Kallithea Villas

Platanias sits at the very bottom of the Pelion peninsula, the mountainous finger of land reaching into the Aegean south of Volos, in mainland Greece rather than the islands. The road down passes through old mountain villages like Argalasti and Lafkos before ending at the pier, where a sheltered bay opens up with tavernas, cafés and a beach running either side. It's a working village that has stayed out of the way of mass tourism, and the pace is set by the sun and the sea. After a few days the rhythm takes over: mornings on the beach, lunch in the shade, evenings at the breakwater with the locals.

The houses were built by their owners, a German couple who are architects, after years of travelling the Mediterranean looking for somewhere that still felt like the Greece they remembered from childhood. They found Platanias by accident and built seven houses above it, in the traditional Pelion style, as a second home for themselves and their friends. The care shows in the detail: high-ceilinged living rooms with natural-stone fireplaces and underfloor heating, extra-long box-spring beds, fully equipped kitchens, and furniture and fittings chosen with an architect's eye. Every house has several terraces with dining tables and loungers, and there are five pools across the site, four attached to individual houses and one shared between three. The houses are insulated and heated for winter as well as summer, so they work year-round.