Thursday, June 16, 2016

Zakynthos & Athens

Zakynthos

Zakynthos is south of Athens. We took a flight from Athens to Zakynthos (side note: you can only take an airplane out of Athens to get to the other Greek islands). We arrived at night and got to our Airbnb around 10pm, we were exhausted! 

Where we stayed:
We stayed here, it was about a 45 minute drive from the airport. Definitely rent a car, this is the only way to truly see the island! We wanted the place we were staying to be close to "Shipwreck Beach." Our Airbnb was only about a 15 minute drive from it. 

Where we ate:
-The owners of the Airbnb own the restaurant right next door, which we ate at for breakfast, you can find that here.

-We had dinner at El Sueno twice. The view is incredible and the food is delicious! The food is super fresh and the desserts are homemade.

-We stopped at a local fresh juice stand and she had fruit salad and coffee. We did that one day because we needed something healthy and energizing! I don't remember if she had a name on the stand, but she's on a corner on your way to Shipwreck Beach, so you won't miss it!

What we did:
-Shipwreck Beach or Navagio Beach was on the top of our to do list. We went and saw it from the top view on our first full day there & to be honest I liked that view better than seeing it from below. It was absolutely breathtaking, the pictures do not do it justice. You have to walk out to the farthest point to get the best view. We even went back on our last night there to catch the sunset & it was even better.

-We did a boat tour that took you through the Blue Caves & to Shipwreck Beach. It was about a 3 hour tour overall, we stayed at the beach for about 45 mins. I would recommend getting a tour that offers a boat small enough to go in the blue caves. Ours did & the captain said that bigger boats don't go in and people can't even see why they call it the blue caves!

-We went to Zante, it's a main area where all the shops & restaurants are. It is also where all the boats dock, so you get a pretty water view too.

-We drove around the island. We love to explore and find "hidden gems" and Zakynthos was perfect for this because it is not overcrowded and the views everywhere are unbelievable!

Athens

We ended our Greece vacation in Athens. I would recommend doing this if you go to multiple islands since your departure flight will leave from Athens.

Where we stayed:
We stayed at the Athens Gate Hotel. This hotel had the best location to walk to all of the main attractions. It is however, about a 45 minute cab ride from the airport. There is a flat $39 fee or you can try to get an Uber. Unfortunately, there wasn't an Uber available to or from the hotel, but definitely try to get one, way cheaper! The hotel was nice, we did have an issue with our room. We stayed on the top floor and there is a roof top restaurant, so when we would try to go to sleep at night and in the early morning hours, we would hear walking & the chairs moving. It was so bad, we had to have our room changed, so if you stay here, just get a lower level room.

Where we ate:
-The hotel offered a free buffet breakfast, so we did that every morning, except for one day we ate at Arcadia.

-We had dinner at our hotel one night, the view of the Acropolis is amazing!

-Oineas is another dinner/lunch place I would recommend.

-Lukumades is unbelievably good! Go here as many times as you can! I didn't get any photos because I ate mine too fast! They are basically donuts, but lighter and they have different kinds and you can get ice cream, seriously best thing ever!

What we did:
-The Parthenon & Acropolis
-The New Acropolis Museum
-Panathenaic Stadium
-Tomb of the Unknown Soldier
-National Archaeological Museum

I hope this was helpful to anyone planning to go to Greece in the future! Out of all the countries I have been to, Greece was definitely my favorite! The food, people, & most importantly, the views couldn't be topped!

Thanks so much for stopping by!

3 comments:

  1. This is stunning!! I need to make my way here someday!

    www.maggiealamode.com

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    Replies
    1. Thank you Maggie! Definitely put it high on your bucket list :)

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