Thank you Chrissa, and we wish you a happy holiday season.
We enjoyed our stay at the Dana Villas in Santorini very much. The accommodations were excellent, the staff friendly and most helpful and the breakfasts on the lower terrace delicious.
It was a wonderful time to visit Santorini when there were few tourists and we felt welcome. We were unable to see the ruins at Akrotiri because of the accident where the tourist was killed the month before, but the two local museums filled us in on the history and art and we appreciated the English interpretations.
We walked, with new friends, the beautiful trail (and road) from Fira to Oia on a lovely sunny day and enjoyed the views of the cliff top villages and the caldera and islands below. We also stopped at the Boutari Winery and tasted the delightful local wines. We dined at some memorable restaurants and tavernas and some that were not. The sunsets from our terrace and that of our friends were lovely but not spectacular due to the clouds on the horizon, and the sparkling building colors and shapes will remain in our memory always.
Thank you for your help in arranging our visit to Santorini.
J. & B. Mountjoy - USA
Dear Uli,
We vacationed in Greece the first week of July 2005. We visited Santorini, Mykonos, and Athens. The trip was spectacular! Everything worked out perfectly! All of our transfers, tickets, boat rides, plane rides, ferries, hotels, breakfast we so well coordinated and organized by you, everything was easy and worry free! Thank you so much for planning our trip. I have been telling everyone how awesome Greece is and if they go they must work with Uli at Dolphin-Hellas. Thanks again!
J. & P. Kelly - USA
Hello Uli: We are now back on the Island of Hawaii and assimilating our two- month journey to Greece and Egypt. We just want to let you know we appreciate very much your wonderful, thoughtful arrangements for us. We had a positive and rewarding time in Greece and the reservations all worked smoothly. If you want more detailed feedback I will provide it for you, but it was a successful trip and we would like to work with you in the future. Your loyal travelers,
A. & B. Widmann - USA
Dear Aliki,
Many thanks for your email. I have only spoken briefly with Fr. Martin who seems to be very happy with the tour overall. Of course, after completing the tour firsthand he is bound to have suggestions etc.
...
Again many thanks to you personally for taking such excellent care of this group. I hope we will have many more in 2006.
--------------------------------------------------
Just to let you know that I spoke very briefly with Fr. Fitzpatrick last night and he told me that the group had a wonderful holiday which I was delighted to hear. He is on retreat in the early part of this week so I should have a full report by the weekend which of course I will forward to you.
Thanks so much for taking great care of them - it means so much when a tour goes very well.
Warmest regards,
Patricia
MAP Travel – Ireland
Dear Esther
My husband and I returned from our trip to Greece several days ago and we wanted to thank you for all your assistance. Our trip was more wonderful than we even imagined. Greece is a truly a beautiful and fascinating country and we feel so fortunate that we were able to have an extended visit.
Thanks to your assistance, our trip went so smoothly and we were able to enjoy ourselves without worrying about all the details. All our hotel rooms were comfortable and had spectacular views. The staff at each of the hotels was friendly and so helpful. We enjoyed our day trip to Delphi. The only slight problem we encountered was a brake problem with our rental car, but the agent took care of it quickly and efficiently. He left a substitute car for us to use and then returned our original car to us the following day.
We loved Greece so much that we can't wait to return, but that probably won't be for a while! I just wanted to let you know how very pleased we were with everything. I will certainly recommend you to anyone I know planning a trip to Greece.
Regards,
N.Y. Bierut & K. Bierut - USA
Dear Esther -
I hope everything is better for you.
Just a line to thank you for taking care of my family trip this year. It all worked seamless. No stress for us.
Next year we are planning another trip. I don't know how many people but we plan to do Crete.
Regards
J. Apistolas - USA
Dear Esther,
We hope that you are well and back to the office. We want to thank you very much for arranging a wonderful trip for us to Greece.
Everything went just as planned by you. We loved Crete and were happy that you had suggested to stay more days. We had a lovely room at the Hotel Irini with a small view out over the Venetian Harbor. The overnight ferries were great.
The tour went well also. Our guide, Liliana, was very nice and understanding that we wanted to spend more time in the museums at Olympia (a wonderful refurbishment), Mycenae, and Delphi. It was a very large tour group but fine for us since we did not have to hear the explanations much of the time.
We also enjoyed our time in Athens. The Hotel Attalos is very well situated, actually 10 minutes from all of the important sites. We did have to keep telling them that we wanted a quiet room. You wrote it on each of the vouchers, but we still had to insist. They were very nice in accommodating that wish. The hotel has a lot of teenagers staying there, so one has to be careful not to get near them.
Again, thank you very much for all your help.
Best regards,
D. & R. Kendle - USA
Hello Uli,
I just wanted to thank you for all the work you've done for us. All the hotels you recommended were great. We just returned from our wonderful trip and very much enjoyed staying in the hotels you arranged for us. I will recommend you to everyone who will be traveling to Greece.
By the way, do you service any other country besides Greece? We are thinking that maybe next year we'd like to visit Turkey and Egypt. Or maybe Spain and Portugal. I'd love to work with you again.
Thank you again.
N. Noman - USA
Dear Uli,
Just wanted to thank you for all your help. We had such a wonderful holiday. Antipaxos is so beautiful and the villa was perfect. Thank you for arranging the shopping - much needed! (there was a storm and we couldn't leave the island for 3days and all tavernas were closed!)
