While we visited Syros in the “off-season” in December, Kostas ensured we had a wonderful experience with his excellent hospitality including meeting us after we arrived by ferry. His local... read more tips were essential and all excellent - from restaurants to local sites to see. As others have mentioned the location is ideal - close to the town square but quiet on a pedestrian only street. The view from the rooftop terrace was wonderful and relaxing as well. We look forward to coming back during the spring/summer.

  Kostas truly is a “super” host. We can in by ferry around 9pm and he stayed up and met us in the square to show us the apartment. He then... read more took the time to give us a map and mark it for us with everything we needed: cafes, gyro spots, bars, landmarks, restaurants etc...

The apartment itself is magnificent. It has an incredible view that lives up to the photos. We also really enjoyed the bathroom, something that pleasantly surprised us. The hallway is shared but this was not a problem.

  What I loved..... a gorgeous mansion, ginormous bed, fresh breeze through the French doors and windows, walkable to everything, gorgeous places to swim! I love this town and of course... read more Kostas beautiful home!

  Very nice stay in this house very close to the centre, very comfortable! I recommend it fully. !

  If you love historic homes, you will love this house! It's absolutely gorgeous, restored and refurbished with meticulous sensitivity to the period of its construction. Some of my favorite elements... read more included the high ceilings and gorgeous original windows. Great views of the Hermopoulis port from one of the bedrooms as well, and of course from the rooftop patio!

The house was incredibly cool and surprisingly quiet. Only one bedroom in this unit has A/C, but the other rooms have ceiling fans and I actually got cold at night (in June!) if the fan was left on. They do a great job of keeping the house very comfortable. And it's so quiet at night! The only noise we noticed was from the occasional cat-fight outside, and, well, you're going to find that anywhere you go on the island. 😉

The one thing you must know about this house is the STAIRS. There are a LOT of stairs to get up to the house. More than I expected. It wasn't so bad when we had nothing in our hands, but with loaded suitcases, or carrying a backpack filled with groceries, or a tired preschooler in your arms, it can be rough. Luckily, there is another -slightly longer- way to reach the house, which only has a handful of steps, so we took that route for most of our time. (You can also have a taxi drop you at either of the two nearby churches - Metamorphosis or St Nicholas, and walk the slightly shorter route from there. Particularly if you are coming from the port, have lots of bags, and/or it's very hot outside.)

Kostas and Elisa were completely wonderful hosts, answering all our questions, helping us with everything we needed, and even having us out to their house for coffee! We were so impressed with their thoughtful restoration of Villa Maria, and enjoyed getting to know them during our stay. If you have a chance to stay at this property, you should definitely do so.

  Romantic setting, central location and clean room! It was just what we had hoped for. I can truly recommend this place for others!

