I just discovered a fascinating short video of Arcadia that filmmaker PanoVerino published the same day on the film and video sharing website Vimeo.com.
Entitled The Arcadian, the 3-minute film shows entrancing ground and aerial winter time views of impressive mountain and valley landscapes, breathtaking hillside villages and the extraordinary Monastery of Prodromos, which was constructed into the side of a sheer cliff face around the year 1167.
In notes on his Vimeo page, PanoVerino explains that “The Arcadian is a person who leads and prefers a simple rural life. According to Greek mythology, Arcadia of Peloponnesus was the domain of Pan, a virgin wilderness home to the god of the forest and his court of dryads, nymphs and other spirits of nature. It was one version of paradise, though only in the sense of being the abode of supernatural entities, not an afterlife for deceased mortals.”
The spellbinding scenery in Pan’s domain is beautifully filmed, and The Arcadian makes me eager to explore this scenic and mythical area of the Peloponnese, hopefully on our upcoming late spring trip to Greece. Give it a watch to see if the video has the same compelling effect on you.
[If the name PanoVerino sounds familiar, you may recall seeing his film Postcard from Mykonos Greece, which I shared in my July 11 2015 blog post, A breathtaking video postcard from Mykonos. Take a look at the PanoVerino Vimeo page to see more of his marvellous films.]
A light layer of snow on the ground didn’t deter participants in a Greece on Foot walking tour from enjoying the awe-inspiring mountain and valley scenery in the Arcadia region of the Peloponnese on January 24 …
… nor did cold temperatures just two days later, when walkers got to trek through vibrant green olive groves like this one under brilliant sunny skies. (Photos provided courtesy of Greece on Foot tours.)
Winter wonders: Take a winter vacation in Greece? Sure! Why not?
The seething crowds of summer tourists have long since disappeared, as have the scorching temperatures and the startling high prices of peak season. There’s no waiting in long queues for seats on buses or in restaurants, and no jostling with mobs of organized excursion groups or gaggles of selfie-snapping sightseers at monuments and museums. Hiking paths are almost deserted, and roads aren’t clogged with tour coaches. The magnificent historic and natural scenery remains glorious despite the drastic change in seasons, the legendary Greek hospitality continues unabated, and the food is superb as always.
Of course, winter is the wrong time to visit if your primary holiday preferences are swimming and water sports, lounging on beaches, or all-night-long dancing and carousing at bars, clubs and beaches on Mykonos, Ios or any of the other legendary Greek “party islands.”
But you’ll still find dynamic nightlife in Athens and Thessaloniki, cities which abound in world-class dining, shopping, entertainment and cultural activities all year round. And if you’re a winter sports enthusiast, you can challenge your alpine mountaineering or snow kiting skills on Crete, or go snowboarding and downhill skiing at Kalavrita or one of several other major resorts on the Greek mainland.
Two alpine mountaineers ascend the steep snow-covered peak of Mt Dikti on Crete, in this image shared on Facebook in late January by Festivalaki: Cretan festival of Arts & Culture. The organization’s Facebook post said mountaineering in Crete offers “a wonderful experience combining alpine terrain with breathless views of both the Libyan & Aegean sea.”
A beach near the Vouliagmeni beach suburb of Athens is seen in this December 29 2015 photo by John de Castelberg. Most tourists might find the sea too chilly for a winter dip, but the scenic beach- and café-lined coast of the Athenian Riviera is pleasant to visit throughout the off season.
Main tourist season is April to October
For people like me and my partner, who couldn’t bear either the blistering heat and sun or the heaving hordes of tourists in midsummer, winter could well be one of the best times to visit Greece. So why, then, have we travelled there only in spring or fall?
That’s a question we have been pondering a lot lately. We used to believe it was better to travel during the regular tourist season, which generally starts in late April and winds down by the end of October (particularly on the islands). In fact, most of our Greek holidays have been fairly early in the season, typically sometime between mid-May and early June. But we have gone twice in the autumn — we went island hopping in the Cyclades in late September 2007, and we explored Naxos and Athens during the first half of October 2013.
