MyGreeceTravelBlog.com
Photos & memories from our trips to Athens, the Peloponnese, mainland Greece & Greek Islands — plus profiles of places we would love to visit

Paradise Club owners saying goodbye after 10 years of making party history on Mykonos

This banner was posted on the Paradise Club Facebook page March 16

End of an era: The owners of Paradise Club, one of the biggest and most popular party places on Mykonos, are bidding adieu to their business.

In a post to the club’s Facebook page on Monday March 16, Thomas Heyne and Mario Hertel announced they are saying goodbye after entertaining hundreds of thousands of people from around the world at the famous Paradise Beach nightspot.

“Dear Friends: After 10 years and another phenomenal season in 2014 we announce our decision to say goodbye to Paradise Club Mykonos. We want to thank everyone who supported us in the last 10 years! Whats next? Stay tuned, we´re excited to announce our new project very soon! See you in Mykonos!” Heyne and Hertel say in their Facebook post.

Paradise Club has been one of the top party venues in the Mediterranean and in the world; last year, it was ranked #20 on the DJ Mag list of the Top 100 clubs in the world. DJ Mag has also rated it as “one of the 7 best clubs by the sea.” Many of the world’s most popular DJs have appeared at Paradise Club over the last decade.

Fans mistakenly feared club was shut down

The announcement did not indicate if the Paradise Club venue has been sold to someone else who will continue to operate it as a party club, or if Heyne and Hertel’s new project will be opening in the space instead. That sparked a torrent of Facebook posts from club fans expressing shock, dismay and disappointment at the news. Many assumed the announcement meant Paradise Club had closed its doors for good, throwing a wrench into their party plans for summer vacations they have already scheduled.

However, on Tuesday March 17 a post on another Paradise Club Facebook page announced that the venue will host its grand opening party on Wednesday May 20, indicating that the venue will continue to operate without Heyne and Hertel at the helm. The post also said the summer’s DJ lineup “is full of your favorite stars & will be announced soon. Get ready for summer 2015. It’s gonna be mad!!!”

I thought something might be in the works with the club since, for the past several months, its website has redirected visitors to the site for the San Giorgio Hotel, which Heyne and Hertel also own.

I will update this report once I hear any news about what Heyne and Hertel’s new venture will be.

Click here to see my list of Mykonos parties and special events that have already been announced for the spring and summer of 2015.

March 16, 2015
Majestic Meteora

Although Vimeo member TKYSSTD produced Meteora: Six Monasteries on the Rocks just for editing “practice,” I was blown away by the video’s breathtaking bird’s eye views of Meteora’s remarkable scenery

Since we’re big fans of island vacations, we haven’t travelled much on mainland Greece yet. Besides several stays in Athens and its beach suburbs of Glyfada and Voula, our exposure to the mainland has been limited mainly to the city and to places along or near the Athenian Riviera as far as Cape Sounion. We do plan to venture farther afield, though, and are considering some mainland destinations for our upcoming Greek holiday in May.

One of the places I’d love to see is Meteora, famous for its soaring rock “towers” crowned with monasteries originally constructed in the 16th Century.

Although photos of the stunning Meteora landscape have fascinated me for years, I didn’t make an effort to get there because I was under the impression it was an area to see only for a couple of hours on an organized bus tour — and I personally can’t stand travelling on a tour coach. I suppose that hearing about Meteora only from travellers who had seen it on a quick coach tour or a during a brief stop on a driving holiday didn’t make me more motivated to go.

A Visit Greece Flickr photo of a monastery at Meteora

But when I stumbled upon the Visit Meteora website and discovered the variety of excursions available in the area (including sunset tours), as well as activities like hiking, mountain biking, horseback riding and rafting, I realized it was time to keep Meteora in mind for one of our future holidays.

Seeing the Meteora: Six Monasteries on the Rocks video that I posted above got me even more interested. I started Googling for more information about Meteora, and thought I’d share links to some of the websites I found in case any of my readers might be interested in visiting Meteora sometime, too.

Websites with Meteora photos and travel info

Some of the links are for commercial tour or travel sites, while others are for personal blogs or travel journals. All contain lots of interesting and helpful information as well as photos.

Meteora-Greece.com offers a quick overview of the area, travel directions, general information and a few photos.