We're looking forward to our next holiday in Greece!
kind regards,
C. Adkins - UK
Dear Esther,
At last I am getting my act together to email you. It took some time to get back into South African time and leave the relaxed feeling behind of our fantastic holiday in Greece! A big thank you for your perfect arrangements as NOTHING went wrong and all the ferries were spot on time!
The hotel in Athens upgraded us to their “sister” hotel and we had a great stay. We were very pleased that they could give us a room at about 7am because we left Cape Town the previous day at about 13h30. We still had to fly to Johannesburg and wait there for our Olympic Air flight to Athens. I must add that we also had a very good flight with Olympic on a new Airbus.
Athens was wonderful and we were very impressed by the new Metro. The Metro stations were like museums!! We could have stayed longer, but we promised our children to bring them to Athens in the near future.
The apartment in Mykonos at Marina Mykonos View was wonderful, except the wind howled all the time while we were on the island! Typical Mykonos, I believe. (I must add that Mykonos will always be special because my husband bought me a beautiful sapphire and diamond ring, which is supposed to be part of my 50th birthday gift.) We enjoyed the ferry trip to Syros from Mykonos, but the accommodation was so-so. To top it all the owner had a sea view apartment available that she tried to “sell” until about 21h00 when we went out for supper! I think looking back at the other accommodation that you recommended, this is not worthy to be on your books. For sure not “A” class!!!
The best island for us was Sifnos! The accommodation was fantastic and the island just what the doctor ordered. We had a fabulous time. Rented a little car, went to the little beaches, swam in the beautiful crystal clear water, dried in the sun, ate and ate and ate and had lots and lots of wine. You can truly recommend the accommodation to other clients. Sifnos was a gem and worth all the traveling to get there!!!
We sadly left Sifnos to go to Santorini on a very long ferry ride for 7 hours, but we enjoyed every moment. Seeing all the little islands and picking up new passengers for us was all part of the holiday fun. Now Santorini was just another story altogether! What an amazing island. We rented a car and traveled all over the island. The accommodation (Neoklassiko Koukouli) was perfect! Just what I imagined. We could just sit on our little patio and see the boats come and go. The views from up there were fantastic. Thank you so much for this special place to stay!! It was quiet, but still right there in the village. We also had a wonderful time on the black beach, after visiting all the beaches. We left Santorini early evening with sadness in our hearts, sand on our feet and promised to go back.
Thank you so very much for all your arrangements, Esther. I will recommend you to all my friends here in South Africa. It’s a pity we did not meet, but maybe next time when we plan to stay longer in Athens. Then I will make time for all the beautiful shops too!!
There are lots to be negative about in all countries, but as a visitor we were very impressed with Athens and the sites. My aunt took us around to the sites and for a lovely drive out to Cape Sounion. The beautiful airport, (taxi no problem, maybe because it was so early in the morning) the service, the new roads, the beautiful people we met on the islands and the fantastic food!!!!!
Should you ever wish to visit South Africa, please contact us!
Best wishes!
F. & A. Steenkamp – South Africa
Dear Esther,
I thought I'd give you some 'follow-up" about our trip and especially about the wedding. First of all, the trip went flawlessly. Our transfers from and to the airport were right on time. The ferries to the islands were all in order and the hotels were as wonderful as we remembered them from the last trip. We had one tense moment when we arrived at the port in Heraklion for the trip back to Pireaus. We were booked on the "Knossos Palace", and the ship at the dock was the "Festus Palace". I was worried that somehow we had booked the wrong date but the people at the ferry told us that we had the right date, just the ship had been changed. It was my biggest panic of the trip.
The wedding ... what can I say. We didn't know what to expect. It was FANTASTIC! Nina at Belonias Travel was nothing less than terrific. She made everything come together and for both of us it was wonderful beyond anything we had hoped for. All the documentation was in order with the translations into Greek. No trouble there at all. Nina told us the place in Fira at the Town Hall where we would have to go, and we went a day early to meet with the man who would perform the ceremony. He was very helpful explaining all we had to do as far as legalizations were concerned, and how they would handle the Marriage License. In fact, the Marriage License was here when we got home. The actual wedding was beautiful with the flowers and everything. Our friends from Paros made it at the last minute thanks to Nina. They were having trouble getting a TAXI from the Atlantis hotel in Fira to the Volcano View Villas, and Nina sent her Mini-Bus to get them. Up to the last minute, it looked like nothing was going to come together, but I remembered the Olympics. The whole world thought that Greece was not going to be ready in time, but at the last minute they worked like crazy, and it was perfect. The same for the wedding; when Nina arrived at Volcano View nothing was ready ... no flowers, no photographer. She got on her cell phone and started screaming in Greek and in no time people were arriving. The decorations and flowers were beautiful. The photographer did a wonderful job. We met him the day after the ceremony at the hotel and he had stayed up all night developing the pictures and printing them and putting them into a beautiful album for us along with all the pictures on a CD. Totally gorgeous pictures. I'm attaching one to this e-mail so you can see. We met you the last time we were in Greece, but I know you meet hundreds of people, and it's difficult to remember. We stopped by your office in Athens, but you were still out of the office; sorry to have missed you. Everything came together perfectly. I can't say enough for the way Nina made everything a success for our very special day.
