Greece

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Hey Travelers!

We will be traveling all the way to Greece this week. We have been twice, by land & sea. Each time was for a week, and let me tell you… that is plenty of time to explore, experience and immerse yourself within the culture. Today we will be going over cruising vs staying on the island of Santorini.

Before we get into the fun stuff we just wanted to mention that we recommend traveling in May before their busy summer season or in September after it is over. You will receive better rates and the locations will not be filled with tourist. Not to mention the weather will be good. Our first mistake was going in July during our first trip…. It was HOT.. not like wow it’s warm kind of hot but I think I am going to melt climbing up the Acropolis hot.

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Cruising the Greek isles is probably the best bang for your buck if it’s your first time. You will be able to visit multiple destinations without lugging your baggage throughout the islands (you will just wake up in a brand new destination… um yes please).

We suggest you book an European cruise line such as MSC, these are typically a lot cheaper. The service is similar to US cruises if not better and being an Italian based company, their food was outstanding (recommendation – spaghetti bolognese served every night). The only noticeable difference was food availability- eat when food is available. They will not have food out 24 hours a day like on the American cruise lines.

We will have an entire post dedicated to cruising so if you are interested in that stay tuned.

Moving on to our most recent trip in May 2018 where we stayed on the island of Santorini for a week. Santorini is a small island off the coast of Greece, known for its iconic blue domes on top of breathtaking cliffs. These views are straight out of a magazine. More specifically Oia is where these churches are and please do yourself a favor and pay the extra money to stay here.

We stayed in a cave house right in town and walked everywhere around the city. The hotel was called Residence Suites. We stayed in the 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom cave house with a balcony! The suite can sleep up to 5 people. If you have a problem walking or taking stairs this location may not be best, the only way to our room was by steep marble stairs carved out of the mountain. There were even ropes to hold on to at points, but I definitely think it’s worth the workout.

Don’t worry about your luggage, the hotel has bellhop attendants who carry your luggage down the stone stairs right to you room. Just make sure to bring money for tipping! hotel

Public transportation is very easy to use on the island – the rates vary from €1.80 – €2.50 depending on the destination. There is a bus station right in Oia, once you board the greyhound bus will automatically transport you to the main bus station in Fira. Once you are in Fira there is a sign that is easy to navigate with numbered busses that will take you all over the island.

Things to do during your stay-

The hike from Fira to Oia:

Listen closely… and learn from our mistakes.

Hike from Fira to Oia and do not take directions from strangers never attempted the hike. If you think Fira looks higher than where you are standing in Oia.. it’s because it is, and you are going to hike all the way up the cliffs and mountains. We started the hike from Oia and it was rough but we made it! For all the really athletic travelers out there by all means ahead and do this round trip.. But for those that are like us, definitely take the city bus one way. (City bus Oia – Fira is only €1.80)
Do not try to take the easy way around the mountain and bring plenty of water, you will thank me later. Go straight up the mountain no matter how steep that path looks or you will be going on a path that is at least three times as long around the mountain and end up in a church. If you would like to take the scenic route keep in mind you will most likely be the only people going that way. We usually end up on the road less traveled (not on purpose) so obviously we ended up off the beaten path but if you make it to the church please go in and check out the artwork. Kelsey disappeared for several minutes and by the time I made it in the church the caretaker of the property was showing her that the eyes follow you around no matter where you stand.
I wish someone was there to tell me these things before we embarked on our trek from Oia to Fira… but hey we had a great time and now have stories to tell.

Visit the Wineries around the island:

Instead of doing a guided wine tour we decided to do a self guided tour (please only go this route if you have a designated driver).

Steps for planning a self guided tour:

Step 1:

Rent a Car-

We rented the cheapest automatic car available from a small shop in town, which was around $45 with the conversion rate.

****CAUTION this car may stall or roll backwards

We named her Red Betty and she was a step above gocart if you ask me. Everything started off just fine but then we needed to go up hill we didn’t think we were going to make it! During our guided tour we almost rolled off a mountain and stalled on a side of a cliff, the death trap is pictured below.

Moral of this story is please purchase a safer version of Red Betty.

Step 2:

Visit Wineries-

We went to wineries several wineries around the island and used our phone as the gps. (depending on your phone carrier they have reasonable international plans)

Boutari winery
Venetsanos winery
Santos winery

This was overall one of our favorite things to do while we were there despite the car situation.

What we ate on the island:

Gyros at least once a day, we visited the restaurant below several times.

Don’t 4 Get Me – located at the Oia bus station

Under €3 for a filling meal before you take the bus for that days adventure, not to mention delicious.

Almost every café and restaurant on the island had a variety of smoothies. These were a refreshing treat mid afternoon most days to take a break from walking.