Visit Meteora is the destination marketing travel portal I mentioned earlier. It’s is packed with information about daytrips, tours, transfers, accommodations, activities, restaurants, and more.

Sacred Destinations offers an illustrated ecumenical guide to the six remaining Meteora monasteries.

AirPano features a 360-degree virtual tour along with a gallery of superb photos posted in June 2014 by Stas Sedov, Dmitry Moiseenko and Mike Reyfman.

Communicating with the Gods in Meteora, Greece is a lively photo-illustrated account of a July visit by New Zealand-based travel enthusiast Liz, who writes the widely-followed Young Adventuress blog.

The Wonder that is Meteora is an illustrated and highly-detailed personal travel journal describing a 4-day trip to Meteora from Athens back in 2003.

Last but not least, the Greek language version of Trivago’s Checkin blog features a number of insightful articles about Meteora. It’s part of a project in which Trivago and the Visit Meteora website are promoting Meteora as a top destination for religious tourism.

A photo from the Visit Meteora travel site, which offers a variety of daytrips and organized tours to the historic area in Central Greece

March 15, 2015
New luxury design hotel to open in historic center of Athens

An image from the AthensWas Hotel Facebook page. The hotel is expecting to open its doors in early April.

New digs: A new “luxury design” hotel is preparing to open its doors next month on one of the top tourist thoroughfares in the historic center of Athens — the Dionysiou Areopagitou pedestrian walkway below the Acropolis.

The AthensWas Hotel is scheduled to open April 2. It’s the newest hospitality venture of the Anemi Hotels Group, which operates the luxury Anemi Hotel near Karavostassi port on Folegandros island.

AthensWas will occupy a completely refurbished neoclassical building at 5 Dionysiou Areopagitou, a pedestrian street that passes such iconic attractions as the Acropolis, the Parthenon, and the Odeon of Herodes Atticus in the heart of the city’s monument-rich Ancient Athens district. The walkway — which is a hugely popular strolling route for Athenians as well as tourists — starts near Hadrian’s Arch and continues past the entrance to the Acropolis, where it becomes Apostolou Pavlou Street. From there it winds over to Ermou Street in the Monastiraki neighbourhood. (Click here to read a Visit Greece tourism article that provides more information about the pedestrian walkway and the attractions nearby.)

Launch date announced by sister hotel in Folegandros

AthensWas Hotel quietly launched its Facebook page in February, but that contains only the hotel address, telephone number, and the image I posted above, which appears to be the reception lobby. Two days ago, the Anemi Hotel Facebook page announced that AthensWas will be opening April 2, and provided a link to the new AthensWas website, which includes photos and details of the features for its various rooms, suites, and facilities.

According to the website, the hotel’s lobby lounge restaurant will feature “traditional flavours from Greece, the rest of the Mediterranean, and Asia, but all of them remastered to chime with the concept of ‘all-day modern comfort food.’” Guests will enjoy “truly astounding” views from the rooftop bar and restaurant terrace, which will be open from May through October, weather permitting. “The Acropolis looks more magnificent from up here than from anywhere else, because it looks like it might through a magnifying glass,” the website says. The hotel will have a fitness room, meeting room and business center as well.

Contact hotel for special opening offers

A banner on the website says “special launch rates” are now being offered; however, no further details are provided, and clicking on a “book now” button simply opens a contact form through which requests for further details may be sent directly to the hotel.

I emailed the hotel to request more information plus any available media photos of the hotel exterior, but I have not yet heard back. I will update this post when and if AthensWas does respond to my message.

Click here to visit the AthensWas website.

This image, from the AthensWas website, shows one of the suite interiors

The AthensWas Hotel location is marked with the red symbol on this map from Google. The Acropolis, one of the world’s top historic and archaeological attractions, is shown in the upper left quarter of the map.

March 12, 2015
Jason Paul takes island hopping to a higher level on Santorini

Click the arrow to watch Jason Paul and his GoPro camera show you Santorini like you’ve never seen it before!

Jump to it: Santorini is one of the most popular island hopping destinations in Greece, drawing hundreds of thousands of visitors each year (some websites say it’s more than a million) to marvel at its incomparable scenery and explore its picturesque clifftop villages.

But almost all of those tourists experience the fabled island from either ground or sea level — walking and riding in vehicles, or viewing the sights from a sailboat, tour boat or cruise ship.

