# Hello and Goodbye (for the time being) from Greece



## StanDup

Three months later than we had hoped, we have arrived in Greece.

Our original travel plans had to be changed and we found ourselves starting our journey near Barcelona. 

To make up some time we sailed from Barcelona to Civitavecchia, Rome, (Grimaldi Lines - 20hours - €260 for a Camper and 2 adults). A lovely crossing cutting in between Corsica and Sardinia. 

We then had a few days to orientate ourselves in Italy so stayed on a Sosta in a family garden in Pompei, in the Gulf of Naples. A very friendly, but urban setting, we were able to take a look at the ruins (recommended - €11 ) , and take the train up and down the bay to Naples and Sorrento.

Off again, we crossed Italy to Monopoli on the east coast (Camping Antlantide - €20pn one of the few places with a campsite open), then up to Bari for our 'Superfast' ferry to Igoumenitsa, (Overnight - 9.5hrs - €145). A very modern ferry, comfortable and well organised. We had booked to sleep on deck but in the end we were'nt allowed, so slept in recliners.

Arriving 6.15am Tuesday 18th Jan, we set out along the motorway east, all very easy. Once off the ferry ramp the motorway started at the port exit. 

Driving up through Macedonia (past road signs saying 'Slow down - Bear Habitat) we drove through frosted (and forested) hills and mountains then down onto the plains near Thessaloniki, where it was sunny and warm.

The motorway is excellent, with the occasional short diversion. They have engineered straight through the landscape, so where they haven't cut some serious tunnels they have built bridges. Very impressive. There are a few open space aires now, some with toilets and a waggon selling hot refreshments. We went through two toll points, one was €7.20 (ish) the other on the outskirts of Thessaloniki was €6.

Camping Achilles at Asprovalta, (on the Aegean) was closed but there was no trouble with a very scenic free camp by the beach. There was a small harbour (framing a lovely warm sunset) for local fishing boats and a water tap. Locals waved and smiled as they came and went, all very friendly. Many have some English.

We then continued into some much cooler weather at Camping Municipal, Alexandrpoulis (Haven't paid yet but expecting €17pn). Free wifi throughout the friendly town with plenty of cafe's and eateries. More smiles and friendly greetings.

That's it for Greece until early March. If they let us in, we should cross into Turkey this morning (Ipsala) for about 6 weeks before making our way down to Athens to start the tour of Greece proper.

Best wishes

Barry and Ruth


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## MEES

Sounds wonderful enjoy the rest of your trip.
Its cold and damp in Lancashire :roll:


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## StephandJohn

Sounds wonderful - please keep us updated


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## metblue

Hello,please keep us updated on your travels. We are heading for Greece for our first time in June. Arrive at Patras (Superfast ferry) 6th June and intend to go around the peleponese,visit the orinthian canal,Athens before heading north to visit our niece in Preveza.
We are going to be there for thirty days,then back on the ferry to Ancona,onto Monaco,south of France around to Narbonne before heading to Aubigny sur Nere for the Franco Ecosse three day celebrations.
Will be home around end of July.
cheers,
T and J


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## cabby

great post, looking forward to reading the next one.have a great time.

cabby


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## julie1

Hiya Barry and Ruth
all the best on your travels. We were in Greece March to May last year. Are you going to be there at Easter? If you can manage to park in a nice village you may be lucky enough to be invited to a traditional feast. We were and had a great time. Failing that the religious celebrations begin on Good Friday with plenty of frivolity and fireworks.
Enjoy 
Julie and Howard


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## StanDup

Hello again.

We made it into Turkey without any real problems. Presenting two V5's caused some consternation..... the 2nd for the scooter in the boot. It took us an hour to get through but there were no other difficulties.

We'll start a new post in the Turkey section and pick this post up again when we get back into Greece. 

All being well, we should be there over Easter so will look forward to that. Thanks.

A question please. What is the situation with Midges and Mozzies around Greece. Are they ubiquitous or fairly localised ? What is the season ? 

Best wishes

Ruth and Barry


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## StanDup

Well.............. Greece in the spring........ what a 5 Star destination.

We are pottering around the Peloponnese coast, at Gythio at the moment. After a few nights on Camping Triton 2 nr Nafpio we have free camped on small, 'postcard' Quaysides, some lovely beaches, snorkelling in flat-calm crystal clear (if still a little chilly) waters. It's gorgeous.

The main purpose of this message is to tap into the experience of the many others who have been in these parts before us.

We are coming towards the end of our third week free camping, but want to find a nice site in the Southern Peloponnese for the Royal Wedding weekend...... to maybe share the celebrations with a few fellow Brits.

Ant suggestions would be appreciated.

Best wishes 

Ruth and Barry


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## Grizzly

StanDup said:


> We are coming towards the end of our third week free camping, but want to find a nice site in the Southern Peloponnese f


Camping Kyparissia - at Kyparrisia- is our all time favourite site in Greece. Friendly and informal and on the beach.

http://www.motorhomefacts.com/modules.php?name=Campsites&op=display_results&csid=5283

There is also, further south, Camping Thines at Finikounda:

http://www.motorhomefacts.com/modules.php?name=Campsites&op=display_results&csid=5305

G


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## StanDup

Thanks Grizzly......... Appreciated.

