There are thousands of islands in Greece, and only 250 or so are inhabited. With that being said, every island is different with some catering to the party-goers, some to the free campers, and some to the luxury lifestyle. If you're traveling with your family, you may wonder, "What's a good island for kids?" Below are just a few reasons why Naxos is a great island to visit with the whole family!

Naxos is a large island, over 400 square kilometres with a great big mountain roughly in the centre so it offers both clean, clear seas and exceptional mountain views. The best way to get around with family is to hire a motorcar. There is no need for a large vehicle since a smaller one will get around the island quite comfortably.

The strong selling point as far as beaches are concerned is that there are two really good beaches for children, shallow and warm, with life-guard and several places to eat on the beach at Saint George (Agios Georgios) and Agia Anna (St. Anna).

The old town of Naxos is within the castle walls which is a medieval Venetian structure. The narrow alleys lend themselves to exploration and quite a few shopping surprises. At the same time it is a fun educational place for children to experience and there is a museum to top it off.

To read this article in full, please visit: Naxos

This summer, Athens is jam-packed with all kinds of events! You can join a SUP yoga class at the beach, admire photos from the Athens Photo Festival, or watch a film (or two...or three) under the stars. Check out our list of cool things to do this July in Athens!

It is Greece’s foremost cultural festival and one of the oldest performing arts festivals in Europe (1955). Each year, the Athens & Epidaurus Festival presents performances from acclaimed artists in theatre, dance, and music and attracts large audiences from around the world. The festival will run through August.

 

The beloved film-loving summer festival returns with its 8th edition of magical screenings from June to August. Special city corners, archaeological monuments, parks, squares, beaches and some of the most beautiful museums and sites in Athens transform into an open-air cinema with free entrance to the audience.

 

Athens Photo Festival Main Exhibition at the Benaki Museum

The main exhibition of the Athens Photo Festival will go through the month of July at the Benaki Museum. At the core of this festival is a range of events, including portfolio reviews, screenings, talks and discussions, workshops, and various community and participatory projects.

 

The Museum of Cycladic Art in Athens has the special honour of hosting the exhibition of George Condo from June to October. Condo is an artist who was vital in reviving the movement of figuration in America in the 1980s and he is also considered one of the most important American figurative sculptors and painters to this very day.

 

Keeping with tradition, before we all head off on our vacations and much needed city breaks, we are getting together for one last Meet Market of the summer season at the Association of Greek Archaeologists. Set in an ever-so-enchanting garden in the city center, this is one of our all time favorite venues… surrounded by flowers and shade… right next to the Thisio Metro… and with a direct view to the Acropolis.

 

Lynn Roulo is bringing her Kundalini yoga skills to the sea this month. And what better way to practice yoga during the summer than on a stand-up paddle board! As Lynn says, "I can’t think of a better place than Greece for SUP Yoga! The water is warm, clean and clear, and the conditions are ideal since the sea is usually pretty flat. If there are waves, they are really gentle."

 

Keeping with tradition, before we all head off on our vacations and much needed city breaks, we are getting together for one last Meet Market of the summer season at the Association of Greek Archaeologists. Set in an ever-so-enchanting garden in the city center, this is one of our all time favorite venues… surrounded by flowers and shade… right next to the Thisio Metro… and with a direct view to the Acropolis.

Expect to find 50 plus stalls from local creative business & independent designers, dj sets, interactive games for kids, girls in short skirts, boys with tans and plenty of refreshing drinks… and this time we are really focusing on the refreshments, featuring draft craft beer from The Midnight Circus Gypsy Brewing, delicious ice cream from Korné and our classic Meet Market cocktails.

This July, The Meet Market is also proud to present an African Dance performance from Dafne Assimakopoulou’s Dance Crew, with 6 dancers & 3 drummers busting moves and making Guinean grooves on Saturday night, at 20:00!

And if you’re worried about missing the World Cup Final, don’t be. We will have a projector there to make sure you see all the last games, while sipping on a cold brewski.

So if a tipsy urban outing with loads of creativity, African Dance, the World Cup Final and is your thing, then look no further.

