Many visitors to Vathi, the main city on Samos, don’t seem to venture beyond the commercial area along the waterfront near the port. But it’s well worth taking time to stroll some of the residential neighourhoods on the hills behind the business district. There are plenty of scenic streets with neoclassically-styled houses like the one above, plus great views of the city and Vathi Bay.
A canopy of bold red bougainvillea above the entrance ensures that it’s easy to find Hotel Helen on Grammoy Street in Vathi on Samos island
Agriolivadi Bay on Patmos, part of the Dodecanese island group. Patmos is one of five islands that the Globe & Mail says travellers “need to see.”
Good time to visit: During the past five years of economic turmoil, Greece has been subjected to extensive bad publicity in the world press, with a steady barrage of negative news stories focussing on strikes and riots and the massive social upheaval caused by high unemployment and painful austerity programs. It’s refreshing to see the tide changing, with major international media outlets now regularly publishing feature articles that recommend travelling to Greece instead of avoiding it.
One article in particular — Luring tourists back to Greece by Liz Alderman of The New York Times — has been republished in major newspapers in countries around the world. In that piece, published on May 23, Alderman notes that “travelers are returning in greater numbers this year, lured by discounts of up to 20 percent on hotels in major cities and on Greece’s stunning islands, as well as assurances — at least for now — that Greece won’t be ditching the euro and returning to the drachma after all.”
Writers at other high-profile newspapers have been filing their own reports explaining why the time is right to visit Greece, and recommending where travellers should go.
Here’s a roundup of several interesting travel reports I’ve discovered just in the past week alone:
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Mountains provide an impressive backdrop to the scenic town of Kokkari on Samos …
… situated about 11 kilometers from Vathi on the north side of the island …
… next to a sheltered harbour where dozens of bars & restaurants along the water’s edge …
… all engage in eye-catching competition to attract the attention — and business — of the throngs of thirsty and hungry tourists who visit the village each day
Sunbathe, swim, eat & repeat: Two impressions have stuck in my mind since we visited colourful Kokkari village on Samos three years ago.
The first is the picturesque beaches that bookend the village: Long Beach on one side, and two back-to-back beaches called Small Lemonakia on the other.
The second is the rows of restaurants lining the town’s sheltered harbour as well as much of the length of Long Beach. It’s almost impossible to walk more than a few steps without passing a waterfront café, bar or taverna, or signs pointing the way to dozens of different places to eat and drink. There are myriad restaurant ads and menus attached to posts and walls, and dozens of sandwich board-style signs scattered along the narrow lanes and footpaths.
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