This was a 5-day Family and Friends … Greece
Greece | Jun 8 - Jun 13, 2023

Linda
Linda W.
Ocean Isle Beach, NC | Reviewed on Jun 28, 2023

This was a 5-day Family and Friends … Athens & Day Trips in Attica & the Peloponnese in Greece! This included numerous unique experiences that Eleni, our travel specialist from KimKim, orchestrated for our group during this 5-day period. She was the most amazing person to brainstorm with as she took my base ideas and crafted an incredible itinerary for our group of 25 family/friends! Because this was such a large group it proved to be a little more challenging, but Eleni had no problem in orchestrating the whole vacation! Which just goes to show how incredible and detail-oriented Eleni is … which proved to be very important given the size of our group! Our transfers, the group meals, our hotel stay, and the numerous unique experiences Eleni orchestrated for our group during this 5-day period went very smoothly. Additionally, Eleni’s Travel 12 Team kept in contact with me daily and were there for me if ever I needed assistance or had a question which added a very important “comfort level” to me as I was having to manage this large group of friends and family throughout our daily experiences.

There were soooo many highlights of this trip that began with a customized walking tour of Ancient Agora + a food tour in Athens that included craft beer tasting ;o) Additional highlights of our first day in Athens included our evening drive down the Athenian Riviera to Cape Sounion for a walk around the archaeological site of the Temple of Poseidon and then we had a sunset dinner on the beach at a traditional taverna with a view of the Temple of Poseidon all lit up. The next day was spent exploring the Peloponnese area that included a 75-min cruise up and down the Corinth Canal, a visit to Ancient Corinth, then off to the archaeological site of Nemea to see the Tempe of Zeus which was followed by lunch in the vineyard of a winery with winetasting! Then before returning to Athens, we ended the day with a stroll around the seaside town of Nafplio and dinner at a waterfront tavern. The next day was an all-day 3-Island Cruise to Hydra, Poros, and Aegina and we sailed back to Athens with fabulous sunset views! Our final day in Greece was spent at Lake Vouliagmeni – which is a mineral springs lake outside of Athens. I have to say that this DAY was the best ever! Then we followed this up with dinner on top of Lycabettus Hill at the Orixontes restaurant (the highest spot in Athens) with spectacular views of the city lit up at night!

So, all in all … once again … Eleni and her Travel 12 Team did a fabulous job in both orchestrating this vacation for the large group of 25 and ensuring that everything went off like clockwork!

THANK YOU for the most memorable vacation!
- Linda and Steve

Hotel Review
Acropolis Hill Hotel
Athens

The room was small but the view of the Acropolis from the upstairs terrace was amazing! The location of the hotel was perfect!

Authenticity & Character
Location
Staff
Cleanliness & Comfort
Activity Reviews
Custom Agora & Flavors Tour for Linda & Friends
Custom Agora & Flavors Tour for Linda & Friends
Athens

What I liked most about this tour was the combination of walking tour of Ancient Agora combined with a food tour that included a craft beer tasting plus a stop at Brettos to taste Osso +++ :o) So there was a little something special for everyone in the group!

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Custom Food & Wine Day Trip to the Peloponnese for Linda & Friends
Custom Food & Wine Day Trip to the Peloponnese for Linda & Friends
Athens

The next day was spent exploring the Peloponnese area that included a 75-min cruise up and down the Corinth Canal, a visit to Ancient Corinth, then off to the archaeological site of Nemea to see the Tempe of Zeus which was followed by a great lunch in the vineyard of a winery with winetasting! Then before returning to Athens, we ended the day with a stroll around the seaside town of Nafplio and a fabulous dinner at a waterfront tavern.

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Private Cape Sounio Sunset tour
Private Cape Sounio Sunset tour
Greece

After getting settled into our hotel in the afternoon our evening tour began with a private drive down the Athenian Riviera to Cape Sounion where we explored the Temple of Poseidon. Then we drove down the hill to a taverna on the beach and enjoyed a sunset dinner right on the water front with spectacular views of the Temple of Poseidon lit up at sunset.

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Local Meal in Nafplio
Local Meal in Nafplio
Greece

We enjoyed the dinner meal in Nafplio - but it was unfortunately too close to when we had lunch so most of us were not hungry enough to do the meal justice :o( But the food and location of the restaurant on the waterfront was superb!

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Saronic Islands Day Cruise (for Linda & Friends)
Saronic Islands Day Cruise (for Linda & Friends)
Athens

The next day was an all-day 3-Island Cruise to Hydra, Poros, and Aegina and we sailed back to Athens with fabulous sunset views! Everyone loved the cruise portion of the trip. The islands themselves were just okay ;o)

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Free Day in Vouliagmeni Lake (for Linda & friends)
Free Day in Vouliagmeni Lake (for Linda & friends)
Athens

Our final day in Greece was spent at Lake Vouliagmeni – which is a mineral springs lake outside of Athens. I have to say that this DAY was the best ever! Then we followed this up with dinner on top of Lycabettus Hill at the Orixontes restaurant (the highest spot in Athens) with spectacular views of the city lit up at night!

Quality of Experience
Food
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Round trip Transfer in Athens
Athens

All our transfers went very smoothly! They were always on time! Unfortunately traffic in Athens was horrible - soooo allowing time to travel based on traffic conditions is a must!

Quality of Experience
Guides, Drivers and Staff
Transport
Local specialist: Eleni Fotiou
Eleni
Eleni Fotiou
Local specialist in Athens | Replied on Jun 29, 2023

Dear Linda,
Thank you so much for your words and your detailed review, because it demonstrates how important our cooperation was in the orchestration of this wonderful trip. Thank you for your patience when I needed more time to get back to you; thank you for your contribution in managing this big group and I am looking forward to histing you again!
It was great meeting you!
Eleni