05 January 2024

READ MY INTERVIEW with House of Coco Magazine UK - 4th January 2024 Maria Demosthenous: Crafting Unforgettable Journeys, One Dream at a Time https://houseofcoco.net/maria-demosthenous-crafting-unforgettable-journeys-one-dream-at-a-time/ Interviewed undertaken by the lovely - Laura Bartlett - Northern girl Laura is the epitome of a true entrepreneur. Laura’s spirit for adventure and passion for people blaze through House of Coco. She founded House of Coco in 2014 and has grown it in to an internationally recognised brand whilst having a lot of fun along the way. Travel is in her DNA and she is a true visionary and a global citizen. HOPE YOU LIKE READING THIS !

28 December 2023

Now that travel has well and truly returned after the unprecedented events of 2020. During 2022 and 2023 it was certainly time for all those in desperate need of a extensively delayed escape from the tyrannies of the previous years of limited travel. Everyone needed to refresh and recharge and get back out there living a normal life again, along with all its new perspectives and possibly opt for safer ways to travel for the time being for them and their loved ones, post “you know what”. Villa holidays have always had their strong selling points. Having your own private space to enjoy, a private pool without any opening hours or fighting for a sun lounger, the need to keep check on the dining times for breakfast, lunch or even dinner – but in the post “you know what” times, these types of holiday seemed all the more appealing. So as world travel restrictions have since been lifted, borders fully wide opened and holidays back to almost normal, it seems likely some travellers’ habits may have shifted, to enjoying more private accommodation replacing crowded communal pool sides and evenings of shared buffet dining. Some travellers are also seeking to get away with their extended family or dearest friends to spend quality time together after having been restricted by “you know what” for months, and a large private villa holiday option seems to be one rise, offering the “A Home away from Home” feeling. When booking a villa with enough bedrooms for everyone, every member of the family can relish the luxury of their own private space. So once the kids are finally in bed, parents can have the rest of the evening to themselves without having to worry about waking them with the noise of clinking glasses whilst enjoying the later hours with a perfect chilled glass of wine or an iced cocktail. At Aphrodite Hills Resort, Cyprus - Private villas and the concept of self-catering holidays is something they developed many years ago. Within this multi-award winning five-star resort, the Holiday Residences offers independent stunning villas with private pools and beautiful luxury apartments with shared pools all located within this spectacular and secluded hillside paradise overlooking the Mediterranean, off the south western coastline of the island Cyprus, just a short drive from either Paphos or even Limassol. All guests choosing to stay in any of the many properties of the Holiday Residences can retire to the privacy and safety of their own villa or apartment but still enjoy the conveniences at hand within the resort and an array of sports and leisure activities on their doorstep should they wish to venture. Guests can practice golf on the renowned PGA National golf course, practice their back hand at the tennis academy which also features Padel tennis, improve their shots at the football academy or join one of the Masters Football camps with UK soccer legends, learn horse-riding, pamper themselves at The Retreat Spa by Aegeo Spa, as well as have lots of child fun at the kids club for children ages 3 to 12 years. For meals, we could not leave out the picturesque Village square in the heart of the resort offering endless culinary experiences in a tranquil and ambient setting. At Aphrodite Hills Resort, villas and apartments come in all shapes and sizes perfect for a couples to large families, with budgets ranging from the most cost effective options up to the exclusive properties that allow guests to live a lavish experience, even if just for a week or two. This resort can be considered a beautiful destination full of life and plenty of things to do, but at the same time a place where you can withdraw at any time. Nowhere else on the island of Cyprus offers the combined experiences of sociability and privacy combined. This unique resort, is one of a kind to Cyprus and should not be missed. Having been to Aphrodite Hills Resort, endless times my knowledge of this property is unsaturated and I can help anyone looking to have this 5-star villa or apartment holiday experience at any time of the year, as well as build the perfect itinerary for their stay on resort for any type of holiday. Get in touch at any time, and I would be happy to discuss things in more detail with you.

