add outdoor seating. The balcony looks toward the mountains. The hotel can also extend this category into a two-bedroom family space.

PHAEA Blue Villa has 290 square meters and accommodates up to eight people. An open-plan living area, full kitchen and outdoor dining space make it a substantial house within the hotel. Its private heated pool faces the sea, with gardens, shaded places to sit and barbecue facilities around the outdoor areas. The villa can also be reserved in a two-bedroom configuration.

The main bedroom has a four-poster double bed, fireplace and en-suite bathroom. A further double bedroom and a twin bedroom occupy the lower level. There is an in-room gym, and the villa has its own entrance. For a larger party, staircase access can connect the stay with additional Junior and Blue Maisonette suites, arranged separately.

The hotel has its own beach facing Spinalonga and a shared outdoor heated pool. The appeal of the waterfront is its outlook across the bay, with the island in view during a swim or time spent on shore.

PHAEA Blue Spa provides massages, bodywork and facials. Yoga and meditation are part of the activity program, and an outdoor deck provides room for practice in the open air. Indoor and outdoor exercise areas also support Pilates and other sessions. The gardens give this part of the hotel a different setting from the beach, with space for movement as well as a treatment appointment.

A traditional wooden caique departs from the hotel's private jetty. Trips follow the Elounda and Spinalonga coastlines, with options ranging from a one-hour sunset outing to a two-hour picnic trip. The longer four-hour excursion includes a barbecue at Kolokytha, near the chapel of St Fokas. These outings bring the coast into closer view, including beaches reached by boat, with time for swimming and food away from the hotel.

Back on land, olive-oil tasting takes place around the olive tree at Anthós' outdoor kitchen. Greek wine tastings use the organic garden as their setting, and cooking classes explore local recipes. Alongside a meal in Plaka or a walk by the water, these experiences keep the stay connected to the everyday ingredients and coastal life of eastern Crete.