That Didn't Take Long

So, yea. As per my previous post, we were feeling a bit of indecision regarding our last day of our trip. Stay in the Plaka and take a cab to the airport at 3:00 am, or stay near the airport and take the metro to the Plaka for the last day?

Based on some advice I got from some fellow travelers, we have canceled our reservation (for the last day only--we can't wait to stay there for the first two nights in Athens!) at the Athens Gate Hotel , and booked at the Sofitel Athens Airport.

The beauty of the Sofitel is that it's literally right next to the airport--as in, you can walk. This will save me precious minutes of sleep (those of you that know me are very aware that I am NOT a morning person).

But, don't be fooled--this is no typical airport hotel. It's luxurious and hip! We've also stayed at a Sofitel before, and it's one of the few chain hotels that I actually really enjoy. :) We had an outstanding experience, and the TripAdvisor reviews seem to support our previous experience.



Ok, now that we've got that out of the way, stand by for some non-greece related posts! I'm sure you're ready! :)

Rounding Out the Trip

As our trip comes to a close, we’ll head back to Athens for a night, awaiting our 4:50 am flight back to the US (sick, right?!). Since we arrive back in Athens at noon that day (plenty of time to spend further exploring the city), but leave at such an obnoxious hour, we struggled a bit with where to stay. We looked at two options near the airport (the Holiday Inn Attica Avenue
and the Sofitel Athens Airport), but decided against both, and ended up back at the Athens Gate(for now…I’m still not 100% positive about this decision. Any feedback out there?).

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The upside to this absurd flight time is that we will get an extended layover in Amsterdam—just enough time to peruse the city and get a tiny taste of the city.

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Amsterdam was originally on our itinerary as stopover on our trip, but the silly airline seems to be rearranging flight schedules daily (booo!), so we couldn’t get the schedule we wanted a reasonable price. :( So, for now, our short layover will have to do, and we’ll definitely plan on returning sometime very soon to really dive into the city.

And that, my friends, concludes our brief trip outline. :) I cannot wait for May. :)

Realizing the Dream

You’re probably thinking that’s a bit dramatic, huh? I'm not disagreeing. But, friends, we must remember who we are talking about here. ;) My love for travel is not something that has developed over the past day, week, year, or heck, yearS, but rather, something that’s traceable back to early grade school and my mom. We won’t get into the background, but let the record state that my addiction is actually a genetic disorder. And, said genetic disorder causes me to measure my dreams in terms of travel. (It's not my fault.)

Anyway, back to the task at hand.

Realizing the dream…

It may sound dramatic, but one of my earliest memories of actually longing to go somewhere (prior to that, my mom would tell me where I was going and I would nod and probably ask for a juice box or something) was after seeing a beautiful picture just like this one. I distinctly remember staring at it (If I remember correctly, it was a poster on the wall of a travel agency), and deciding that I must go there. I could not have been older than 8 or 9, and that vision and feeling of longing have stuck with me all of these years.

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::cue dramatic music::

We’ll be spending…

4 Nights on beautiful Santorini:

We’ll be spending 4 nights/5 days on the beautiful island of Santorini. We plan on filling our time diving, hitting up wineries, exploring ancient sites & villages, laying on the beach, and enjoying the famous Santorini sunsets—pretty much my dream mix of vacation activities.

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I’ve blogged about Santorini hotels a couple of times on this blog here and here, but, ultimately, we ended up choosing another hotel, and couldn’t be more excited about it!

Located just outside of the village of Imerovigli, the charming Anastasis Apartments hotel is not only gorgeous, but pretty reasonably priced for Santorini, as well. And, for the icing on the cake, it’s also known as having outstanding service. In fact, it’s the number one rated hotel on TripAdvisor on all of Santorini.

Next Stop...

Originally, the husband and I were going to do an Italy/Greece combo trip. We had been looking forward to it for months. Then, one day, I thought to myself, "Self, maybe you should just double check your school calendar before you book airline tickets." Good call, self. We might have had a major problem if I hadn't. You see, school ends a week later than normal. :( Due to some family commitments, we were unable to extend our trip past our original end date, so we had no choice butto cut our trip.

Tears were shed, temper tantrums were had.

