One of the sunsets we enjoyed watching from a hillside near Vathi on Samos
MyGreeceTravelBlog.com
Photos & memories from our trips to Athens, the Peloponnese, mainland Greece & Greek Islands — plus profiles of places we would love to visit
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New city discount card spotlights big savings at Athens shops, restaurants & cultural attractions
A promotional image for Athens Spotlighted, a city card discount project initiated by Athens International Airport and Athinorama, the Athens city guide magazine
Big savings: Next time you fly into Athens International Airport, there’s something you should be sure to pick up before leaving the terminal (besides your luggage!).
The airport, in partnership with the Athens city guide magazine Athinorama, has launched Athens Spotlighted, a new city discount card program that offers significant savings at participating Athens shops, restaurants, nightclubs, galleries, museums and other cultural attractions.
The discount cards are free, and can be obtained from the Central Information Counter on the arrivals level of the airport terminal.
Savings on food, shopping & entertainment
So far, 22 restaurants are participating in the program, offering either 20% discounts on meals or special menus at special prices. Vassilenas in Piraeus, Kuzina in the Thissio district, Orizontes on Lycabettus Hill, Hytra in the Psirri district, and Aleria in the Metaxourgio area, are among the noteworthy restaurants involved in Athens Spotlighted. Seven different delis and food stores, including the Mastiha Shop in Central Athens, also provide cardholder discounts.
Four major entertainment venues — the Greek National Opera, the Greek National Theatre, the Onassis Cultural Centre and the Pallas Theatre — offer discounts of 15 to 20% on tickets purchased at the box office for each venue.
Nearly 20 major galleries and museums, including the Benaki Museum, the Museum of Cycladic Art, the National Gallery and the National Museum of Contemporary Art, also offer discounts on admission (from 10% to as much as 50%).
Deals for car rentals and city tours
More than 60 shops will provide discounts varying from 10 to 20%, depending upon the establishment, while over three dozen service providers — including car rental agencies, nail and hair salons and spas, and city tour companies — also offer cardholder savings, usually 20%. This includes Athens Walks, the independent local tour company that I personally recommend.
The Athens Spotlighted website contains full details about the program along with a list of participating businesses and attractions that you can download and print from your computer. (The listing includes information about any conditions or restrictions applicable to any product or service provided under the discount card program.)
I’ve made a note to pick up a card when I fly into Athens International Airport in a few weeks’ time. If I do get to use it (I’m not sure if I will be spending time in Athens yet), I’ll report back on my experience.
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New Ionian Islands travel guide available
The cover of The Ionian Islands online travel guide, published by the Greek National Tourism Organisation, features a photo of a sailboat anchored near Navagio beach on Zakynthos (Zante) island
Free download: A new online travel guide for the Ionian Islands is now available from visitgreece.gr, the official website of the Greek National Tourism Organisation (GNTO).
The 88-page guide features maps, useful phone numbers, descriptions of must-see sights and must-do activities on each island, plus dozens of gorgeous full-colour photos. It’s organized into seven separate sections: Corfu, Diapontia Islands, Paxoi, Lefkada, Kefalonia, Ithaca and Zakynthos.
The guide is available in English, German, Italian, Spanish, French and Russian versions. To obtain a copy of the guide, click on this link to the GNTO downloads page, scroll down, and click on the flag that represents the language you prefer.
Don’t be surprised if you start dreaming of a holiday in the Ionians after seeing just the first few pages of the guide! Below are two of the images that appear in the publication. click on each photo to view a fulls-size version.
The Ionian Islands guide credits photographer G. Augoustinatos for this beautiful image of Antisamos on Kefalonia
The gorgeous sky-blue sea off Porto Katsiki beach on Lefkada. The GNTO guide credits this photograph to the Lefkada Prefecture.
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Flipping over Firostefani & cartwheeling above the caldera: Art of Motion event returns to Santorini
The spectacular Santorini caldera scenery provides a breathtaking backdrop for amazing acrobatic maneuvers by freerunners Ryan Doyle and Bartje van der Linden. Extreme photographer Predrag Vuckovic captured the pair in midair action at Andronis Luxury Suites in Oia during a photo shoot to promote this Saturday’s Red Bull Art of Motion 2013 competition
Santorini somersaults: Whenever I book a trip to Greece, I practically bounce off walls with excitement. The thrill of returning to my favourite holiday destination is so strong, I almost have to restrain myself from jumping for joy, shouting from rooftops and turning cartwheels in the street.
Coincidentally, that’s exactly what 18 acrobatic athletes will actually be doing on Santorini this coming Saturday afternoon as they participate in the third annual Red Bull Art of Motion 2013 freerunning championship.
Cheered on by thousands of spectators, the young competitors will jump, flip, roll and hurl themselves over roofs, walls, streets and steps on the cliffside of Firostefani village while a panel of judges scores their tricks, stunts and style.
Freerunning is an artistic offshoot of the sport of parkour. Freerunners, also known as urban body artists, creatively express themselves by running, vaulting, tucking, twisting and rolling over objects in their path — which, in Firostefani, will include a series of whitewashed cliffside hotel buildings, steps, paths and walls.
The Art of Motion event was first held on Santorini in 2011, and a second championship took place last September.
This week, competitors were showing off their stunts and style at photoshoots, demonstration events and qualifying rounds held at various places on the island, including the Andronis Luxury Suites in Oia.
This Red Bull promotional poster illustrates the freerunning course that the Art of Motion competitors will negotiate in Firostefani on Saturday afternoon
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