22952444, Kalopanayiotis Village
Everyone knows it but not everyone knows a lot about it…at least I didn’t. Not before my visit last month. All I knew it was a very carefully done mountain retreat. I didn’t know that the renovated spa was so luxuriously beautiful, I didn’t know the rooms and suites were located around the village, I didn’t know about the opening of Loutraki, an excellent Greek-Cypriot restaurant opening and I didn’t know the overall experience would be so…complete.
We went for one night on a cold December Friday night to spend 24 hours away from kids, families and friends. Arriving there mid afternoon was a great time since we had the chance to do some pre-dinner-relaxation. After a very warm welcome and a sneak peek of our Loutraki suite we made our way into the spa.
To be honest, I had zero expectations. That was one of the reasons why I was so pleasantly surprised. The other being that it is truly beautiful. Although not massive it has everything a good spa needs: A swimming pool with comfortable chairs to relax on, a steam bath and a sauna next to rain showers and of course, a snow cabin for a chalet effect. The magnificent view of the mountains while you are enjoying the hydromassage isn’t too shabby either.
After a couple of hours in the spa (and some more relax time), we went for a drink and dinner to the Loutraki, the latest opening of the group. I liked how it was really small and cosy with a veranda overlooking the mountains. The food was Mediterranean I would say since it had some Greek dishes with international touches. The pumpkin soup was everything we needed to start off our dinner and a very good start to our meal. The lightly battered zucchini with a garlic dip and “trima” were truly delicious with a subtle flavour. The pan-seered trout with herbs on a bed of spinach, served with a lemon basil pesto, which was recommended by the head waiter was a great choice as, although it was light it didn’t lack flavour. Mr Proud Cypriot’s fillet steak sprinkled with salt flages was grilled to perfection. We were particularly impressed with our cabernet sauvignon by Vlassides, an excellent full body wine – highly recommended.
Fortunately we had a few more hours the morning after to enjoy the retreat with some special treatments (a deep tissue massage and aromatotherapy –guess which one was for me..). It’s worth mentioning all of the spa products are Apivita, well-known for being all natural, something that I quite liked.
In hindsight 24 hours were more than enough for us to enjoy some doing-nothing time. Our overall impression was that it’s a truly beautiful and fortunately affordable retreat which helps us take advantage and enjoy Cyprus beauty.
Prices vary, check out their website for more information. A huge thank you to Casale Panayiotis for sponsoring this amazing weekend.