I don't have the eMail for either Nina or the photographer. If you could provide this or a way to get in touch with them I'd appreciate it very much. I have also lost the name of the man who performed the ceremony, and I'd like to get in touch with him as well.
Thank you for all your help again. Hopefully it will not be another four years before we return.
Best regards,
G. & M. Grim - USA
Dear Uli,
...our wonderful vacation in Greece! We had a great time in your beautiful country and will have to come back and stay longer next time. The information packet and maps you'd prepared were very helpful. The Hotel Phillipos was in a perfect location and very comfortable. The cruise and excursions were terrific. My Dad really enjoyed watching the ship's docking procedures and then the process for leaving port. And of course the islands and Kusadasi were wonderful. The Holiday Inn - Attica Avenue was a plush ending to our trip and so convenient for that early morning flight to return home.
Especially please extend our thanks to the gentleman from EMKO RENT who delivered and picked up our rental car. He was very helpful in giving us directions and advice for the driving portion of our trip. I think I would still be driving around Athens/Piraeus trying to find the national road if he had not helped us! Unfortunately, in all the newness of the experience, I didn't learn his name. Talking with him was a highlight of our trip!
Best regards,
L. & B.Charbonneau, T. & E.Gribble - USA
Hi Uli,
We just wanted to tell you how much we enjoyed our trip to your beautiful country, and that the places you recommended and arranged for us were all great! In most cases, we were put in the best room in the hotel! Certainly that was true in Naxos, Mykonos, and Syros; and our traditional house in Santorini could not have been better, and in Kastraki the room was great, and in Athens we did have a nice quiet rooftop room. We can only give you credit for arranging for use to get the best rooms!
All the boat trips went like clockwork, and our overnight stateroom from Piraeus to Santorini was great!
The rental car was very nice, and the service provided by the rental car people was excellent -- timely, friendly, and most of all, convenient for us with starting at the Lilia and ending at the Cecil.
Here is a summary of our thoughts about the hotels:
1. Santorini - Lava Oia's Traditional Houses - the most beautiful, so friendly, peaceful and quiet, we loved Oia, such a pretty small town (unlike Fira which we drove through in the taxi from the boat which was too busy!), we sat happily for hours on our private patio overlooking the caldera, perfection!
2. Naxos - Nissaki Beach Hotel - a truly wonderful location, great taverna/restaurant right on the beach, extremely close to town and the port, we had a 3rd floor room with great sea view from the private balcony, certainly one of the best in the hotel, a great beach, superior swimming pool, we could not have been happier!
3. Mykonos - Mykonos Beach Hotel - another wonderful location, extremely close to town, we had suite #30 on the highest level with great sea view from the huge private balcony, certainly one of the best in the hotel, unfortunately we did not make it down to the beach or the swimming pool but it was very nice that they were right there, we could not have been happier!
4. Syros - Hotel Hermes - again, another wonderful location, right in town (but at the quiet edge) and next to the port, we had a absolutely wonderful room on the highest level with great sea view from either one of our TWO private balconies, certainly one of the best in the hotel, our room and their taverna/restaurant was right on the sea shore, we could not have been happier!
5. Piraeus - Hotel Lilia - of course we did not spend much time there, the hotel is an excellent value, very quiet (which is obviously hard to find in Piraeus), the best part was that it was only a few blocks walk to the Passalimani yacht basin which was lined with many very nice outdoor cafes. I do not think we could have had a better hotel here for the money in Piraeus.
6. Kastraki - Hotel France - we were delighted with this hotel, it obviously has been recently 100% redecorated with beautiful stone and brand new furnishings (bed and other furniture), spotlessly clean, very friendly owner, a great room with a private balcony looking out at Meteora, we liked strolling through town, we could not have been happier.
7. Athens - Cecil Hotel - the hotel is an excellent value, very quiet (which is obviously hard to find in Athens), helpful staff, we could see the Acropolis clearly from our rooftop where we had our 4th floor room, the best part was that it was only a few blocks walk to the Monastiraki/Plaka for many wonderful taverna/restaurants as well as shopping (I even bought some leather sandals directly from the very nice man who makes them, for only 10 Euros), and also a very shot walk to the Acropolis & Agora, and especially only a few blocks to the Monastiraki Metro station so we could leave and go the airport quickly and very inexpensively. Perhaps the Attalos would have been better, but unfortunately they were all booked up, so the Cecil was a very good choice and would have been even better if they would have had a rooftop taverna :-).
One story I must share with you -- we rented a car in Naxos to tour the island for a day, and along the road we saw some men down in a vineyard picking grapes, and one of them was bringing up a load of grapes on his donkey, so I asked him if I could take some pictures, and he said yes, and then he insisted on giving me some of his freshly picked grapes -- until my arms were full! I did not ask for any, but he just kept giving me bunches (he carefully selected several varieties, both green and purple grapes, all perfect and tasty!) -- such outgoing hospitality was amazing! And later we stopped in a small village to ask directions, and even though the older man did not speak English, he insisted on giving use some of the plums he had just picked and had in a bag he was carrying -- and even though we did not ask, he gave us 2 dozen, all perfect and delicious! Another display of outgoing hospitality that was amazing! We did not plan on any of this, it all just happened due to Greeks! Such a wonderful experience for us Americans!
