#sailgreece

Perdika, Egina

After boarding our yacht in Athens we bee-lined to the first of six islands, Egina, two hours from the Greek capital. The port side village of Perdika is littered with white square houses, narrow streets and the water is crystal clear so swimming off the side of the boat is common place. Overall, we didn’t spend much time in Perdika but we were there long enough to sample the local goods: fresh fish, souvlaki and a butt load of tzatziki.    

Ermioni

The second stop on our whirlwind Greek Island adventure was Ermioni, about four hours from Perdika. The village of Ermioni is located on a tiny, remote peninsula off the coast of main-land Greece and it was during our journey to the village that my buddy Liv and I got a delightful bout of seasickness. Queue extra drowsy anti-nausea tablets followed by a solid nap below deck and we were (almost) right as rain once we arrived at the quaint little village. We arrived with enough time to walk around the peninsula; checking out the nature reserve before sampling gelato and the best baclava I’ve ever tasted. 

Spetses, Spetses

Coming in equal first (along side Hydra) as my favourite island, Spetses is beautifully romantic and I could have spent at least another two days exploring the island. Hiring mopeds and quad bikes is a super popular way to explore the island, so popular, in fact, our little girl gang missed out and ended up on push bikes. Not that this stopped us from peddling around the main township, nearby headlands and beaches. The town itself is full of boutique stores and seaside restaurants where I stared longingly at hand-made leather sandals and had my first taste of gyros (souvlaki, tzatziki and chips wrapped in pita - winning combo).

Hyrda Idra, Nisi

En route to Hyrda our fleet of yachts stopped off at what the skippers have dubbed Jump Rock Bay, which, as the name suggests is a secluded bay with a rock jump. No pictures can do the height of the rock justice, it’s pretty damn high and a lot of fun to jump off. 

Hydra is old-school cool. No wheeled vehicles are allowed in the town and locals still use donkeys as their main mode of transport. The streets are lined with alfresco restaurants and Lonely Planet dubs it as having the third best sunset in the world, it’s perfectly relaxing in so many ways. The cherry on top of all this? Watching the sunset (which lived up to the hype) sipping Aperol Spritz’ at a bar overlooking the ocean. 

Poros, Poros

The highlight of Poros was without a doubt the food. When travelling with MedSailors, four of the dinners throughout the week are organised, the dinner in Poros being one of them and with good reason - it was incredible. An abundance of fresh seafood, souvlaki, salads, and other Greek specialities. Not to mention Poros is home to a store with 46 flavours of gelato. Food heaven. 

Agistri, Agistri

By far the most touristy of all the islands we visited with the beaches littered with beach-bars and holiday makers, Agistri was our final stop. The island itself didn’t offer too much activity and sightseeing wise and I get the feeling the main reason we were there was for the dinner/party organised by MedSailors. Knowing I had 13+ hours of transit to look forward to once we got back to Athens I ate and bailed back to the boat to try and get some shut-eye so my feelings towards Agistri are somewhat nonchalant. 

I am usually one to pass judgement on people who do these kinds of Contiki-esq trips, purely because it’s not the way I like to travel. I can now fully back up my judgements with personal experience and say I’m not that kinda gal. Whilst Greece is beautiful and I had a great time, I spent a majority of my time on a boat and I don’t think I even scratched the surface of what the country has to offer. I’ll know for next time. 

Now, back to the great north.