Tag: Athens International Airport

“I’m an Athenian too” campaign lets visitors show the world what they love about Athens

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This Discover Greece video shows how its “I’m An Athenian Too” campaign lets Athens visitors stamp their personal “Athenian identity” on their favourite travel photos to share with the world — and possibly win them a trip back to Greece. Click on the arrow to watch the video.

 

 

Be an Athenian: It happens every time one of our holidays in Greece comes to a close: I’m at Athens International Airport, waiting for our flight home to Canada, yet part of me feels like Athens is a home I’m about to leave behind. It’s an intense, heart-felt emotion that gets even stronger if I start reviewing vacation photos on my camera in the departure lounge to pass time before boarding the plane.

The people who promote tourism to Greece understand that millions of other tourists feel exactly the same way, so they have created a clever new promotional campaign that invites Athens visitors to show the whole world what they love about the fabulous Greek capital city — using their own holiday photos.

Called “I’m An Athenian Too,” the campaign is an initiative of Discover Greece, conducted in collaboration with Athens International Airport.

The promotional program is based on a smartphone app that “lets you express the Athenian inside you” by sharing personal travel photos on social media. Users simply download the special app from the I’m An Athenian website, choose one of their favourite Athens photos, and then select a hand-drawn stamp to apply to the image to describe how it captures their feelings for the city. When they share their stamped photo on social media, the picture will automatically appear in the campaign, and their name will be entered into a contest to win great prizes, including trips for two to Athens.

 I'm An Athenian Too

This image from the I’m An Athenian Too campaign shows some of the hand-drawn stamps that contest participants can attach to the Athens travel photos they plan to post and share on social media

 

 If you’ve been to Athens and want to enter the contest, click here to obtain further details and to download the app.

For those of you who haven’t been to Athens before, here are some photos from the I’m An Athenian Too campaign that just might inspire you to book a trip to this amazing historic city:

 I'm An Athenian Too

Three must-see Athens landmarks include the world-famous Acropolis and Parthenon plus Lycabettus Hill (upper right)

  I'm An Athenian Too

A vine-shaded passageway in the National Garden, my favourite place to visit when I want a break from the hustle and bustle of downtown Athens. The 15-hectare National Garden is a tranquil oasis of parks, gardens and ponds located directly behind the Greek Parliament Building in Central Athens.

 I'm An Athenian Too

The lanes, alleys and streets of the historical Plaka neighbourhood are packed with delightful cafes, bars, tavernas and shops

 I'm An Athenian Too

Besides its energetic city core filled with museums, galleries, historic ruins, shops and restaurants, Athens boasts an amazing natural attraction — the Athenian Riviera, an extensive coastline dotted with beautiful parks, footpaths, beaches, marinas, restaurants, nightclubs, and spectacular scenery.

 

2board summer issue features food guide, hotel profiles + tour ideas for Athens & Chania

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2board Magazine Gastro Guide

The July–September issue of 2board magazine features a gastronomy guide, suggested tours for Athens and Chania, and profiles of top boutique hotels

 

 Tons of great tips: If you’re passing through Athens International Airport anytime this month, be sure to grab a copy of the July–September issue of 2board magazine while you’re in the terminal.

The 212-page glossy publication is packed full of useful travel tips about hotels, restaurants, and attractions at a variety of destinations — information that could come in handy during your current travels in Greece, or for planning a future holiday.

2board is the official magazine of the Athens airport. Copies are available free of charge from magazine racks situated at various locations in the terminal building.

I always find a wealth of interesting information, travel ideas and helpful research material in 2board, and this summer’s edition is no exception. In fact, it’s one of the better issues, content-wise, that I’ve seen. (And, as always, it’s packed with photos of luxurious resorts, villas and restaurants I can only dream about visiting someday … but it’s still great fun to imagine what it would be like seeing these places and photographing them with my own camera.)

 

Gastro Guide to 10 top restaurants

Foodies will want to flip directly to page 21 for 2board‘s “Gastro Guide to Greece,” which profiles “Ten restaurants that do not simply dish up Greek high gastronomy, they consistently take it one step further.”

