Vacation by the sea, a touch of the ancient and mysterious, an exciting journey to a sunny and hospitable country. Greece opens up such opportunities for Russian families. It is rightfully one of the best family vacation destinations in the world.
Greece is located on the Balkan Peninsula and numerous neighboring islands. It is washed by five seas at once - the Aegean, Ionian, Mediterranean, Cretan and Libyan.
The capital of the state is Athens. Currency - Euro. The most famous Greek islands are Zakynthos, Rhodes, Crete, Lesvos.
There are several hundred islands, and each has its own beaches. Holidays in this country are not only lazy beach days, but also amazing excursions, incredible entertainment and adventures.
Pros and cons
Greece's most compelling advantage over possible other tourist destinations is its climate. It is sunny, soft, moderate. The sun is not aggressive, the winds are warm.
The level of the hotels is almost flawless, everything meets European requirements. The roads in the country are smooth and clean, traveling around the country, even by car, is a great pleasure.
The local cuisine is very diverse, it does not have a killer amount of spices, but there is a lot of fresh vegetables, fruits, fish, seafood, meat, cheese, olive oil. This is a great diet for both children and adults.
The downside is the language barrier. If in large cities signs and price tags in stores, as well as menus in restaurants and cafes, are accompanied by an English translation, in small cities and villages of Greece everyone writes and speaks exclusively in Greek, and this is far from the easiest language to learn and understand.
Certain inconveniences can be attributed to the significant remoteness of attractions both from each other and from resort areas. Therefore, if the purpose of your vacation is to see the country, then it is better not to take children under 11-12 years old with you, long journeys by buses and cars will tire them. It is better to go here with kids to enjoy the sea air.
Greece is one of 27 countries where Schengen legislation is in force, and therefore in order to travel here, all family members, including children, need to have a valid Schengen visa. In its absence, the entry document must be issued at the Greek diplomatic mission in Russia, but the process is quite troublesome and long.
Best season
The choice of the optimal season for a trip to Greece directly depends on the purpose of the trip. If you want a holiday in the full sense of the word, it is better to go on vacation in January and February. At this time, large-scale carnivals and processions are held here everywhere. This time is perfect for an active holiday at ski resorts, as well as shopping with crazy discounts, which starts in early January and lasts for several weeks.
If you want to see the sights, sightseeing holidays are optimal in March and April. It's not yet hot, but the gardens are blooming, the air is clean and fresh, which will make long walks more enjoyable. Particularly impatient tourists in the middle open the beach season, at this time the water temperature is already about 19-20 degrees.
It is best to plan a beach holiday in May and June. The weather is wonderful, the air warms up to + 30, and the sea water - up to 20-22 degrees.
Those who like "hot" are welcome in this country in July and August. It gets hot here - up to 40 degrees, the water temperature is kept at 25 degrees.
With children in these months, it is better to go to the northern part of the country or to the island of Corfu, because there the light sea breeze makes the heat more bearable. This is not the best time for excursions and related long walks. But at the end of summer, you can catch the famous Wine Festival and the Great Sailing Regatta.
At the beginning of November, in most of Greece, the weather changes - it starts raining. But even this time can be used, for example, for health procedures offered by hotel complexes, as well as for alpine skiing, at the end of autumn the high-altitude holiday season begins, the peak of which is in December.
The most expensive beach holiday rates are valid in the summer months, ski holidays become more expensive by the end of autumn and the beginning of winter. If you order a voucher and book a hotel room in advance, you can get discounts up to 30-40% in any season.
Popular resorts
Choosing a resort in Greece is a mega-difficult task, because there are a huge number of resorts. We will tell you about the most famous and popular ones.
Rhodes island
The southernmost Greek island, the history of which is most closely connected with the mythology of Ancient Greece. Here is one of the seven wonders - the Colossus of Rhodes. The island has mountainous terrain, luxurious eucalyptus forests, and thickets of cypress trees, which makes the air of the island healing.
