Category: Popular Posts (Page 19 of 26)

Santorini claims #1 spot on T+L magazine readers’ ranking of best islands in Europe & the world

July 3, 2014 / admin / 0 Comments

Luxury hotels crown the spectacular caldera cliffs in Santorini’s Oia village

Reader favourite: Santorini is the world’s best island for 2014, according to a survey of Travel + Leisure magazine readers.

Santorini beat out three Hawaiian islands as well as Bali, Indonesia to claim top spot in T+L’s World’s Best Awards 2014. Last year, Santorini held fourth place.

The American travel magazine announced the results of its 19th annual reader poll on July 2.

Although Santorini was the top-rated island globally and the only European island to make the worldwide Top 10, Greek islands scored well on the Top Islands in Europe poll, claiming three of the top 5 spots. Santorini captured the #1 rating, of course, while Crete took #3 and Mykonos claimed #5. (Two Italian islands, Capri and Sicily, took the #2 and #4 places, respectively).

Last year, Santorini and Crete held the same rankings for best islands in Europe, while Mykonos failed to crack the Top 5.

The annual reader survey is highly influential and should help Greece maintain its record-setting appeal to travellers from North America. Last year, Travel + Leisure had an average monthly print circulation of nearly 1 million copies, and its web edition achieved an average of 38 million page views per month. The publication has a readership of 6.5 million people, more than 2.4 million of whom are considered “affluent” travellers with a high personal net worth.

When the magazine announced Santorini’s top ranking in a post with a photograph of Oia on the T+L Facebook page, one reader added the comment: “Now I understand why gods choose Greece to live.”

Indeed!

You can view hundreds of photos of the world’s #1 island in my Santorini photo collection on Flickr. There are thousands of pics of Europe’s #5 island in my Mykonos photo collection, also on the MyGreeceTravelBlog Flickr page. Unfortunately, there’s no collection of Crete photos at this time — I haven’t been to that island since 2004 and don’t have images from that vacation online. Clearly, I’ve got to get back to Crete!

Cyclades islands celebrate summer with festivals for food & wine, arts & literature, culture & sports

July 3, 2014 / admin / 1 Comment

A promotional poster for the 10th Annual International Festival of the Aegean taking place July 6 to 19 in Ermoupoli on Syros island.

Food & culture fests: I love travelling to Greek islands during low season, particularly in the spring, but that means I always miss out on major cultural and gastronomical celebrations that are held only during the summer.

Just in the Cyclades group of islands this month alone, a wide variety of food & wine festivals, painting & photography shows, arts & literature events and fun sport competitions will be taking place on Antiparos, Naxos, Paros, Santorini, Schinoussa, Serifos and Syros.

(Cultural events abound in other island groups, too, and of course there are scores of religious festivals throughout the country, many of which take place during the summer. But those are topics I’ll cover in future posts.)

Below is an outline of just a few of the festivities you can check out if you happen to be island hopping in the Cyclades between this weekend and the end of September. You’re in for a big surprise if you thought the Greek islands were only about picturesque villages, beautiful sandy beaches and gorgeous scenery!

Click on the 2 in the link below to continue reading about activities on Antiparos, Santorini, Naxos, Paros, Schinoussa, Syros, Serifos and Mykonos.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 2

Sudden storm soaks Skiathos on Sunday

June 16, 2014 / admin / 3 Comments

This video showing a Skiathos Town street flooded by yesterday’s thunderstorm was posted on YouTube by the tsak Bpam crêperie. It reminded me of television newsclips reporting on flooding from monsoons in southeast Asia. This wasn’t a scene I would expect to see on a Greek island in June!

Stormy interlude: I keep a small travel-size umbrella in my luggage just in case we encounter some rainy weather while travelling in Greece, and we have had to use it a few times. If we manage to schedule a trip to Skiathos in the near future, news about some wild weather on the island yesterday may make me consider packing some rubber boots, too.

Only two weeks ago, in my June 4 post Greek islands take spring weather woes in stride, I reported about thunderstorms that brought several days of heavy rain and strong wind to many parts of Greece at the beginning of this month.

This past Sunday afternoon, Skiathos got thoroughly drenched by a sudden deluge that dumped over an inch of rain on parts of the island in less than an hour.