  Kostas Stefanou and Elisa Mavropoulou are wonderful people and gracious hosts, and they made our stay at their Villa Maria a sweet, comfortable, intimate, and very warm experience.
Even before... read more we arrived, Kostas’s prompt responses to our email questions revealed how friendly, knowledgeable, and attentive he is. And when we arrived in Syros, his clear directions brought us quickly from the ferry to the main square, where he was waiting with an easy smile and great enthusiasm for our visit.
Ermoupolis spreads out along the port and uphill from it with many pedestrian-only streets and many, many stairs. Kostas guided us along the few streets and up the stone steps to Ydras Street and the bougainvillea-covered entrance to Villa Maria, an old mansion that he and Elisa have beautifully and lovingly restored. After showing us to our room, Kostas sat with us at a table on the second-floor outdoor courtyard and annotated a map of the city and the island, providing what turned out to be fabulous recommendations for places to eat, towns to visit, beaches to swim at, and trails to hike. He is discerning and knows the most special and the best of the best. And Villa Maria is well located, making it very easy to get to any and all of the places of interest in the city, from the opera house to the Vaporia, St. Nicholas to the ferry terminal.
The information and photos on the Villa Maria website accurately describe it and depict the rooms. We loved our stay in Yakinthos (hyacinth). It is one of two rooms—the other is Narkissos (narcissus)—on the second floor that have balconies. The room has high ceilings, and, as the photos reveal, it is very light, spacious, and airy. The bed was comfy and had extra pillows. The balcony offers a commanding, unobstructed 180 degree view out to the port and beyond, where we witnessed dramatic sunrises daily and sat in the early evening with glasses of Assyrtiko to watch the waning colors. On a more mundane note, we were grateful that Yakinthos, unlike many hotel rooms and Airbnbs, had several electrical sockets so we could recharge everything at the same time.
There is a small communal kitchen down the hallway. It has a refrigerator, double burner hot plate, and sink. The kitchen is sufficiently equipped for one to prepare breakfast, lunch, and even a simple dinner. There is cookware, utensils, and in a hall cabinet, glasses, and dishware. It is stocked with bottles of drinking water, coffee, tea, sugar, etc. We shopped for breakfast food on nearby Chiou Street, a charming market street lined with fish, meat, produce, and specialty food markets as well as bakeries, and every morning we had our juice, tea, coffee, and fresh yoghurt outside in the sunny courtyard.
Concerning food, the ground floor of Villa Maria houses a spacious, professional kitchen, where Elisa conducts cooking classes in traditional Greek cuisine. Being foodies who love to cook, we were very interested in what Elisa had to offer. So we met with her at a café to talk about it. She has a winning smile, a bright, energetic, engaging intelligence, a warm personality, and a profound understanding of food in general and traditional dishes from all over Greece. She provided us with a cookbook worth of options for dishes and several sample menus that she could show us how to prepare. Together we put together a menu comprising mezes, salads, sides, a main, and a dessert. We cooked together for most of an afternoon. Not only did she carefully explain what she did and demonstrate how to do it, but also she provided background on ingredients and nutritional value. It was an amazing culinary experience, devoid of food pretension, preciousness, and fussiness; it was surpassed only by the flavors of the various dishes that we had prepared. A truly peak and very personal experience for us. And as a bonus, Elisa provides copies of the recipes.
Ermopoulis is an authentic city. It is not dominated by the tourist industry and has not been scrubbed and polished so as to give every selfie the perfect background. There is impressive architecture and natural beauty, and there is also graffiti, dilapidated buildings, and cats, lots of cats. There is a shipyard and large ships and ferries coming and going and blowing their horns. There is a hustle and bustle of residents going about their daily lives oblivious to tourists. But for us, this is what made the city and Syros a realistic experience, dramatically different from the crowded, “must see” cruise-ship islands. And if one chooses to visit Syros, one could not stay with more generous and welcoming hosts than Kostas and Elisa at their lovely and special Villa Maria.

  The view from the balcony was beautiful. The bed very comfortable and the room and bathroom very clean. There are many steps to go up to the apartment so that... read more might be something to consider if you have mobility issues. Kosta helped with my luggage and that was very appreciated.Communication with Kosta was amazing, always responsive and gave us great recommendations on places to eat and visit. Ordering breakfast (at an extra cost) was an option we didn’t realize until we arrived and we loved it. Thank you.

  We loved our stay here. Kostas made sure to greet us upon arrival with a map and highlights for us to explore on the island, and made sure we had... read more everything we needed. The room was perfect with beautiful views of the town in nearly every direction. Super central and lovely shared space for breakfast / drinks too. Overall, a very special spot and we hope to be back soon.

  Amazing! Can't say that enough. One of the best airbnb's we've stayed on. The view was out of this world, location perfect. The stairs not an issue. Kostas was one... read more of the best hosts we've had - answered all questions fast, very sweet and attentive. Gave us good tips about the Island. The room it self super cozy. Worth going to Syros just to stay here 🙂

  This is a gem of a place in Ermoupoli and Kostas is a gem of a host. Couldn't recommend this Airbnb enough, it's absolutely the best you can get in... read more Ermoupoli, beautiful inside and the views just breathtaking.

  We loved our stay at Kostas' Airbnb. Kostas was very hospitable and gave us great recommendations for our short stay in Syros. He met us at the town square upon... read more arrival and helped to bring up our luggage, which we appreciated. Our room was very beautiful with lovely views from the private balcony. Highly recommend to others visiting Syros.