We are absolutely delighted with our whole vacation in Greece, and the superior work you did arranging it all (including nudging us in the right direction for where to stay and for how long). We will highly recommend you to everyone (several doctors we know are wanting to know more about vacationing in Greece).
ευχαριστ? πολ?
D. & Ch. LaCourse – Florida, USA
Cher Monsieur Kefallonitis,
Nous avons passé un excellent séjour en Grèce, et vous remerçions pour votre bonne organisation, nous ne manquerons pas de recommander vos services à nos amis.
Sincères salutations,
H.CIVIDINO – France
Hi Uli:
My girls and I would like to thank you for all your help in having set up a truly wonderful vacation in Greece. I realize one couldn’t choose a bad island, but, did we ever choose the right ones for us! I would like to thank every hotel for their clean, perfect settings, and kind help. I became unbelievably sick on Sifnos and I was helped tremendously by the hotel owners there (I will always be grateful to them), and then on Santorini by the inn keeper in Oia. I never found out if I had food poisoning or just what, but suffered over a week. It is embarrassing to be so sick, but everyone was kind, and helped us have a great vacation at every step if we needed assistance. I will always remember the beauty we experienced, and kindness of your inn keepers. My girls Loved this trip immensely, and so did I!
We had a tough time finding our hotels – directions to hotels to future travelers like ourselves would be Really really helpful. (just a thought to make you look good…)
So, thanks again. It was exceptional. (Hope to return to tour the mainland in the future).
D. Bonkoski - USA
Dear Uli,
We have just returned from the wonderful 7 Day Greek Island and Turkey cruise. We had the best time, have nothing but good to say about the Calypso which had everything, clean comfortable cabins and extremely friendly and courteous staff.
The itinerary was just perfect, enough time to relax on board and at the same time extremely interesting and very enjoyable ports of call.
This is a trip I would recommend to anyone.
I hope to be able to do another cruise with more members of my family next summer, perhaps include Egypt and Israel as well.
Thank you for the booking.
Ch. Plotkin - Canada
To Whom It May Concern:
I would like to express my appreciation for the work performed by Chrissa Stratiki.
Her work and dedication has helped me organizing an absolutely perfect honeymoon.
She has done a really great job of working with me to find perfect places in Athens, Piraeus, Mykonos, and Santorini.
Without her help and expertise I would never have been able to get this done.
Yours Sincerely;
B. Parr - Canada
Kostas
Nous voici de retour de notre voyage en Grèce. Pays aux paysages très variés et chaud!
Toutes les réservations réalisées par vos soins étaient parfaites.
Merci encore!
D. Robaey - Belgium
Dear Esther,
We returned back to India after a wonderful holiday in Greece.
Thank you very much for the excellent arrangements - everything was perfect - hotel bookings, ferry tickets, transfers ... I would surely recommend your agency to others!
Some feedback about the hotels:
Attalos: Very good location and service.
Grotto Villas: Excellent location and service. The hotel staff were very friendly and helpful. I would surely stay there again!
Naxos Royal: Good facilities and location. But, the staff was not at all helpful - in fact we felt they were not wanting to help if possible! For e.g., they wouldn't give a clear answer to a simple questions such as the location of the bus stop!! It was just round the corner. You can pass this feedback to them.
We loved every minute of our holiday and have decided to come back some time soon to see the other islands in Greece. When we do so, I will surely contact you for the arrangements.
--
best regards,
S. Prabhu - India
Dear Ms. Lassauer
We just got home from the cruise portion of our trip and we wanted to thank you so much for arranging out pre-cruise trip to Greece and then making the changes when we had flight problems. Everything you arranged worked out very well and we had no problems.
We are very satisfied customers and will pass your name on to any friends that are interested in a trip to Greece.
Again, thank you very much.
E. & N.Erickson - USA
Dear Ms. Lassauer,
We had a marvelous time in Greece and I want to thank you for all you did in helping us prepare for the trip. Your country is magnificent and I hope that we will be able to return in the near future.
The ferries worked out well and the hotels on the Islands were lovely. You may already know that the Philippion in Santorini was filled when we arrived, so they sent us to the Astir Thira Hotel, a short ways down the road. As it turned out, the rooms at the Astir Thira were lovely; they were poolside, very comfortable and the staff there was most pleasant and helpful, so we were happy with the arrangements. The Alkioni Beach Hotel in Naxos was delightful and our choices of Naxos and Santorini as the Islands to visit worked out well. We did take a day trip via ferry from Naxos to Delos and Mykonos. Delos was very interesting and the few hours we spent in Mykonos at least gave us a chance to see still another beautiful place.
I am sorry that I did not get to see you in person when we were in Athens. The time went by so quickly and there was so much to see that we kept busy.
I do want to thank you, however, for your assistance. You were most helpful in helping us prepare for our trip and all of us are very grateful to you for making the arrangements for us. You may be sure that when we return to Greece (which I hope is not too far in the future), I will be contacting you to help with our trip again.
With best regards,
D. Barton - USA
Dear Ms Perschau,
We've been back from Greece since 2 July and wanted to write you a short note about our trip. We had just the right combination of touring and relaxation. The tour of N Greece revealed the most interesting sites and museums we've seen in Greece. Vergina was absolutely stunning in the contents and concept of the museum. Nauplio was a pleasure to stroll around and also served as the perfect base for exploration. Attached is a picture of us taken from the high up part of Thessaloniki.....Greetings!! and THANKS AGAIN for the excellent advice and smooth arrangements.
