Villa Leon – House in Medieval town with spacious courtyard

Hotel Description

Honestly, when I first walked up to Villa Leon on Omirou Street, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect – the entrance is pretty understated for a place that’s actually tucked into Rhodes’ medieval old town. But once you step through that doorway, wow. The courtyard just opens up in front of you, and it’s one of those moments where you realize you’ve found something special. I mean, you’re literally staying inside the medieval walls here, which sounds touristy but actually feels incredible when you’re having your morning coffee surrounded by centuries-old stone.

The thing about this place is that it gets the balance right between old-world charm and not making you feel like you’re roughing it. The rooms are spacious – and I don’t mean hotel-brochure spacious, I mean you can actually spread out your stuff without playing Tetris with your luggage. The courtyard becomes your living room, really. I spent most evenings there with a bottle of local wine, and you know what? The acoustics are perfect for conversation but somehow buffer the street noise. During the day you’ll hear the occasional tour group passing by on Omirou, but once evening hits, it gets surprisingly peaceful.

Location-wise, you’re about a three-minute walk from the Palace of the Grand Masters – close enough that you can pop back for an afternoon nap when the midday heat gets brutal (which it will, especially in July and August). The Street of the Knights is right there too, though honestly, early morning is when you want to see it before the cruise ship crowds arrive. There’s this little bakery around the corner that opens at 6 AM if you’re an early riser, and the owner makes these cheese pies that are basically perfect with Greek coffee. Parking can be tricky since you’re in the old town – they’ll give you directions to a spot outside the walls, maybe a five-minute walk, which is actually pretty good for this area.

The staff genuinely knows their stuff about Rhodes, not just the obvious tourist spots. When I mentioned wanting to find a decent beach that wasn’t completely packed, they pointed me toward Zephyros Beach on the west side – totally different vibe from the main resort beaches, and locals actually go there. Check-in was smooth, though they’re pretty strict about the 3 PM time, which I get since they’re clearly doing proper cleaning between guests.

Look, this isn’t a resort with pools and room service, but that’s kind of the point. You’re staying in a piece of history that’s been thoughtfully converted without losing its character. The 8.2 rating makes sense – it’s really well done, though I’d probably knock off a few points for the WiFi being spotty in some rooms and the shower pressure being, well, European. But if you want to actually experience medieval Rhodes rather than just visit it during the day, Villa Leon delivers. Plus, there’s something pretty cool about telling people you slept inside a 600-year-old fortified city.

Rooms

• Estimated price from: $167. Villa with 2 × 1 large double bed and 1 sofa bed for Max persons: 2

Reviews

• Jeremy from United Kingdom – 12 June 2024 (8/10)

  What could be improved: The villa was very clean and it was given a refreshment clean while we were there. It would have been good to have been told when we arrived when that refreshment clean was to take place. We had to ask a few days in. Also we would have liked info about removal of bathroom waste baskets. However, our texts to the owner always received a satisfactory reply. I would definitely consider staying here again. The situation in the Old Town is really wonderful.

• Joanne from United Kingdom – 31 August 2023 (9/10)

  The location, within the medieval walls is incredible. The house and the patio are spacious and there was plenty of room for our family of 5. One of the bedrooms is separate from the main house and has it's own bathroom. The host is very quick to respond to messages and tried his best to address any problems that we had. We would love to stay again!
  
  What could be improved: Only minor issues: there are only 2 sun loungers on the terrace, we would have liked more. There are also not enough normal cups and glasses to use.

• Mike from Australia – 11 October 2022 (9/10)

  Lovely host that went out of their way to make our stay fabulous and helped to make our stay a great one!
  Would definitely return and stay longer!
  So nice to stay in the Old Town though tucked away from the main road touristy madness
  Great kitchen with everything you need
  Had aircon but the breeze through the shuttered windows provided all we needed
  Backyard is a lovely place to hang and relax and get to know the cat
  
  What could be improved: beds could have been a tad more comfy, springs are unfortunately starting to show their age…a blanket under the bottom sheet assisted…
  Showers didnt have working doors, but the showers themselves were fab

• Steven from United Kingdom – 2 January 2025 (9/10)

  great location, great villa

• Steve from United States – 28 November 2023 (9/10)

  Very spacious. Clean and comfortable. Location in the old walled city was excellent. Loved the neighborhood and convenience to restaurants and activities. Daniel the host met us at the city gate and walke us to the home.He was very accommodating and helpful about information.

• Janet from Netherlands – 3 October 2022 (9/10)

  The property was in the old town, very spacious with a great courtyard.

• Am*dam from Netherlands – 27 September 2024 (5/10)

  Atmospheric house. Beautiful spacious patio/garden. Very private. Great location on the quiet(er) edge of Rhodos Old Town. Very friendly neighbours. Interesting – but easy – way to enter the property. Good communication.
  
  What could be improved: House and garden area need quite a bit of maintenance, e.g. burnt out lightbulbs, overgrown garden, damaged furniture and umbrella, etc. Not very clean. Many, many insects in the house. We kept killing them, they kept coming. I am aware that this is a historical house in a medieval town, but I think they should do better in this regard.
  
  A few other things to note:
  
  – The area is not accessible by taxi, They will drop you off at the city walls and it is a 5 min walk across cobblestones from there
  – The main bedroom is on the front. The alleyway is used by people and motorbikes, even during the night.
  – The house is underneath the flight path to RHO airport. Not terribly annoying, but something to bear in mind.

• Annette from United Kingdom – 8 September 2024 (6/10)

  Location excellent for the town and accessing all the wonderful sites.
  Quiet and peaceful courtyard.
  Pleased that I was met at the entrance, well hidden in the wee street!
  
  What could be improved: Basic facilities and was unable to access Internet. The code given was not recognised.
  Happily nearby cafes/restaurants had Wi-Fi so I was able to keep in touch and arrange to meet with my friend arriving the following evening – ì had the key to the courtyard. Lost without it!

• Christaline from United Kingdom – 5 November 2024 (5/10)

  The location of the property was excellent,it is situated within the old town wall, it is literally next to everything a tourist needed, close to all the restaurants, supermarket, historic sites, information centre. The owner and the cleaner was very helpful and very friendly and informative. Warm and welcoming and very prompt. The property was very big and had plenty space relax and move around. It was an old property and had all the old features and furnitures which is something we wanted. It was clean and kitchen was well equipped.plenty of sunlight and fresh air. I would say if you are a couple or 2 people willing to share the bed, then the upstairs part of the property is a good choice.
  
  What could be improved: The property was well even though it was one bug property, it was somewhat felt like 2 separate properties joined together, there was a room with double bed upstairs with kitchen and bathroom , downstairs was just a double bedroom with bathroom, upstairs compared to the downstairs was good. Bed was ok and everything else was great, but the downstairs bedroom i felt was not nice, the mattress is very old and uncomfortable, the beds was right next to the door so when a scooter or a passerby walk in the night it woke us up. Big problem was bugs and insects, i guess it is an medieval property so the bugs comes from within the ground or wall or whatever but i think something could be done to keep them at bay.

• Amatruda from Italy – 11 October 2022 (8/10)

  Posizione
  
  What could be improved: C è bisogno di un po di manutenzione

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