Cherise and Shine, Author at Cherise and Shine

Half Day in EPCOT

July 27, 2017April 5, 2023 Cherise and Shine

EPCOT

We adventured to EPCOT the second morning of our insane 2-days at Disney World. For an overview of our trip and tips (as well as links for the other parks), click here. For details on EPCOT, keep reading!

After a very restful night’s sleep following our crazy 20-hour day, we woke up and headed over to EPCOT: the Experimental Prototype Community of Tomorrow. I remember watching Disney video tapes (yes, I’ve just dated myself—90s kid!) when I was little and seeing promos for EPCOT in all the Disney World ads. I would stare at that giant golf ball-esque sphere and think, “WHOA! I’m going to go there someday.” 20 years later, that came true! Honestly, I was still giddy when we first stepped into EPCOT, and so ready to take on the day.

We had woken up at 7:30am-ish and hopped on a bus around 8:15am to get to EPCOT by 8:30am to start our day. We hung around Future World until 11:00am, which gave us enough time to ride Spaceship Earth (Orlando-specific, Fast Pass), The Seas with Nemo & Friends (Orlando-specific) and grab a Starbucks coffee (of course).

Around 11am, we made our way over to World Showcase, where we spent the majority of our time (and also where most of my Disney Instagram pictures came from). It goes without saying that World Showcase was my favorite part of the park, and honestly probably of Disney World as a whole. I adored the building facades and country-inspired international foods. It’s difficult to choose a favorite pavilion, but we really enjoyed Japan (some bias there), Morocco, France and Canada. We circled the whole World Showcase display twice before lunch.

MEXICO: This pavilion is quite pretty from the outside, and nicely air conditioned on the inside. We didn’t spend a whole lot of time here, but really enjoyed walking around it.

NORWAY: This one was really more of an Arendelle pavilion, to be honest. Almost everything around it was Frozen-themed, and while it was pretty, we didn’t get as much out of it.

CHINA: The Chinese-themed pavilion was fun to walk through, and we really loved the 360 “Reflections of China” film. I’ll confess I’m a little biased since I used to live in Shanghai, but it’s definitely worth a walk-through. Also, fun fact: this pavilion served as the music video location for Christina Aguilera when she sang “Reflections” for MULAN!

GERMANY: This one looked like a cute German town, and has a model village with toy trains to the side of it that my husband really enjoyed. We didn’t spent a whole lot of time here since much of it is a Biergarten and there’s not a whole lot of German food I can eat with my gluten allergy.

ITALY: We didn’t spend much time here, either, but we loved the architecture. This pavilion has recreations of Saint Mark’s Campanile and Doge’s Palace, which give it such a classic feel.

USA: To be honest…we completely skipped this one both walkarounds. I don’t even have a photo to share. From the outside, it sort of looked like a rehash of Liberty Square at MK.

JAPAN: The gorgeous pagoda (again, bias from living in Tokyo), replica of the Imperial Palace and Itsukushima Shrine make the Japan pavilion a standout. This is one of the original pavilions, and has a cute little shop inside that we struggled to resist purchasing anything at.

MOROCCO: Did you know that the Moroccan government actually aided in the design of this one? It shows!!! The architecture at this one was our favorite of all the pavilions, and really added fuel to our desire to visit Morocco someday. There’s not a whole lot to do here, but definitely stop by to take in how pretty it is.

FRANCE: Meant to look like a Parisian town, the French pavilion can definitely make you feel like you’re in a scene from Ratatouille. We grabbed ice cream here at L’artisan des Glace, and really loved it. This area carries so much charm, and I only wish we had enough time to watch “Impressions de France.”

UK: Honestly, we weren’t too impressed with this pavilion. It was fun to walk around and see the Twining’s tea shop, but it wasn’t as rich in culture as I felt it could have been.

