The Aegean Sea in Greece has always been a place I dreamed of visiting. Previously, I was a bit scared of long flights because I lived in Chengdu and there were no direct flights. This year, as I am based abroad with my son, I found out that there are direct flights from Singapore to Athens, so I decided to embark on a dream trip with my husband at the end of May this year. Due to the time constraints of our holiday, we chose a purely free trip with three nights on Holy Island + two nights in Athens, focusing on holiday and sightseeing.
I. Visa application
I applied for a French visa at the end of March when I returned home for a short holiday. As I had only been to France before, I was able to apply for a French visa as quickly as possible, and it took me 5 working days to apply in Chengdu. Greece is a Schengen country and I was able to enter Greece directly with a French visa without any obstacles.
II. Flight choice
Our first flight was with Cool Air TR712, a direct flight from Singapore to Athens, with a flight time of 11.5 hours. For comfort, I chose Cool Air’s business class. But this business class cannot lie flat, only the seat can be turned down 145 degrees, the distance between the legs is relatively wide, sitting down is still quite challenging. My tip is to try to sleep as much as possible on the way there, except for meal times, which will go by quickly. We arrived in Athens at 8:35am Greek time and took the second leg of our flight on Aegean Airlines, which left at 12:45am. There are many Aegean flights to the Holy Island and it is best to allow more than three hours for international transfers to ensure safety. The second leg of the flight takes only 45 minutes and arrives at Santorini airport at 15:30 on the same day in Greece.
From Santorini back to Athens, we were torn. Initially we wanted to take a cruise and see the beautiful scenery of the Aegean Sea. Then we considered that the boat ride would take 7 hours and we would arrive in Athens at 11:35pm, which was tiring and unsafe. So we still chose to take the Aegean flight back to Athens from the Holy Island, and the return trip took 50 minutes to solve the problem. A special note here is that Santorini airport is very, very small and even seats are hard to find, not to mention the VIP lounge. So make sure you count the time and don’t go early.
Athens back to Singapore by tr713, take-off time is 11:35 local time, arrival time is Singapore time 4:45 a.m.. back when the plane flew particularly fast, arrived an hour and a half earlier.
III. Domestic transport options
As we learned before, Greece is still relatively poor due to the previous economic crisis and the refugee problem, and there are very rampant thieves in various tourist spots. In order to avoid unnecessary problems, we booked a car online in advance to transfer from the airport to the hotel. (The hotel we stayed at offered this service)
While we were on Holy Island, we had an impromptu trip to Black Beach. We found out that we could take the bus, and that we were staying close to the bus station, so we chose to take the bus to and from that part of the trip.
When we were in Athens, the hotel we chose was in the centre of the city, very close to the Acropolis, museums and food streets, so using the map on our phone, we were basically able to solve all our problems on foot.
IV. Hotel choice
I compared two websites, Booking and Ctrip, to choose the hotel to book. We chose the Cori rigos cliff hotel in the town of Fira. The location of this hotel is very good, with a line of sea view of the Aegean Sea and a view of the volcano. We were also very pleased with the service at the hotel, the waiter would wait at our drop off point and help us with our luggage; the hotel allows early check in and offers breakfast every day which can be delivered to the viewing terrace of our room. We booked a resort suite with its own viewing terrace and spa pool. The centre of Fira town is just a few minutes walk away and is very convenient for dining and shopping.
In Athens I chose the Acropolis Divara Palace Hotel, located right in the centre of Athens. You can walk to the Acropolis, the museums, Constitution Square and the food court. The hotel is very quaint, built on the ruins of the old city, and the rooms are spacious with a view of the Acropolis from the balcony. The downside is that the restaurant for breakfast is located on the ground floor and there is no natural view.
V. Itinerary
Our itinerary has been made very casual for the limited time available. If you have more time, you can do it according to your own situation. Our own play to come under the feeling is full and not tired.
Day 1: Singapore flies to Athens Athens flies to Holy Island, arrives and checks into the hotel. Had a small stroll around the town of Feira and had dinner. Due to the long flight and jet lag, we went to bed before 7pm that night and slept until 6:30pm the next day.
Day 2: Breakfast at the hotel and a leisurely stroll through the town, following the coastline, which was beautiful all the way around. We passed at least 4 churches (basically all churches here have blue roofs and white bodies, all beautiful). After lunch in the town, we went back to the hotel for a nap until 4pm. Then we took the bus to Black Beach and had a walk along it. We took the bus back to Fira town at 7:40pm and the sunset was beautiful, so we chose a restaurant near us where we could watch the sunset while we ate. Almost all the tourists in Fira were watching the sunset and as the sun went down, the town cheered and applauded, it was beautiful.
Day 3 We slept in until we woke up in the morning and still had all sorts of wandering and selfies to do. At noon we took a commercial vehicle to the port of the small town of Oia, as we had booked, where we boarded the boat to start our journey on the sea. This boat ride can be booked online in advance or at a travel point when you arrive on the Holy Island, the price difference is not significant. The whole trip was great, with great views, snorkelling, barbecues and finally the best place to watch the sunset in the port of Oia (even more beautiful than Fira). The only word of warning is that the sea can be very rough, so it’s a good idea to take some seasickness pills beforehand.
Day 4 After checking out of the airport at noon, we flew to Athens, where we checked into our hotel and then went to the food court. It’s early dawn in Greece in May and sunset is at 8pm, so the daylight hours are particularly long.
Day 5 We started our day in downtown Athens with a good concentration of sights. When we visited the Acropolis, museums and Constitution Square, as we were on our own without a guide, most of these were historical and cultural monuments that would not be interesting to just see. My husband had downloaded an app on his phone called “Talk and Learn”, which is a special audio guide to the sites, and it was great to listen and watch, giving us an initial insight into the origins of European civilisation.
It was sunny throughout May in Greece. A special tip is to take care of your sun protection. If you want to get good photos, it’s best to arrive at the Acropolis before 9am. We went on a Monday and it was really crowded after 9:30am. It’s also essential to have a pair of non-slip trainers for the whole trip. The Holy Island is a mountainous area and most of the streets in Athens have marble floors, so it was quite hard to walk. As there are many thieves and beggars, it is recommended that you lock your passport, wallet and other valuables in the hotel safe and do not carry them with you. We were more aware of this all the way, so we didn’t encounter any problems.
Day 6 Wake up naturally and have breakfast at the hotel, then check out and head to Athens airport for the return journey.
VI. Greek food
It’s a bit awkward to write about food as it’s not my area of responsibility. There are many restaurants along the coastline in Fira on the Holy Island, and my husband used both the VW and AntBee apps to choose the highest rated restaurants and then ordered the most recommended classic dishes, so we were hardly ever disappointed. I have fond memories of the lobster spaghetti and the calamari with poppers.
The central area of Athens also has several food streets with a wide variety of food. Many of the restaurants have Chinese menus. The cost of food is not too high throughout Greece, so you can eat as much as you like. I would recommend one restaurant in particular in Athens, Jingpin Chinese Restaurant, which is very tasty. I have a Chinese stomach and I always enjoy a Chinese meal wherever I go.
Conclusion: Greece’s islands and the Acropolis were both named in National Geographic’s top 50 places to visit in your lifetime and are well worth a visit. I hope this guide will give you some help.
