- 04 Feb 2017 05:30
#14771753
Hey guys & gals, I have been meaning to write a thread about Greek holidays but have put it off numerous times. Some members have asked me in private about recommendations so it is long overdue that I make a thread about it.
First of all, how long are you planning to stay? I believe that to enjoy your vacations and get a good return for your money you should plan your holiday according to the time that you intend to spend.
If you plan to spend less than a week, then I suggest that you visit just one location. That you spend your time in one location making the most of that particular location.
So if you intend to spend less than a week in Greece I recommend, Santorini, Naxos, Nisyros & Chalkidike.
Santorini is difficult to describe, it has no notable beach to mention, nor does it have any notable archeology outside the volcano, however it's beauty makes it unique and it has been voted several times as the most beautiful place in the world. It is an expensive island even during the off-season and you will be expected to spend about €200 a day for accommodation and food at any given moment. Naxos & Nisyros enjoy far better beaches & more tourist infrastructure, they are very beautiful places as well and well worth a visit but they lack the kind of magical x-factor beauty that Santorini is known for. Chalkidike is in the mainland and is located in the North, in Macedonia, Chalkidike enjoys the privilege of being far cheaper than the islands due to its continental location, it has fabulous beaches that are world renowned and it also has nearby archeological sites such as the Macedonian Palaces and the Holy Mount of Athos(note however that women are not permitted inside the Holy Mount) to fill in the boring days. Halkidike is very good value for money for what it offers.
If you intend to stay for more than a week and are willing to explore Greece in more depth, then the Peloponnese is a great destination, it's in the mainland and the cheapest area of Greece, it's small which means you can get around pretty quickly. In the Peloponnese you can find Olympia, where the Olympic Games were born, it is around a 3,5 hour drive from Athens but before you reach Olympia, you can visit Ancient Corinth(50 minutes from Athens), the Epidavros theatre(1,20 minutes from Athens) and Mycenae (1,40 minutes from Athens). This tour can easily be done within a single day and one can finish off the tour in Olympia, the next day one can go to Sparta and see the Medieval Morea Castle where the Roman/Byzantine Emperors took refuge during major crises as well as the Spartan forests and some ancient Temples, Sparta is about 2,5 hours away from Olympia by car, next one can visit Monemvasia and marvel at the Medieval Castle built on a Rock connected via a land-bridge, it would be nice to spend another day in Monemvasia to enjoy shopping, eating & drinking inside the Castle, Monemvasia is merely 1 hour away from Sparta.
Carrying on the journey, one can come down to my place in Elafonisos which is 1 hour away from Monemvasia and 2 hours away from Sparta, Elafonisos has some of the best beaches in the world. This is the kind of trip that I usually do when I go to Greece every year, I take the kids around an archeological trip and then we end up in url=https://www.elafonisos.biz]Elafonisos[/url] where we spend the bulk of our days. As I have said before PoFo members can stay in my premises if they come in September or June for free. Elafonisos is tiny, it has no major clubbing nightlife though the bars stay open until at least 5 am, it has no notable archeology either, though it has the Pavlopetri site which is according to the BBC "the oldest submerged city in the world", it is however not that exciting when you see it up close. Parts of it are visible in a little islet that is still above water while the majority of it is underwater at a 2 metre depth and easily discernible. Elafonisos is essentially the ultimate chill-out place rather than an exciting place, a place where you enjoy the magical beach with its crystal-clear blue waters.