The Meet Market: A 2-day celebration of the entrepreneurial spirit... A nomadic market place of local goods, fresh ideas and friendly folk. An audio-visual jigsaw of handmade & independently designed clothes, accessories, art, objects, organic body products, home ware, tasty food, vintage & retro collectables, records, interactive games, free prizes, DJ sets and good vibes.

Eleni is of Greek / Dutch origin and is the founder of the storytelling platform Guts & Tales. Our collaboration together promises to give you the most inspiring, truthful and genuine stories out there.

Eleni left her advertising career in Amsterdam and started her new life with a new home base, Athens. She is a mind trainer, coach and writer. Helps conscious entrepreneurs with finding their voice and launched her “Be Your Own Muse” 12-week online program for women. A multi-passionate entrepreneur with a big vision – all to do with living with meraki.

5 Things to Know About Eleni Meraki

• Hill of the Muses
• Dutch-Greek
• Storyteller
• Lucky number is 24
• Allergic to chit-chat

I moved at a young age from Greece to The Netherlands. Ever since I can remember I had this urge to experiment, experience and try new things. Hobbies, routes to school, studies, jobs, travels, houses. By the age of 23 I had travelled the world and had done more jobs than my age would count; from chef to stewardess and from telemarketer to waitress in traditional Dutch clothing.

"Discomfort is where the magic happens. I've always been chasing a rich life and view change as an inevitable force to embrace."

My career started in the marketing & advertising industry. I learned the art of marketing and advertising from the best in the industry, working for the biggest global brands in a variety of roles. I learned tremendously much, yet I wasn't meant to be doing that for the rest of my life. I was looking for more meaning in my life. I started my blog in this period and was getting so much satisfaction and inspiration out of doing it. Looking back it feels like listening to all these stories of people with guts, I was mentally preparing myself to do the same.

After five years of building my “career”, I decided to jump. I had an idea and a business plan of what I wanted to do and I was clear that I needed to move to my other home country, Greece. I felt I had, somehow, to be of service here. It was what they call 'a calling'. The majority of people around me thought I had gone mad. I was giving my safe life up to move to a country in despair, with only a rough idea and savings for just a couple of months of living.

The Megaron Concert Hall Garden is the perfect place to relax and escape the fast pace of the city. Walkers are free to stroll through the park and admire the beautiful verdant garden filled with thriving lush trees, flowers, shrubs, and climbing plants.

 

"In choosing the species to be planted, special emphasis was laid on evergreens such as carobs, acacia, orange and magnolia trees, with care taken to ensure that at any time of year some of the trees would be in flower. The mimosa, yellow jasmine, viburnum, and mahonia flower in the winter months. Early in spring, the ornamental plum-tree, Japanese quince, and forsythia come into bloom. The planting of laurel along the fences bordering the gardens was decided on functional – preventing noise pollution – as well as aesthetic grounds."

The landscape designers used the contours of the site to harmonize with the surrounding streets, the adjacent Eleftherias Park, and the monument to Eleftherios Venizelos. It was also designed to allow for rainwater run-off.

The Megaron Concert Hall Garden hosts a wide range of musical, educational, cultural, and environmental events. Perhaps the most unforgettable occasion was the concert by the Vienna Philharmonic, conducted by Riccardo Muti. About 4,000 people, sat in Megaron Concert Hall Garden, to enjoy a live broadcast of the concert on giant screens.

 

For more information, please visit: Megaron
Photo source: Megaron

Between January and June of 2018, over 10 million passengers have been welcomed at the Athens International Airport (AIA), an 11.1 percent increase compared to the same period in 2017.

According to AIA, the increase in travelers came from a siginificant rise in the number of international travelers, which has risen 15.7 percent. Domestic travelers increased by 2.3 percent.

In June alone, AIA welcomed 2.43 million passengers, an 11.6 percent increase from June 2017.

News source: Greek Travel Pages

After 30th anniversary's festivities last year, the festival now enters its fourth decade with the aim to challenge the boundaries and experience of a traditional festival of photography.