I don't think they are going to work........ We've had a showery couple of days so moved on. We're not well placed now for the west coast as we are down at Elefonissos...... well by the quayside at Vinglafia on the mainland, looking across.

http://www.elafonissos.gr/

Glad to say that some of your lovely UK weather has wafted back down here and it's 'smashing' :roll: again this morning.

Corn Flakes and coffee in front of us....... we are toying with the idea of spending the Easter Weekend on the small Island, (half hourly vehicle ferry, during daylight, Euro 7.50 for a car, so about Euro 23 for a 7m motorhome......each way) to find some of those beaches. It is a short Tourist season here...... mainly Greek, and the locals are painting the place up and buying freshly slaughtered lamb for the Easter Spit-roast, which coincides with St Georges day, both big celebrations.

That said, Board Atlas has an Aire listed on there but we'll be 'gob smacked' if it's open. (Plaka wasn't a week ago).

Then we still want to head somewhere for the wedding. We'll have been free camping / Wild Camping for a month by then and the laundry needs sorting.

Again we would appreciate any recommendations for sites, now in the south east Peloponnese. Failing that, we'll breakout some bunting (probably in the shape of freshly washed T Shirts and pants) and have our own street party.

Incidentally...... we are using one of those Hawking Wifi Range extenders/amplifiers again on this tour. I know that they are antique now but it is pulling a free unsecure connection from across on the island, which is about 1km away.

Thanks for any suggestions.

Ruth and Barry


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## StanDup

Wishing everyone a great Royal day from Camping Thines, Finikouda. (Thanks again Grizzly).

The sun is out, the bunting up, as is the flag of St George......... and the BBQ is primed and ready.

Best wishes.

Ruth and Barry


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## Grizzly

Wish we were there ! It's freezing here and a stiff wind blowing. Not really BBQ and street party weather and, on this street anyway, there is a distinct lack of enthusiasm to go outside being shown.

Enjoy the rest of the day,

G


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## StanDup

So......we are approaching the end of our time in Greece, and at the moment we are parked up on Camping Karavomilos, by the beach on the outskirts of Sami, Kefalonia. 

It's a lovely site, with a new toilet/shower block. Pitches aren't the biggest and it's a touch on the high end, price wise at €25.50 pn for a camper, 2 x adults and elec, but nice. That said, most sites are charging €20+ (cheapest €15), which seems crazy when sites are empty and it is so easy to free camp. I guess that's part of the charm of this country. It's an enigma. 

As it turns out, despite no real plan, we've ended up doing what many do, working our way around the Peloponnese..... in our case clockwise, from Isthmus near Corinth, mostly following the coast around to where we are now, refilling with gas in Tripoli and taking in Mystras, Olympia, etc, etc. It has been a joy, especially the snorkelling. We were snorkelling virgins.

It's all just about do-able in a medium sized 7.2 m Hymer B class, including island hopping and getting down to the Cape at the end of the Mani. Some villages are tight but the buses 'blaze' through without a blink.... and a few inclines challenge the front wheel driven Fiat..... but none of them beat it, thankfully.

Highlights....... well we enjoyed the energy of Epidavros, the quayside village, with the daily bustle of locals and fellow visitors to its café’s and restaurants.

Simos beach on the small island of Elafanisos is stunning.... a hot tip.....world class, with a talc white sand and turquoise waters, and for a little while longer, not much else. Elafanisos is a short crossing crossing on a Landing Craft type ferry at about €25 each way. 

You could feel the remoteness and isolation on Mani. It blew a 'hoolie' while we were there, something that seems common throughout most of our trip, still mornings with flat calm seas and silence followed by a brisk wind in the afternoons...... to calm again in the evening. 

And of course 'Keffy' is a treat in a number of ways. Again, easy to free camp, beautiful scenery launching itself right out of the sea and laid back.... but, as it happens, with a just a few of those things you miss a little when you've been away for while.... including Sky Sports for the end of the footy season.

Hey..... I should tell you this. We were due to cross from the small port of Kilini over to Poros, Kefalonia on the 12.45 sailing Wednesday 11th May (€130 return for vehicle over 4m and 2 adults. One hour fifteen mins). We were phoned the day before by the ferry company to tell us there was a national strike on the 11th (you might have seen the trouble in Athens), but we could travel the next day. So 8am Thursday, it's a bright morning on the dusty port side at Kilini. An earlier ferry from Zakinthos was loading/unloading in that chaotic Greek way, when....... WHOOOOSH.......the British Red Arrows appeared from no where...... not a fleeting fly over but they put on a full 20-30 min display, right above our heads (and those of a hundred or so of fellow travellers).... red, white and blue smoke bellowing out.... the 'love heart' finale..... everything..... all above a small, dusty port town on the western Peloponnese. 

