Virginia Hotel

This is an absolutely super hotel, really (really!) well run by the the exceptionally friendly and helpful Fontini and her team. It’s just a bit uphill from the sea front at Samos/Vathi – say a leisurely eight minutes’ walk down to the sea and the main square, and perhaps twelve minutes on the way back up. The building is stylish and well-appointed. A small lift gets you as far as floor three, with the top floor a further staircase up. The place is kept impeccably clean – communal areas and rooms (with daily room servicing). A highlight is the roof pool area accessed from the third floor – with a small but perfectly useable pool (good for a few strokes per length, and, of course, cooling refreshment), sun beds, a shower and an outstanding view over the town and bay. The ground floor houses reception (from which you will always receive a friendly greeting whenever you pass), the breakfast area (breakfasts looked super, but I didn’t indulge), and a bar and terrace. I was welcomed ahead of my formal check-in time and allowed to leave my bags behind reception and use the pool; likewise after check-out on the day of departure. When I visit Samos again (and I sincerely hope I will), The Virginia Hotel will be my first choice.