CANADA: Truth be told, we really liked this pavilion. We had fun watching the 360 “O Canada!” film with Martin Short, and found the waterfalls to be quite pretty. But most of all, OUR LUNCH AT LE CELLIER was soooo good. We managed to score a reservation there on Canada Day, so the place was packed. Le Cellier has great lunch deals and also has substantial allergy-conscious selections. We were able to have a refreshing poached pear salad, delicious steaks (me a ribeye and him a filet mignon), the BEST truffle-wine poutine ever and a maple crème brulee. Easily one of our top two favorite meals!

After our (long and worthwhile) lunch at Le Cellier, we finally made our way over to Hollywood Studios. We opted to take a ferry boat from one park to the other, and while walking may have been a faster option, it was quite fun and ended up being a nice place for us to nap a bit to recover from our food coma. Plus, it was raining a bit, so it was great to be covered. We finally arrived at Hollywood Studios close to 4pm, and just had a few hours to spend there before our dinner reservation!

For Hollywood Studios, click here.

Lifestyle

Half Day in Disney’s Animal Kingdom

July 27, 2017April 5, 2023 Cherise and Shine

DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM

As promised, here’s a posting on our experiences at Animal Kingdom in Orlando! If you’d like to see a general overview of our 2-day Disney World hopping experience as well as a list of the other theme parks, click here.

This Florida-unique park was a highlight for both of us, and was my husband’s favorite of the four parks. When we went in, we were quite taken by the impressive Tree of Life (home to 300 different animals carved into it!).

We got more coffee at Starbucks (every single theme park had a Starbucks, which was a sight for sleepy eyes) and ventured over to Africa. Seeing that the line for Kilimanjaro Safaris was only 10 minutes on Standby, we sprinted over and hopped on a tram. I highly recommend this ride as you get to see a variety of animals in their Harambe Wildlife Reserve—we saw antelope, cheetahs, elephants, hippos, rhinos, ostriches, zebras, giraffes, flamingos, gazelle and more!

After the safari, thunder began rumbling throughout the park, and we dashed over to “Festival of the Lion King” just in the nick of time to escape the rain. This show is a fun one for both adults and kids alike, and is filled with singing, dancing, fire and colors. This is also a great way to escape the heat and rest your feet!

After the 30-minute show, we left the indoor area to discover that the park was flooding—literally. Crowds of people shrieked and flocked out of Animal Kingdom as quickly as they could. We realized our puny sweaters couldn’t hold off the rain, and we purchased two ponchos at a stand. Umbrellas were sold out throughout the park.

Laughing through the rain and sloshing through ankle-deep water, we decided to make the most of the experience and continued exploring the park. We made our way through to Asia, found some beautiful birds and stared at tigers and Komodo dragons.

After this, we wandered through Dinoland U.S.A., Discovery Island and then (of course) Pandora – The World of Avatar. If you can, definitely see this area in both daytime and nighttime. During the daylight hours, Pandora looks like a beautiful rainforest escape. During the night, it glows purple and blue like the alien planet it’s meant to be. As the newest part of the park, it is no doubt the most breathtaking and unique.

We had a Fast Pass for Expedition Everest, but the ride got rained out, so we walked around Animal Kingdom until the storm let up enough for us to go back. If your Fast Pass is unusable during your ticketed time due to weather or mechanical issues, they will let you either go back when the ride is working again or use the Fast Pass on a comparable attraction. Once we made it we had so much fun on Expedition Everest, and I definitely think this one is worth a Fast Pass—especially as an Orlando-only ride.

After exploring, we took a free shuttle from the park to the Animal Kingdom Lodge for our 8pm dinner reservation at Jiko – The Cooking Place. This unique and delicious restaurant is entirely inspired by South African cuisine, and boasts the largest selection of South African wine outside of the country itself. Our server was from South Africa and had amazing recommendations and a pleasant demeanor. She was also very knowledgeable about the foods I could have with my gluten allergy, and even checked to make sure the whiskey in my South African Old Fashioned was corn-based without me even having to ask her! Such great service.

