‘Our villa in Gaios afforded wonderful views of passing yachts and the mainland’

Last week’s cover story about Crete inspired vivid accounts of your own holidays there, and on other favourite Greek islands

SUNDAY ROAST

At Easter time in Crete, there is an air of anticipation. Hotels and tavernas are spruced up ready for the tourist season, and pools are filled, sometimes flooding the road. On Easter Saturday, everyone goes to church – young and old, all dressed in their best and waiting for midnight. On the stroke of 12, candles are lit, bells are rung and there are shouts of “Christ is risen”. Then, home they go for a huge meal.

Next day, the air is filled with the aroma of roasting lamb and herbs. We went to a family-run taverna, where mama cooked and the sons and daughters served us a delicious roast. We fell in love with Crete that Easter, and have returned many times since. Val Hardisty, North Yorkshire

FIAT OF ENDURANCE

We flew into Heraklion, Crete, and picked up our hire car – an ancient Fiat with a tie-back open roof. We drove to Panormos and had a quick swim before arriving in Rethymno, where we stayed near the Venetian fortress.

Heading south, we arrived in Chora Sfakion and took the cliff path to the village of Loutro. Our room, painted with a mural, was on the water’s edge. After three days, we drove to Omalos and descended the Samaria Gorge, amazed by the goats clinging to the cliffs. Our final swim was in Elafonisi, with its unspoilt white beaches. In Chania, we dined at the water’s edge and celebrated the fact that our little Fiat had survived the journey.

Fiona Brown, Devon

LIVING HISTORY

Our 16th-century Venetian water tower overlooks the harbour of Rethymno, Crete. We park in the village square, rattle our cases up a cobbled alley and find the door to our home-from-home. The entrance hall is also the kitchen, with stairs to the sitting room, where a suit of armour conceals a drinks cabinet beneath its breastplate. Two flights up, a roof terrace affords 360-degree views of the Lefka Ori mountains and the sea.

Back in the square, below the white façade of a baroque church, a taverna opens each evening, serving grilled souvlaki, local sausages, horiatiki (Greek salad) and fried potatoes. We celebrate with excellent Cretan wine. Sara Varey, Cambridgeshire

CRETE EXPECTATIONS

Imagine stepping off the plane to that long-awaited waft of warm evening air. Baggage collected, you travel by taxi to the little village of Agia Pelagia, about 20 minutes from Heraklion. At the Amazona Apartments, the owners, Maria and Felix, welcome you, promising saganaki (fried cheese) and briam (roasted vegetables) for your evening meal. At Eleni’s cocktail bar, you relax over a freshly prepared bellini.

The sun greets you the next morning and you head to the beach, lined with familiar cafés; or revisit majestic Knossos, ancient history spread before you; or travel along the coast and take a boat trip to Spinalonga, a former leper colony with an eerie sadness about it. That is Crete in all its diversity. Doreen Chappell, Leicestershire

POROS FOR THOUGHT

Poros is an island gem, close enough to Athens by ferry to make a day trip to the National Archaeological Museum and the Acropolis feasible. From the Xenia Poros hotel, the views are unchanged since our first visit 50 years ago. The delightful harbourside, now much busier, has cafés offering delicious snacks – but no longer, I suspect, an ancient barman throwing tennis balls at stray cats.

A gentle climb to the ruined Temple of Poseidon is a delightful voyage back in time, with beautiful views, scented herbs and croaking tree frogs in the shadier parts. The island has fine, sandy beaches, too. Our friends brought an inflatable dinghy with them, in which they paddled 300yd to the mainland at Galatas. A fish-hook punctured their craft and they clung to the anchor chain of a navy training ship until they were rescued by sea cadets. Humphry Evatt, Kent

BETTER LATE THAN NEVER

Although in our 70s, we had never been to a Greek island until we booked a lastminute, end-of-season break in Corfu. The weather was warm and sunny, the Ionian Sea crystal-clear. The resort we stayed in was strangely quiet; things were winding down for the winter, and that is just how we like it. The beach was directly opposite the hotel and again almost deserted.

We treated ourselves to a double sunbed with gauzy white curtains waving in the warm breeze; it felt like we were in some glossy holiday advert. After a swim one morning, we watched with interest as a white motorboat set off across the bay carrying four smartly dressed Corfiots clutching armfuls of roses. Apparently, an enterprising local had set up a business for the scattering of ashes into the Ionian Sea. We felt privileged to have witnessed the scene. Frances Lake, Kent