Then there are people like professional freerunner Jason Paul who are left breathless by seeing Santorini from a completely different perspective — jumping from the tops of its charming churches and chapels, belltowers and whitewashed houses.

Of course, it’s not the traditional way to island hop in Greece (and I’m certain the locals hope it doesn’t become widely popular), but it sure is a heck of a lot of fun to watch — and exhilarating to see Santorini in a way very few people ever will.

If you happen to be visiting Santorini this fall, you just might get to see some of the world’s top freerunners in flight — since 2011, the annual Red Bull Art of Motion competition has been held on the island on a specific weekend in either September or October. The Red Bull website doesn’t yet show if another event will be held at Santorini this autumn, but you can view photos and videos from the 2013 competition in my post Flipping over Firostefani in the meantime.

March 12, 2015
A splendid Naxos sunset

Naxos resident Manolis Lykouropoulos captured this mesmerizing image of drama in the sky during sunset on March 5. If Manolis’s name seems familiar, that’s because I recently posted his terrific shot of the Temple of Apollo on Naxos during a vicious winter wind storm. You can see that photo in my February 14 report More weather woes as wind & waves thrash the Greek Islands. It’s the second picture from the top of the post.

March 9, 2015
Marathi: a get-away-from-it-all Greek Island

This was my first view — from a ferry — of the serene bay on Marathi where the tiny island’s restaurants and rental rooms are located …

… while this is a view of the bay from the taverna terrace at Stavragos, one of only three places where people can eat and stay while visiting Marathi (photo from a Stavragos group page on Facebook).

Island escape: Sometimes when I’m feeling overwhelmed and stressed by city life — the crowded streets and sidewalks, incessant urban noise, construction all around and illuminated advertising signs everywhere I look — I daydream about getting away from it all on a remote Greek island few people know about. Somewhere like Marathi.

A tiny isle situated about 12 nautical miles east of Patmos in the Dodecanese island group, Marathi is off the beaten tourist path and free from crowds, traffic, noise and light pollution. According to Kalispera Greece, the English-language version of a Swedish website about Greece, it’s an ideal spot for someone seeking a Robinson Crusoe-style escape from the demands of contemporary urban life.

That’s because there simply isn’t much there — just “three tavernas, three pensions, two jetties, one cemetery, one tiny church, a few goats and a pretty nice sandy beach. There are no shops, no cars, no scooters, no villages and no roads,” Kalispera Greece says.

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There aren’t many people, either. A recently-published travel article on the website for the UK newspaper The Telegraph called Marathi one of Greece’s 11 least populated islands, with only 12 residents in summertime and just 3 during the winter.

No crowds? No traffic? No bright digital ads? No noise besides birdsong, crowing roosters and jingling goat bells? It sounds idyllic to me, and in online holiday reviews many Marathi visitors have used the word “paradise” to describe the island.

A hilltop view of the Marathi bay and nearby Arki island. (Image from the website for The Pirate Rooms and Taverna on Marathi.)

Side view of the Marathi bay in another photo from the public Facebook group page for Stavragos Taverna and Rooms

I haven’t stayed on Marathi yet, but I have been enthralled by the dream of enjoying some quality rest and relaxation there after getting a brief glimpse of the isle nearly five years ago.

We were riding the Nissos Kalymnos ferry from Patmos to Samos at the time. The ship had just stopped at the island of Arki, and I was on the open deck enjoying the scenery as we headed to the next port of call, Agathonisi. As we passed a crescent-shaped bay with a sandy beach on Marathi, I spotted several people watching us from a vine-sheltered terrace at what I assumed was either a private vacation home or a holiday rental villa. I felt a tinge of envy, imagining how restful it must have been for those people if a ferry sailing past once a day was one of the few interruptions to the island’s prevailing peace and tranquillity.

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Several weeks later, when I was organizing photos I had shot during the ferry ride, I couldn’t stop looking at my pictures of the Marathi beach and bay. I wanted to learn more about the island and, a few Google searches later, discovered that I had photographed Stavragos, one of only three properties on Marathi with a taverna and rooms for rent.

Click on the link below to view additional photos and read more about Marathi on page 2 of this post.

When I saw this building from the ferry, I thought it was a private vacation home. It’s actually rental accommodations and an excellent restaurant — Stavragos Taverna and Rooms. It has four rooms for rent, and serves seafood and home-cooked Greek cuisine at its seaview garden terrace.

