Top Greece hotels
People Crete Island
15 Reviews The evil eye is big in Crete, where I lived for four years, and possibly elsewhere in Greece. If you go into someone's home, don't look too enviously at their things and don't pass too many...
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Byzantine Churches Thessaloniki
2 Reviews As Thessaloniki and nothern Greece in general became part of the modern Greek state just 92 years ago, its people have special ties to the Greek institutions that have been alive for over 1000 years -...
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Food and Drink Crete Island
14 Reviews This tip is not about any one particular restaurant but a comment on our experience of several restaurants in the eastern end of Crete ( all in the Prefecture of Lasithi). All of these eating places...
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Statues Thessaloniki
2 Reviews it's a miracle and a well kept secret among tourists, i.e. all tourists know about it, but the locals do not:) So, if you have a little wish... or a big one, you should touch the toe of Aristotelis...
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Religion Crete Island
5 Reviews Crete became part of modern day Greece less than a hundred years ago, maintaining to a degree its cultural variety. There used to be a sizeable Muslim but Greek speaking minority in the island, now...
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Strikes Thessaloniki
1 Review Strikes are popular in all of the greece, strikes of bus drivers (good for you if you are a student there, the schools are closed), of rug-collectors and of unic=versity secretaries, of post offices,...
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Strange Things Crete Island
4 Reviews The story goes that the iron bars sticking out from the roof of many Greek houses are exemptions from taxpaying, as long as the house isn't yet finished but in fact they are exclusively there for the...
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X-MAS in Thessaloniki Thessaloniki
2 Reviews Christmas is a great time to visit Thessaloniki. Although there aren't so magical as in Germany or Austria, you will often see the town full of snow. The town is very beautifully decorated. There is...
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Little Shrines on the Road Crete Island
3 Reviews The miniature churches or shrines next to the roads are memorials for people killed in a car accident, at the same spot where the accident happened. The family of the deceased construct and maintain...
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Fairs & Festivals Thessaloniki
1 Review Interational Film Festival of Thessaloniki. It's a must everyday, for as many films as you can handle each day and lasts for one week. Everybody you met the previous day will be there. Meaning every...
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Raki (tsikoudia) Crete Island
3 Reviews This is the famous local drink of Crete. It is produced in late October or early November and it is distilled from grape skins. It is transparent, very strong and in the summer it is served cold. Raki...
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Flora and Fauna Crete Island
3 Reviews Platanos or Plane Tree, a tree that grows close to water. You can find it usually close to a river in gorges or in the central square of villages of Crete. It looks similar to the maple tree and it...
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Music Crete Island
2 Reviews Lyra, Cretan traditional musical instrument. The one of the photo is totally a hand made one by Giorgos Tzagarakis; one of the best Lyra's artisan of Greece. Kissou Kampos Village. Prefecture of...
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Traditional Products Crete Island
2 Reviews A major draw to the Lasithi for the many buses of day trippers is to see the 'thousands of whiteclothed-sailed windmills' which irrigate the high plain ringed by mnountains. But there are apparently...
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Children Crete Island
1 Review The Greek people love children, if you travel there with children, especially an angelic looking one who`s parents gave her a Greek name, little old ladies will stop you in the street to admire, kiss...
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Used for making coffee and of course perfect for boiling eggs. If you are lucky, the handle may stay intact and the water may come to the boil within the hour. (Depends on your cooking facilities.)Brikki's seem to come in an array of sizes so you can actually make more than one cup of coffee at a time but that may be a little ambitious***!!
The social hub of the village. Here you buy cigarettes, post-cards, sweets, ice-creams, drinks, whatever you can think of they will probably have. Be warned, small change only!!!! This periptero at Horton, Pilion, was very delicately balanced which made shopping interesting!!
Not really a custom but more of a fact. Fish are not as plentiful as they used to be and even the Greeks have had to resort to fish farming. It may be that a lot of these farms are run by foreigners, I don't know. Certainly wherever you go by the coast in Greece there is evidence that it is becoming more and more popular.
In every Greek kafeneio you can see men playing the beloved Greek game of 'Tavli'. It looks a bit like the 'western' game of backgammon. Sometimes they play this very quietly, and sometimes the situation is very hectic and noisy.....
The Greek language has such a small vocabulary, many words are the same with different meanings. Filoxenia means friend but it also means" love of a stranger". It is all part of a Greek's way of life, making visitors welcome.
The roadside shrines that you sometimes find on blind bends or in a particularly beautiful location are a reminder of loved ones lost forever. They can be very simple affairs or very elaborate, I suppose depending on what people prefer and can afford. I am never sure if where they are located is where the person has died or is a favourite place.
One thing that is very obvious when in Greece is their love of children. They are welcomed in all situations and usually a great deal of fuss is made over them.Here we were in a practically all male cafeneon and Michael, at 16 months, was lifted into mama's arms and paraded about the place in front of the men.
If you want to visit a church . Don't wear shorts or any kind of shoulder strap top.Like in most temples you are asked to wear long skirt or trousers and have your shoulders covered. A top with short sleeve is enough.It's not completely mandatory but it's a sign of respect from you.
OUZOOuzo is not produced in any other part of the world except Greece.Ouzo, it is a 100% Greek product and country's national drink. It is made from a precise combination of pressed grapes, herbs and berries. It begins as alcohol made from grape skins or other local produce. It is then mixed together with herbs and other ingredients, including star anise, coriander, cloves, angelica root, licorice, mint, wintergreen, fennel, hazelnut and even cinnamon and lime blossom. The mixture is boiled in a copper still, regulated by a taster.Ouzo it is usually served as an aperitif on ice and water, in mixed drinks and cocktails.WINEToday, Greece produces some of the best wines in the world.In Greece, one can find more than 250 grape varieties, which produce some excellent wines.The most important white grapes include 'Assyrtiko', 'Athiri', 'Monemvassia', 'Debina', 'Roditis', 'Sideritis',...
It's common for Greeks to make a lunch of mezedes - a selection of hot and cold appetisers and main dishes. Typical dishes include fried meatballs, squash balls, octopus, shrimp, squid, cheese, olives, dolmadakia (vine leaves stuffed with rice and spices), tzatziki (a dip of shredded cucumber, yoghurt, garlic, lemon juice and mint), eggplant dip, small sausages and giant beans. You can find mezedes at an ouzeri (serving ouzo, an anise-flavored liqueur) or at a mezedopolio (serving locally produced wine or beer). Both of these types of restaurants are open only during the day. For the evening meal, Greek tavernas serve such specialties as moussaka, kebab (lamb's meatballs served with pita and sprinkled with fresh tomato, onion and parsley), pastitsio (lamb or goat meat with macaroni and tomatoes), stifado (braised beef with onions) and paidakia (grilled lamb or goat chops).Other famous...
Grand Bretagne Hotel Athens Athens
17 Reviews and 640 Opinions Every visitor to Athens cannot fail to notice this huge hotel. It's right on Syntagma Square,...
Astra Apartments & Suites Santorini Island
1 Review and 404 Opinions My husband and I finished off our honeymoon at the Astra Apartments, an all-suite hotel. The website...
Marni Village Crete Island
1 Review and 220 Opinions Stayed in October 2006, and really have no complaints about the accomodation,Very friendly and...
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Reviews and photos of Greece attractions posted by real travelers and locals. The best tips for Greece sightseeing.
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Q: Hi! Last holiday I had to give up on Greece but this year I ve decided to visit there. I am planning to go on mid-October , but I...
A: I have been to Athens during the winter months and it can sometimes be quite pleasant weatherwise but colder in the evenings even in October.. It is a capital city...
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