RAISING my head from the pillows of our huge bed I thought I must have died and entered paradise.

Through the floor-to-ceiling windows of my room, I could see swifts skimming the waters of our private pool, beyond which lay the sparkling Aegean framed by a cloudless blue sky.

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I was with my partner and we were spending our first morning in an Elite Suite at the Amathus Beach Hotel on the Greek island of Rhodes, 225 miles from the mainland but just a short hop on a speedboat from Asia Minor.

We had arrived by easyJet the previous night after a four-hour journey from Gatwick. The concourse outside Diagoras Airport teemed with taxi drivers and we were soon driven the few miles north to the magnificent 11-storey hotel.

The 37 Elite Suites, most with private pools, have their own   la carte restaurant and reception where, despite the midnight hour, we were greeted with champagne by the first of several staff who made us so welcome. There was another bottle waiting in our room.

Next morning, after a dip in our pool, we hired a car to explore the spearhead-shaped island which is 50 miles long and 25 at its widest point. A five-minute drive north is Rhodes Town, home to half of the island's 120,000 population. The Old Town here is a World Heritage Site and the oldest inhabited medieval town in Europe.

We entered through Liberty Gate and explored the 3BC Temple of Venus before ambling down the 700 yards of cobbles that comprise The Street of Knights. It is named after the Knights Templar who in the 16th-century fortified Rhodes against the Ottoman Empire and made it the world's strongest Christian bastion. Walking the ramparts was a treat for a history buff like me.

I was also impressed with the seemingly ancient grandeur of the Palace of the Grand Master of the Knights of Rhodes, until I spotted a plaque commemorating Benito Mussolini near the entrance (I later learned that the Italians had rebuilt it for their leader after occupying Rhodes early last century). We loved the sparkling waters at the Old Town's Mandraki harbour, visualising where the 100ft-high bronze Colossus of Rhodes once stood as one of the Seven Wonders of the World. The statue of the sun god Helios was toppled by an earthquake in 226BC.

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Another earthquake in 1481 destroyed Rhodes Town but the earth won't move much these days; the most recent tremor three years ago caused little damage.
Thanks to the euro crisis we found the Old Town desperate for tourists with cash to splash.

My partner thought haggling had never been easier and won discount after discount. A problem though was lack of choice. Most shops seemed to be selling plates, handbags or jewellery. Curiously, one street was full of umbrella shops despite the island boasting 300 days of sunshine a year.

The interior of the island is hilly, sparsely inhabited and covered with pine and cypress forests, so the main roads radiate from Rhodes Town down the west and east coasts.

One glorious morning we headed to Lindos, where we marvelled at its acropolis and castle. Cars are banned in the town's white-washed maze of alleys so its shops and restaurants must be explored on foot.

If you're peckish I recommend Mavrikos in the main square. The calamari with beetroot and saffron sauce lives in the memory.

On the western side of the island, near the village of Theologos, lies the Valley of the Butterflies, which is overwhelmed with tiger moths in August. We were a little early in the year for that but loved the scenery scented by hibiscus and geraniums.

We didn't find time for a boat trip to the island of Symi, famous for its sponge-diving, but we could see it from the Amathus. The hotel is so comfortable that leaving it is an ordeal. There are three restaurants, four pools, and a gym and tennis courts if you're feeling active.

In the spa and wellness centre we tried out the Turkish baths and saunas before I submitted to a Swedish massage. My partner played safer with a manicure. She could have tried a mudwrap, shiatsu or reflexology but, frankly, it would have been impossible to feel more relaxed at this most perfect of five-star hotels.

THE KNOWLEDGE

Sovereign Luxury Travel (0844 415 1936/www.soveriegn.com) offers seven nights at the Amathus Beach Hotel from £999pp (two sharing an Elite Suite), half board. Price includes return from Gatwick and transfers. October 2011 departures. Greek National Tourism: 0207 495 9300/www.visitgreece.gr