Tag: Plaka (page 2 of 3)

Our Top 15 reasons to visit Naxos

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The centuries-old Portara monument greets visitors arriving at Naxos by sea

The enormous marble entrance for the never-completed Temple of Apollo greets visitors arriving by sea at Naxos island in the Cyclades.  Also known as the Portara, the monument is an internationally-recognized symbol of Naxos island.

 

Something for everyone: If you’re trying to find a Greek holiday destination that ticks practically every box on even the pickiest traveller’s checklist of “must have’s” and “must see’s,” take a closer look at Naxos.

The largest island in the Cyclades, Naxos is equally big on the number of activities and attractions it offers visitors of all ages and lifestyles. From beautiful beaches to mountain villages; a vibrant port town with an historic castle and Old Market district; monuments, ruins and museums; excellent dining and nightlife; accommodations to suit any budget; walking trails, water sports and mountain biking; stunning scenery and sunsets; plus sightseeing excursions and tours both on and off the island, Naxos has it all.

Whether you’re planning to visit for three days or three weeks, you’ll never run out of things to do — if anything, you’ll probably wind up wishing you had more time to spend on the island.

 

What’s more, Naxos is surprisingly easy on the pocketbook, with reasonable prices for food, accommodations and entertainment.

All those are precisely the reasons why we named Naxos as our Greek Holiday Destination of the Year for 2013 (see our December 31 2013 post for more about that).

Click on the link below to continue reading and to see dozens of photos that illustrate our Top 15 reasons to visit Naxos, including:

♦ Ease of getting to the island;

♦ Wide range of accommodation options;

♦ Suitability for travellers of all ages and holiday lifestyles;

♦ Its fascinating main town, built below a medieval castle;

♦ Dozens of beautiful mountain villages and seaside settlements;

♦ Historic archaeological sites, monuments and museums;

♦ An extensive array of places to eat delicious local specialties and Greek cuisine;

♦ Hiking, adventure sports and recreation opportunities galore;

♦ Spectacular scenery and sunsets;

♦ Cultural events, entertainment and nightlife;

♦ Fantastic beaches;

♦ Shopping and local products;

♦ Good local transportation services;

♦ Friendly residents

♦ Tours and boat excursions to other nearby islands

 

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Pic of the day: A street in Athens’ Plaka district

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a street in Athens Plaka district

An elegantly styled building adds a graceful curve to the corner of Apollonas and Mpenizelou Streets in the Plaka District of Athens. The Naomi Furs showroom occupies the building’s street-level premises at 4 Mpenizelou Street.

 

Warming up with some Naxos beach memories

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Agios Prokopios beach Naxos

Looking across the brilliant turquoise sea as waves softly break against the sand at Agios Prokopios beach on Naxos

 

Feeling the chill: Clouds. Wind. Rain. That pretty much sums up the dreary, depressing weather we’ve been experiencing here in Toronto since late October, when Hurricane Sandy started moving out of the Caribbean on its way to wallop the USA’s eastern seaboard. We were supposed to see a mix of sun and clouds on Sunday, Monday and again today, but the sunshine didn’t last for more than a few minutes. So you can imagine how envious I felt this morning when a friend in Athens bragged about being on her way to the beach because it was a balmy 29 degrees (Celsius).

At the time, I was sorting through photos from our visits to Naxos in 2005 and 2006, looking at pictures of some of the island’s beautiful beaches. Just out of curiosity, I checked the weather for Naxos. The island wasn’t getting the same blast of heat as Athens, but the temperature was still a summery 24 C.  Meanwhile, we were shivering with a high of only 2 C.

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Looking up … and looking down at Plaka village, the mountaintop capital of Milos island

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Plaka village on Milos

This is how the village of Plaka, the charming mountaintop capital of Milos, appears when viewed from a sailboat in the Gulf of Milos …

 

Plaka village on Milos

… and this is how Plaka looks when viewed from the white Kastro church at the top of the mountain peak that towers above the village. Several mountains, including the 748-meter Profitis Ilias, rise across the Gulf on the west side of Milos.

 

Utopia Cafe: The best spot to have a drink and watch the sunset on Milos island

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sunset view from Utopia Cafe Milos

Sunset viewing from the Utopia Café patio in Plaka village on Milos

 

Superb sunset views: We’ve seen dozens of spectacular sunsets in Greece, but there are a few that we still remember as though we had seen them only yesterday. Watching the sunset from at Utopia Café on Milos in 2007 is one of them.