B. & P. Miller - Delray Beach, Florida, USA
Uli, just wanted to take a moment to thank you so much for a perfect trip!!!!
Santorini was incredible, I am sure you already knew that, and the hotel was just perfect, when possible you should recommend it, the location and the personnel were just great. The lady who met us was just great, and we took a day trip with her...
Naxos, I had my purse stolen (left it at the restaurant) but Poseidon decided to send me back most of its contents... got the purse, credit cards, drivers license, mirror, wallet back, which was great, basically they only wanted the cash and tossed the purse into the sea...didn't leave the island since it was sunday and not much was happening.
Paros, was great, and one of the reasons was because of Angelic, she met us at the port, and recommend a great restaurant and a great day sailing trip to the smaller Cyclades.. if by any chance you have her email address I would like to write to her, and also to the skipper of the sailboat, it was all perfect.
Mykonos, a small problem, since my sister arrived in one port and we in another and it took us over two hours to meet, but the hotel was WONDERFUL...and we took the day trip to Delos also.
The three day classical tour was quite long, but pleasant...the hotels were not that great but we didn't spend much time there..
The hotel on Hydra was a great choice, very nice, all your choices were on the dot, since or they were in walking distance to the city or transportation was right there..
I will be recommending you to anybody who wants to go to Greece, you made our vacation!! now we will be taking Greek lessons and are planning on going to Crete next year!!!
Efgaristo poli
D. Philpott – USA
Hello Uli,
just wanted to say thanks for having everything organized for us. We arrived at the Jason Inn and your package was there.
We loved our time in Greece. People were friendly, the weather was amazing. We learned so much about Greek history and culture.
Sorry we didn't have time to come and say hi in person. Next time!
I will certainly recommend Dolphin Hellas to anyone I know thinking of coming to Greece. Thank you again for making all our arrangements.
M. Kelly - Canada
Hi Esther. Our "Pervier Group of 8" would like to thank you very much for all of your assistance with the planning and reservations for our trip to Greece. Everything went very well, and we all had a wonderful trip. Greece is a beautiful country, people are friendly, and there is so much to see and learn.
The Cypria was a delightful hotel. The "street" it was on was very charming. The accessibility to the Plaka, Syntagma Square (for the Metro, buses, etc.), and Acropolis was perfect for us. I am glad we stayed there, rather than the busier Monastiraki area. Our friends, the Stallings enjoyed the Hera with the high-speed internet service. We went to their rooftop restaurant for dessert one evening and enjoyed a beautiful view of the Acropolis.
The tour to Delphi was very enjoyable and educational. "John the tour guide" did a very good job. Do you remember my questions about the pick-up time, as they were in this order: Hera, Oscar, and Cypria? It turned out that 2 buses picked people up at the hotels for 2 different tours, and at Syntagma Square they divided us up into the Delphi Tour and the other tour.
Our sailing around the Cyclades with the Moorings (excellent charter company) went very well. We were with a flotilla of 12 sailboats plus a lead boat with a captain and social director. We went to Kea, Serifos, Paros, Mykonos, Delos, and Syros. Each island had its own special character and we liked them all, though Serifos was our favorite. We wish we had time for Santorini ... next time!
The high speed ferry ride from Syros to Piraeus was very comfortable and fast!
I'll attach a picture of us after our sail. Left to right, you'll see the Perviers, Stallings, Shepardsons, and Paynes. We all thank you again !
Regards,
Ch. Pervier – Texas, USA
Hi Esther,
Thank you so much with all your help in planning our trip to Santorini and Paros, as well as with the hotel rooms in Athens for my guests. I wanted to give you a little feedback and also to ask you a favor...
First the favor: There is a woman named Michelle ..., who is in the USA and coming to Athens. She needs a bit of advice on hotels and will be contacting you. I would appreciate any assistance you can give her. I already told her you were fantastic with planning some stuff for me and that you were extremely professional. So...there...trying to float some business your way!
As for our trip...
The Grotto Villas in Santorini had an amazing view, as you know. The room/apartment was adequate. The patio was fantastic and although lacking any privacy, was really nice for watching the sunset. The photographer that shot their promotional pictures is a genius. He made a bathtub of a swimming pool look like it was something it definitely was not. We were extremely disappointed especially after seeing the pool at the hotel next door! The service was good, but the pool bar was never open when they said it would be. This didn't really matter to me, since I was out running around, but it did bug my companions. The highlight of this hotel is Arturo, the handyman. He looked like Fabio and was able to hoist the Ugly American's luggage (which naturally was oversized and full of unnecessary items) up on his shoulder in one fell swoop. I don't know that I would stay there again...probably would stay next door. Nothing bad to say...but really nothing exceptionally great to say either.
Margarita's House, in Naoussa, was one of the nicest places I have EVER stayed. The hospitality of the owners only increased my enjoyment of the beautiful hotel. One day, as I was waiting for the bus across from the hotel, the owner came out to tell me she saw me there and wanted to save me the wait since the bus was on it's one hour afternoon hiatus. Her kindness in this instance was typical of how they went above and beyond the call. On our last day, since our boat didn't leave until evening, we inquired about keeping the room until 7pm. They allowed us to do this, and only charged us € 20. Very generous deal. The layout, attention to detail and facilities were impeccable. The apartment we had, with 2 bathrooms and an upstairs/downstairs design was wonderful. I would recommend this place to anyone. I am looking forward to returning there with my husband later this summer or next.
