Freelance Holidays, Featured in The Times "50 great holidays for under £500"

From The Times January 30, 2010

50 great holidays for under £500

Hot getaways

Discreet in Crete - £419

"Emilio’s House", offered by Freelance Holidays (01789 297705, freelance-holidays.co.uk), is built into rock, and has a terrace with a barbecue, and use of a pool in Agia Paraskevi, off the village square. Sandy beaches are a short drive away.

Greece still great value if you know where to look - 'Insiders Guide to Greece'

Paul Fogg,  Freelance Holiday's MD has been sharing our money saving ideas with readers of the Sunday Telegraph in their 'Insiders guide to Greece'. As specialists in Crete for the past 26 year we've seen fortunes rise and fall in the Hellenic Isles, but have to date - including last year - always found that if you are looking for a relaxing break without breaking the purse, Greece  always comes up trumps.

In 2010, according to the Sunday Telegraph real prices in Greece have dropped this year by almost 10 %, so if you're considering self catering in Crete, this is a good year to give it a go. Promise you won't be disappointed!

When looking for a roof over your head, self catering is always our first choice, with more space than a hotel room and a fridge and cooking facilities to hand, self catering is simple and cheap. Paul suggests looking for apartments in a small group sharing a pool - it's likely that you will have it all to yourselves for some of the day if it's  shared by only a few. If it's by the beach, so much the better - buy your own umbrella and cheap sunbeds (much cheaper than hiring every day)  the  sea, sand and sunshine are for free. Our Rouladina Apts  start at £395 for a week in a 3 bedroom apt in May, 600 yards from Stalos beach in Western Crete. Or try a village house with no pool that's near a beach.

In either case,  you'll remain in touch with the locals. In a country famed for its hospitality you can become overwhelmed by the gifts of home cooked food, wine or freshly picked fruit and vegetables in season from owners to whom  'filoxenia' is second nature and whose welcome is as warm as the climate. Most holidaymakers enjoy the local flavour of a street market and here you can fill a bag with fruit and veg, the fresh aroma of which fills your fridge for days whilst you enjoy slices of ice cold watermelon, oranges etc at less cost to purse and waist than ice creams.  Lidl has also arrived in Crete so you can make a one stop shop for all non consummables or try the local INCA superstore.

With Yogurt and honey for breakfast, a quickly put together Greek salad for lunch and an evening meal in a local taverna, sitting under the stars by the sea or in a bustling village square becomes affordable.

If you can get together with friends  then a private Villa with pool can be surprisingly affordable - a week at  Villa Artemis, in the hills of western Crete, costs £1,855 in high season, that's less than £30 per person per night. It has its own pool and sleeps up to nine people. With a brick built barbecue, evenings by the pool are really enjoyable.   

To see what the Telegraph say about Greece as a value for money destination follow the link:

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/holiday_type/beach/article6989680.ece

Freelance Holidays has introduced Kefalonia

26 January 2010




Med villa specialist adds Kefalonia properties



Freelance Holidays has introduced the Ionian island of Kefalonia to its range of Mediterranean holidays.



Seven properties on Kefalonia join the villa specialist’s portfolio of more than 150 hand-picked holiday homes on Crete, Mallorca, Sardinia and Sicily.



Villa Meliti, set among olive and karob trees above Lourdas, is ty pical in combining modern facilities with a great location. Sleeping four in two bedrooms, with two bathrooms, a private pool, air-conditioning throughout and twice-weekly maid service, Meliti is a five-minute walk from the tavernas and shops, with the Blue Flag beach just over a kilometre away. A week in May starts at £740, rising to £1.485 for a week in August.



Couples may opt for the Liakas Apartments near Spartia in the south of the island. Here just 16 apartments cluster around a large shared pool in a cliff-top location on Cape Liakas with spectacular sea views. Here, a week in May or September starts at £565, rising to £790 in high summer.



Prices do not include flights. Charter operators avro.co.uk, firstchoice.co.uk, thomsonfly.com and flythomascook.com between them operate from Gatwick, Stansted, Birmingham, Manchester and Newcastle – usually on Sundays.

Freelance can arrange car hire on request and the company has just joined ABTA.

01789 297 705, http://www.freelance-holidays.co.uk/

- ENDS -

Freelance Holidays’ press contact Paul Fogg 01789 297 705

Release issued by Jane Williams at Beacon PR 01572 748 800

Villa Migdalia, Featured in Sunday Times "The 100 best summer holidays for 2010"

We are please to have our Villa Migdalia in Crete Featured in the Sunday Times "The 100 best summer holidays for 2010"

Character in Crete ££

"Crete has long strips of nondescript tourist development along the coast (no thanks), but unspoilt villages in dramatic scenery a mile or two inland (yes, please). Vamos is a thriving little place, packed with neoclassical houses, including Villa Migdalia: it’s actually a converted bakery, with original archways and exposed local stone, but there’s now a gorgeous little pool in the courtyard. Soak up village life at the tavernas and kafenions, or seek out the unspoilt coves and beaches nearby. Sleeping four, it costs £625/£1,475 with Freelance Holidays (01789 297705, http://www.freelance-holidays.co.uk/). "

Full story;
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/travel/news/article6980862.ece?token=null&offset=60&page=6

Villa Migdalia, Crete  web page;
http://www.freelance-holidays.co.uk/accommodation_detail.php?accom_id=232