The Setting
Arriving on Mykonos for the primary time can really feel a bit like arriving on Mars. This tiny, wind-whipped Greek island is craggy and arid, stuffed with tumbling hills and dramatic coastlines. However in a very secluded spot, you’ll discover the newly opened Cali Mykonos, a discreet assortment of 40 villas constructed cleverly between two mountains overlooking the twinkling blue of the Aegean—and the lodge’s personal silky sweep of personal sand. On the centre of all of it is a hypnotic salt water infinity pool, which wraps across the cliff just like the purest blue river stretching so far as the attention can see, encapsulating the whole lot there may be to like about this boutique resort: magnificence, serenity, and luxurious delivered with the lightest contact.
Nicholas Mastoras
The Rooms
Really, “Rooms” doesn’t do Cali’s 40 villa-like suites justice. Resembling Cycladic homes, these have been constructed utilizing stone from the preliminary excavation, combining conventional structure with the rugged great thing about the panorama by way of modern traces and flat roofs, a lot of that are planted with native flowers and herbs. Simplicity reigns, and the inside design is a masterclass in understated Mediterranean class, with handcrafted furnishings, heaps of marble and native wooden creating stylish temples of peace. Crucially, each villa comes with its personal personal pool and ocean views—there actually are not any duds right here.
The Meals & Drinks
One of the crucial thrilling issues about this place is the cocktail checklist, dreamed up by essentially the most infectiously enthusiastic mixologists V.F. has ever encountered. Alongside the classics, there’s a listing impressed by the 9 Muses from Greek mythology, together with an intriguingly truffled tackle a margarita referred to as a “Polyhymnia”. However the ebullient chief barman additionally responds to the world round him; one night time throughout our go to there’s a blood-red full moon, so he creates a Full Moon Bitter, a heady mix of gin infused with beurre noisette and streaks of cherry liqueur. The meals is superb too, and whereas the extra complicated domestically sourced seafood and meat dishes are nice within the night, it’s fairly laborious to beat the lodge’s good Greek Salad and the freshest Tzatziki, served with pillowy pita breads and ideal by that present stopping pool. Every little thing is overseen by chef Lefteris Lazarou, who’s cooked for everybody from political leaders to royalty, and shares Cali’s ardour for native, sustainable components.
Nicholas Mastoras
What To Do
No matter you do, don’t go away this idyll. You would simply spend a whole journey right here lazing by the pool or pootling all the way down to the personal seashore on the backside of the cliff. That mentioned, there are two immaculate velocity boats that may be taken to Delos Island or down the South Coast, whereas a partnership with Athens-based health studio Athlesis caters to any health wants (V.F. took a very stirring dawn yoga session and hasn’t seemed again since).
Cali Mykonos