Undoubtedly, this was the most unique meal we had our entire time at Disney World. We started off with a charcuterie plate consisting of Smoked Rabbit Salumi, Smoked Chicken Rillettes, Duck Prosciutto, Elk Sausage and Accoutrements.

My husband got the Mrouzia-style Moroccan Lamb Tagine, and I opted for the 18-hour braised Botswana-style Seswaa Beef Short Rib. My dish was the favorite for us both.

For dessert, we selected the Kilimanjaro—a delicious but not-too-sweet compilation of Tanzanian Chocolate Mousse, Pistachio Financier, Pink Peppercorn Meringue, Cacao Nib Crunch and Ras el Hanout Pineapples. The wine here was also exceptional. The hubby got a red wine flight, and the flavors of each were so full and delicious in their own special ways.

After dinner, we headed back over to Animal Kingdom to take advantage of our Extra Magic Hours in Pandora.

Nighttime in Pandora was stunning. We headed over to the Na’vi River Journey, which had a fairly short line (15 minutes) and was a pleasant, relaxing experience. Then, we went for the main attraction: Avatar Flight of Passage. If there is any remote possibility you can get a Fast Pass for this one, DO IT. Even with our special Magic Hours which only permitted hotel guests to stay in the park late, we waited in a 2-hour long line. To be sure, though, it was worth it. Without spoiling too much, it’s a truly remarkable ride that makes you feel like you’re soaring through the sky.

By the time we finished everything and made our way back to our hotel room at Disney’s Coronado Springs, it was 2:30am. 17 hours of park-hopping and 20 hours later, we were exhausted and ready to crash for a busy next day for the next two parks: EPCOT and Hollywood Studios.

Lifestyle

Half Day in Disney’s Magic Kingdom

July 27, 2017June 13, 2023 Cherise and Shine

MAGIC KINGDOM

Ahhh, the classic and quintessentially “Disney” park. This was the first place for us to hit. My husband and I took a redeye flight after work from LAX and arrived in Orlando the next morning around 5:45am. We took the Disney shuttle to our hotel (about 20-30 minutes), dropped off our bags, freshened up in the hotel lobby restroom, hopped on a bus to Magic Kingdom and were ready to go at 8:30am!

Main Street opens before the rest of the park, so we eagerly made a beeline for Starbucks to get some much-needed coffee. After this we took some quick photos by the castle, then explored Liberty Square.

Liberty Square is an area that is unique to Magic Kingdom, which is why we made the colonial town a priority. We wandered through the air-conditioned gift shops to escape the heat and looked at the Liberty Bell. Eventually we made our way over to Splash Mountain, which was refreshing and much-appreciated on this hot day. We looped through Frontierland to get to Fantasyland and watched Mickey’s PhilharMagic to escape the heat. The exact same show exists in Tokyo and Hong Kong, but it was nice to rest our feet.

From there, we went to Tomorrowland and used our Fast Passes to hop on Space Mountain.

After this, we lined up for our 12pm lunch reservation at Be Our Guest. This Beauty and the Beast-inspired restaurant is nothing short of magical and perfectly decorated. We loved our experience here, and I was thrilled to find they had gluten-free options for me. We ended up getting a French Onion Soup (GF without bread), croque monsier (on GF bread), French dip sandwich (not GF for the hubby), “grey stuff” (not GF) and a lemon-filled cream puff (GF). We were extremely satisfied with our meal!

We then hit up Big Thunder Railroad, walked through Adventureland and then said goodbye to Magic Kingdom as we headed off for Animal Kingdom. Click here for a summary of our half day in Animal Kingdom!

Lifestyle

Disney World in 2 Days on 4th of July Weekend

July 20, 2017April 5, 2023 Cherise and Shine

I’ve heard exactly two things about Disney World in July: that it’s miserably hot and miserably crowded.

Well, I’ve also heard that it’s incredibly spread out and impossible to do all the parks in two days.