The guide highlights two acclaimed restaurants on Mykonos, three on Santorini, one each on the islands of Corfu, Crete and Rhodes, and two on the Greek mainland — one at Preveza and another in Halkidiki:

Etrusco at Kato Korakiana on Corfu;

♦ Old Mill at the Elounda Mare Hotel at Elounda on Crete;

♦ The Squirrel, one of the restaurants at Danai Beach Resort & Villas in Halkidiki;

♦ the dining room at Bill & Coo Suites & Lounge above Megali Ammos beach on Mykonos;

♦ the brand new White Star at Lakka Square in Mykonos Town;

♦ the restaurant at SESA Boutique Hotel at Kanali beach in Preveza;

♦ The Greek, a new dining room at the Sheraton Rhodes Resort on Rhodes;

♦ Selene in Pyrgos village on Santorini;

♦ Sea Side by Notos at Santorini’s Perivolos beach; and

♦ the dining room at the Grace Santorini hotel in Imerovigli.

The Gastro Guide includes full-page photos of the respective restaurants’ chefs and some of their tantalizing creations, along with suggestions of signature dishes to try if you get the opportunity to dine at one of these fine establishments. A word of warning: don’t read this article on an empty stomach, because the stunning food photos and descriptions of the unique dishes will instantly make you feel hungry!

 

Facebook page photo of the dining terrace at The Squirrel restaurant

The seaside dining terrace at The Squirrel restaurant in the Danai Beach Resort & Villas in Halkidiki. The photo is from the Danai Beach Resort Facebook page.

 Please click on the 2 in the link below to continue reading this report.

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SkyGreece now listed on signs at Athens airport … but still no news on flights to North America

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SkyGreece airlines

SkyGreece Airlines posted this photo on its Facebook page today, announcing that its name was just added to signage at Athens International Airport

 

 

Sign of things to come?: SkyGreece Airlines is one step closer to commencing flights — its name was added to signage on the departures level of Athens International Airport today, in preparation for tomorrow’s launch of charter service to Stockholm.

The photo shown above was posted on the SkyGreece Facebook page at what was lunchtime for the four North American cities to which it is supposed to eventually offer service — Montreal and Toronto in Canada, and New York and Chicago in the United States.

The photo was accompanied by the comment: “Officially today our sign went up at Athens International Airport,” but no further information was provided about possible schedules or fares.

The upstart airline’s last news release had been posted March 31 on its Facebook page, announcing that it had submitted documentation required to obtain all necesssary licences and permits from the American and Canadian Civil Aviation Authorities. It added that, “in order to respect the American and Canadian Civil Aviation procedures,” SkyGreece would not issue any further press releases until all required licences had been obtained.

Hours after posting the sign photo to its Facebook page today, SkyGreece added a post confirming that it will operate on a charter service basis until it secures the necessary legal paperwork to begin flying to North America, and will not comment further until that happens.

 

Charter service to Scandinavia, Eritrea and Somalia

The latest post drew swift reaction on social media, quickly receiving hundreds of “likes” and dozens of comments on Facebook.

In one comment, a Facebook member said: “First flight out tomorrow departing at 17:00 hours from Athens to Stockholm, Sweden! Routes will be as of June to / from Asmara – Eritrea, Mogadishu – Somalia, Stockholm – Sweden and London Gatwick – UK. Hope to see some more coming in soon. Good luck!

I thought the remark about flights to Africa was just a joke, but the fellow who posted the comment said he wasn’t kidding.

The US and Canada will be coming in at some point, as I gather once the permits have been granted from their Civil Aviation Authorities. It’s not so easy when one is new and wants to come in and have some of that pie that has been enjoyed all this time by Delta, US Air, Air Transat and Air Canada. I think we just need to be a little patient,” he said.

