"Why book? The Greek islands are peppered with glamorous summer resorts, with a couple of treatment rooms or yoga classes added on almost as an afterthought. The Rooster takes wellness way more seriously: The House of Healing, with its bona fide Ayurvedic treatments, reiki, and Qi Gong sessions, is more about feeling than looking good (though the ila facials are superb and the whole place is aesthetically flawless). Factor in beautifully spare villas with private pools, vast terraces, and unbroken sea or valley vistas, and you really can’t fail to feel deeply relaxed and refreshed during your stay. Set the scene More of a retreat than a resort, The Rooster is deliberately understated and discreet: There’s no sign, just a bumpy dirt track that leads to a bamboo hut at the entrance to the 30-acre grounds. You’re not quite in the middle of nowhere, but you’re as close as it gets on tiny, quietly cool Antiparos. Camouflaged in a valley speckled with just a handful of villas and farmsteads, the 16 stone houses overlook the naked dunes and sensational sunsets of Livadia Bay. Each house is secluded by flourishes of bougainvillea, swaying bamboo, and singing rushes, so you can disappear into the landscape if that’s what you came for. When you feel like company, there’s a low-key scene at the open-air bar and modern Mediterranean restaurant, where lithe blondes in colorful kaftans and buff guys with year-round tans sip energy shots by day and spicy margaritas as night falls. The backstory Athanasia Comninos, the effortlessly stylish owner and CEO, is an essential part of the hotel’s ethos. A self-confessed “perfectionist and control freak,” she hand-picked every velvet cushion and leather ottoman in the villas and tapped her girlfriends to design the mustard-colored beach towels, velvet slippers, and slip dresses in the boutique. The black and white photographs on the pressed plaster walls are by her friend, Calliope. Although she studied fine arts and design, Comninos had no background in hospitality. The only daughter of a shipping magnate, she rebelled against expectations and spent much of her 30s in a sort of defiant drift. A trip to Chiva Som, Thailand’s original destination spa, precipitated a change of direction. It was, as Comninos says, a “wake-up call” to find a deeper sense of purpose. But it took seven years for The Rooster to materialize from a vague idea to a fully-serviced lifestyle and wellness retreat. The rooms Eschewing the predictable Greek island white-on-white aesthetic, the look is more global nomad than Cycladic purist. Built of honey-colored local stone, the houses are scattered above and below the central lobby and restaurant. Calm interiors in muted shades of sand and tan do not overpower the landscape, which is the star of the show. Materials are all natural—weathered wooden tables, driftwood four-poster beds, terracotta urns, smooth tadelakt floors—but designed with laser-sharp attention to detail. Soft, adjustable lighting, outdoor rain showers with peepholes framing the scenery, incredibly comfy poolside daybeds, super-crisp sheets, open-plan bathrooms with capacious closets—everything works, but nothing feels forced or superfluous. For me, the cluster of houses closest to the beach, where you can hear the sound of the waves from your sundeck, are the ones to book. Food and drink Like everything else at The Rooster, the food has a distinct sense of place but also a cosmopolitan sensibility. Delicate and light, the day-to-night menu free-ranges across a world of influences, from trend-ticking buckwheat bowls to simple Greek salad with local samphire and broken barley rusks. Vegetarian and vegan dishes are stand-outs (I ordered the cauliflower “steak” with tahini cream and capers at every meal), with many ingredients harvested daily from The Rooster’s fledgling farm nearby. Breakfasts are exceptionally good, especially if you go à la carte. An almond milk smoothie and homemade granola with Greek yogurt and lavender honey taste even more nourishing after an early-morning yoga session in the open-air shala. The spa It might sound pretentious, but the House of Healing with its “daily activations” really does have curative properties. Tucked away in a quiet corner of the grounds, the spa has the same haute-hippie vibe as the houses. A yoga pavilion, a dedicated room for Ayurvedic therapies, and a handful of treatment rooms radiate from an open-air atrium with rattan daybeds and a glittering, green-tiled plunge pool. My ila facial was pure joy—no painful extraction or aggravating scrubs here. My whole body felt softer and stronger after a Pinda Sweda Kizi massage with warm herbal poultices by Abhi, a sweet-natured practitioner from Kerala, the home of Ayurveda. Usually I’m too lazy to get out of a great hotel bed for early morning exercise, but the gentle yoga sessions with Lexi gave me such a high that I didn’t miss a single one. The neighborhood/area A sandy footpath takes you to Livadia Beach, which is blissfully free of sunbeds and beach bars (ask the staff to loan you an umbrella and pack you a picnic). The dinky port town of Antiparos, with a strip of cute shops, cafes, and unpretentious restaurants, is a ten-minute drive. The hotel can arrange transfers to town, but a car is definitely useful if you want to explore the calm, shallow coves and lovely seaside tavernas on the island’s east coast. (Captain Pipinos on Agios Georgios bay gets all the attention, but Peramataki taverna overlooking Soros beach and the family-run Perigiali, set back from quiet Panagia beach, get my vote.) The service Casually dressed in khaki and terracotta linen and Vans sneakers, the young staff are plentiful but not always on point. While the housekeeping and restaurant staff are gracious, discreet, and efficient, the front desk team sometimes felt like they couldn’t really keep up or make a personal connection. For families Although the remote location and wellness theme don’t immediately scream family vacation, this is a surprisingly good place to bring (well-behaved) kids. There’s no central pool, but kids can splash and whoop as much as they like in the privacy of your own (small-ish) one. Several houses have two bedrooms and even the smallest won’t feel cramped if you and your kids get along. Livadia Beach does get pretty windy and wavy, but it’s only a few minutes drive to a whole string of sheltered, shallow coves with mellow beach bars for teens. Anything left to mention? The first time I visited in early June, the hotel was half-full, the island was blissfully empty, and everyone from the driver to the chef was eager to chat. When I went back in late August, Antiparos was packed, the staff were worn out, and spa treatments and restaurant reservations had to be booked in advance. To really soak up the serene ambience, my advice is to visit in June or September. Finally, in 100 words or less, what makes this hotel worthy of Hot List? There’s nothing quite like The Rooster on any other Greek island: thoughtfully designed and respectful of its natural surroundings, with a holistic attitude to wellness, slow living, and farm-to-table food that feels genuinely considered. Understated and wild at heart, it’s a place where you can feel good about being good to yourself." - Rachel Howard
