Greek Dream Come True

Greece | Jul 1 - Jul 14, 2019

We had a fabulous trip in Greece thanks to all the coordination and expert guiding from the folks that kimkim ser up for us. Andreas was excellent for our all-day excursion to Delphi — very friendly and knowledgeable. The guide we had at the Delphi museum was also excellent.

The mythological tour with Vicky was very good—she has a background in archaeology and anthropology and was lively and funny. On such a hot day our younger travelers ran out of energy before we managed to see most of the Agora, but we managed to get the highlights of the Acropolis, and on our last day in Greece we returned to the museum of the Acropolis for a cooler and more detailed visit of the artifacts.

Our time in Naxos was relaxing and cooler after the heat and go-go-go of Athens. The beach hotel was perfect because it was both quiet and lovely. Our hike with Matina was a highlight because she was also very relaxed and able to respond to all our questions on the trail. We were lucky to visit an old Byzantine church when archaeologists were working the site and got to speak with them a bit about their work.

Santorini was next and the crew of our catamaran cruise was delightful. The captain engaged my mom in long conversation and the sights from the water were absolutely stunning. The only issue was that the pasta prepared for the group ran out before my niece could get some — and she eats very few things. It was mainly an issue with one family whose kids took giant portions, but the cook apologized and was seemed stunned to see that the item had vanished before everyone had a chance to sample it. We enjoyed the beach at Kamari and arranged an afternoon trip to Oía. We watched the US women win the World Cup title at an Irish Bar with an attentive staff, and that was fun.

Back at Athens for Laura & Claire’s departure we rented our car and headed for Corinth and the Peloponnese. Such a great choice! Nafpaktos was charming and we especially enjoyed Dimitris’s recommendation for a restaurant there — Captain Cook. Adela and I swam in the sea and climbed to the fortress.

En route to Olympia we enjoyed the countryside and ended up at the wrong Amalia hotel, but we were able to correct in time for our tour with Antonia. She was my favorite guide of the trip—so attentive to our questions and my mom’s pace in the heat. Nafplio proved to be a charming place to spend three nights and at that leg of the journey we were glad not to be moving every day to a new spot. Ilias was an excellent guide as well—maybe surprised with our level of knowledge and interest in the history and happy to go deeper when we asked questions. Mycanae and Epidaurus are very interesting places.

The evening performance of Oedipus Rex was definitely a highlight for me—my mom and I reread the play the day before we saw it, and it sprang to life in the theater as I hoped it would—creating a mythical moment as we considered how Greeks in ancient times may have experienced the brilliance of Greek tragedy.

The kayaking outing was soooo beautiful and George & Nico were excellent guides. George in particular has a zest for life and sharing outdoor experiences that inspire and connect people with natural beauty. Our coordinator at Grecopaths was lovely — helping us pick up our laundry in town and gifting us homemade preserves. Wish we had had more time with her!

The travel back to Athens was smooth and arriving back on a Sunday with little to no traffic was a bonus. Our Pi Athens staff welcomed us back for the third time and Lampros took us to the airport the next day. He’s a gem — so attentive and professional.

You and your team organized a trip we’ll never forget. You’ve earned our trust and stellar recommendation to others. Honestly, my mom was hesitant to go with an agency we knew little about, but everyone had a great time. Thank you for being so responsive to our queries! It instilled a lot of confidence as we went from place to place that we were in good hands.