 

First flight to Stockholm on June 19

The Greek Air News Facebook page subsequently posted a photo of the sole SkyGreece airplane along with a statement confirming that the airline’s first commercial flight will indeed be to Stockholm, at 17:00 on June 19.

The airline SkyGreece signed a cooperation agreement with the Swedish Tour Operator Flyolympic.Se and on account of it flies in Europe, Africa and Asia,” an English translation of  the Greek Air News post indicates. “SkyGreece will perform and flights from – to Athens-London (Gatwick)-Stockholm (Arlanda)-Asmara (Eritrea)-Mogadishu (Somalia) For more information and ticket reservations, you can visit the official website www.flyolympic.se or FlyOlympic to your travel agent. Good start SkyGreece!!” the translated post concludes.

So perhaps there is a huge demand for flights between Greece and Mogadishu after all. Nevertheless, I’m hopeful SkyGreece will soon be able to announce fares and flights to North America — if their prices are competitive and their flight dates are decent, I would consider them for a return trip to Greece later this summer.

I previously reported on SkyGreece in posts published on the blog on March 25 2014, January 10 2014, and June 25 2013. Click on the links for each of those reports to see photos and obtain more information about SkyGreece Airlines. And stay tuned for further updates.

 

What I don’t like to see in Greece …

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Athens International Airport I

… is one of the entrances to the departures level of Athens International Airport, since it means another Greek holiday is coming to an end. Unfortunately, we had to pass through these doors yesterday to catch a flight home after yet another stellar vacation in Greece. You’ll be hearing more about the time we spent on Naxos and Syros islands, as well as in Athens, in the weeks ahead.

 

 

New city discount card spotlights big savings at Athens shops, restaurants & cultural attractions

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Athens Spotlighted discount city card

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.

 

 

Sleek new Athens International Airport website is a cool & inviting digital travel gateway to Greece

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Athens International Airport new website announcement

Athens International Airport new website announcement by the site’s creator, Mozaik Integrated Digital Marketing Agency

 

 

Digital travel: Athens International Airport has launched a striking new website that helps enhance the airport experience for travellers and establishes an impressive “digital travelling gateway” to Greece for business and leisure visitors alike.

Designed by Mozaik  Integrated Digital Marketing Agency, the sharp-looking new website is clean, crisp and easy to navigate, offering quick-to-find information about virtually everything any traveller might need to know about the airport’s services and facilities — and how and where to find them.

From real-time flight arrival and departures to airport access and transportation services, from corporate and business information to guides to duty free shops and tourism services, the website has it all — in a fun and dynamic presentation that features vivid time-lapse videoclips of scenes from the airport and Athens area.

 

One of the Athens airport website's time-lapse videos shows a dramatic sunset scene at Cape Sounion

This screen capture from the new Athens International Airport website shows one of the time-lapse video sequences that greets online visitors. This particular clip shows part of a dramatic sunset scene at spectacular Cape Sounion.

 

 

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2012 Greek holiday trip report: Mykonos Part 1

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Air Transat logo

Air Transat logo on a winglet of the Airbus jet that flew me from Toronto to Athens

 

My Mykonos, Paros and Attica/Glyfada trip report

 

What follows is an edited and significantly expanded version of a trip report I posted on TripAdvisor.com shortly after returning from my holiday in Greece this past spring. I have added more extensive details to the text, and have included dozens of photographs to illustrate the report.

 

Sunday May 13: Flight from Toronto to Athens

I flew Air Transat, the Canadian charter airline I have flown on all of my trips to Greece. The flight was about two-thirds full when it left Toronto just past lunchtime on Sunday May 13. It stopped in Montreal for 90 minutes to collect more passengers and load the food and beverage carts for our 9-hour overnight flight to Athens. During the stopover, a flight attendant told a passenger sitting behind me that, with the additional passengers from Montreal, the flight was nearly full. (On all of my previous flights to Greece, except one, we flew direct to Athens; this year, Air Transat’s May flights stopped in Montreal because fewer people were travelling to Greece at the time and there wasn’t enough passenger demand to justify direct flights from both cities.)

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