Given all these things, why on earth would my husband and I choose 4^th of July weekend (the busiest time of the year) to go to Disney World for the first time? Well, like many people, Independence Day weekend was when we had some time off from work and didn’t have to request extra days to travel. Flights from LA to Orlando were fairly affordable. And let me tell you—with the right amounts of research, fast passes and meal reservations, even crowded Disney World in Florida heat is nothing short of magical.

HOW TO STRATEGIZE

PRIORITIZE: Let me start off by telling you that you certainly won’t be able to go on every ride or see every show at Disney World if you’re there just two days. The key to enjoying two days is prioritizing what you want to do most. I’m a bit of a Disney nut. I had already been to every other Disney theme park in the world at this point! Crazy, I know. But it also made me aware of the attractions that were unique to only Florida. For example, Seven Dwarves Mine Cart is one of the most popular rides in Magic Kingdom, but we opted to skip this as we had already gone on it at Shanghai Disneyland.

FAST PASSES: Fast Passes are unique in Orlando as you can make selections 30 days prior to arrival with ticket purchase (or 60 days prior to arrival with a Disney resort hotel booked). You can reserve up to 3 Fast Passes per park per day, but popularity tiers also come into play. I highly recommend doing research ahead of your trip to find out what 3-ish rides are most important to you in each park, and planning around those. Touring Plans was an enormously helpful resource for me. It helps you see average wait times, rankings, summaries and tiers of all the rides for each park. We decided to prioritize things like Space Mountain (different from Hyperspace Mountain in Anaheim and in Paris) in Magic Kingdom, Expedition Everest (Orlando-specific) in Animal Kingdom, Spaceship Earth (Orlando-specific) in EPCOT and Tower of Terror (different from Tokyo Disney Sea and Paris Walt Disney Studio Parks) in Hollywood Studios.

RESTAURANTS: If you’re going during the hot summer months of 90F (32C) weather and 40% humidity, it’s wise to plan sit-down meals in the middle of the day for rest, AC and hydration. You can reserve these as early as 180 days prior to your arrival, but if you’re like us and don’t know you’re going until a couple weeks before, you can still usually snag popular restaurants by leaving your computer monitor open and refreshing until an available reservation shows up (fair warning: this may take 2-3 days). This is how I managed to get us spots at Be Our Guest (Magic Kingdom) and Le Cellier (EPCOT) for our two lunches. There are different blogs you can reference that rank the restaurants throughout the Disney World resort (Disney Tourist Blog and Travel and Leisure have some suggestions), but you can also always rely on Yelp and TripAdvisor for reviews. We were incredibly pleased with all our meal options, which included Be Our Guest, Jiko: The Cooking Place, Le Cellier and California Grill. More on these below!

ACCOMMODATIONS: We did lots of research and considered Airbnb, but ultimately stayed at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort, which was cheaper than usual due to ongoing renovations at the hotel. If you can, I would HIGHLY recommend staying at a Disney Resort hotel. We loved the pool here, fashioned after the Lost City of Cibola. We enjoyed grabbing a margarita flight at the hotel lounge. Beyond the amenities, staying at a Disney hotel makes your trip more convenient. They will mail your magic bands (functionally your tickets/room key/Fast Pass/restaurant reservation-tracker) straight to your home address. And if you’re planning far enough in advance, you can lock in fast passes up to 60 days in advance instead of the normal 30.

You’ll also be able to take advantage of the free airport shuttle and the free buses to/from the theme parks and Disney Springs (the Downtown Disney shopping area). Not only that, but you’ll get “Extra Magic Hour” in the theme parks—for us, this meant two hours after closing (11pm-1am) in Animal Kingdom to explore Pandora: The World of Avatar. Check online to see what the Magic Hours are for which parks before booking. There are other little conveniences (e.g. checked luggage delivered straight to your room, return flight tickets printed and delivered to your room complete with check-in for your domestic flight, etc.) that made staying at a Disney resort completely worthwhile for us.