I had read about Utopia Café in the Greece travel forum on TripAdvisor.com long before we decided to visit Milos; someone had recommended it as a great spot to enjoy a cocktail or a glass of wine while watching the sun set.

During our first trip to Milos in September 2007, we stayed in the port town, Adamas, but spent a day exploring the area around the mountaintop villages of Plaka and Tripiti. We happened to be wandering through the narrow streets of Plaka just as the sun started to go down and, when I saw a sign pointing the way to Utopia Café, I recalled the comments I had read online. We decided to go for a drink and watch the sunset before finding a taverna for dinner.

 

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Greece holiday pic of the day

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Plaka view toward western Milos

Gulf of Milos and western Milos viewed from the mountain village of Plaka

 

 

Greece holiday pic of the day

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Sunset viewing on Milos

Enjoying cocktails and a brilliant sunset at Utopia Bar in Plaka on Milos

 

 

Things I love about Greece: Waking up to gorgeous views at hotels in the Greek Islands (Part 6)

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Tinos island viewed from Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

The swimming pool terrace at Hotel Tagoo on Mykonos offers this view of Tinos island, a short ferry ride from the tip of Mykonos (right)

 

Oia Santorini viewed from Hotel Hermes on Ios

On a clear day, we could see the whitewashed clifftop buildings of the renowned Santorini village of Oia from our balcony at Hermes Hotel on Ios

 

Halara Studios in Plaka on Milos

Our terrace at Halara Studios in Plaka, on Milos, gave us this sweeping view of the Gulf of Milos and mountains on the western half of the island.

 

Three islands, three hotels, three superb views: Last month, our 2011 Greek Island holiday took us back to a favourite hotel on an island we have visited more times than any other place in the world; a different hotel on an island we visited back in 2007; and a hotel on an island we had previously seen only from a ferry. All three gave us superb views.

On Mykonos, we stayed at Hotel Tagoo for the third time in as many visits. We’ve been to Mykonos so often I can practically picture the views with my eyes closed, and I also never forget the scenery from the balconies and public areas at Hotel Tagoo. (If you’ve been following my posts about Greek Islands hotel views, you’ve already seen numerous pictures showing the wonderful views from Hotel Tagoo.) No matter how often I visit, I never get bored of looking at the sea and nearby islands, or the mountains, beaches and coastline of Mykonos itself. For this trip, I requested the same room we stayed in our first time at Hotel Tagoo — the cozy and semi-secluded #19, on the east side of the property — and I was glad it was available for our stay. Although #19 has only a partial sea view, rather than a full-on panoramic sea and island view like many of the rooms positioned at the front of the hotel, I like it because I always sleep exceptionally well in that room. I don’t know why, but I always wake up feeling more refreshed after a night in that particular room than in any other. What’s more, the afternoon sun doesn’t seem as hot or intense on room 19’s terrace, like it does on other balconies, so I can spend more time sitting there without feeling like I’m going to melt.

After several days on Mykonos we travelled to Ios for the first time. We had “seen” Ios several times before — through the windows of the FlyingCat 4 ferry en route to Santorini — but we had never set foot on it. We stayed at Hermes Hotel in Agios Ioannis, a hillside area high above beautiful Mylopotas beach, and just a short walk from the island’s main town, Chora. Although views from our hotel room balcony were partially obscured by a building in front of us, we could still gaze across the Aegean Sea and, if the skies were clear, see the whitewashed buildings in the village of Oia on Santorini. When we wanted completely unobscured views of Ios scenery, all we had to do was walk up one flight of stairs to the hotel’s breakfast room & bar, which had a comfy outdoor sitting area, or down several flights to the huge sea- and valley-view swimming pool terrace. (The pool was just being cleaned and filled during our visit, so we couldn’t take a swim, but we did enjoy the terrace for suntanning, taking in the scenery, and watching the hotel’s herd of goats in the field below.)