So, we are here for a week. We'll scoot around a little, watch Forest sneak a 0-1 win at Swansea Monday, eat more grilled fish, have a couple of Mythos, say “Yassas” (hello) with a smile...... and free camp towards Assos a couple of nights. We cross back over to Kilini next Friday and then take our spot on deck for a sailing from Patras to Venice just before midnight Saturday. (32 hours, €185).

We are just weighing up the best way to cross Austria without a 'go-box'. Fellow German travellers say it's do-able.

Best wishes.


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## Autoquest

Sounds fabulous  The reds are in Cyprus at the moment for their pre season work up training although what they were doing at Killini is anyones guess?


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## Don_Madge

Hi Ruth & Barry,

Glad all is going well. Give yourselves plenty of time at Patras as there could be problems at the port with "illegals"

This is part of a post from a member the Motorhome list who has just returned from Greece. 

"There seems to be a problem at present with illegal immigrants trying to reach Western Europe through Greece. When we stopped at Patras to enquire about ferries to Kefalonia we noticed large groups of young non-Greeks hanging around the harbour area. We were relieved when found our best ferry option was from Killini, further south, as we felt uncomfortable in Patras. 

When we reached Igoumenitsa to return to Italy the situation was even worse, with police and security staff on the parking area in confrontation with groups of immigrants who would presumably have tried to get through or over the security fence into the port. We only left the 'van one at a time to use the terminal facilities but were then advised by the police to leave the port area until the gates opened at 6pm, as stones might be thrown. On arrival at the port gates each vehicle including ours was searched by the Greek army, but then as each lorry was loaded it was checked to ensure the under-chassis area was clear, s o loading took about 3 hours." 

I have used Igoumenitsa port for many years and have never seen the gates closed before. We often night stop in the car park outside the station maritime after the day ferry from Brindisi. 

So it looks like plan "B" when we arrive at Igoumenitsa in December. 

Safe travelling. 

Don


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## teemyob

*Standup*

THanks for the updates and Infos StanDup DonMadge

All sounds very interesting and adventurous.

TM


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## StanDup

We have put a few pictures of the Greek leg of this tour on Dropbox for anyone who might be interested.

Click Here , .......then onto a picture.

You can view them individually (by clicking on the picture to move onto the next) or play as a slide show.

Some picture files are quite large, and I'm not sure whether Dropbox overcomes any loading issues by shrinking the file !! Apologies if not.

Best wishes.


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## teemyob

*ictures*



StanDup said:


> We have put a few pictures of the Greek leg of this tour on Dropbox for anyone who might be interested.
> 
> Click Here , .......then onto a picture.
> 
> You can view them individually (by clicking on the picture to move onto the next) or play as a slide show.
> 
> Some picture files are quite large, and I'm not sure whether Dropbox overcomes any loading issues by shrinking the file !! Apologies if not.
> 
> Best wishes.


Great Pictures, the whole trips sounds superb.


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## StephandJohn

Thanks. Its lovely to be reminded of beautiful places. I love Greece and this made me remember why.


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## StanDup

Hello again.

We are on board Minoan Lines Europa Palace, cruising north within view of the wonderful Albanian coast, and are due to arrive in Venice 9am CET tomorrow.

We had heard reports (3rd hand) of several other motorhomers witnessing problems at Igoumenitsa and Patras, so after Don's message we phoned Minoan at Patras and they seemed very relaxed about everything, suggesting that we arrive at 10pm for the midnight sailing.

As things turned out, we arrived at 6pm to take a look and pick up our tickets. There were no problems.

We could see a couple of youths knocking about..... just opportunists, waiting to see if there was a favourable chance, but they saw we were all 'battoned down' and caused no problems. We were parked outside 'Check in' for just five minutes and Ruth stayed in the van. One lad had a walk around us but all was fine.

As soon as we had our tickets we were admitted to the secure area on the quay side. This is fenced off, controlled by port authorities, Police and razor wire. Once inside you can park up and come and go as you please on foot, through a secure gate.

All the vehicles were given a rudementory search immediately prior to embarkation which slowed things down a little, but in the end, everything was under the control of the authorities and we sailed on time.

We called in at Igoumenitsa at 8am this morning. Again there were no signs of any problems. The huge quay side appeared to be a safe controlled area. Of the eight or so motorhomes that joined us, one was English, so if I get chance to chat with them, I'll ask how they went on.

Thanks again for the 'heads-up' though Don. On the face of it, sleeping on the quay side didn't appear to be a problem.

Incidentally, for general information, when we were planning our departure from Greece, the fare from Patras to Venice was the same as Igoumenitsa to Venice, saving the fuel difference.

Anyway, looking ahead, we are now planning a night in Venice. We are thinking about one of the Aires unless anyone has a particular recommendation. Thanks.

Best wishes

Ruth and Barry


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## provencal

We stayed at the Rialto campsite which is a 10 minute bus ride north of Venice. It cost €23a night for us and a bus into Venice is €1.2 each way.
Previously we had been at Miramare, but although convenient for waterbuses is 60 Km around the lagoon from the ferry terminal. 
Hope this helps,
Brian (still in Kato Alissos)


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