26 September 2023

When my travel buddy said she would be coming home for a few weeks this summer, I didn’t need an excuse to plan a holiday away for the two of us. Introducing my travel buddy, Natassa, my 25 year old daughter, who’s a Marketing Exec. living in Glasgow, since completing her studies there in 2022. Our last travels together were pre-Covid in the summer of 2019 where we met up with my cousin and his family from Florida in Athens for a 10-day road trip across Greece, ending up a few nights in Corfu (I’ll write about that trip on another blog later). So planning our few days away, we decided to take a well overdue return trip to Rhodes, exactly 20 years from our last visit, of which Natassa has a vague recollection. Everything was booked so quickly and we had our holiday together to look forward to. Time to fly to Rhodes where we landed on a lovely hot afternoon the end of June for our mum + daughter 5 nights stay at the newly renovated Mercure Rhodes Alexia Hotel & Spa, in Rhodes town centre, but just a few steps away from the main streets and everything we needed to see and visit. Our first late afternoon walk and evening out was to get our bearings and see the various dining options for our evening meals. As Greeks ourselves (or Cypriots I should say), our first meal was a traditional taverna serving of Souvlaki (kebab) at the Bahar Souvlakeri, along with a Greek salad and dips of course, and washed down with some chilled local wine. We retreated to our lovely little hotel room with sea view balcony to a good night’s sleep. As we are both not breakfast girls, the following morning, after our fresh Greek yoghurt and fruit we navigated our way to the local bus terminal, and as the Greeks we are, grabbed a chilled coffee – or as the locals say “frappe” and caught the morning bus to a lovely beach location called Tsambika. With our holiday books and sun oil in hand, just like any tourist, we spent the day relaxing on the very comfy sunbeds available and enjoying the crystal clear waters, which I must say were not too cold either. Traditional Village salad lunch at the Ramal beach side restaurant was the perfect interlude from our sunbathing. As we had bought the return tickets for our bus from the morning, we were able to take whichever one we wanted home, so we opted for the later afternoon time making the most of our day. For our evening we had seen on the previous night that the beautiful garden restaurant called Drosoulites offered live music, traditional dances and a selection of delectable Greek meze dishes and the best Greek wines – which I must say certainly did not disappoint. For day two we had pre-booked ourselves a boat trip to the beautiful island of Simi, through Sebeco Lines, departing by 9:00am but getting us there faster than any of the other vessels leaving around that time. The journey was comfortable, the team onboard were friendly and we were there in no time arriving on what one could describe as an enchanting picture postcard scene of a delightful harbour with a backdrop of brightly coloured houses and shop fronts climbing all the way up the hills. Again as the Greeks we are our morning “frappe” was a must, so we sat to take in the lovely surroundings for a while in the harbour to decide what we would do with our good 6 hours on Simi Island. We voted to grab the local bus and head over the hill to a little secluded fishing harbour / beach spot called Pedi. The trip took less than 15 mins on a small bus, which dropped us off at our perfect beach spot for the rest of the day. The tranquillity of this place was divine and by lunch time we gave in to the smell of the fresh fish from the adjacent restaurant – Katsaras, again accompanied by the traditional Greek salad, dips and why not, some more chilled local white wine. Then time to hop back on to the local bus, just in time to board the Sebeco line boat back to Rhodes town. The evening was spent walking along the cobbled streets within the walls of Rhodes fortress and taking in the history of this beautiful medieval part of the old town, learning about the Knights of Rhodes and continuing towards the old harbour towards Rhodes Windmills, St Nicholas Fortress and the mythical Colossus of Rhodes. Waking earlier the following morning, we planned to head down to the bus terminal to catch the bus to Lindos, which needs no introductions. The journey much longer that the Tsambika trip, but enjoyable in the comfort of a large air-conditioned bus and loads to see on the way. We passed by Kallithea, Faliraki, Tsambika, Archangelos and got off at the main Lindos bus stop. Made our way down towards the pretty whitewashed houses and shops hanging off the hillside, offering visitors a little piece of Santorini or Mykonos. For a small price, we visited the archaeological sites on the top of the hill and the view of Lindos Bay below was breathtaking. Navigating our way down the winding footpaths we ended up on the sandy beach below for a refreshing swim and the last sunbathing of the holidays. If only the bus could have picked us up from the beach we both said – but thankfully we managed to find a short cut to take us back up to the main square and grab the shuttle to the bus stop on the main road. What a lovely outing that turned out to be for our last day in Rhodes. Our evening out, wondering around an area of the town we had only seen but not visited, was chilled and we decided to have a fresh seafood pasta at Burattino, which was an excellent choice I may saw, and all washed down with some more of that local vino. All in all, our mum + daughter trip was a smash. We managed to relax, catch up, explore, wine, dine, discover and re-make the memories that Natassa couldn’t recall from our first visit all those 20 years ago. We headed home the following morning, but our suitcases and hearts full of love for Rhodes and we certainly will be back soon.