If one wants to carry on the adventure instead of chilling one can visit Mani, which is about 1,5 hours away and have a close up look of the Gates of Hades as well as the haunted and abandoned Maniot Tower-Villages. Mani like Santorini is a place with a kind of beauty that is very hard to describe but it is worth seeing at least once in one's lifetime. The Tower villages appear as if they have been carved from the Mountain rather than built. Mani is waterless, barren of vegetation and until the 1970's inaccessible by road, only by boat despite it being in the mainland. A series of mountain tops separate it from the rest of Greece and from civilisation as a whole. It has an eerie & silent aura that is quite potent when experienced. Many famous European artists, especially Brits and Germans chose Mani as their resting place. The cave of Diros is also a must-see in Mani, where you enter the Gates of Hades on a little boat that tours you inside the magnificent caves. Rumour has it that Hitler honestly believed that he could reach Germany from inside these caves and that ancient Greeks made their way through these caves into Germany or Switzerland due to the mountains being a natural extension of the Swiss Alps. Many German/Nazi soldiers died in the pursuit of exploring that interior, but his mystical theories were never confirmed. There is also the very ancient Temple of Apollo/Poseidon which was built in the 2000's BCE and is one of the oldest temples in existence. The story says that it was the first ever temple of Apollo in Greece but it was rededicated to Poseidon when Apollo moved to Olympia. Like other Mycenean structures it was thought by the ancient Greeks to have been built by giants/cyclops due to the extremely large stones. It is very well maintained despite its age and unlike other structures, still standing whole at the very edge of the European continent. It's remoteness right at the edge of the mainland and enormously gigantic building blocks made it quite impossible for people to loot & carry away its materials. The sheer size of the building blocks can honestly not be overstated, one can observe these gigantic building blocks only at the Lion Gate of Mycenae in the Palace of Agamemnon in the North of the Peloponnese near Athens and in the Temple of Apollo in Mani at the far south of the Peloponnese. Difficult to describe but very marvellous.
Once you have finished your Peloponnese tour, one can easily make his/her way back to Athens by car, bus, taxi or plane via Kalamata. No place in the Peloponnese is more than 4 hours drive away from Athens.
Disclaimer: Greece has many other places that are well-worth visiting, in this post I have only advertised the ones that I personally consider to be good value for money, based on their location, hotel, food prices and the amenities and utility that they offer. If one has an no care about money and no care about time either, then the best thing is to hire a yacht with a captain and do an island tour/hopping. That is also good value for money for a more eclectic demographic. Yachts in Greece cost far less than people imagine and between a group of 6-8 people they can represent very good value for money. For example one can rent a yacht for €1000 per day and split the bill between 8 people at €125 per day which is not that much if one considers the experience & the hotel bills.
Any questions, I am happy to oblige.
First of all, how long are you planning to stay? I believe that to enjoy your vacations and get a good return for your money you should plan your holiday according to the time that you intend to spend.
If you plan to spend less than a week, then I suggest that you visit just one location. That you spend your time in one location making the most of that particular location.
So if you intend to spend less than a week in Greece I recommend, Santorini, Naxos, Nisyros & Chalkidike.
Santorini is difficult to describe, it has no notable beach to mention, nor does it have any notable archeology outside the volcano, however it's beauty makes it unique and it has been voted several times as the most beautiful place in the world. It is an expensive island even during the off-season and you will be expected to spend about €200 a day for accommodation and food at any given moment. Naxos & Nisyros enjoy far better beaches & more tourist infrastructure, they are very beautiful places as well and well worth a visit but they lack the kind of magical x-factor beauty that Santorini is known for. Chalkidike is in the mainland and is located in the North, in Macedonia, Chalkidike enjoys the privilege of being far cheaper than the islands due to its continental location, it has fabulous beaches that are world renowned and it also has nearby archeological sites such as the Macedonian Palaces and the Holy Mount of Athos(note however that women are not permitted inside the Holy Mount) to fill in the boring days. Halkidike is very good value for money for what it offers.
If you intend to stay for more than a week and are willing to explore Greece in more depth, then the Peloponnese is a great destination, it's in the mainland and the cheapest area of Greece, it's small which means you can get around pretty quickly. In the Peloponnese you can find Olympia, where the Olympic Games were born, it is around a 3,5 hour drive from Athens but before you reach Olympia, you can visit Ancient Corinth(50 minutes from Athens), the Epidavros theatre(1,20 minutes from Athens) and Mycenae (1,40 minutes from Athens). This tour can easily be done within a single day and one can finish off the tour in Olympia, the next day one can go to Sparta and see the Medieval Morea Castle where the Roman/Byzantine Emperors took refuge during major crises as well as the Spartan forests and some ancient Temples, Sparta is about 2,5 hours away from Olympia by car, next one can visit Monemvasia and marvel at the Medieval Castle built on a Rock connected via a land-bridge, it would be nice to spend another day in Monemvasia to enjoy shopping, eating & drinking inside the Castle, Monemvasia is merely 1 hour away from Sparta.