What we like about our spring trips in particular is the palpable local excitement and anticipation for the new travel season and approaching summer period, an atmosphere we find invigorating and refreshing after our long winter hibernation at home in Canada. Also, the weather is usually perfect for some of our favourite holiday activities — hiking and walking, and dining outdoors (especially near the sea). We weren’t keen to visit Greece during the off-season because we were worried we might not enjoy it as much with colder temperatures, inclement weather and few tourists around.
Winter shouldn’t keep us away from Greece — it didn’t stop this pretty pink flamingo and a dozen of its feathered friends from visiting the Alyki wetland reserve on Samos island for several days at the end of January 2016. Local photographer Nikolaos Housas captured this splendid image on January 27 and shared it on the Samos Island public group page on Facebook.
Social media show the winter appeal of Greece
But recently we’ve really been warming up to the idea of a winter getaway to Greece. What changed our minds? In two words: social media.
With their photos on Facebook, Flickr and Twitter (some of which I will share with you on page 2 of this post), friends, acquaintances and dozens of people we don’t even know have shown us that Greece can be just as delightful and charming in winter as it is during spring, summer or fall. In fact, they have demonstrated that it’s a terrific time to see the country’s wonderful sights and scenery either on foot or by driving around, and it can often even be comfortable to eat outdoors, or at least sit outside with a coffee to people watch and enjoy the scenery. What’s more, colourful Carnival celebrations held each February and March in scores of villages and towns provide traditional festive fun and excitement we wouldn’t find in spring.
We thought we would miss eating outdoors if we took an off-season trip to Greece. But occasional mild weather means outdoor dining can be possible even in winter, as this photo posted by the Parosweb Facebook page attests. Taken on January 21 2016, the picture shows a table laden with delectable dishes of home-cooked Greek cuisine in the courtyard at Haroula’s Taverna in Marpissa village on Paros.
A place to escape our usual winter blahs
Of course there can be gloomy days with rain, cold temperatures, gale-force winds and even snowstorms, as I have reported in posts on December 31 2015, January 17 2016, and January 23 2016. But we get unpredictable and occasionally severe weather conditions at home, too. Yet we continue to drag ourselves through our December and January doldrums, and the brutal February blahs, daydreaming about Greece and counting the days until we can go back. Why not just battle the blahs by getting a winter fix of Greece instead? With luck we might encounter pleasantly mild weather conditions, as you’ll see in many of the photos below. At worst, it will feel almost like winter back home — but at least we will be passing the time enjoying the off-season beauty in our favourite travel destination. We’re already looking into the possibility of doing exactly that next December or January.
Please click here or on the link below the following picture to turn to page 2 and see some of the photos that have convinced us we’re long overdue for an off-season trip to Greece. Fingers crossed that we’ll be posting our own winter pictures at this time next year.
Athens is a bustling year-round travel destination, as evidenced by the throngs of people strolling past historic monuments in the center of Athens, just below the illuminated Acropolis and Parthenon (upper right). Wendy Gilops captured this scene on December 27 2015.
Street view of Seirines (Sirens) restaurant on the harbourfront strip near the port of Rafina. (This photo, from the Seirines Facebook page, was originally posted on TripAdvisor with a 5-star rating by reviewer erythnul.)
Tempting tastes: If you find yourself feeling hungry while waiting for a ferry at Rafina port, or after arriving there on one, I recommend making your way directly to Seirines restaurant for a meal. You won’t be disappointed, especially if you enjoy fresh seafood.
Friends took us there for lunch last May when we had several hours to pass before catching a late afternoon ferry to Andros. They had assured us that Seirines would be a great spot to enjoy the first meal of our holiday after arriving in Greece on a long overnight flight from Canada, and they were absolutely right — it was perfect. With a harbour-view table on the taverna’s open-air terrace, and a nice variety of delicious seafood and Greek dishes, we could not have asked for a better “welcome back” to Greece.