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March 9, 2015
5 Greek Island gems

Guest post by Katrina Hinrichsen

Depending on how you judge the minimum size of an island, there are between 1,200 to 6,000 individual Greek islands. Together they make up one of the most stunning and popular destinations in the entire world. They are frequented by everyone from casual travellers to celebrities to perhaps, even, the gods as well! With so many islands to choose from, how will you decide which ones are the best to visit?

I have selected a handful of Greek island gems that will promise an amazing and unique range of views and activities for you to to discover and enjoy.

Gaios, Paxos Island

Harbour view of Gaios Town on Paxos. This photo, by Bogdan Giuşcă, appears on the Wikipedia entry for the Paxi group of islands in the Ionian Sea

If you’re on the hunt for a truly relaxing holiday, Paxos is one of your best bets! The island has a charming collection of small bays, lush green hills and lovely beaches. The star attraction, however may be the port area near the capital town Gaios, as it is one of the best looking settings in the whole of Greece! Why not hire a boat ride and sunbathe on the deck or take in the sights of the handsome town? You could travel from the port to Gaios and visit the Water Planet dive centre, where an experienced instructor will help you learn how to scuba dive and explore some of the island’s underwater caves. The centre has an excellent rating; you can have a look at the positive reviews here.

Paxos is also home to a number of cultural traditions, including its annual summer ‘Water and Oil’ festival which celebrates folk music. In addition to tapping your toes to some music, people attending the festival will also get to enjoy the custom dishes of potatoes, olives, onions, water and wine. If you like the sound of wine, (and who doesn’t!) then we recommend a visit to the island Antipaxos, Paxos’ neighbour. There you will be able to sample some of the best local wine, all in front of beautiful scenery and the glimmering blue sea.

Interesting fact: Paxos Island was said to be a love sanctuary for the god of the Sea, Poseidon, and his lover, Nereid Amphitrite. Sounds like the perfect place to go for a romantic holiday!

Chios Island

A street in Pyrgi village on Chios island is captured in this image by Flickr member Pétille. You can view 37 more excellent photos of the island in Pétille’s Île de Chios album on Flickr.

The kidney-shaped island of Chios is special because it is the only setting in the whole world where mastic trees grow! The trees are used for their fragrant ivory-coloured resin, which is used as a spice. Pyrgi is the biggest village on the island, and was built way back in the Middle Ages. The architecture in the village is worth noting – the surfaces of the buildings have geometric patterns artistically scratched onto them by plasterers. In Mesta, a village close to Pyrgi, the stone buildings are positioned so near each other that it is challenging to walk around them, and in fact the locals say that the easiest way to travel about is to climb over the roofs!

Chios Island is a fantastic destination for photographers, journalists, or just interested vacationers to discover somewhere unique among the Greek Islands and wider area. Plus, the inhabitants of the island are warm and personable, so if you’re lucky you could be treated to the local wine, created with grapes and distilled figs.

Interesting fact: Although it is now prized for growing mastic, in Antiquity it was known as Ophioussa (‘snake island’) and Pityoussa (‘pine-tree’ island).

Faliraki, Rhodes Island

Anthony Quinn Bay near Falraki on Rhodes. This photo, by Karelj, originally appeared in the article 5 places to see before they disappear on the Italian-language travel blog JOHO Journey Horizons

Some people may already be familiar with Faliraki, as it can be found on one of the biggest Dodecanese Islands: Rhodes. It is renowned for its long stretch of award-winning sandy beaches. What you may not know, however, is that Faliraki also hosts Europe’s largest water park! This attraction will get the children (and the children at heart) very excited! The fantastic water park has many exhilarating slides and pools for the whole family to enjoy. Can you imagine a lovelier way to cool off from the scorching sun? The tickets cost just over 20 euros for an adult, so your wallet will feel pretty chilled too. If you want to avoid climbing a steep hill to get to the park, I recommend taking a bus or taxi there.

If you are looking for a water activity that is a bit more relaxing, then Anthony Quinn bay in Faliraki is the place for you. It promises exquisite views and beautiful scenery, with pristine waters and charming fish to swim around with. It is a fantastic place to go snorkelling, as the seawater should be warm too.