Carrying on the journey, one can come down to my place in Elafonisos which is 1 hour away from Monemvasia and 2 hours away from Sparta, Elafonisos has some of the best beaches in the world. This is the kind of trip that I usually do when I go to Greece every year, I take the kids around an archeological trip and then we end up in url=https://www.elafonisos.biz]Elafonisos[/url] where we spend the bulk of our days. As I have said before PoFo members can stay in my premises if they come in September or June for free. Elafonisos is tiny, it has no major clubbing nightlife though the bars stay open until at least 5 am, it has no notable archeology either, though it has the Pavlopetri site which is according to the BBC "the oldest submerged city in the world", it is however not that exciting when you see it up close. Parts of it are visible in a little islet that is still above water while the majority of it is underwater at a 2 metre depth and easily discernible. Elafonisos is essentially the ultimate chill-out place rather than an exciting place, a place where you enjoy the magical beach with its crystal-clear blue waters.
If one wants to carry on the adventure instead of chilling one can visit Mani, which is about 1,5 hours away and have a close up look of the Gates of Hades as well as the haunted and abandoned Maniot Tower-Villages. Mani like Santorini is a place with a kind of beauty that is very hard to describe but it is worth seeing at least once in one's lifetime. The Tower villages appear as if they have been carved from the Mountain rather than built. Mani is waterless, barren of vegetation and until the 1970's inaccessible by road, only by boat despite it being in the mainland. A series of mountain tops separate it from the rest of Greece and from civilisation as a whole. It has an eerie & silent aura that is quite potent when experienced. Many famous European artists, especially Brits and Germans chose Mani as their resting place. The cave of Diros is also a must-see in Mani, where you enter the Gates of Hades on a little boat that tours you inside the magnificent caves. Rumour has it that Hitler honestly believed that he could reach Germany from inside these caves and that ancient Greeks made their way through these caves into Germany or Switzerland due to the mountains being a natural extension of the Swiss Alps. Many German/Nazi soldiers died in the pursuit of exploring that interior, but his mystical theories were never confirmed. There is also the very ancient Temple of Apollo/Poseidon which was built in the 2000's BCE and is one of the oldest temples in existence. The story says that it was the first ever temple of Apollo in Greece but it was rededicated to Poseidon when Apollo moved to Olympia. Like other Mycenean structures it was thought by the ancient Greeks to have been built by giants/cyclops due to the extremely large stones. It is very well maintained despite its age and unlike other structures, still standing whole at the very edge of the European continent. It's remoteness right at the edge of the mainland and enormously gigantic building blocks made it quite impossible for people to loot & carry away its materials. The sheer size of the building blocks can honestly not be overstated, one can observe these gigantic building blocks only at the Lion Gate of Mycenae in the Palace of Agamemnon in the North of the Peloponnese near Athens and in the Temple of Apollo in Mani at the far south of the Peloponnese. Difficult to describe but very marvellous.
Once you have finished your Peloponnese tour, one can easily make his/her way back to Athens by car, bus, taxi or plane via Kalamata. No place in the Peloponnese is more than 4 hours drive away from Athens.
Disclaimer: Greece has many other places that are well-worth visiting, in this post I have only advertised the ones that I personally consider to be good value for money, based on their location, hotel, food prices and the amenities and utility that they offer. If one has an no care about money and no care about time either, then the best thing is to hire a yacht with a captain and do an island tour/hopping. That is also good value for money for a more eclectic demographic. Yachts in Greece cost far less than people imagine and between a group of 6-8 people they can represent very good value for money. For example one can rent a yacht for €1000 per day and split the bill between 8 people at €125 per day which is not that much if one considers the experience & the hotel bills.
Any questions, I am happy to oblige.
EN EL ED EM ON
...take your common sense with you, and leave your prejudices behind...
...take your common sense with you, and leave your prejudices behind...
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- By paeng
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