Discover Greece is hitting the road with its own digital travel show that gives you the stage to present Greece to the world. They will be sending guest presenters around the country, broadcasting live across all our Social Media channels.

The journey starts in the Peloponnese (Nafplio, Pylos, Kalamata, Methoni, Olympia, Monemvasia, Mani), bringing to life castles, beaches, wines, olives, cheeses, stories from the locals – and, of course lots of sun, sea and blue, blue sky. For more information, please visit: Wanderlust Greece

 

 

In a recent feature published by Time Magazine, Greece's Cycladic Islands were included as one of the best destinations for calm and relaxation in 2018. The Cyclades ranked 3rd on the list, falling behind Bay of Islands in New Zealand as number 1 and Little Corn Islands in Nicaragua as number 2.

The most well-known islands of the Cyclades are Santorini and Mykonos, however the Cyclades consist of more than 200 islands, most of which boast pristine beaches, white-washed villages and blue dome churches.

To find true isolation, head to the less developed islands like Sikinos, Kimolos and Anafi, as proposed by Lonely Planet. Anafi is a 90-minute boat ride from Santorini and offers a relaxed setting and quiet beaches.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter

Athens rang in the New Year with a record-breaking Vasilopita cake weighing 2,500 kilos!

Also, find out when winter sales begin, learn about the story behind 10 of the oldest houses in Athens, where to find the best street food in the city and much more!

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Remember to stay connected with us through our weekly newsletter, Facebook, and Twitter!

Please click HERE to view this issue of our newsletter!

Remember to stay connected with us through our weekly newsletter, Facebook, and Twitter!

Beginning March 27, 2018, Qatar Airways will launch four weekly flights connecting Doha to Thessaloniki.

 

Flights between Doha and Thessaloniki will be conducted on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. The Qatar aircraft will depart from Doha at 07:40 to arrive in Thessaloniki at 12:50. The return flight will depart from Thessaloniki at 13:50 to arrive in Doha at 18:40.

The new service between Doha and Thessaloniki will be operated by an Airbus A320 aircraft, featuring 12 seats in Business Class and 132 seats in Economy Class.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Travel Pages

Greece is beginning the 2018 new year with winter sales starting on January 8 and going through February 28. On January 14, the first Sunday of the sales period, shops will stay open from 11:00-18:00.

Store owners, particularly in Athens, have announced a mere 2.5% hike in their profits in the holiday season and are now anxious to capitalize on it with the almost two-month long winter sales.

If there is a discount on more than 60% of a store’s goods on sale, it is mandatory to show the percentage discount given, which must be displayed in the shop window and all other commercial communication, such as online stores and public advertisements.

For a few ideas on where to shop, read: Athens' Newest Cool Neighborhoods - Koukaki & Makriyianni and Top 5 Places To Go In Kifissia

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Reporter

Greece rang in the New Year with a record-breaking Vasilopita cake that was 2,500 kilos. The cake was offered to Athens' locals for free as the Greek bakers wanted to send their well wishes for 2018.

 

Greek City Times reports, "the 70-metre-long and 3-metre-wide Vasilopita was cut in 15,000 slices at a Platia (centre square) in Athens’ suburban municipality of Peristeri and is the largest ever made in Greece, according to organisers."

Over fourty people worked non-stop for three days to prepare the record-breaking, delicious cake, said Panagiotis Sachinidis, President of the Association of Athens’ Bakers who took the initiative.

The municipality of Peristeri hid 200 “lucky coins” inside the cake for good luck. Locals were also given small gifts by the Mayor of Peristeri Andreas Pachatouridis who helped slice the cake. “We are cutting the Vassilopita of the love and solidarity,” he said addressing the event.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek City Times

The secret is out that Greece in fact does have a winter and while it may not be as popular as summer, the country boasts some beautiful winter destinations. Put on your warmest winter clothes and join Greece Is who shares the top 10 places to visit this winter!

This is a time to experience a different sort of Greece – one of rivers, mountains and glorious natural landscapes as yet undiscovered by mass tourism. One that is emptier, wilder but also comforting in its own way, insulated from the rush and chaos of the modern world.

 

 

 

Forming the lower part of the huge Pindos range in northwestern Greece, the Tzoumerka mountain chain is a series of peaks that effectively form a giant ridge running roughly north to south along the boundary between the regions of Ioannina and Arta.

To take your hit of the natural beauty of Epirus cut with a dose of well-mannered culture, the small and tidy stone-built town of Metsovo near the Tzoumerka mountain range may be more your speed. An important military and trading post in centuries past, Metsovo flourished in the 18th and 19th centuries, developing trade links to key cities throughout Europe.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greece Is

The Athens Traders Association in collaboration with the Attica Region and the Municipality of Athens recently announced plans to revamp and use abandoned buildings to house small and medium-sized retailers and entrepreneurs. Their hope is to revive once thriving trade areas and to establish new business neighborhoods.

In view of increasing tourist flows to Athens, the action, initially a pilot program, will create new prospects for trade as well as upgrade the city center. Sights for the first project are set on central Stadiou St.

“Every store window display that’s lit up drives away delinquency and creates jobs,” said Stavros Kafounis, the association’s president. The Attica Region Governor and the municipal authority of Athens will try to devise a plan so small and medium-size retailers can rent out large spaces on privileged terms over a two-year period.

To read this article in full, please visit: Greek Travel Pages

The last time Culinary Backstreets visited Pipería in Neo Psychiko was five years ago until just recently, they made their way back to this unchanged restaurant owned by Yannis Galaktopoulos.

 

“I’m not a chef, just a cook,” Yannis said, as he originally wanted to be an architect (and in fact still harbors a dream of becoming one). He only got involved in the food business after his father bought a beach resort in Glyfada, one of Athens’ southern suburbs, in 1993. It was in the resort’s restaurant that he learned his way around a kitchen.

He opened Piperiá in 2001 with a friend, the well-known chef Panagiotis Papanikolaou, who designed most of the menu. “When I bought Piperiá, which had been a café, we conceived it as a mezedopoleio [a meze restaurant], but we quickly changed the focus to seafood and fish,” he explained. “The name, which means pepper, the vegetable not the spice, already existed, and it sounds more like a meat place, but we decided to keep it, as it was becoming known.”

To read this article in full, please visit: Culinary Backstreets