Greece - City, Mountains and Sea
Greece
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Sep 9 - Sep 26, 2022
Greece was so amazing that I really do not know where to begin. First, KimKim and Chris were incredible. Chris took the time to talk to me and my wife and really try to understand the type of trip we were after - we wanted to explore on our own, sail on a small boat and see all the sights but not be with a big group.
He put together an 18 day extravaganza that included local guides in Athens (Thanks Apollo !), a car rental with us driving around Greece to Delphi, Olympia, Nafplio and all the amazing sites in between. We had lunch with an amazing family of olive oil makers, we toured a winery (that our local guide in Athens suggested), incredible accommodations at each city (we stayed in Galaxidi, Katakolo and Nafplio). The driving was easy and fun and gave us the flexibility to do what we wanted. We made a circle around the Bay of Corinth, returned to Athens and flew to Mykonos. In Mykonos we hopped on a 40 foot sailboat.
We sailed with naxos-yachting.com and had an incredible crew - shout out to Akis and Anna. They took us to Delos, Paros, Naxos, Schinousa and Santorini. Each port was mind blowing and after 4 days of sailing, they are friends for life. They had so much local knowledge and got us off the beaten path - we hit restaurants that only the locals use, we jumped off cliffs, we swam in caves and at one point we found ourselves sitting on the front porch of an old couple's house, laughing and drinking some homemade liquor with them - us not speaking a lick of Greek and them not speaking a lick of English - amazing.
We ended the trip with a few restful days on Santorini - we had wine tour, a boat ride through the caldera and more amazing accommodations - Santorini is like a movie set.
We travel a lot and expect small things/inconveniences to pop up. Honestly, did not have a single one. Every time Chris had planned a driver - they were there on time and professional. Every flight - we had our tickets, transfer etc. Every hotel, they were waiting for us. Unreal.
All in all, one of the best trips of my life.
Hotel Reviews
The accommodations are great, the staff super nice and the breakfast was spot on. The location is perfect as we could walk to everything. The only negative for me was the street noise in Athens but even with that, it was great.
Beautiful place. My wife and I ended up with a very large room that had a kitchen, bath and upstairs loft. The Breakfast in this place is crazy good. Staff was super. I honestly felt like I was staying in someone's house.
Clean, crisp, modern, spacious, great AC - oh, and the view !!!!!!
Nafplio is a must see. While I tell everyone that the people I met in Greece were the nicest people in the world, the staff at this hotel topped the list. The young ladies that worked the desk and the breakfast area were delights. They were super helpful, took care of getting our laundry done, hooked us up with suggested beach spots and kept the ice buckets full (which in Europe is amazing). The rooms were large, big ceilings and great. The food at the restaurant (breakfast was included) was great, so good that we stayed for dinner one night.
Activity Reviews
Apollo was our guide and he did a great job answering 1,000 questions, giving us insight into the ruins and, best of all, giving us tips for the rest of the trip. At his suggestion we hit a winery "Up in the Clouds" and had one of those unexpected great days.
This was an "optional" but suggested event. We had a group of 6, I called on our way out of Delphi and they said just swing by. HOLY COW - we had one of the best meals, olive oil tasting, discussions with locals on the whole trip. 6 people 4 bottles of wine and all the food you can eat - $140.
Naxos Yachting - Akis and Anna were our crew and they were wonderful.
Great tour of a couple of wineries - pretty standard stuff. Our guide Elsa was very sweet and knowledgeable. The dinner after was great food but we were the only people in the place so the atmosphere was a lacking.
I am ecstatic that all the group had such a wonderful time! The trip was a long time in planning, had many "moving parts" and it was great that everything went well! Especially the good weather you had during the sailing part.
Of course, as you've learned, I have a great team to support my travellers, and we have fantastic guides, partners and hotels that we like to suggest. Combine that with good... Read more