Squirrel's Home, Milies

Welcome to our family holiday home in Milies, a village in Pelion, perfect for a serene, safe and stylish holiday. Nestled amongst the lush green scenery, just 100m walk to the picturesque village square, this has been a scenic and convenient house for our family and friends (and our resident squirrel) for many years. Our house has wonderful outside space, sea views and a lush garden, and was refurbished in 2017 to welcome a wider circle of friends & guests. We've recently refurbished the house, with the intention of sharing the pleasures and maybe earning its keep. This year (to June 2020) the house has stayed empty, clean and safe, and we have arrange additional days between summer bookings for airing and additional cleaning. Our visit last summer reminded us of the spectacular contrasts of Pelion, between the beautiful lush mountainside villages, with their unique architecture and deep historical substance, and the sparkling azure beaches of the Aegean. The house is nicely kitted out for staying put, reading a book in the shade, pottering around the village to shop local ingredients and slow-cooking a dinner to savour on the outdoor terrace. For the more adventurous, apart from the magnificently varied Aegean beaches (wild, sandy, rocky, splashy, calm) Pelio has a tantalising web of trekking paths (marked out by Kyriakos and fellow enthusiasts of the Pelion Trekking Club, details on request) rich religious and scholarly heritage, a nearby ski resort typically operating January-March, a summer art & dance festival in a nearby village and distinctly rustic regional food. Up to six people can sleep here very comfortably. All beds and both sofas have brand-new high-end mattresses. To refresh you from adventure, the house has a vine-shaded outdoor shower, room ceiling fans (for the perfect siesta), cool local slate stone floors and a lovely tree-shaded terrace to lay out family dinners and take in the sea views to the south. For the intrepid travellers of crisper autumn and spring months or snowy winters, each room has electric heaters that our recent guests over Christmas found very toasty, and there is new rapid immersion electric heater to supply hot water. The house has a wide, enclosed garden, and can easily host any well-mannered pets that are happy to live outside, in a little sheltered nook under the terrace stairs. A bit of back story, if you're interested: My grandmother built this house in 1980, following her brother, the painter and academic Giorgos Mavroidis, who also lived here; we spent long hot family summers, and a couple of snowy winters, and I hopped along to the village school up the hill for my first year of school. My aunt, a professor of art history in Athens, lived here on-off through the 90ies, but in recent years we've been living afar, excited visitors ourselves once more. Our guests will have use of the entire detached house and garden, with all the pomegranates, figs, almonds and walnuts you can eat, when in season. There is a fully equipped kitchen with all-new appliances (oven, fridge-freezer, dishwasher, utensils etc), and a bathroom with a shower and new washing machine. A fresh set of sheets and towels is provided to all guests, and our host Hara will meet you for check-in & orientation, and check-out. We are very happy to answer any questions and chat to any potential guests on the phone. When there, our guests will be welcomed and guided by our genial local host, Hara. A historic, picturesque village, Milies lies in the southern reaches of Pelion, the mountain of centaurs, lush vistas and crisp beaches. The breathtaking monasteries of Meteora, and Mt Olympus, are long day trips away. The house is an easy walk of about 100m from the village square, its exquisite church (built 1741), history museum, tavernas, cosy cafe and rooftop bar. There are two groceries/mini-markets, bakery, pharmacy, and you also bump into the village doctor and policeman. Further out, there's the city and port of Volos (about 30' drive), where the Argonauts launched off, and where you pick up ferries to nearby Skiathos, Skopelos and Allonissos islands. If you make it here without a car, you will be able to fully enjoy the village life in Milies, but will find it hard to explore any further in Pelio by relying on public transport, which is sparse. Please note that there is a flight of charming, but uneven stone cobbled steps connecting to the road; there is a handrail, and recent guests with toddlers and luggage found it fine, but still, take note. While water is thankfully plentiful in Pelion all year round, sanitation is less straightforward, so guests are kindly asked *not to flush anything extraneous down the loo*, and to consider using the outdoor shower when it's pleasant to do so. Well-mannered pets are welcome, though they do need to stay outside, to avoid leaving behind allergens in the house that other guests will find intolerable. Hara will be glad to arrange any additional cleaning if you wish, paid to her in person.