If you would prefer to stick to dry land from time to time, then Faliraki is also unique among the Greek Islands in what it has to offer. Visitors will be able to appreciate astonishing views of the sparkling seas and stars at its Hipparchos Oservatory and Astronomy Café-bar. This is really one not to miss! Click here to look up where you can stay in the village.

Interesting fact: Anthony Quinn bay was once the backdrop for a number of shots from the movie Guns of Navarone in 1961. Definitely a place that film fans will want to visit!

Skiathos Island

Panoramio member Drosoula P captured this beautiful sunrise from a vantage point at Vasilias beach on Skiathos

Skiathos is home to over 60 of the most gorgeous beaches within the Mediterranean, yet it is still not particularly well-known out of the throng of Greek Islands. This just means that you fortunate travellers will be able to enjoy more of Skiathos to yourself! Mandraki Elias beach is a true utopia, cherished dually as one of the most stunning yet serene beaches of the region. If you fancy kicking back with a cocktail or two, you will be happy to hear that this beach has one of the best bars on the island, and is surrounded by magnificent cliffs of orange sandstone. To get there you can also take a wander through the delightful pine woods.

Another superb, though admittedly more crowded beach is Koukonaries. It is very popular with families as it offers an amazing array of water sports activities. Our favourite sailing trips are with the company Sail the Day as they deliver an enchanting experience on the waters, with expert captains that have a good sense of humour! The exotic island also offers horse-riding, parasailing, trekking and mountain-biking for all you adrenalin junkies!

Interesting fact: In winter the population is around 4,000 people, but in the summer it can amount to 70,000!

Chora, Patmos Island

The imposing Holy Monastery of Saint John the Theologian towers above the mansions of Chora village on Patmos

Patmos Island proposes a different experience to the others in Greece as it is much more of a spiritual haven. The Greek Parliament has called it a ‘Holy Island’ as it is said to be where Saint John composed the Book of Revelation. In the capital Chora you can stopover at the historical museums, churches and monastery to learn more.

The sacred village of Chora is a divine setting for happy snapping, as it has maze-like alleys and charismatic whitewash buildings. Plus, because the village sits at the tallest peak of Patmos, you will be able to admire unbelievable views of the surrounds. As the island is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, it also has a wonderfully tranquil air. Nature fans will appreciate the volcanic soils, clean beaches and sheer cliffs too.

Interesting fact: Patmos Island used to be used by the Romans as a destination of exile because of its steep landscape.

Katrina Hinrichsen is passionate about travel and writing about her experiences. In the last two years she has been to at least 12 European countries, and has spent a lot of time in the past in Asia. She has a bachelor’s degree in English Literature and contributes to professional and personal blogs on Travel, the Arts, Lifestyle and more.

March 8, 2015
Two hot days on Crete

Fodele beach on the north coast of Crete, about 25 km west of Heraklion. It was empty when we were here in 2004, but I’ve seen recent photos showing the beach lined with umbrellas and lounge chairs.

Frostbite flashback: We had perfect hypothermia weather in Toronto today. Although it was gloriously sunny, the outdoor temperature was a frosty minus 24 Celsius — minus 40 with wind chill. My face nearly froze while I was walking outside this afternoon, and for some reason I started remembering our one and only brief visit to Crete back in early June of 2004. Perhaps I was subconsciously trying to warm myself up by thinking about being somewhere hot instead of standing on a city street corner, shivering in the firm grip of a frigid Arctic air mass.

Once back home, I sorted through photos we shot while on Crete. There weren’t many pictures to review, primarily since we had a whirlwind visit of just three nights and two full days. (It didn’t help that a malfunction with my camera’s memory card wiped out dozens of images we did manage to shoot.)

We were in Greece on our first-ever island hopping holiday, a 2-week package tour that took us to Mykonos, Rhodes, Crete, Santorini and Athens. It was a great introduction to Greece, but the Crete segment of our itinerary was way too short and rushed. On an island as vast as Crete, two days gives you time to merely glimpse a few sites and attractions. With a visit so short and hectic, there’s no opportunity to soak up the island’s atmosphere, or to experience the local life and culture. Nevertheless, we felt our fleeting look at the sights and scenery was better than not making it to Crete at all. Next time, we’ll follow the advice of regular Crete visitors who advise spending one, two or more weeks just to explore one specific part of the island.

Click on the link below to continue reading my mini trip report on page 2, where I have posted a few of the photos we shot during our quick stop on Crete.

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February 16, 2015