The tremendously satisfying lunch and waterfront setting got our vacation off to a great start, and in retrospect may have been an omen of good food to follow — over the next 16 days, we enjoyed the best dining of all our trips to Greece since 2004.
Our selection of dishes included feta, white fish roe dip (a richer and much less salty version of the pinkish-coloured taramasalata typically found on taverna menus), calamari, toasted bread, grilled calamari, grilled sardines, vegetable croquettes, and ouzo (for those of you who love ouzo or tsipouro, take note that Seirines is an ouzotsipouradiko, offering an extensive selection of the two spirits).
The dishes provided more than enough food for the four of us, and we barely managed to clear all the plates. Everything was good, but for me the fish roe dip and sardines were exceptional. Although our friends picked up the tab and wouldn’t let me see the bill, they said the price for our lunch had been very reasonable. We will definitely go back to Seirines if any of our future travels take us through Rafina.
Seirines photo of platters with a selection of seafood and Greek food delights
But you don’t have to take only my word that Seirines is an ideal choice for dining near the port. Check out the rave review that the New York City-based food blog Fritos and Foie Gras gave the restaurant in its photo-illustrated post, The Fish Lunch of My Dreams at Seirines, Rafina. (With its comments like “it’s impossible not to love this restaurant,” and “I would come back here in a heartbeat if I could,” you’ll see I have good company in highly recommending the restaurant. Be sure to click on the photos in the review to get a better look at the scrumptious dishes the writer enjoyed, including tzatziki, a country salad, a smoked and cured fish plate, and souvlaki-style shrimp.)
If you need more convincing, read the Seirines review in the article CB on the road: Eating in Rafina, which the international city dining blog Culinary Backstreets published less than two weeks before we discovered the restaurant.
You can read additional reviews on TripAdvisor, where Seirines is ranked as the #1 restaurant in Rafina.
This Google Street View image shows the close proximity of Seirines (left) to the Rafina ferry docks
André Eckhardt shot Skiathos — Eyes wide open (2015) during a week-long visit to the island and its neighbours, Skopelos and Alonissos
Island beauty: I’ve been in a Skiathos state of mind today. I haven’t been to the island yet, but hearing some of the soundtrack for the 2008 hit movie Mamma Mia!, which was partly filmed there, got me daydreaming about it this morning. Then I logged onto my blog’s Facebook page, where my news feed was filled with photos and videoclips showing streets, trees, fields, houses and beaches blanketed in snow (flurries fell on Skiathos today during a storm that left parts of the island without electricity for over six hours). You can see some of those pictures in my Mamma Mia! Here it snows again post below.
A link in a Facebook post subsequently led me to the André Eckhardt video of Skiathos that I posted above, and a quick peak on YouTube took me to a few more travel films of the island, one of which I’ve posted below.
Happily, the videos show Skiathos in sunny, summery conditions, so I’m sharing them here in case you’re in the throes of gloomy winter weather wherever you might be — the sight of some gorgeous Greek island scenery is bound to boost your spirits. Only 149 more days until summer!
[Editor’s update: If you enjoy these videos, click here to see another enticing film that I shared on February 25 2016.]
Skyframe.gr isn’t kidding when it describes its short video Skiathos Summer 2015 volume 2 as “a small teaser of aerial footage for Skiathos Island.” Teaser indeed! It will certainly leave you wanting to see more.
The Skiathos Facebook page posted this photo of a little girl poised to toss a snowball on one of the island’s golden sand beaches, now covered in a blanket of white after a snowfall on Saturday January 23
Snow day: Barely five days after light flurries dusted it with snow, Skiathos was struck by an even stronger storm that turned the island’s red-tiled rooftops white and left some areas without power for several hours on January 23.
Island residents quickly took to social media to share photos and videos of their suddenly white winter wonderland, and my Facebook page news feed filled with dozens of images of snow-laden trees, beaches, roads and buildings.
I have collected a few of the pictures that appeared on Facebook to show the aftermath of the exceptional winter storm — one of several that have struck different regions of Greecem, including islands, since the beginning of 2016.
