Retreat center and Eco-Farm - Ilios private apartment

Stay

About the accommodation
Located next to the main villa, this apartment features a comfy queen-size bed and separate loft with a single bed. It also features a private bathroom with shower and a kitchenette, as well as a table and chair. You’ll love the decoration with local and original art and private balcony with its view of the sea! You can have access to additional workspace (dining room of the main villa) on request during working hours (10am - 9pm).

Bonus? Complimentary wine from the farm!

Up to 3 people

Good to know: If you click on 2 people while sending your booking request, you will book the entire room for up to 3 people

Property
Rejuvenation, reflection and reconnection - three words that define this incredible stay. In this retreat center & eco-farm, escaping from the stress of daily life is easy as a breath.

At night you see endless shooting stars, at dawn you hear the hypnotic song of the cicadas...it’s a true Mediterranean paradise, with an outdoor wood oven, huge swimming pool, yoga pavilion, organic vineyards and olive groves, chickens, sheep, fruit trees and an organic vegetable garden. Oh, and lots of hammocks!

If you're in one of the private rooms inside the villa, you also have access to the beautiful shared areas during working hours: the fully equipped kitchen, beautiful dining space and spacious living room with large screen TV.

The hosts are very welcoming and give you an experience in Zakynthos like no other! They foster community and guests are welcome to share their story and talents during retreats, classes and workshops. They are also dedicated to giving back to the local community and make every effort to promote their lifestyle, art and cuisine.

If you are a freelancer looking for a place to focus, a remote worker in search of connections, a writer looking for a peaceful place to start that novel, a musician trying to finish an album, a person in search of a new path… or you simply want to escape, this is the place for you.

Good to know: They provide linens and towels, soap, shampoo, kitchen supplies, even their own wine and sea salt for your cooking and eating pleasure!

Work features
- Good WiFi (10-25 Mbps down)
- Both shared and private workspaces

Home features
- Vegetarian friendly
- Swimming pool
- A/C
- Vegan friendly
- Children friendly
- Washing machine

Activities available onsite
- Yoga and meditation (June-August)
- Guided sea excursions to exquisite swim coves (May to October)
- Connecting to local community: Greek cooking classes, music, dance
- Olive oil and wine tasting
- Sacred festivals in the path of Mary Magdalen (who visited the island in 12 AD)
- Hiking to ancient ruins and monasteries


Area

Activities in the area
- Hiking
- Kayaking
- Boat excursions to the caves
- Scuba diving

Flora and fauna
The green island of Zakynthos, called by the Venetians "the flower of the east" is rich in wildlife and flora. The heavy rainfall in the winter helps the island to be verdant and covered with forests, fruit orchards and olive groves and the geology has also created beautiful beaches, secluded coves and blue caves.

The mild, Mediterranean climate and the plentiful winter rainfall endow the island with dense vegetation. The principal agricultural products are olive oils, currants, grapes and citrus fruit. The Zante currant is a small sweet seedless grape which is native to the island.

The Bay of Laganas in the southern part of the island is the site of the first National Marine park and the prime nesting area for loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) in the Mediterranean. Every year there are about 1,500 sea turtle nests in the Zakynthos National Marine Park, which is almost 80% of the total number of nests in the Mediterranean.

Social ecosystem
The accommodation is quite secluded (40 min to the closest city, there are some closer villages) and the owners have built there a piece of their own paradise, which is a mix of an eco-farm and a retreat center. If you would like to dive into the local community, they can organise for you a traditional Zakynthian cooking class. If you're there in October or November, you can also experience olive and wine harvesting.

There are some closer villages, but if you’re looking for the town vibe, go to the capital and the main port of the island, holding the same name - Zakynthos. After the earthquake that in 1953 destroyed the city the reconstruction works began and now it looks like a modern touristic city which is expanding toward the inland because of the many activities that are there developing. Zakynthos offers many interesting things to the visitor such as the famous church of San Dionisio, that keeps the relics of the saint, the numerous museums and the characteristic squares of D. Solomos and Saint Mark, this one dates back to the Venetian period and with the only one catholic church of the island. Besides the seafront (marine road) and the small internal streets of the city there is a very interesting borough around the ruins of the ancient Venetian castle located at the top of the hill of Strani at the back of the city.


Practical

How to get there
From the Zakynthos International Airport (ZTH):
- by taxi: 30 min, €23-29

From the Athens International Airport (ATH)
- first by bus: around 4,5h
- then ferry: 40 min
- when you get to the Zakynthos bus station, the hosts can pick you up.

Property guidelines
1. No smoking
2. Check-in time
3. Check out time