Exploring the Greek Islands of Paros, Santorini and Naxos during the beautiful wildflower and lush spring season was a dream come true. Not only was I able to explore archeological treasures, dramatic landscapes, and delicious food, but our itinerary allowed us to hike through the small villages and explore lesser known areas.
Our journey began on the enchanting island of Paros, a lesser-known gem in the Cycladic Islands that steals your breath with its whitewashed buildings and vibrant bougainvillea blooming over each doorway. This is definitely a laid-back but charming island, with smaller villages scattered along the coastline and great sndy beaches to enjoy the turquoise Aegean waters.
Next, we did as the Greeks do and headed south on the BlueStar Ferry line to the infamous island of Santorini. Traveling the Greek islands in April/May means you get to experience warm sunny days and cool overcast ones as well. We arrived into the cloud covered caldera, you could just barely make out the white-washed villages on the caldera rim, giving the illusion of an island dusted by snow. Luckily, spring weather brought sunny days for the rest of our stay, so we were able to witness the sparkling villages and jaw dropping construction of cliffside buildings with unbelievable views of volcanic rock meeting the brilliant blue of the sea.
Our final destination was the island of Naxos, with its delightful villages and azure seas stretching as far as the eye could see. Entering the harbor by ferry you are greeted by Portara on your left, a marble gate from a temple of Apollo constructed in 530BC. Exploring this lush and self-sustaining island, with a fresh water source and endless groves of olive, and fruit trees, was truly my favorite part of the trip. The end of our trip also brought the warmest weather so it was lovely to experience the Mediterranean sun on Naxos famous white sand beaches.
Throughout the trip, I was incredibly grateful for Thanos, our very Greek guide, who brought each island to life. Sharing stories and history of each island and warm conversations with locals wherever we stopped. The icing on the cake to these beautiful locations was seeing it through Thanos's eyes as a proud Greek.
By diving in, exploring the smaller villages, wandering the remote hiking trails, stopping at small cafes and restaurant tucked away and taking some time to learn a few Greek phrases, had me feeling like the island life was for me!
Adventure Life is always an excellent choice when planning complicated, extreme, or exotic vacations or expeditions. They provide friendly professional services and advice and are enthusiastic and encouraging in helping us to prepare and thoroughly enjoy our trip. They handle all the details which greatly reduces the stress of planning a difficult trip. I'm very impressed with Adventure Life and definitely recommend them to friends and family.
Scott Trochim
2 days ago
The response from Adventure Life to my first inquiry was prompt and promising. I worked with Jamie Broeckel, Trip Planner, via text, email, and phone calls- always extremely responsive and thorough with information and explaining the process to arrange a private tour for me to Malaysia Borneo. Within about week, the booking was complete and I made decisions because of Jamie's great customer service , friendly manner, and overall competence on behalf of the company's travel expertise. Now I have an itinerary, additional Trip Planner Assistants, several links for vital information for traveling to Maylasia, etc. Still many details for Sept. trip, but now the heavy lifting is done and I can enjoy the rest of the anticipation and research!! Thanks Jamie- you are amazing!!!!
Susan Campo
4 days ago
The trip was not only memorable for the amount of animals we saw but also for the people and accommodations at the two camps where we stayed. Our first guide, BK, was a wealth of information about the animals, landscape and down to the plants and what they were used for. Everyday out was a learning experience with him. All the people at the camps were gracious and the food was excellent.
Our second camp in the Okavanga was just as good as the first as far as the staff, accommodations, food and animals. After our experience at the first camp we amazed that the high quality remained the same. Our guide, G, made sure we were able to enjoy every experience including a rush through the bush to witness a cheetah and an ensuing hunt that he heard over his radio.
In both camps there were enough guides out that if they saw something the other guides were informed which helped in seeing as much as possible. It was also nice that the concessions were large enough that we did not have vehicles following each other throughout the day.
Normally there is always something in a trip of this length that we think could be improved upon but this is the rare case where we cannot think of anything. From the time we left the States to when we returned it was one of the most hassle free vacations we took.
Perhaps emphasizing the use of the laundry facilities at the camps would be useful because of the luggage restrictions would be the only thing I can think of as an improvement to future clients.
Kenneth Dropek
5 days ago
Mary was so pleasant and professional. She made sure all of our questions were answered.