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Contiki Tours
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| TranceGeek |
just wondering if anyone has ever been on one of those?
i'm thinking about going on one of these (Greek Island Hopping tour), but not sure what to expect...
www.contiki.com
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| brunette |
Were you talking about 13-day trip? 1049 euros!!!!!!! :eek: :eek: It cost me 300 euros for 11 days last summer, including a deck ticket on the boat Montenegro-Italy-Greece-Italy-Croatia! I know it wasn't glamorous and sleeping on the decks, beaches and open amphitheatres helped, but it was worth it.
Well, you got Athens only for a day and a half.. and you'll be stationed at Kamari in Santorini, which is close to the black beach, but farther from the two main towns; you don't need to go to Nea Kameni (unless you're 50 and can't stand partying and beaches), that is not what you wanna do on Santorini. Haven't been to Paros, but I heard it's a lot of fun.. and a lot of northern Europeans :) 3 nights on Mykonos is good; hit Paradise or Super Paradise and definitely Paraga (a semi-nude beach)! You might even be there when great DJs invade Cavo Paradiso (Diggers and Cattaneo were there before) which only opens at 6 am, Space Dance is cool and Scandinavian Bar (a lot of fun!) as well as all those cool places in the old town, but you have to explore because some are hidden.
Other than that, what you need to know is that the boats from island to island leave really early and the only problem with this tour is the price :eyespop:, which apparently doesn't include the airfare. |
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| TranceGeek |
yeah, you're right, it is kind of steep, i guess i'd be looking at around 3k CDN total... but i don't really have the luxury of wandering around europe for a couple of months and can't afford to miss out on a few days, unless i get canned and go on unemployment for 6 months, mmmmmm :crazy:... wanna help me get canned, i'll make it worth your while? :D
anyways, w/out looking at the price, would you recommend it? |
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| icedale |
| I don't know TranceGeek, they sometimes treat tourists in pretty bad ways. How realiable is the travel agency? |
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| brunette |
| quote: | Originally posted by TranceGeek
yeah, you're right, it is kind of steep, i guess i'd be looking at around 3k CDN total... but i don't really have the luxury of wandering around europe for a couple of months and can't afford to miss out on a few days, unless i get canned and go on unemployment for 6 months, mmmmmm :crazy:... wanna help me get canned, i'll make it worth your while? :D
anyways, w/out looking at the price, would you recommend it? |
Yeah, I guess I would say I'd recommend it. The good thing is that you will meet people on this tour and also you don't have to look for your own accomodation, which is not a problem at all on the islands (because there are people waiting once you come out offering you stuff), but I remember walking through entire Athens at 4 pm in the biggest heat with luggage trying to find a hostel. :p |
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| TranceGeek |
| quote: | Originally posted by icedale
I don't know TranceGeek, they sometimes treat tourists in pretty bad ways. How realiable is the travel agency? |
well i dunno, thats what i'm trying to find out :D, and the site seems pretty authentic...
| quote: | Originally posted by brunette
Yeah, I guess I would say I'd recommend it. The good thing is that you will meet people on this tour and also you don't have to look for your own accomodation, which is not a problem at all on the islands (because there are people waiting once you come out offering you stuff), but I remember walking through entire Athens at 4 pm in the biggest heat with luggage trying to find a hostel. :p |
ok but really, how easy is it to score a room just to crash... i know i won't be eating much anyway so i don't really need a hotel room :clown: |
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| brunette |
| quote: | Originally posted by TranceGeek
ok but really, how easy is it to score a room just to crash... i know i won't be eating much anyway so i don't really need a hotel room :clown: |
I'm telling you, once you get off the ferry on the islands, there are thousands of people bombarding you with offers. Take your pick for your own budget. You can find anything, for any price.
In Athens it's a bit more complicated, 'cause there is no one to help you at the port but I can tell you a place where I stayed at, which was decent at e35/night for two, including breakfast. And it's basically 20-min walk to Acropolis, 2-min walk from the subway, and 15-min subway ride to the port.
But they trick you, of course.. Damn, I remember the hotel at Ios :tongue3: e15/night for TWO (!), it was a good room, but far from the main town, not that close to the port either and there was salt water from the shower (which I only figured out after I shampooed.. ewwwwwwww it was all sticky).
As far as food, giros (e1.5) and mmmmmmmmmmmilk! (A.W.E.S.O.M.E. I know it sounds simple, but I never tasted milk like that :stongue: :stongue: )
On Mykonos, do not get a room. You won't have time to go there at all. When you get off the ferry, put your luggage in the lockers and go straight to the parties at Paradise (doesn't matter when you arrive).
Oh, and get Yugoslavian International driver's licence if you can. You know why.
I feel like going again.. :( |
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| TranceGeek |
oh , i know exactly what you're talking about... i just remembered when i went to cyprus, all i ever ate was gyros/milk... :crazy:
but yeah, sounds like its not as complicated as i thought, i guess getting through athens would be the biggest problem... i just might decide to go blind and skip the stupid tour... looks like it will be way more exciting...
umm, yugo dl., how do you get one? can u get it at the consulate? , i think i don't even have yugo (or SCG) citizenship anymore... lol |
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| brunette |
You don't have Yugoslavian citizenship!? I would never give it up.. even though it's not of much use, but still..
Anyways, I don't think you can do much about it then.. you won't be able to rent a scooter on islands. But you can try getting Canadian International DL, just go to Ministry of Transportation (somewhere on Carleton & Yonge if I remember correctly) and pay $10 (if I remember correctly). Although, even then I don't think they'll let you rent.
I'll tell you how to pay cheaper boat fares between the islands too :clown: |
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| TranceGeek |
i wouldn't give it up either, i'm just not sure if i have it, since i've been here for so long and i'm not sure how my ex-yu citizenship translates into the new yu citizenship, or if it at all possible since i was born in BH, a separate country now :conf: i guess i'll have to borrow someone's YU DL :D
anyways, let me in on all the little secrets :) |
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| brunette |
I don't know if I should post it here.. ah, well, someone else might want to know :D
Since all the ferries island hop in high season you can buy a ticket to the closest destination (which is, of course, the cheapest) and stay on 'til wherever you need to go. You'll see schedules in front of a booking agency. It will say something like: Santorini - Ios - Naxos - Mykonos - Tinos - Syros - Piraeus (port of Athens)..... And you need to get from Mykonos to Athens, buy a ticket from Mykonos to Tinos (3.5 euros instead of 27 euros) and stay on 'til Piraeus ;)
I was on a really really tight budget :clown:
(I don't think they check.. we never got caught.. don't give them your real name if you're really paranoid that you might get caught)
http://www.greekferries.gr/ |
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| TranceGeek |
haha, nice... how long are those ferry rides anyway?
oh yeah, what island should i spend most of my time on? how would u divide those 14 days into? |
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