Click on the link under the next two pictures to turn to page 2 of this post and view more Skiathos snow photos.
You can view additional images, along with several videos, on the Skiathos Facebook page and on the Skiathos Life community page on Facebook.
If you would prefer to see beautiful summer scenes from the island instead, check out the three videos in my Set your sights on Skiathos! post from January 23.
Stormclouds linger above snow-dusted rooftops in this photo shared by the Skiathos Life Facebook page
Also from the Skiathos Life Facebook page, this photo shows a crew working to restore power. Heavy snow and falling trees caused power cuts to parts of the island, including the area around Profitis Ilias.
The Greek Parliament building at Syntagma Square is seen in this screenshot from the Greeking.me website
Greeking.me, a new start up that offers customized experiences and tours of Athens, has launched on 27 January, 2015. The innovative venture offers the chance to explore Athens like a local as all experiences are carefully designed so as to represent the authentic Greek culture.
Whatever it is you want to experience from seeing the best of Athens in a morning stroll, learning how to cook mouthwatering Greek recipes with the help of a food expert, discovering the Zorba inside you and learning the steps of your favorite Greek dance or exploring mythology traces throughout the city, Greeking.me offers inspiring packages or even the opportunity to design a completely hands-on personalized vacation just the way you like it. Needless to say that the holidays can be booked online through the user-friendly booking system, in just 4 easy steps.
Morning Strolls: See the best of Athens in a morning walk full of surprises and contradictions.
Night Crawlers: Athens by night is more attractive than by day!
Greeking.me is launching a campaign at Indiegogo, the crowdfunding and fundraising website, where users can support the project while having the opportunity to win amazing gifts! These are some great traditional greek products, such as Bariamis greek delights, Oreanthi herbal tea, Fisika soaps, Meraki herbal herbs and The Family Beez organic raw honey. Of course, there will be many discount vouchers for Greeking.me experiences for those that will support the crowdfunding campaign.
To stop being a tourist and start becoming an explorer, visit the newly launched website: Greeking.me and book your tailor-made dreamy vacation today!
Samos island resident Manolis Marg captured this striking image of surf spraying the Pythagoras sculpture on the seafront at Pythagorion
Winter wallop: Just before this weekend, I was jealously viewing photos of sunny Greek island beach and village scenes that local residents and business operators had been sharing on social media. Weather reports showing temperatures in the mid to high teens (Celsius) made me even more envious. Until today. When I logged into my blog’s Facebook page this afternoon, the photos and posts in my news feed were telling a completely different story — severe winds and heavy rain were lashing many of the Aegean islands as a ferocious winter storm surged across Greece.
Despite the gale-force winds, some hardy residents of Agathonisi, Samos and Rhodes ventured outdoors to capture dramatic photos of waves and stormy skies at their respective islands.
Waves damaged the seafront at Ornos beach on Mykonos
On Mykonos, a local restaurant owner stayed inside his vehicle to shoot photos of flooded roads, wave debris on the Ornos bay seafront, and boats that had been ripped from their moorings and tossed ashore.
The winds were so strong– exceeding force 8 and 9 on the Beaufort scale — that they prevented flights by Aegean Airlines and Ryanair from landing on Rhodes, the Greek news website The Rodiaki reported. Rough seas forced the cancellation of shipping and ferry services to many islands as well.
And this was just the beginning of even worse weather expected nationwide for the next several days. In a separate report, The Rodiaki said many parts of Greece can expect cold to freezing temperatures by Monday, along with continuing strong winds, while some regions of the mainland can expect snowfalls.
Winter storms struck Greece same time last year
Coincidentally, it’s almost exactly one year ago that brutal winter weather struck Greece, dumping snow on some of the Cyclades islands (see my Snow scenes from the Cyclades post for winter storm photos from islands including Andros, Tinos, Naxos, Milos and Paros).
But, as always, the islanders aren’t letting bad weather get them down. On its Facebook page, Super Paradise beach observed: “No winter lasts forever. Mykonos awaits.” And the Mykonos Palace Hotel posted this quote from W.R. Alger: “After every storm the sun will smile; for every problem there is a solution, and the soul’s indefeasible duty is to be of good cheer.” Good points indeed — there’s only 154 more days until summer!