WEATHER/CLOTHING: Like I mentioned previously, Florida during the summer is very warm and humid, so pack accordingly! Another thing to note is that it rains almost every day for a short period of time. It might be common sense for many of you, but when I was checking weather before our trip, I naively thought “thunderstorms” in the forecast just meant storms with no rain. We ended up purchasing ponchos in the park—which was expensive, but worthwhile. I would recommend bringing shorts, tanks, sunscreen, sunglasses, comfortable walking shoes and a rain jacket/umbrella/poncho. Also, I brought multiple changes of clothes per day.

Now, without further ado, our crazy two days!!! Links below for each of the four parks:

DISNEY’S MAGIC KINGDOM

DISNEY’S ANIMAL KINGDOM

EPCOT

DISNEY’S HOLLYWOOD STUDIOS

CONCLUSION

And there you have it! All four Disney World parks in two days. It’s definitely possible to do it and have fun without getting heatstroke or feeling miserable. While we didn’t get to hit up everything, we felt rather satisfied with the amazing things we did get to do, and have no regrets.

And pardon the cheesiness, but I must share—when I asked my husband if he had any Disney World words of advice for this post, he sweetly said, “The most important thing to do is make sure you go with someone you love, because no matter where you are whether at a show or in a line, you will be having the time of your life.”

Lifestyle, Santorini

Hotel Review: Canaves Oia Suites

June 28, 2017April 5, 2023 Cherise and Shine

Oia. The quintessential image of Santorini. The perfect little blue-domed churches stacked atop white buildings. The Byzantine Ruins. Amoudi Bay. When you look at postcards or stock photos of Santorini, my guess is that you’re looking right at this picturesque little town.

As I mentioned in my Sophia Suites review here, we couldn’t choose just one part of the island to stay at, so we split our time between our two favorite towns. We had already spent two dreamy nights in Imerovigli, so the bar was set high when we made our way over to Canaves. I’m happy to share that it did not disappoint!

While Sophia Suites is a tiny, new property barely 2-years-old and consisting of 6-ish rooms, Canaves Oia is a well-established group of 4 different complexes: Canaves Oia Hotel, Canaves Oia Suites, Canaves Oia Villa and Canaves Oia Sunday Suites. You can find an interactive map of the property here. Make sure you do your research and double confirm if you have a specific room in mind. We opted to go for a Junior Suite with a Plunge Pool for our honeymoon.

FIRST IMPRESSION / SERVICE

When we arrived, someone came to greet us and grab our bags for us. There are some stairs here, as it is Santorini, but the first thing we noticed about Canaves was how accessible and easy it was to walk around. The check-in is right by a couple of gorgeous churches and across the street from Passagio Cafe, where you can find the famed bougainvillea/bicycle entrance.

As we were checking in, the receptionist kindly walked us through the amenities and presented us with a voucher for a free gift from a nearby jewelry shop. When we walked over, we were given a small bracelet with the hotel logo on it. (Be aware – the jewelry store will naturally try to sell you other items there.) The front desk was also more than willing to assist us with dining reservations and transportation to catch our ferry to Naxos the next day.

Canaves is a gorgeous property, and I highly recommend walking around and exploring it. It’s very much a luxury hotel in the sense of all they have to offer – there are couches overlooking beautiful Caldera views, rejuvenating spas, a breathtaking infinity pool with lounge chairs in it (fair warning: you will see lots of photos!), a patio bar area with another pool for suntanning/breakfast and even a gym (you know, if climbing around Santorini isn’t exercise enough for you).

We splurged on a room with a private plunge pool (hip-deep for me), which added an extra special touch to our honeymoon. That said, you can absolutely get away with staying in the most affordable room here with no plunge pool, and not feel like your missing out at all – the communal pools are to die for, and you will LOVE the infinity pool!!!

THE ROOM

When we stepped into our magical cave-themed suite, we were informed that we were the very first couple to ever stay in that particular room! What an honor it was to christen the gorgeous place. The room was well stocked with necessities, and the water pressure of the shower was excellent. It was easy to see the room was brand new.