Everything was fine for the "girls" at the Attalos. The boat was delayed several hours coming back from Paros to Piraeus, so they ended up with a room facing the garbage collection. Later that morning, they were easily able to change to a "view" room with no hassle. This hotel is a gem in the world of "bargain travel" and I would also recommend it to anyone.
Thanks again for everything. I will call you for travel needs in the future, but also enjoyed meeting you. You seem like a pretty "cool chick" and if you'd like to meet up for a drink I would enjoy it.
Take care,
Tracy
Hara and Kostas--
Just wanted to drop a line and thank you for the great travel arrangements for our Greece trip. It was so nice to have the documents at our hotel and all of your bookings for us worked out just fine. We had a wonderful time in Greece and thank you so much for all of your help, including answering my many questions via email.
Regards to you,
B. Adams - USA
Greetings from Virginia!
Boy, was it hard to leave Greece. Thank you for your part in a very successful trip. I hope your move wasn't too stressful in the heat. Fixing up a new home is always exciting - getting the nest ready for a new arrival!!!!
Here are some notes from the trip:
General: Mara was fantastic. Everyone fell in love with her. She was great with both kids and adults but especially kids.
Meals: The food was superb but too much. In future planning, you really only need one meal a day with a main course. The other meal can just be the appetizers or extensive salads.
Planning: just right amount of balance between historical sites and leisure places. Need a pool whenever and wherever you can book it. See notes for Kefalonia.
Athens: Philippos still a good choice. The Herodion was fantastic as the final stop. First night arrival meal was too big. Needs to be lighter. Everyone was wiped out. Restaurant with Greek band and dancing was a great idea.
Corinth: Restaurant for lunch was not so great. Would have done better to get sandwiches or pizza.
Nauplion: Marianna is a beautiful site. The way the rooms are laid out is hard to control when you have kids. Also no phones for wake up. I was glad I was there to manage. You need an experienced leader to manage an hotel like this. The views and charm tipped the balance in its favor. Brother owners made an effort and have good hearts. Boat day to Hydra and Spetses was a good idea.
Olympia: Europa is great. Pools make all the difference to be able to cool off after a hot day.
Kefallonia: Astra Village was great but you need to warn the planner or leader of its location. At first glance you seem to be in the middle of nowhere and right at the end of the runway of the airport. It felt deceiving. After a few hours there, it was great. Again for a group with kids, the buildings were spread out and it was hard to control kids. The pool and the nearness of the beach were a life saver. Ainos Agency was good although the guide we had was awful. Thank God for a great bus driver whom we relied on. See next email regarding getting in touch with him. Chartering a boat for the day was wildly successful but expensive. Day package trip was not as successful by comparison. I had no idea the island was so big and mountainous. It made long bus rides hard.Trip to norther village and restaurant Tassia was the highlight. There's room to rethink parts of the Keffalonia experience. Maybe stay up north and do boat trips from there if you can find the right hotel.
Delphi: Acropole was good but the restaurant Epicuros was terrible. Had a bad experience. He would not sit us on the balcony with the view until I threatened to walk out and go to another restaurant. We were served overcooked hamburgers for dinner. It was so lovely looking out over the valley that none cared except me. I was furious. We need to work a better place for the next day's lunch to minimize the bus ride in the mountains.
Athens: Mani Mani was great. Strofi was a little anti-climatic only because we had had such great food before. The view is great. Herodion was a treat - thanks for the upgrade!!!
Hope this helps you. It was very successful - just ask Mara.
Oh, Thessaloniki and Athos: Hotel ABC is now the most perfect spot for any of your clients going to Athos. The Pilgrim Office has moved within 2 blocks of the hotel. Hotel Zeus in Ouranoupolis was just fine for the purpose. I missed the cooking of the lady with the inn that I stayed at before but she is way out of the way. Better there when there are more people or you have your own transportation.
Love to you both. Thanks for everything. Keep in touch with baby news.
S. Deupree - USA
Dear Esther
I am writing to thank you so much for your help in organizing our holiday in Greece.
We had a wonderful trip and really enjoyed our Athens/hydra/Santorini part.
We were able to see an opera in the Theatre at the Acropolis.
The Acropolis View Hotel was great, and in a very good position for us.
Having our tickets delivered to our hotel was great service.
All of our ferry connections were great and particularly the cabin on the ferry to Santorini. We really appreciated having our own room and most particularly not having to sit in the upright seats where they were smoking. We have really strict smoking laws here and are not used to everyone smoking ‘everywhere’!!!!
Thank you again for your help. We really appreciated your advice.
R. & I. Henderson - Australia
Esther
I just want to thank you for the arrangements which you made for our hotels and car rental during our recent visit to Greece. The arrangements were without any complications and made for a very enjoyable holiday. I would recommend your services to anyone considering a self drive holiday in Greece.
Regards
J. Holliday - Australia
Hello Uli,
I just wanted to write you and let you know we had a wonderful time in Greece!!! You have an amazingly beautiful country. You made our traveling worry-free and we could just enjoy the ride. I could not have imagined traveling without your help. It was very nice to have everything planned out prior to our trip. I've attached a picture of my now fiancée and I in Mykonos (Yes, we also got engaged in Santorini!!). We thoroughly enjoyed every aspect of our 12 days!!