Torrential rain, power cuts and street flooding reported

News about the latest bout of bad weather broke on the TripAdvisor.com Skiathos forum where SkiathosLover1, a TripAdvisor destination expert for the island, started a conversation thread entitled “Violent Storms … affecting the island this afternoon,” and described “torrential rain,” thunder and lightning, power dips, and “reports of flooding in Papadamatis street.” SkiathosLover1 also included a link to the YouTube video which I posted above.

Numerous people quickly posted replies expressing concern and hopes that all residents and visitors to the island were safe and minimally affected by the tempest.

This morning TA member ShaunWin chided them for “getting so worked up about yesterday’s storm.” It lasted only an hour and “was fun to watch,” he wrote, but “that was it. It’s glorious again today, with not a cloud in the sky.”

“If you’ve got friends or fans out here and are worrying about them: Don’t! They’ll be on the beach or on the beers today and not worrying about you!!” ShaunWin observed.

However, while the storm may have been fun for some to watch, SkiathosLover1 pointed out that it did cause considerable damage bringing down trees, and did frighten passengers returning to the island on tour boats.

A description of the storm’s highlights can be read a June 15 post on The Skiathan blog.

Nikos Paschalis posted this photo on Facebook, showing stormwater rushing down Papadamatis street in Skiathos Town during the late afternoon downpour.

Revisiting the Acropolis and the Parthenon … 10 years after our first trip to Athens

June 15, 2014 / admin / 0 Comments

Crowds were so sparse the first time we visited the Acropolis in Athens (on the afternoon of Friday June 11 2004, to be precise) …

… that we were able to get this shot of me standing in front of the Parthenon — with nobody else in sight!

However, it was impossible to get photos of the Parthenon without any other people around during our return visit to the Acropolis on Sunday June 1 2014

No all-by-my-selfies possible: We practically had the Acropolis and the Parthenon all to ourselves when we visited the historic Athens monuments for the first time late on the afternoon of Friday June 11 2004. Even though it was only two months before the opening of the Athens Summer Olympics, the site — one of the most famous tourist attractions in the entire world — wasn’t crowded. In fact, Dan managed to take a photo of me standing by myself in front of the Parthenon — with nobody else around.

There was no chance of getting another photo like that when went back to the Acropolis for a repeat visit two weeks ago. It was late in the morning on a Sunday this time (June 1), and we were among hundreds of people who kept jockeying for prime positions to get the perfect Parthenon picture. With huge throngs of tourists all around, including some guided groups with dozens of participants apiece, there was absolutely no way to take a frontal photo of the Parthenon without getting a bunch of people in the shot. Or without getting constantly jostled and bumped while making a valiant attempt.

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34% increase in foreign tourists to Athens

We shouldn’t have been surprised to find the Acopolis so busy — tourism in Greece is booming this year. In fact, statistics reported by the Association of Greek Tourism Enterprises (SETE) show that 500,000 more foreign visitors arrived in Greece during the first five months of this year than during the same period last year — an increase of nearly 21%. Specifically for Athens, the number of foreign visitors surged by a whopping 34% between January and May (compared to 2013), and rose by nearly 31% in May alone.

SETE expects that Greece will reach its target of 19 million international visitors for 2014 — a tourism record for the country.

Based on the number of tourists we saw wandering around Athens during the weekend of May 30 to June 2, I’m certain Greece will set that record.

Below is a brief videoclip I shot showing a few of the tourists who were visiting the Acropolis at the same time as us on June 1. Notice that almost everyone is moving briskly — no doubt to quickly find the perfect place to take selfies with the Parthenon in the background!

Tourists at the Athens Acropolis on June 1

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Petition seeks better working conditions for mules & donkeys used as ‘tourist taxis’ on Santorini

June 14, 2014 / admin / 12 Comments

Some of the mules used to transport tourists up and down hundreds of steps between the cruiseship tender dock and Fira, the main town on Santorini

Animal abuse: An international online petition is urging local authorities on Santorini to make significant improvements to the welfare and working conditions of dozens of mules and donkeys that are forced to repeatedly carry tourists up and down hundreds of steps on the island every day, often without adequate water, shade and rest.