Please click here or on the link beneath the next picture to turn to page 2 of this post, where you can view storm photos from Samos, Mykonos, Agathonisi and Rhodes.
A flooded road in the Ornos beach area of Mykonos is seen in this photograph shot by Sikiniotis Lefteris, who owns the Apaggio restaurant at Ornos. Several more of his photos, showing wave damage on the Ornos bay seashore, can be seen on page 2 of this post.
Marvellous mountain & coastal scenery plays a starring role in Kalymnos, an exhilarating rock climbing video that film maker Kieran Duncan shot on the rugged Dodecanese island last year
— Updated June 2 2021 with a link to a Kalymnos rock climbing guide —
Sheer excitement: I’ve had Kalymnos on my mind all week after watching a splendid short video that was shot on the island by Kieran Duncan, an adventurous film maker from Scotland.
Duncan’s nearly 4-minute-long film follows four young Scots who visit Kalymnos to test their skills at climbing some of its world-famous mountain cliffs and rock formations. Besides exhilarating and spine-tingling scenes of the lads scaling perilously steep rock walls, the film showcases the island’s marvellous mountain and coastal scenery, and gives viewers an impression of what it’s actually like to drive around the island. It also includes underwater scenes from a scuba diving session, and shows several spectacular sunsets.
I haven’t set foot on Kalymnos yet, but I have seen parts of its coast as well as its main port town, Pothia, during a ferry ride from Kos to Patmos in 2010. At the time, I knew little about the island, apart from being vaguely aware of its long and storied history of sponge diving. I later learned that Kalymnos is nowadays more noteworthy as a challenging rock climbing destination for adventure sports enthusiasts from around the world.
I haven’t done any rock climbing since I was a kid, and wouldn’t plan a holiday in Greece just to give it another try. But after discovering Duncan’s film earlier this week, I couldn’t get the captivating Kalymnos scenery out of my head. From quick online research, I Iearned that the island offers excellent hiking opportunities in addition to its popular climbing, diving and water sports activities. Since my partner and I are avid Greek island walkers, this information instantly made Kalymnos even more appealing as a destination for us to include on a future island-hopping trip in the Dodecanese.
This photo, from the Kalymnos page of the Discover Greece website, captures quintessential Greek island scenery — the deep blue sea, a beach, a village, mountains and a blue-domed church
“4 pale Scots went to Greece in search of some world class rock climbing, but found so much more!” he wrote. “The island’s incredible presence, locals, food, scenery, and adventurous opportunities make it one of my favourite destinations yet. I hope this film will inspire you to check it out, you won’t regret it!”
Duncan’s film has certainly encouraged me to consider travelling to Kalymnos sometime. If his video has similarly inspired you, here are a few websites to bookmark for future reference and trip planning assistance:
♦ Kalymnos — The real island experience is the official tourist website operated by the Municipality of Kalymnos. It features dozens of photos along with helpful information about the island’s history, arts and culture, traditional products, places to visit, and sports activities.
♦ Kalymnos Info is a travel guide loaded with details about activities, accommodations, dining, excursions, transportation, and more.
♦ Climb Kalymnos is an excellent online resource and practical guide for rock climbing enthusiasts, with a climbing route database and regular news updates.
♦ Kalymnos Climbing is a commercial site that offers guided rock climbing and climbing courses on Kalymnos. It has a dedicated section describing available hiking and trekking holidays on the island.
♦ The Kalymnos page on the Discover Greece travel portal lists island highlights and must-see attractions, and includes a number of beautiful photos.
♦ Diving the Skafandro suit, by Sandra Hendrikse and André Merks, is a fascinating article about the rise and decline of the island’s historic sponge fishing business.
A mountain looms large behind Pothia, the main port of Kalymnos island. I snapped this photo during a brief ferry stop in May 2010, when we were travelling from Kos to Patmos.
