GREECE

06/29/22 - 07/13/22

DAY 1

Day 1 - Today is the day! After a three-year wait due to Covid-19, we are heading to Greece. Our flight plan had us going from Boston to Montreal to Athens. Dad was a bit nervous due to a tight transfer and delays out of Boston, but after a quick sprint to the gate in Montreal, we made it to Greece. Great flight, I can't believe we are here! But, oh no, our bags were not! Athens airport was crazy busy! We waited in line to have our luggage tracked, and headed to our hotel. Adventures By Disney (AbD) arranged for a private transfer to the hotel. Which was great. We headed to the hotel's rooftop restaurant for a delicious first Greek meal. After lunch, we did a walk-through of the National Gardens and brought some takeout back to the room.

DAY 2

Day 2 - Our AbD tour starts officially today. After breakfast at the hotel, we were able to track our luggage on the next flight from Montreal. Pro Tip: The Apple Air Tags worked amazingly with the exact location of our luggage. We took a quick journey via the Metro back to the airport and after anxiously waiting for that flight to unload, our luggage made it! We were so happy. We headed back to the hotel for some snacks, relaxation, and pool time. At 6:30 PM, we met everyone from our tour, heard some logistics and details of the tour and moved to our welcome dinner atop our hotel. The view was amazing. We enjoyed some Greek food and wine. Took some photos from the rooftop and made some new friends.

DAY 3

Day 3 - After a nice breakfast at the hotel, we met our group out front. We started the day with a guided tour of Acropolis. It was truly spectacular. Acropolis is an ancient rocky outcrop above the city of Athens. It dates back to nearly 500 B.C. After a brief city tour, we headed to the original Olympic Stadium. The kids did a fun running race and we were able to view many Olympic torches from past Olympics. Then, we headed to an authentic Greek restaurant for lunch. So much food! It was soo good. While we ate, Greek performers showed us some Greek dancing and after a few glasses of wine invited us onto the dance floor. Opa!! Our Greek AbD was off to a fabulous start. We ended the day with a walk through the new Acropolis Museum and some ice cream!

DAY 4

Day 4 - After breakfast, we took a bus ride down the Athens coast to the Temple of Poseidon. We explored scenic lookouts and walked up a small path to the temple. We explored the temple and took some photos of the Aegean sea. On the way back we stopped for lunch outside at a seaside town. So much food! Everything from the tomatoes, to the feta to the bread, looks and tastes so fresh! After lunch, we headed back to the hotel for a little break. We explored some local streets including a few churches and shopped for a few souvenirs and snacks. We ended the night at a nice pizzeria and a viewing of the changing of the guards at the parliament. Athens is a busy city with many interesting sites.

DAY 5

Day 5 - It was time to head to Santorini. The group met early at 7 AM and took our bus to Athens airport. The flight was really quick. I'm pretty sure we waited to get on the plane more than flying it. Once in Santorini, we headed to the Vinsanto vineyard for lunch. After a nice meal, the adults had a wine tasting, while the kids played games. Then take off your shoes and socks, for some authentic grape stomping. It was so much fun. We did a quick walk-through of their wine museum and were on our way. We headed to the small town of Thera, for some photos of that famous Santorini landscape. After checking into our beautiful hotel, the group met for dinner at a local restaurant (Ouzeri) for a delicious dinner.

DAY 6

Day 6 - Lots of plans today! We started with a boat ride to a local volcanic island. We hiked up a one-mile loop to the top for a few photo ops, while hearing about the history of Santorini. Once back on the boat, we stopped at a hot / mud springs area for some swimming in the Aegean Sea. Some of the team covered themselves with the mud for a few photos. We took the boat over to lunch and enjoyed a seaside feast of seafood and grilled chicken. After a little more touring around, we headed back to the hotel for some rest. Dad went straight to the pool to cool off, while Karen & Michael relaxed in the room. We stayed at the hotel for dinner, since it was a very busy day.

DAY 7

Day 7 - Today, we visited some of Santorinis hot spots. First, we visited an architectural site called Akrotiri. It was the site of an ancient village that was lost in a major earthquake in the sixteenth century. The site was very well preserved and now is almost entirely inside to protect it from the weather. For lunch, we went to the beautiful village of Oia. This was the quintessential Santorini, you may think of, with small cliffside shops, restaurants, and hotels. We had a delicious lunch overlooking the sea. After lunch, we returned to the hotel for a quick swim, and then we were on our way via ferry to Crete! The ferry was pretty exciting. They load about 1,000 passengers in less than 10 minutes. You can imagine the madness! After about three hours of traveling, we arrived at our amazing Crete oasis.

