A round-up of the latest hotel openings and relaunches, from Issue 1 (August ’25)
Sitting at the Blue Door Taverna with salt-baked fish and a crisp glass of Cretan wine, there’s a distinct sense of timelessness – from the rugged coastline and view out to the fabled island of Spinalonga to the warm hospitality of host Harris in the old fisherman’s house. It’s just one of the food moments that sets Phāea Blue apart, as the 47-room boutique hotel hits its stride in its first full season.
The design feels effortless: light pours into pared-back rooms, with the Aegean glinting just beyond – proof that, in places like this, a light touch is all that’s needed.
Where detail and intention do come to the fore is in the hotel’s flagship restaurant, Anthós, where chef Athinagoras Kostakos champions contemporary Cretan cooking with flair. Guests are also invited to join the Phāea Farmers’ Feast – a hands-on exploration of Crete’s cuisine, from gathering herbs in the organic garden to cooking in the earth itself. It’s an apt metaphor for a place so grounded and loyal to island tradition. Doubles from £370 per night.
phaeablue.com
‘In the countryside, but next to the craic’ is how NATIVE describes itself – and it’s not wrong. Set in the heart of Ballydehob, it’s just round the corner from Michelin-starred Restaurant Chestnut – and a short stroll from West Cork’s rugged coastline.
Owners Simon and Didi Ronan have transformed a former dairy farm into a design-driven guesthouse with three ensuite bedrooms and a garden sauna. Simon’s background in landscape architecture – specialising in luxury eco-resorts around the world – brings serious cred on the sustainability front, and the couple’s eye for detail is evident in everything from the top-notch Irish bedding to the elegantly curated art collection.
Latest additions to the mix are three garden cabins; beyond that, the focus lies ten minutes up the road, on a 75-acre rewilding site that sits at the heart of NATIVE’s mission. Guests are encouraged to roam and reconnect on Ireland’s Wild Atlantic Way. Doubles from £170 per night. native.ie
Set within Nicosia’s medieval Venetian walls, Amyth of Nicosia channels the Old Town spirit with vintage-tiled floors, a covetable grand staircase and a leafy courtyard shaded by olive trees. Housed in an impeccably restored 20th-century villa, the boutique hideaway offers 10 design-led rooms, plus seasonal Cypriot cooking. It makes a perfect base for discovering Byzantine churches, Ottoman baths and the revitalised Eleftheria Square – in one of Europe’s lesser-explored capitals. Doubles from £225 per night.
amythhotels.com