The petition is the latest in a series of efforts The Donkey Sanctuary has undertaken during the past 8 years as part of an ongoing campaign to reduce and prevent abuse and cruelty toward donkeys and mules on Santorini, one of the most popular tourist destinations in Greece.

I described The Donkey Sanctuary’s earlier initiatives in my April 12 2013 post, Don’t ride the donkeys! Why tourists should avoid taking the mule ‘taxis’ on Santorini, which has since become the most-read report on my website. (Please click on the link to see the article and photos if you aren’t already aware of the Santorini donkey situation.)

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Animals are denied access to shade, water & rest for long periods

The Donkey Sanctuary decided to launch the latest course of action after an independent report produced in 2013 “revealed that many of these animals are forced to carry overweight passengers and are denied access to shade, water and rest for hours at a time. Poor quality saddles and bridles are often used and safety guidelines are regularly ignored, placing tourists at risk of injury. “

“Over the past few years we have attempted to work with the town municipality to provide training and equipment for the taxi operators although unfortunately, the standards have not been maintained and the level of complaints has risen yet again,” The Sanctuary explains on its website.

The petition calls for a number of “urgent improvements” to the welfare of Santorini’s mule taxis, including provision of adequate shelter and shade, access to fresh water, predetermined weight limits for passengers, and regular veterinary and tack inspections, among others.

Names collected on the petition “will be presented to the mayor of Santorini as part of our campaign to improve standards for donkeys and mules working in the tourism industry,” The Sanctuary says.

A screen capture of The Donkey Sanctuary website post explaining reasons for its petition to prevent cruelty to mules and donkeys in Santorini

Travel tip: Avoid taking a large carry-on case when flying Olympic Air to small Greek island airports

June 8, 2014 / admin / 3 Comments

An Olympic Air media photo of one of its De Havilland DHC-8-402Q aircraft. The airline flies smaller prop planes to Naxos and several other islands.

Carry small!: Here’s a tip for those of you (especially from North America) who tend to travel with a large carry-on bag, particularly one of those 22-inch hard-sided cases with wheels and a pull handle. If you’re going to be flying Olympic Air to or from islands like Naxos, Paros, Milos, Syros or Kastelorizo, your case probably won’t fit in the overhead bins. So travel with a smaller bag instead, or be prepared for the possibility your carry-on may have to be checked in at the gate when you’re about to board.

Olympic Air uses Bombardier Dash 8-100 aircraft on its routes to a number of Greek islands with small airports. Although the 37-passenger propeller planes are ideal for serving destinations with short runways, their compact interior space isn’t so convenient for passengers since the overhead bins are shallow and significantly smaller than the ones on Boeing and Airbus planes.

Carry-on cases may have to be checked at the gate

Several Americans waiting for our Olympic Air flight from Athens to Naxos last month were taken aback when airline personnel approached them in the lounge at our gate and advised that their bags were too big to be taken on board. The cases were tagged and given to ground crew for delivery to the aircraft luggage hold.

When we got on board, we thought our knapsacks — which held fragile laptops and camera equipment, along with travel paperwork and other personal belongings we couldn’t afford to lose — might wind up being checked, too. The knapsacks easily fit under the seats on the Dash-8’s we have flown from Milos, Paros and Naxos in the last three years, but for this particular flight we were assigned bulkhead seats in Row 1. That meant there was no seat in front of us under which we could slide our carry-ons, so they had to go somewhere else. But they each were about an inch too wide to scrunch into the narrow overhead bins. Luckily for us, the flight attendant offered to store them in the lavatory for take-off and landing. But she could just as easily have insisted they be checked into the hold.

Brilliant carry-on advice from Condé Nast Traveler

Next time we travel, we’ll prepare in advance for the possibility our carry-ons might get gate-checked — using advice I read in an online Condé Nast Traveler magazine article just the other day. The #1 item in the magazine’s list of The 12 Biggest Travel Mistakes You Think You’re Too Smart to Make recommends putting important valuables “in a thin pack or pouch inside your carry-on” so that, in the event you’re required to surrender the case at the last minute, “you can remove the smaller bag and keep an eye on it beneath the seat in front of you.”