DAY 8

Day 8 - After breakfast at the hotel, we headed by bus to the town of Elounda. From there, we took a short boat ride to the island of Spinalonga. Spinalonga is an island located in the Gulf of Elounda. The island has an ancient fortress that has a long history of different rulers and most recently housed a colony of lepers. We walked through the medieval "ghost town". After our tour, we had lunch in the nearby town of Plaka. Small shops and restaurants lined the streets. After some shopping and another great lunch, we headed back to the hotel for some pool time. At 6:45 PM. the kids headed to the Jr. Adventure night (Our guides hosted Pizza & a movie), while the parents had a fancy meal, watching the sunset and sea. It was beautiful!

DAY 9

Day 9 - After our normal group breakfast at the hotel, we headed to the Palace of Knossos. Knossos is a bronze age (1300 - 1100 BC) archeological site and has been called Europe's oldest city. After touring this ancient site, we headed to Arolithos, a traditional Cretan village for a quick walk-through, lunch and, a demo on how to make Greece's famous Tzaziki. Michael even made a plate of it for our table, which everyone loved. After lunch, we had some on our your time, to continue walking through the village and do some shopping for items like olive oil and honey, made on-site. After returning to the hotel, we had some relaxing pool time and ordered room service for dinner. The hotel set up a beautiful table for us, right on our own balcony.

DAY 10

Day 10 - We have reached the last day of our AbD tour. We can not believe its ending! Today we met the "Mayor of Karouzana" a small village on a Cretan mountain top. In the village, we walked through the mayor's gardens, met his donkeys, and had plenty of stops for Greece's famous drink, Raki. At lunch, we saw a demonstration on cheese making, as well as making Greek coffee and cheese pies. The kids were called up to be assistants at all three! We returned to the hotel for some pool and spa time and then met the group at 7:15 PM for our farewell dinner. The tour ended in style with an amazing buffet of Greek foods, wines, desserts, as well as music and dancing! Opa! The night ended with a very special slide show on our trip. It was great!

DAY 11

Day 11 - Yea! We are on our own for a few days in Crete for complete relaxation! After a few goodbyes at breakfast, we spent the entire day at the resort. We started at the pool and then checked out the hotel's amazing spa. Little Michael was so excited when the spa attendants said he could join. We spent time in the spa pool, sauna, steam room, plunge pool, and relaxation rooms. It was a great way to transition off the busy tour. We had dinner at the resort's Tuscan bistro for some familiar foods of pizza and pasta by the sea with live music and talked about the last 10 days. Tons to recap!

DAY 12

Day 12 - After breakfast, Michael and Mom started the day with a private golf lesson. The resort had a small 9-hole golf course which was perfect to practice their swings and putts. Dad headed back to the beautiful spa for a relaxing massage. After our activities, we met at the pool for a late lunch and some afternoon swimming. We then took a quick cab ride to the small village of Elounda. And the Cretans in this neighborhood ride in style, all of their taxis were full-size Mercedes. We walked around the small village for some last souvenirs and had a nice dinner on the sea, before returning to the hotel for a late night jump in the pool. I almost forgot, the room we moved into after the tour, had direct access to a shared pool from your balcony! Just wake up and jump in!

DAY 13

Day 13 - Our last full day in Greece has arrived. Michael and Karen started the day with another golf lesson. Today's lesson came with a bonus water spray, when the courses sprinklers accidentally went off while they were teeing off. After golf, we all met by the main pool for our final swim and a lite lunch. After lunch, Mike and Dad got adventurous and rented a jet ski and zoomed their way around the Aegean Sea. Then, we took another quick taxi ride to the town of Elounda for our last dinner in Crete. We ended the trip at a great Italian restaurant with tons of delicious food. After dinner, we went back to our room to do our final packing and a quick dip in the balcony pool. Everyone went to bed happy that the trip to Greece was a huge success!

DAY 14

Day 14 - We have reached our last day in Greece. We all had a great time. Although it is sad to leave such a beautiful country, I think we were all ready to sleep in our own beds. Adventures by Disney arranged an early morning transfer for us to Heraklion (HER) airport (about an hour from our resort). Our flight path home had us heading to Zurich, (from Crete) for a short layover, then it was on to Boston! Both flights were on-time and very smooth and after about 17 hours from start to finish, we were home! Greece 2022 is complete! A top trip for all of us! Let the unpacking and next trip planning begin.