Exploring critical issues relevant to our times, the festival functions as a dynamic platform where the social impact of the ever-changing visual culture can be raised and discussed. Athens Photo Festival 2018 brings together over 120 emerging and established international artists from 32 countries with the aim to reflect the diversity of contemporary photography, and to create opportunities for exchange of ideas, artistic expression and international engagement.

The 2018 main exhibitions take place from 6 June to 29 July 2018, at the Benaki Museum (Pireos St. Annexe). At the core of the festival is a range of events, including portfolio reviews, screenings, talks and discussions, workshops, and various community and participatory projects. In addition to the main venue-based programme, the festival encourages community involvement through satellite exhibitions in various locations in the city.

The main exhibition program, which covers over 2,000 square meters, is divided into sections, striving to create a dialogue between different thematic ideas, woven into one whole.

Click HERE to view the exhibition's program! 

On Thursday July 19th, Wyndham Grand Athens and Best Radio 92.6 invite you to a special After Office Party at the hotel's Roof Garden, the ABOVE Rooftop Bar Restaurant!

On the 9th floor of Wyndham Grand Athens and next to impressive city and acropolis panoramic views, guests are invited to join the 2nd After Office Event and enjoy refreshing drinks or signature cocktails, while listening to great music choices by Best Radio's DJs! 

Music by:

Evi Sidiropoulou

G.PAL

Maria Papidaki

Theodosis Michos

Beers: starting from 6 €

Wines by the Glass: starting from 6€

Standard Drinks: starting from 9 €

Cocktails: starting from 12 €

Standard Vodka Bottle Service: starting from 100 €

For world famous basketball player Giannis Antetokounmpo, Greece holds a special place in his heart.

Because of his love and ties to the country, the Minister of Tourism, Elena Kountoura, invited Mr. Antetokounmpo to become an ambassador of Greek tourism and help promote the country to the world. 

The Minister of Tourism was very emotional when she saw how much the NBA star loves Greece, who accepted her invitation straight away. Unofficially, Giannis has been promoting the country through his succesful achievements.

Giannis, of course, wanted to thank the Minister of Tourism for her effort to strenghten Greek tourism and stated that he and his family will do anything to boost the beauty and culture of his beloved country.

Furthermore, the Milwaukee Bucks player ran for a good cause on July 7th, 2018, encouraging solidarity in Greece.

The video below shows the tourism campaign by Visit Greece where Antetokounmpo invites you to his beautiful country!



Originally posted in Greek on Athens Voice
Translated by XpatAthens

No doubt in our minds that Athens is one of the most beautiful cities in the world. With historical ancient sites and exceptional beaches along the coast, Athens is a fascinating place for both tourists and locals. Most sightseeing is done during the day, but Athens is just as wonderful and impressive at night.Below are some excellent spots to sit and stargaze!



Thiseio


@observatoryathens

Right in the heart of Athens, the bright lights of the busy city might not create the best circumstances for a crystal clear sky, but the local observatory and its telescope have sure taken care of it! So next time you're downtown, don't forget to pay it a visit.

Penteli


@paranoid_pastel

The Penteli Observatory is undoubtedly one of the most famous observatories in Greece. Whether you live in Athens or just visiting, you can take part in one of the organized tours that they offer, which include walking at night and observing the clear sky through a Newall telescope.

Sounio


@leva_alex

One of the most magical places outside of Athens is the famous Sounio. The Temple of Poseidon and its sandy beach just under it make it a once in a lifetime oppurtunity to gaze at the sky while enjoying a refreshing swim. 

Elikonas


@tasos_palamidas

Just about an hour away from Athens lies the country town of Elikonas, which offers a fantastic site in the woods to gaze at the stars. The place is called Arvanitsa where visitors can also enjoy a quick bite far from the hustle and bustle of the city.

Kitheronas


@kimon_papathanasopoulos

The mountain of Kitheronas is situated between Attica and Viotia and has become a favorite place for passionate stargazers. If you do visit it, the best place for a great view of the sky is near the EOS Eleusina shelter, Vaggelis Tsakos.