Location

This hotel property is conveniently located right where the town of Oia really starts happening. It’s near a variety of beautiful churches, cafes and flat(ish) walking areas. It is also next to a main road, and we merely had to cross the street when we were picked up for a wine tour we booked. A huge plus!

Room Amenities

VIEWS!! You probably tire of hearing (err, reading?) me say that. But oh my goodness, the views! Our room had a plunge pool that you could walk into from stairs inside of the room – talk about AMAZING. The pool even had little jets going, and was warm enough that we felt content sitting in it on cool, May evenings. Relaxation at its finest.

While people can indeed walk right by your room, only hotel guests can roam the area, and little barriers between rooms made our space feel very private and romantic.

THE FOOD

Breakfast

We were given the option to either get room service delivered to our room or walk over to the main pool area for breakfast (both included with the room rate). Every morning we walked to the pool area, because it was GORGEOUS. So much to see!!!!

For breakfasts, the staff immediately came out to greet us and asked what we would like to drink. Both mornings we were given a basket of pastries, a variety of fresh juices (orange and a vegetable-pear mixture) and coffee (cappuccino freddos for the win!!). We would select our mains from a menu, then head inside to explore the buffet for extras (e.g. Greek yogurt, fruit, smoked salmon, etc.).

Our favorite breakfast items were a Greek sausage/pepper hash and a tomato-egg scramble!

Drinks

We decided to relax for an hour or so one afternoon, and got some drinks by the pool. They were refreshing and delightful, but a little bit on the costly side.

MEANINGFUL EXTRAS

Upon arrival, we were presented with a nice bottle of white wine with the Canaves logo on it. There was a cute tote bag in the closet that we were told we could take as a gift, and every evening we found chocolates on our pillows in adorable little boxes.

Our first evening, we returned back to the hotel to find a firework display happening right outside our window! What a magical touch to a truly remarkable place. The hotel was even kind enough to leave a note on our bed informing us of the fireworks.

Oh, and this was actually probably the biggest highlight for me: when our room door was left open, we got cuddly, furry visitors!!!! Santorini cats!!!!!

In summary, if you are going to Santorini and want to stay in the quintessential town of Oia, this hotel is the place for you!

Lifestyle, Santorini

Hotel Review: Sophia Luxury Suites

June 26, 2017April 5, 2023 Cherise and Shine

Santorini was easily the dreamiest location we visited on our honeymoon, and our hotel in Imerovigli was even dreamier still.

We did tons of research before going, trying to figure out where to stay on the island. Santorini Dave and Stay Classy Ana both helped us tremendously with our decision-making, and we narrowed it down to two different cities on the island: Imerovigli and Oia. Not being able to choose just one, we conceded to spending two nights in two different hotels. This review is for Sophia Luxury Suites in Imerovigli, but I will be posting a review for Canaves Luxury Suites in Oia soon!

Imerovigli: The Balcony to the Aegean. Home of the most romantic views, highest point on the island, most delicious foods and Skaros Rock – the former capital of the island and home to the ruins of an ancient Venetian castle. We loved our stays in both the hotels we chose, but Imerovigli was hands down our favorite area on the island.

(NOTE: Imerovigli is much steeper than Oia, and more difficult to walk around. We highly recommend it for young couples, but would suggest Oia for families or the elderly as it’s a bit easier to walk around. Keep in mind though that a good portion of Santorini consists of giant cliffs, which means there’s steep walking no matter where you are. Would NOT recommend bringing heels!)

FIRST IMPRESSION / SERVICE

We were picked up from Thira Airport by a kind driver holding a sleek wooden sign with our hotel name on it. In the car, he pointed out various points of interest along the way, and it was a fun pre-exploration of the island. Upon arriving at the hotel, a smiling man came to grab our luggage.

“Welcome to Santorini,” he said. “I think you will be very pleased with the view.”

We got to the edge, and found ourselves staring down a gorgeous Caldera view that looked like a postcard. Hundreds of tiny little white rooftops decorated the landscape and led out to Skaros Rock. The picturesque town of Oia glittered in the distance.