Our third island stop was Milos, which we had visited once before in September 2007. Last time we stayed at a hotel on the edge of the port town of Adamas; this holiday we wanted a complete change of location and scenery, so we stayed at Halara Studios, which is literally on the edge of the mountaintop village of Plaka, the capital of Milos. Being high up and on the edge meant we had outstanding views of farm fields, the Gulf of Milos, and the mountainous western half of Milos. If our visit had been just a few months later in the summer, we would have enjoyed incredible sunset views from the Halara Studios terrace, too.  Nevertheless, we won’t soon forget the scenery because on our last full day in Milos the island got thrashed by a vicious thunderstorm, and our terrace provided an excellent front-row seat for watching lightning strikes and the dramatic, dark stormclouds swirling over western Milos.

Below are photos of our views from Hotel Tagoo on Mykonos, Hermes Hotel on Ios, and Halara Studios on Milos.

 

Donny B at Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

Enjoying a glass of wine on the terrace for Room 19 at Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

 

Hotel Tagoo Room 19 terrace

The cozy terrace for Room 19  sits on the east side of the Hotel Tagoo property

 

Room 19 terrace at Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

Part of the view from the terrace for Room 19 at Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

 

Hotel Tagoo Mykonos Room 19 view

The terrace overlooks another nearby hotel and this old stone wall

 

Room 19 terrace at Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

It also overlooks the balcony for the room next door, but still feels fairly private

 

Hotel Tagoo room terrace view of the sea

Our terrace at Hotel Tagoo gave us a partial view of the sparkling Aegean Sea …

 

Hotel Tagoo view of the Aegean Sea

… which is a gorgeous blue in the morning but takes on a molten silver hue under the blazing afternoon sun. Sunglasses are definitely required to enjoy this view — the sunlight reflection is so intense, it’s almost blinding!

 

Hotel Tagoo Mykonos views

A late afternoon view of the sea from one of Hotel Tagoo’s many levels

 

Hotel Tagoo Mykonos view

When I’m in the Greek Islands, I enjoy watching cruise ships and ferries come and go … this is a view from the Hotel Tagoo swimming pool terrace of a cruise ship approaching the nearby port of Tourlos (also known as the New Port)

 

Hotel Tagoo view of Tourlos port on Mykonos

The hotel’s pool terrace has a good view of ships docked at Tourlos

 

Hotel Tagoo Mykonos swimming pool view

This is the view in the opposite direction, looking towards Mykonos Town

 

Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

From the pool deck, my camera can zoom in on three of the famous Mykonos windmills and the Paraportiani Church (right) near Little Venice

 

The view from Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

Looking straight ahead, there’s a fabulous view of the sea and nearby islands

 

Hotel Tagoo Mykonos views

An early morning view from the Hotel Tagoo swimming pool deck

 

Hotel Tagoo Mykonos swimming pool

A late afternoon view from the Hotel Tagoo swimming pool deck

 

Donny B at Hotel Tagoo Mykonos

Enjoying one last look at the view before leaving Hotel Tagoo to travel to Ios

 

Hotel Hermes balcony view

At Hermes Hotel on Ios, we could see the Aegean Sea and mountains near Mylopotas beach through our balcony doors

 

Hotel Hermes Ios Room 2 balcony view

The balcony for our room (Room #2) gave us this view of the Aegean Sea and a graceful palm tree on the hotel grounds below

 

Hotel Hermes Room 2 balcony view towards Santorini

From our Room 2 balcony, our cameras could zoom in on Santorini island

 

view from the door to Room 2 at Hotel Hermes Ios

We had this view of the valley when looking out the door to our room

 

Hotel Hermes main entrance

Sitting areas outside the Hotel Hermes reception entrance offered excellent views of the sea and parts of Ios; this was a popular place for hotel guests and other people to enjoy the scenery while relaxing with breakfast or a drink

 

Hotel Hermes seaview cafe and bar deck

One of the features we loved most about Hotel Hermes was its sea-view outdoor café-bar terrace where we ate breakfast or had an afternoon coffee

 

Hotel Hermes cafe-bar deck

Part of the amazing view from the hotel’s café-bar terrace

 

Hotel Hermes Ios cafe-bar deck

The café-bar deck was my favourite place to take in the views

 

Hotel Hermes Ios outdoor cafe-bar terrace

The café-bar terrace overlooked the sea and nearby valley …

 