Deep within the depths of my depression, I decided to research alternative options in Greece (our original time span in Greece for the Greece/Italy combo trip was only about 6 days). Well…you know how the best way to quickly get over an ex is to get a "current"? Well, I had found a new boyfriend, and my new boyfriend's name was Crete.

Stop 2: 3 Nights in Crete

When researching Crete, we quickly realized that the capital city of Iraklion wasn’t a great fit for the type of vacation we were looking for. Our solution? Go west, young man.

We’ll be spending all three nights in the beautiful Venetian port of Chania. This little city on the west coast of Crete has managed to maintain its old world charm, while also being an excellent base for additional exploration of Crete.

greece-holidays.sunvil.co.uk
www.homesgofast.com
http://www.ellada.net/

Unlike Athens, our hotel choice in Chania was immediately apparent. The absolutely beautiful, charming, and reasonably priced 600 year old Casa Leone, located on highly desirable Chania harbor, just steps away from the old town, will our be our home base for our three nights in Crete.

Besides the amazing (and healthy!) Cretian food, there’s one major highlight I’m looking forward to exploring outside of Chania: Elafonissi Beach.

I don't really feel like any explanation is necessary here.

http://theworldwithme.files.wordpress.com

Yaaaa!

So…did you guess?

For those of you who don’t know, the picture below is of the Greek god, Zeus.

What the heck am I talking about? We’re off to Greece, my friends!

Well, not exactly. At least, not yet. But, we’ve booked Greece, so we will be off to Greece (in May). This is an extremely exciting thing for my husband and I! We’ve been trying to go to Greece for a few years now, but it has never panned out, primarily due to time constraints (18 hours of travel time one way for 7 days total just didn’t seem like the best of ideas for us). If we had a list of "dream trips",I’m fairly confident this would be on it!

Ok, I’m done yammering about my excitement. ;) On to the info. :) I have enough info to fill a few posts, so we’ll start with stop number 1.

2 Nights in Athens

We arrive in the late afternoon after 18 hours of what is sure to be nightmare-ish time in coach on one of my “favorite” airlines.

I did extensive research on hotels in Athens, and it was originally a toss-up between Hotel Fresh and The Eridanus. Both hotels stacked up well on Trip Advisor, but I continued to look, because, as you’ll soon see (if you haven’t already figured it out), I’m a sucker for a view, and I just wasn’t convinced that either hotel was “the one” (and yes—I do liken choosing a hotel to choosing a spouse). :)

Then, I stumbled upon our hotel of choice, The Athens Gate Hotel. It rates VERY well on tripadvisor, has a HECK of a view (if you’re willing to pay for it), is very affordable (even if you are willing to pay for aforementioned view), and you just cannot beat the location (as indicated by the view). I cannot wait to sip Greek wine on my balcony overlooking the Acropolis or the Temple of Zeus!

Sun Rocks

I'm.In.Love!

Santorini is one of my "dream vacations." The hubby and I have been thisclose to going a couple of times, but both were over our spring break from school, and it just seemed tough to swing what we wanted to do in 7 days, with two of those completely consumed by travel from the midwest.

However, we are planning a little Euro jaunt next summer, and this little gem is definitely on our possibility list!

Check out Sun Rocks, a gorgeous caldera couples-only hotel in Thira. Beyond the rates, I really don't have much to say--I'll let the pictures speak for themselves. Rates start at 200 Euros/night.

http://www.thirahotels.com/SunRocks_hotel.htm

A Beautiful Hotel on a Beautiful Island!

I promised you a great hotel on Santorini, and here, my friends, it is.

Welcome to Acqua Vatos Hotel. This beautiful boutique hotel is located on Kamari Beach--away from the crowds of Fira, but close enough to the action to get in on it when necessary.

Each suite is individually decorated and completely unique--fun, right?

But, the best part is you won't believe the rates on this place! Rooms start at just 45 Euros a night--A STEAL on sometimes expensive Santorini!

Now that's reFRESHing!

We WILL be going to Greece--and we hope it's soon!

In the mean time, I have been researching lots, and I stumbled across this fab hotel in Athens. :)

Welcome to Fresh Hotel! This little gem boasts and uber modern decor, a rooftop pool & bar, and views of the Acropolis--all for rates that start around $150 a night!

http://www.freshhotel.gr/

Stay tuned for more on Greece! I have also found a FAB boutique hotel on Santorini with rates that you WILL NOT BELIEVE!