Thank you again!!
Take care,
T. Coolman & N. Barbiere – USA
Uli:
Just wanted to send you an email and thank you for all your assistance in planning our trip to Greece. It was great. The weather was fabulous the food was awesome. Everything went off without a hitch. We really enjoyed the visiting Greece. You were right when you said you wouldn't need a car in Athens. We really appreciate all your help in organizing our trip. Most of the hotels were great. There were a couple that had some issues. We were glad that you were able to organize all the plane rides between the islands. That really is the best way to travel. The tours that we took in Athens were very good as well. All and all I think we would both say that you helped us organize memorable holiday to Greece.
I will certainly refer any tourists that I know to your company. Thank you again for your expertise.
W. Collins & S. Kaiser – Canada
Hello Aliki,
Ditto, I enjoyed talking with you too. My clients went home
so happy with the trip. This has been the best tour I have lead. Greece has much to offer with colour and just the general friendliness of the people.
We had quite a drama in Santorini. One of my clients knocked on my door late at night to say he had discovered a very valuable lens he had was missing. It had been in a camera bag that he was quite sure he had left in the room. We had to call the police as he needed a police report to claim the insurance. In hindsight it was quite funny, sitting in a Greek police station at 1 a.m. with about 7 policemen looking for the form we had to fill in. Many drawers and cupboards were searched and finally they found it! We made the report, with help from the Kamares daughter, a very sweet young lady, who handled the whole thing brilliantly.
In the morning we told the others in the group about it. Four of them exclaimed they had seen the bag left near the jewellery shops the previous day.
Turned out my client had made a mistake...... he had taken his bag and had put it down to put on a jacket and walked off without it!
We asked near the shops where it had been left and they all knew about it. The owners of the shop had seen him leave it there and expected him to come back for it. When he didn't they took it inside and attempted to ring his home number in the USA to let someone know that they had it and it was safe. They were about to contact the police when my client found them.
Where else in the world would that happen!! And this was just one of the reasons we all found Greece so special.
Thank you for your input, careful selections and attention
to detail. It has been a pleasure to work with you and I hope this is just the beginning of our association.
...
I have told Barbara that you have everything under control.
Off to the Peloponnese tomorrow. I'll keep in touch.
Every best wish for your BIG EVENT coming up so soon!
Best regards,
D. Mayfield - Australia
Hi, Esther:
We just wanted to drop you a note to thank you for the excellent service you provided us on our recent trip to Greece. Everything you set up for us was arranged perfectly, although as you had warned us, the ferry schedules differed somewhat from what was scheduled—easily dealt with because we knew to check on it.
We especially liked the Philippos Hotel in Athens both for location, the quality of the property, and for the friendliness and helpfulness of their staff. We were also very happy with the Acronafplia Pension in Nafplio. The room was charming and in a terrific location, the staff friendly and efficient, and we felt the value was superb. We felt you encouraged us to book both of those properties, and we are glad you did because they were excellent.
The one sour note was the two-day tour of Delfi and Meteora. You didn’t suggest the tour to us, and we asked you to book it, so we aren’t unhappy with you for recommending it. But, with the distance to Meteora, this tour winds up with about three and a half hours of time to see the sights, and the remainder of two long days spent sitting in cramped bus seats. We were racing through the ruins at Delfi with inadequate time to see them properly (under an hour!!), and found the monasteries so crowded that we saw very little of those as well. Most of those on the tour expressed similar views. We wonder if your agency might want to consider removing it from your tour list, or at least cautioning visitors about the long travel times with relatively little time to see the sights.
With that one exception, we completely enjoyed the trip, Greece and the Greeks. Thanks for your assistance! We’ll recommend Dolphin Hellas to friends asking us about travel to Greece.
J. & L. Pierce - USA
Dear Uli,
My husband and I arrived back from Greece a week ago. We had a wonderful vacation! I am writing to thank you for helping us with the arrangements for the cruise and the tours in Athens and Delphi. Everything went smoothly, including our pick-up at Santorini and our room at the Hotel Aressana was beautiful. I will definitely be sure to recommend your travel agency to any friends of ours who are travelling to Greece.
Thank you very much once again!
P. D. Lopez - USA
Recommendation:
Hi Debby, The travel agent we used was fantastic. Her name is Aliki Hamosfakidou. She is located on 16 Syngrou Ave. Her telephone is 30-210-9227772 and her email is Aliki@dolphin-hellas.gr. Give her our regards. Best of luck. Christos Anesti. Call if you need anything else.
Joe Toffoloni – USA
Hi Esther - I'm back in the US now, but I wanted to write and thank you one last time. My niece, nephew, and I had a great time both in Athens and in Santorini. Except for the problem with the sandstorm (which makes a great travel story), everything went well. Thank you again for helping us put all this together on such short notice. I will definitely recommend Dolphin Hellas to anyone traveling to Greece. Once more, thank you! -
Bob Wright – Winsconcin, USA
Dear Uli:
We had a good cruise and everything was fine except for the vegetarian meals. Breakfast had a lot of choices but lunch and dinner were pretty minimal. one night the Maitre'd got us Indian dinner from a neighboring ship that had an Indian cook, which was nice of him.