We had but a moment to take in the sights before we descended the steep steps to a charming check-in cave, where the lovely Olga greeted us and gave us a run-down of the island. With all the research we did, we had already booked many of the things she suggested, but her recommendations are all-encompassing for anyone who hasn’t had time to look into activities! The team at the front desk was also more than happy to make any restaurant/activity reservations for us, which was a fun perk.

We arrived early in the morning and our room wasn’t quite ready yet, but the staff kindly opened an empty room for us to freshen up in and provided us with croissants and coffee. After a 20 minutes of relaxation, we set out for the famous Fira-Oia hike (9 kilometers), and were not back until later in the afternoon to see our room.

THE ROOM

DISCLAIMER: We forgot about taking pictures inside the room until, well, it was time to check out. So, I promise that everything was much neater when we first arrived!

Location
After much research (aka looking at photos), we selected the Efhari Exclusive Suite, which is the highest room on the Caldera. We were fortunate enough to see the inside of a Charisma Suite when we arrived early, and found that the extra cost of the Efhari Suite was completely worthwhile for us. Its ideal location made it feel like it was the most private of the suites. It’s also the most convenient location for walking into Fira (or braving the 2.5-hour walk to Oia), since it’s so close to the main road.

Amenities
First off, VIEWS, VIEWS, VIEWS! Can we talk about views!! Our private terrace consisted of a cute two-seat table high on a ledge with a prime line of sight for Skaros Rock, an adorable lounge area to lay out on, a larger wooden table perfect for breakfast and a gorgeous, hip-deep (at least for me) plunge pool.

It’s safe to say we spent most of the time in our room on the balcony!!

Beyond the perfect outdoor area, the inside was also completely charming. Unlike most cave-themed rooms in Santorini, this one had a different rustic, wooden charm to it. Our bed faced adorable wooden shutters that, when opened, revealed a breathtaking view of the Aegean Sea. The rain shower was lovely, the King bed was incredibly comfortable.

Oh, also, we had a separate downstairs chess room. That’s right. A CHESS ROOM!

THE FOOD

Breakfast

Don’t get me started on the breakfast here at Sophia Suites (included with the room rates). The room service here was easily the BEST breakfast we had our entire honeymoon! Every evening, we were presented with a menu card and pencil to check off two food items in every category on their list. Every item was delicious, but the highlights for us were the Greek Yogurt with Walnuts and Honey, the Almond-Banana Toast and a Tomato/Feta dish. OH – and the cappuccino freddos here were literally THE BEST.

MEANINGFUL EXTRAS

Sophia Suites went above and beyond to make the ambiance of our honeymoon nothing short of magical. We were not in our room 10 minutes before they brought up welcome drinks and fresh fruit.

Every evening while we were out at dinner, we would come back to romantically lit candles all around the floor. Both nights they brought up specialty desserts from the kitchen – the first night was little chocolate brownies, and the second night was tiny lemon cakes.

Upon departure, we were presented with a goodbye gift: a package consisting of Greek olive oil, volcanic black soap, Sophia-themed earrings and a bracelet.

In summary, would we stay at Sophia Luxury Suites again if we were in Santorini? Absolutely, 100%!!!!! If you’re ever in Santorini and looking for a luxury hotel to stay at that’s a little bit newer (only 2-years-old) and more affordable than Grace Santorini, we HIGHLY recommend you try out Sophia Suites.

Lifestyle

From Simi to Symi

June 22, 2017April 5, 2023 Cherise and Shine

My hometown’s name is “Simi Valley,” so naturally, there was already an incentive to check out “Symi, Greece,” simply for the wordplay. Beyond that though, Symi boasted a beautiful and active monastery, crystal clear waters and a tiny, colorful town reminiscent of the Amalfi Coast and very much resembling a scenic puzzle you might do at your grandparents’ house. Just a 90-minute ferry away from Rhodes Town, it was inevitable that we’d go check it out.

Continue reading “From Simi to Symi” →