Brilliant suggestion! To which I’ll add one of my own: Tell the check-in staff you don’t want a front-row bulkhead seat!

Note: If you’re travelling to Greek Islands like Mykonos, Santorini, Rhodes or Kos on Aegean Airlines, you’ll be flying on an Airbus jet aircraft, not a prop plane, and the overhead bins should be big enough to accommodate your carry-on. But it will still be a good idea to be prepared as Condé Nast recommends.

Click here to see the allowed baggage limits section of the Olympic Air website, and click here to view the Aegean Airlines baggage allowance chart.

Cavo & Tropicana release summer DJ lineups

June 6, 2014 / admin / 2 Comments

The Cavo Paradiso DJ lineup for July and August 2014

Party planning: In my Beach parties on Mykonos post last month, I promised to update information about upcoming events as news became available. I can now report that the two biggest beach clubs on Mykonos have released the DJ entertainment lineups for their 2014 summer events.

Cavo Paradiso posted a list of its July and August events on its Facebook page today. The schedule shows that events will be held every night in July and each night in August until the 25th of that month. Headlining acts for several parties at the end of July and two in August have not yet been named, but the club says it expects to confirm the “to be announced” DJs shortly. The schedule does not yet include events for September, and does not indicate when Cavo will hold its season-closing party.

Paradise Club has posted a more extensive event listing on its website, showing the DJ lineup for more than 50 events taking place between now and its closing party on September 20. It, too, has several “to be announced” gigs for which the entertainment has yet to be confirmed.

Tickets for Paradise Club events can be purchased in advance through an online order form on the club’s website. VIP tables also can be booked in advance through a separate section of the website; click here for a direct link to that page.

Tables reservations for Cavo Paradiso events can be booked in advance but full prepayment is required. Further details and contact information are available on the newly-redesigned Cavo Paradiso website.

Both clubs are located at Paradise beach.

A promotional flyer listing the names of acts that will appear at Paradise Club this summer was posted on the venue’s Facebook page

Acropolis Museum turns 5

June 6, 2014 / admin / 0 Comments

Looking toward the Acropolis Museum from a vantage point on the Acropolis itself. Below is a zoom view of the museum, which turns 5 years old on June 20. I shot the photos on June 1 during a weekend visit to Athens.

Birthday bargain: If you’re going to be in Athens on June 20, make plans to pay the Acropolis Museum a visit. The beautiful building will mark its fifth anniversary that day, and will be charging a reduced admission fee of only €3 to celebrate the occasion. (That’s two Euros cheaper than the already bargain-priced entrance charge.)

Exhibition areas will be open from 8 a.m. until midnight, so you’ll have plenty of time to drop by and enjoy the museum’s permanent collections as well as its current special exhibition, Archaic Colors.

The museum will be hosting two special events for the big day. One involves the use of three-dimensional digital image technology to show how copper weapons and bridles would appear on the horsemen on the west frieze of the Parthenon. The second is a 9.30 p.m. concert by musical artist Leon of Athens in the museum’s courtyard entrance.

I described the museum in my March 3 2012 post, Acropolis Museum is a must-see Athens attraction, which includes photos the museum provided of some of the spectacular items in its collection. And in my post Another Acropolis Museum treasure: food earlier this year, I reported that VirtualTourist.com had ranked the Acropolis Museum Restaurant as one of the world’s top 5 museum restaurants.

Below are several more pictures I took of the museum exterior last weekend. (Although photography is permitted in most of its galleries, the Acropolis Museum does not permit media publication of such images, so I didn’t take any shots inside. The wonderful treasures are best viewed in person in any event, so be sure to schedule time to see the museum if you haven’t been there already.)

A street view of the museum’s eastern facade

Visitors gather on the museum’s entrance plaza, which overlooks archaeological ruins discovered during construction of the building

Architectural details on the building’s eastern facade

A walkway leading to the museum entrance

Window and facade details on the museum exterior

The museum’s rooftop cafe terrace has views of the Acropolis

A view of the Acropolis from the museum’s entrance plaza. The large sign on the side of the building at left is a promotional poster for the museum’s Archaic Colors exhibition, running until July 31.