Anyway, overall the trip was good. we saw beautiful places and met many nice people.
I had hoped to stop at your office and say 'Hello' to you but time went by so fast that I could not do it on the days you were working. We had a little bit of time upon our return from the cruise but your offices were all closed for Independence day. I would have liked to have met you but well.....maybe next time!!
thank you for your help!
Best wishes,
P. Rao - USA
Esther,
I have been meaning since our return to thank you and the Dolphin staff for your help in arranging accommodations for our trip. We had a wonderful time, and very much enjoyed your beautiful country. As I expect you know, the wildflowers were in spectacular bloom everywhere while we were there--I'll try to send you some digital photos when I have a chance. And the weather was marvelous.
We particularly enjoyed the Marianna in Nafplion, so the switch there was all to the good. The three brothers (as I understand it) who run it are delightful, as was the setting. Of course, the upgrade to the Herodion was a pleasant surprise--a very comfortable hotel. The Olympia Palace was also quite comfortable, and we were amused to find ourselves their sole guests once a group there on our first night had left. I thought I should mention that the hotel in Delphi moved us across the
street to the Voronos--there were large groups staying the Parnassos, whose spillover seemed to go to the Voronos. We had no problems with its facilities (though of course I can't know how they compared to the Parnassos), and we had a marvelous view towards the gulf. We'd be glad to give you impressions of the other places we stayed if you would find it useful.
We also particularly enjoyed visiting the Mani, and found we were there during their earlier celebration of the struggle for independence, which was quite interesting.
Thanks again for your help. My wife and I decided we need to make at least three more trips to Greece to come close to seeing what we'd like to see.
B. & E. Shreeves - USA
Yiassou Aliki!
I wanted to send you a note of appreciation for helping us enjoy our most memorable holiday ever.
We really enjoyed every one of our locations, Santorini, Nauplion, and Athens. Thank you for guiding us in selecting the order we visited each location because that worked perfectly for us. We particularly enjoyed Nauplion and our stay at the Marianna Hotel including the cordial hosting of brothers Petro, Takis and Panagiotis. We also appreciated that the car rental company representatives meeting us at each airport (Santorini and Athens) which made these arrangements go smoothly and quickly.
Finally, Aliki, thank you for being available on March 30th to ensure a smooth switch from the Hotel Attalos to the Hotel Cecil.
As the Greeks would we say we passed our time in Greece with "Mia Xara"!
Thanks again,
G. Panos - USA
Dear Aliki,
...We had a wonderful trip and the students really enjoyed their visit to Greece. I am grading papers and the students comment on the beauty of the country and the friendliness of the people.
Thank you for your assistance. You are truly a dedicated professional.
Best wishes,
Paula Welch - University of Florida
Uli, I am finally back from holiday....after our time in Greece, we traveled to Orlando so I could participate in the Disney Marathon. After all of our travels, I'm glad to be back in the office. I wanted to check in with you now because I was unable to stop by your offices while we were in Athens. On New Year's Day, I was able to walk by your office...but, of course, no one was there. I had brought with me a small token of my appreciation (it was a Chicago Bulls basketball team hat), but I was unable to deliver it to you. I feel badly because of all the work that you and Esther did on my behalf, and I was unable to compensate you...even in a token manner. I know that you are used to providing travel services for your clients...and, in every regard we were pleased with our accommodations...but, not every client asks you to go through as much as I did. All I can do is promise to recommend you in the highest possible way to anyone I know that is planning a trip to Greece....and, when my family and I return again someday, I'll start my travel plans with you. If you'd like me write any kind of testimonial for use on your web-site or, if you'd like to use me as an American reference for your services, please feel free to do so. Thanks again for everything.
Vorreyer, Jeffrey D. - Illinois, USA
Dear Esther,
Jim and I would like to extend to your our sincere Thanks for all of your help in preparing our vacation in Greece. You put together our trip on a very short notice and everything was perfect. All of the accommodations were excellent...the view of the Parthenon from room 601 at the Acropolis Select was well worth the extra fee, the breakfast buffet was fantastic and the staff, very friendly. The Knossos Palace was a complete surprise as we thought it was going to be a tiny ferry, it was impressive. The Irini in Herakliion was comfortable and friendly, the only negative being the parking and getting around all of those side streets. The Kriti Hotel in Hania was a most perfect location and also a very friendly staff. Your suggestion for 2 nights in Hania was a good one.
The tours to Delphi and Mycenae/Argolis were quite enjoyable.
Thank you also for you help and suggestions concerning my luggage. It did arrive at the Acropolis Select on 26/12 a few hours after we had left for Crete...but that was okay...at least we knew it wasn’t lost forever. I took your suggestion and called Olympic Airlines more than a few times a day. I also was able to get $100.00 from Olympic Air without any receipts....thanks so much for telling us about the money as Olympic didn’t exactly mention it!!!
Thank you again so very much!!!! .... We’ll be back....Greece is a beautiful country.
J. Barberito, J. Jurczyk – USA
Happy New Year!
Thank-you for the greeting. We had a wonderful time this past spring in Greece. You did an excellent job in securing our optional tours on the cruise.
We are planning another trip in 2006 and I will be sure to contact you.
Marigene Ficke
St.Michael's High School
Santa Fe, New Mexico