THE SARONIC GULF 7 DAYS SAMPLE ITINERARY CYCLADES ISLANDS 7 DAYS SAMPLE ITINERARY IONIAN ISLAND 7 DAYS SAMPLE ITINERARY

GREECE

The Greek islands are amongst the most beautiful and interesting cruising areas in the world, packed with history. Go island hopping and cruise to some of the breathtaking areas such as Crete, Mykonos and Corfu.

Enjoy the spectacular scenery, walk through the ruins of great ancient civilizations, take a swim in a secluded bay and indulge in the culinary delights of Greek cuisine.

Visit one of the 169 uninhabited islands for a private trip or explore a cosmopolitan island full of superb beaches, colourful harbours and charming villages. Home to the ancient gods, you will experience the myths and legends that are synonymous with Greece.

The legends of Aphrodite and Venus have immersed the Aegean Sea with irrefutable romance and its myriad islands promise infinite appeal, capturing the hearts of all who charter there. Stretching from the Sporades in the north to the Saronic isles in the west to the Cyclades in the centre and the Dodecanese in the south, the islands of the Aegean are layered with history and myth.

An ideal choice is to begin your charter in Athens, home to some of the most spectacular historical sites in Greece. From there you can choose to cruise through the Corinth Canal, past the quintessential Mediterranean landscapes of citrus and olive groves of mainland Greece, and on to the Ionian Sea and its seven islands.

The Ionian Islands, including Ithaki, the homeland of Odysseus, are situated off the west coast of Greece. These islands are distinctive from each other in their customs and traditions, yet they are a blend of cultures and people from all over Europe. Corfu is amongst this group and all these islands are plushy green and verdant.   Always starting from Athens, you can choose to cruise the Cyclades, the Sporades or the Saronic Gulf and Peloponnese. Hereinafter you can find some particulars and details of all these destinations.

The Cyclades are rocky and dry islands with sparkling clear waters and beautiful small white houses. Míkonos, a cosmopolitan mecca for tourists, is bright and breezy with fine sandy beaches by day, and alive with the nightclubs and bars by night. The islands of Delos and Paros are approximately 28 nm from Míkonos. Delos is rumored to be the birthplace of Apollo. The ancient ruins on this island have been compared to Pompei for their comprehensive picture of ancient life. Paros is a popular tourist island, and it is well worth a visit to the Katapoliani, considered the finest church in the Aegean. Íos is claimed to be the burial place of Homer.

Today the island’s beaches are quite popular among nude sun-lovers. At night the waterfront throbs to the sound of music from bars and night clubs. The chora is a maze of streets full of bars and boutiques. Santorini is a giant volcano, with a crater that is six miles long by four miles wide. The white domed houses of the capital extend along the cliff top above the tiny harbour and present a remarkable sight from seaward. Sifnos is a hilly island, with popular beaches on the southeast coast, and the delightful medieval village of Kastro on the east side of the island.

Sailing north from Athens on sun speckled seas, the Sporades waits to welcome you. They are a small group of islands with ribbons of golden sand along curving shores framed by green, scented pine hills. The clear waters are a delight for swimming and fishing. Skiatos, green and cosmopolitan with pine woods separated by the sea by strands of golden sand has been, thanks to his natural beauty and infrastructure, a favourite tourist destination for many years. Skopelos, all green, with his beautiful beaches and craggy shores, traditional towns, old churches and monasteries, is an ideal resort.

Alonissos, plainer but equalli beautiful, with many blue-green, pine clad bays, offers you the chance to explore, thanks to a large number of market paths, its reach and serene landscape. Alonissos and the many islets that extend towards the east mark the unique ecosystem of the National Sea Park, area of major importance for the survivor of many marine species and, above all, the Mediterranean seal. Remote, to the southeast of the cluster emerges Skyros, ancient and wild, with a long cultural tradition of its own, steep shores, beautiful bays and sea caverns. The island is the natural habitat of a very rare pony, known as the “little horse of Skyros”. It is known for its traditional furniture, elaborate and robust, direct descendant of the Byzantine pieces.

The Saronic islands are situated south-west of Athens. They are favorites for sailing due to their close proximity, usually a two to three hour sail. The islands consist of long sandy beaches, fragrant pines and rocky capes and the towns and villages are of an infinite variety of cultures and people.