Nana Princess stands on a peninsula outside Hersonissos, on the north coast of Crete, 25 kilometres from Heraklion airport and 27 from the ferry port. The buildings are low black stone with monumental glass faces, and the plan is amphitheatrical: the house steps down to the water under planted roofs, its buildings linked by sunken walkways that keep the suites private and leave the sea views uninterrupted. High stone walls close the site off from the town, whose centre is 2.5 kilometres away, and the black stone stands in stark contrast to the souvlaki stands and souvenir shops along the strip.
It opened in 2018 and ran its first full season in 2019. Nana Hotels operates it, and the Karatzis Group of Companies, which developed it, still owns it privately. Nana Hotels has been the group’s hospitality arm since 1985, and Nana Princess stands next to the group’s Nana Golden Beach hotel.
The ground
The resort holds 107 suites and villas, set into the slope, in ten categories. The living roofs, the water running through the site and the gardens between the terraces relieve the austerity of the stone. Most of the suites and villas carry their own sauna, steam bath or spa, the same Starpool equipment the main club uses, and some carry a private fitness room with the Cretan Sea in front of it. Nearly all of them have a sunbathing terrace, and most have an outdoor pool of their own.
The Royal Wellness Club
The Royal Wellness Club carries the spa, the fitness club and an indoor pool across 1,400 square metres. It is laid out on the Spa System method by Starpool, the Italian wellness company, and the resort set out its four routes with a team of doctors who specialise in spas: Relax, for relieving stress; Tonic, for muscle tone; Purify, for clearing impurities; Excite, for restoring vigour. Each route also sets how long to spend in each wet area. The spa suite, Anax & Anassa, is a private room of sauna and steam bath with essential oils in four programmes, with a relaxation area and a private pool, given as a one-hour experience. Treatments are also given in the suites and villas, using the water facilities already installed there, and a hairdressing salon, manicure and pedicure sit in the same building.
The tables
Eternal Blue sits by the sea, and its menu follows the day’s catch. The à la carte list there is fish and seafood from the Cretan Sea, with a selected sushi menu beside it. Three themed restaurants serve the house between them, one in the main building, one at the pool and one on the private beach, and the evening menus are built on local produce.
The series the resort calls Nights of Gastronomy brings a visiting chef into its own kitchen for a single evening, cooking alongside the resident team. On 15 July 2024 that evening was cooked by Thomas Bühner with Pavlos Kyriakis of Greece. Those dinners have run since August 2023.
What else the house keeps
There are two helipads and indoor parking, and private limousine and helicopter transfers are arranged for guests who ask for them. The library in the main bar runs to more than 1,000 titles in several languages and holds a cigar humidor. The main building also carries the Good Life arcade of shops and an art gallery whose exhibitions change monthly, with the work for sale. The resort employs 175 people.
Who is this for
The house suits adults and couples who want privacy, and it takes families as well. Two coarse sand beaches lie below the terraces, and a harbour wall encloses one of them, so the water there stays calm when the sea is rough. Children have a club in three age groups and teenagers one of their own, up to 18. The Nana Tennis and Sports Club has 21 courts. Knossos is 30 kilometres away, and the hill villages of Piskopiano and Koutouloufari within five.