Hotel Hermes view of the road to Chora

… had this view up the road to Chora, just 10 minutes away by foot …

 

the hillside between Chora and the Hotel Hermes Ios

… this view of the upper part of the valley near the hotel …

 

view from the cafe-bar terrace at Hotel Hermes Ios

… and this view of the lower valley and the scenic Ios coastline

 

Cafe-bar terrace view from Hotel Hermes Ios

Another view of the coastline far below the Hotel Hermes

 

view from cafe-bar terrace at Hotel Hermes Ios

The café-bar terrace had this view  of the mouth of Mylopotas Bay …

 

Hotel Hermes Ios cafe-bar terrace view

… and this view towards beautiful Mylopotas beach

 

Hotel Hermes Ios view of Mylopotas beach

Mylopotas beach is just a 15-minute walk down the hill from Hotel Hermes

 

Hotel Hermes view of Mylopotas beach

Another view of Mylopotas beach from the café-bar deck at Hotel Hermes

 

Hotel Hermes view of Drakos Fish Taverna

A camera zoom view of our favourite seaside drinking and dining spot at the far end of Mylopotas beach, Drakos Taverna (right)

 

Hotel Hermes Ios pool deck view

The swimming pool deck had views toward Santorini (visible under the clouds near the upper left corner of the photo) …

 

goats at Hotel Hermes Ios

… and was a great spot to watch the goats roaming the hillside below the hotel

 

Halara Studios Milos view of western Milos

On Milos, the front window to our room at Halara Studios gave us this scenic view toward the western half of the island …

 

Halara Studios Milos view

… while the window next to the kitchenette in our studio gave us this view

 

Halara Studios terrace view

However, the long terrace outside our room had the best views of all

 

Halara Studios Milos

In the morning, we would enjoy the view with a cup of coffee and, in the evening, savour the scenery while drinking a bottle of wine

 

Halara Studios view

When we weren’t hiking around Milos, I spent my time admiring the views

 

Halara Studios Milos view

This bucolic scene greeted us when we opened the door each morning

 

Halara Studios Milos

The hillside below us was lush and green, thanks to wet spring weather

 

Halara Studios Milos view

Mount Profitis Elias rises 748 meters on the west side of the Gulf of Milos

 

Halara Studios Milos view

The white building at left is a farmhouse; the other two buildings are churches that we visited during a morning hike to the seaside village of Klima

 

Halara Studios Milos

We snapped this photo of Halara Studios while hiking to the churches

 

Halara Studios Milos

Our studio was the one with the light blue-coloured window and door on the lower right-hand side, just above the MyGreeceTravelBlog.com logo

 

house on the hillside in Plaka Milos

Our terrace view included this hillside house, to our upper left …

 

houses in Plaka on Milos

… and this house, just a few feet to the left below our balcony

 

Halara Studios Milos view

This was the terrace view looking straight ahead across the Gulf of Milos

 

Halara Studios Milos views

Right below us is a wide expanse of farm fields on the east side of the Gulf

 

Halara Studios Milos view

Looking to the right, we could see the west coast of the Gulf of Milos all the way to Cape Vani, the point at the northwest tip of Milos

 

Halara Studios Milos view

Some of the mountains along the west coast of the Gulf of Milos

 

sailboat off the coast of Milos

A sailboat passes steep rocky cliffs on the west coast of the Gulf of Milos

 

Cape Vani on the northwest tip of Milos

I get a kick out of looking at Cape Vani on the northwest tip of Milos because I think it resembles a semi-submerged hippopotamus

 

view from Halara Studios Milos

Rays of sunlight stream through clouds above Milos one evening before sunset

 

Cape Vani on Milos

A ship passes behind Cape Vani at sunset on May 24 2011

 

Cape Vani on Milos at sunset

Another view of Cape Vani at sunset on May 24 2011

 

stormclouds passing over western Milos

Dark stormclouds threaten western Milos, but we felt only a few drops of rain before the storm system cleared the region

 

west coast of the Gulf of Milos

The west coast of the Gulf of Milos at sunset on May 24 2011

 

thunderstorm over western Milos

A severe thunderstorm lashes western Milos on the afternoon of May 27 2011

 

a thunderstorm over western Milos

Stormclouds above western Milos on Friday May 27 2011

 

Halara Studios Milos

The terrace view I hated to leave when we had to depart for Athens on May 28

 

 

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