Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Cruising the Greek Islands

Islands are fewer and further apart in the northern Aegean. If you want to pack more isles into a week at sea, consider Hebridean Spirit's Legacies of the Cyclades itinerary. This one starts and finishes in Rhodes, hopping through the Dodecanese and Cyclades islands by way of Halki, Folegandros, Syros, Mykonos, Amorgós and Nisyros. Plenty of variety here: Rhodes Old Town is one of the most stunning medieval survivals in Europe. Ermoupoli on Syros is an odd time-warp port – it was once the most important entrepôt in Greece, and it conceals the faded grandeur of its 19th-century neo-Classical heyday behind the clutter of a working seaport.

I have been keeping quiet about Folegandros and Amorgós for many years, but the cat has crept out of the bag – these are two of the loveliest and least-visited of the Cyclades, and their whitewashed villages put more commercialised islands to shame.

Friday, April 25, 2008

Rhodes Island

The city of Rhodes was founded in 408BC, the days of Alexander the Great and the Peloponnesian Wars.

Sokratous Street is not a steep hill; the Turks, while they held sway, called it the Long Bazaar. You cannot miss the Turkish heritage. The Mosque of Suleiman, named for the conqueror of Rhodes, towers above the bustling shops. I'm worried about the minaret's lean.

It's warm - 300 days of sunshine a year, thanks to Helios, the sun god. Time to sit in the shade, enjoy a crisp Greek salad and a Mythos beer. The young waiter at Cafe Sessytio in Sokratous Street spreads his arms in welcome. I'm in a parallel universe. Outside the walled courtyard, noise, banter, shoppers. Here, quiet, cool, comfort.

Monday, April 21, 2008

Kos island holiday for £319

Take a seven-night spring break to the Greek island of Kos with this holiday at the five-star Aegean Village Hotel for £319 per person, based on two sharing, for departures on May 7th 2008.

The hotel is located on the golden sandy shores of the south coast of Kos and the accommodation is on a half-board basis.

This package also includes return flights from London Gatwick airport.

Thursday, April 17, 2008

Greek Island Of Crete

he world has always rejoiced visiting Crete, the largest of Greek islands and also the fifth largest in the whole of Mediterranean. The island is spread over an area of 8,336 km² (3,219 square miles) in the Southern Greece, and forms one of the thirteen Greek peripheries we know about. It is also believed to have played a key role in the Greek nation's history, something quite evident even today, as we go through its archaeological past. There is a rich marine life, fine sea beaches and a great hospitality - of which the Crete hotels make up a key ingredient - to be explored and enjoyed by anybody willing to spend some quality time on this island.

Monday, April 14, 2008

Island getaway

Staying in Greece, which has the lion's share of the Mediterranean islands, a great base for wildlife watching is Alonissos (crowdfactor 64), in the Sporades. It's the hub for visiting the outlying Sporades islets, many within the Sporades Marine Park, which helps protect the monk seal (permits required). Alonissos, with its secluded, boat-accessed beaches, is 20 minutes by hydrofoil from Skopelos and less than an hour from Skiathos, which has an airport.

Lesbos (cover photograph), with a crowdfactor of 59, is the third-largest Greek island and another favourite with wildlife enthusiasts, thanks to its birdlife. It is heavily wooded in the east, agricultural in the centre and rather bare in the west. A car is essential for exploring this large island – just remember to take it easy on the local ouzo, for which this island is famed. There are flights from Athens and a few from the UK.

Friday, April 11, 2008

Greek island of Karpathos

Pigadia, Greece - Their eyebrows are black and thick and their facial expressions austere and proud. The women from the small town of Olympos, high in the north of the Greek island of Karpathos, are different from the women on the rest of the island. This part of Karpathos has the harshest landscape on the 300 square kilometre island thanks to its craggy coastline and the waves that crash upon the shore.

But its olive groves and hidden bays also make it the most beautiful place on Karpathos. Olympos is difficult to reach: a ferry travels twice a day from the island's capital, Pigadia.

You can drive by car, but the road is unpaved and full of potholes and steep inclines falling away to the sides.

Saturday, April 5, 2008

Complete Greek in the Peloponnese

Typically Greek: a church no Skopelos
Dana Facaros

Published in the April issue of The Sunday Times Travel Magazine

Forget the islands: fly into Athens, hire a car and swing around the Saronic Gulf into the Peloponnese, the three-pronged peninsula south of mainland Greece. In an hour, you cross the Corinth Canal into another world.

The arid light of Attica softens; barren rock gives way to cypresses, olives, vines and oranges. And in spring, everything is luxuriant; even the cracks in the walls are filled with flowers.

Tuesday, April 1, 2008

Paxos: perfectly peaceful

One of those timeless Greek islands, Paxos is a million miles away in mindset from the busy resorts of Corfu but a mere hour by hydrofoil. The island is only seven miles long and 2½ wide, and no car journey need take longer than 15 minutes, but there are many nooks and crannies to explore and great contrasts of scenery, with the olives, poplar and cypress so typical of the Ionian islands.

Transport is usually by car, moped or boat, but there is one bus, which makes a circuit of the island. If you use it often the driver and jolly female conductor will soon treat you as a regular. Familiarity is one of the pleasures of a small island. It’s likely that the owner of the local grocery store is also the person from whom you will rent your boat, moped or taxi.

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