Need info on Greece in March??
Dec 18th, 2000, 10:20 PM
#1
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Need info on Greece in March??
We are traveling to Athens and Crete the First 2 weeks in March and would like some help on the best/cheapest hotels and best places to visit. Also, where are the best places to eat? This is our first trip to Greece. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks a bunch! Cathy
Dec 19th, 2000, 06:19 AM
#2
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Hi Cathy,
A friend and I went to Athens and the Peloponnisos in mid March in '98. We had the bad luck to run into the coldest spring they ever had. It even snowed in Athens!
The only problems we had, though, was the shortened opening times for the sites (the Acropolis was only open from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.) and in the smaller cities, the shops were only open every other day. Some of the hydrofoils were not running to the islands and some of the ferries had shortened service.
My daughter went to Athens and Santorini the end of March (the same year) and it rained everyday. Everything in '98 was blamed on el nino.
The good news is that we encountered no crowds and had no problems finding hotels with great (read: reduced) prices.
We would love to return to Greece someday but we won't take the chance of going in March. The merchants told us everything opens back up in April and it's still not too crowded at that time, I think we'll try late April.
Good luck and have a great time!
Sandy
A friend and I went to Athens and the Peloponnisos in mid March in '98. We had the bad luck to run into the coldest spring they ever had. It even snowed in Athens!
The only problems we had, though, was the shortened opening times for the sites (the Acropolis was only open from 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.) and in the smaller cities, the shops were only open every other day. Some of the hydrofoils were not running to the islands and some of the ferries had shortened service.
My daughter went to Athens and Santorini the end of March (the same year) and it rained everyday. Everything in '98 was blamed on el nino.
The good news is that we encountered no crowds and had no problems finding hotels with great (read: reduced) prices.
We would love to return to Greece someday but we won't take the chance of going in March. The merchants told us everything opens back up in April and it's still not too crowded at that time, I think we'll try late April.
Good luck and have a great time!
Sandy
Dec 20th, 2000, 06:55 AM
#3
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My favourite hotel in Athens is the Attalos, in the Monistraki area (11,000 drachmas a night for a single room with bathroom). My favourite restaurant is the Byzantino in the Plaka area (see www.athensguide.com for both of these).
As well as the obvious 'sights' in Athens (Acropolis, Forum, etc), don't miss the Anafiotika area, a traditional Greek island village right in the centre of Athens (under the Acropolis, on the Plaka side).
Weatherwise, take a windproof and waterproof coat. You could be lucky and get constant sunshine, but better to be safe than sorry! The evenings, in any event, will be chilly. But you're seeing Athens at the best time of year - in July/August the heat and pollution makes it very uncomfortable.
As well as the obvious 'sights' in Athens (Acropolis, Forum, etc), don't miss the Anafiotika area, a traditional Greek island village right in the centre of Athens (under the Acropolis, on the Plaka side).
Weatherwise, take a windproof and waterproof coat. You could be lucky and get constant sunshine, but better to be safe than sorry! The evenings, in any event, will be chilly. But you're seeing Athens at the best time of year - in July/August the heat and pollution makes it very uncomfortable.
Dec 20th, 2000, 07:05 AM
#4
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Greece is a wonderful place to visit, but I'd agree about not many places being open during March. Make sure you know the hours of operation for many of the museums and stuff before you try to plan your day. Sometimes things are open at really strange hours.
We visited Delphi when I was there, and it was absolutely beautiful. There are some very beautiful areas of Delphi, and its a good change of scenery from the hustle and bustle of Athens. Some places in Athens to go are the obvious places, plus try to make it to the Archeology museum. I'm not too big into archeology, but it's amazing to see really, since Greece has such an amazing history. Are you taking a ferry to Crete? If you are headed into Iraklio, go to Knossos if you are a big archeology buff. Also, the Venetian Fortress is supposed to be really neat, and it's quite large. A walk out there would be nice and relaxing (also very far). Also, there's a decent archeology museum in Crete.
Enjoy your trip!
Visit my column on travel:
geocities.com/j_goyette/t.html
We visited Delphi when I was there, and it was absolutely beautiful. There are some very beautiful areas of Delphi, and its a good change of scenery from the hustle and bustle of Athens. Some places in Athens to go are the obvious places, plus try to make it to the Archeology museum. I'm not too big into archeology, but it's amazing to see really, since Greece has such an amazing history. Are you taking a ferry to Crete? If you are headed into Iraklio, go to Knossos if you are a big archeology buff. Also, the Venetian Fortress is supposed to be really neat, and it's quite large. A walk out there would be nice and relaxing (also very far). Also, there's a decent archeology museum in Crete.
Enjoy your trip!
Visit my column on travel:
geocities.com/j_goyette/t.html
Dec 20th, 2000, 08:02 AM
#5
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Hi, this is Sandy back again and seconding the Attalos that Liz suggested. We stayed there twice and had great rooms both times (w/balcony overlooking both the Acropolis and Lycabetus Hill), try to get 606 (a big corner room) or 605 (not a corner but still a room w/good view).
Sandy
Sandy