The resort of Ialyssos deserves special attention here. The service here is close to high premium standards, the beaches are clean, mixed - sand and pebbles, the water in the sea is clear.
For family holidays, the best are the resorts of Kallithea, Afandou, Faliraki, Kolimbia, since the most comfortable and interesting conditions have been created there for children, there are beaches with white sand and with a very smooth descent.
Corfu island
The second largest island, which is the most exuberant and picturesque among its "brothers". The most beautiful resort towns with the bays of Kassiopi, Roda, Acharavi, Sidari, Agios Spiridon are well suited for family holidays. Resorts are concentrated in the center of Corfu, which offer a lot of opportunities for active pastime, grand parties, round-the-clock youth parties. It won't be too cozy with the kids. The best resorts in the center of the island for families are Perama, Kanoni and Benitses.
The island of Crete
The most famous and popular tourist island in Greece, washed by three seas at once. Here is the longest swimming season in the country, and the sun shines here 310 days out of 365.
Choose Crete with caution when traveling with small (infants) children. Kids are very meteosensitive, and in Crete the atmospheric pressure practically does not change, which is fraught with long and difficult acclimatization. However, if the child already has travel experience, or does not react too violently to weather changes, then Crete is an excellent choice.
In order not to get with children in the midst of a round-the-clock, unrestrained noisy youth fun, a resort in Crete should be chosen as a quiet and specially designed for couples. Anissaras, Analipsi, Gouves, Kokkini Hani, Ammoudara, Agios Pelagia are good for this. There is a water park on the island.
Zakynthos island
The incredible natural beauty of Zakynthos attracts and mesmerizes. On the island, you can not only perfectly organize a beach holiday, but also admire the wildlife, because it is here that a nature reserve is located. Zakynthos hosts a lot of festivals, music awards and concerts all year round. The Tsilivi resort should be recommended to connoisseurs of white sand and parents of small children.
Chios island
A great place for a family vacation. There are no big companies of surfers and nightclub lovers here, because there are no nightclubs or youth centers. The island has about 50 beaches for every taste - from sandy to volcanic.
Halkidiki peninsula
Washed by the waters of the Aegean Sea, it is a real place of pilgrimage for tourists from all over the world, because here, in addition to the beautiful nature, there is a large number of Orthodox shrines and temples.
The neighboring peninsula of Kassandra is the best place for children to relax, because it has the cleanest beaches, the smoothest entry into the water, the largest number of amusement parks and attractions.
City of Thessaloniki
A great place for a vacation with the whole family, especially with children who have already "grown" from a multi-ton beach holiday and want new experiences.
Festivals and various events are held here all year round, there are a lot of parks, excursion programs, a large water park, museums, exhibitions, galleries.
Thassos island
It is located off the coast of Macedonia, washed by the waters of the Aegean Sea. It can rightfully be called the most "wooded", forests occupy 90% of the island's area. The resort with the eponymous hotel Makriammos deserves special attention here; it will be interesting for children of any age.
The best sandy beaches
Without exception, all beaches in Greece belong to the state, there are no private ones in principle. Not all beaches are sandy. Pebble and mixed (sand and pebble) beaches are widespread, there are beaches with black and gray sand - volcanic, there are rocky beaches. It is clear that with children it is better to bask on the beach with clean white sand. For these purposes, it is worth choosing one of the beaches on this list:
- Faliraki beach (Rhodes);
- Anthony Quinn Beach (Rhodes);
- Balos bay beach (Crete);
- Elafonisi beach (Crete);
- Paradise Beach (Kos);
- Tigaki beaches (Kos);
- Kriopigi beach (Halkidiki peninsula);
- Pefkohori beach (Halkidiki peninsula);
- Lindos beach (Rhodes);
- Marmari beach (Kos).
Which island to choose?
The choice of a particular island depends on many factors. The most significant is the season. If you have a vacation in April, any island will do, since the bathing season is not officially open anywhere else, the sea is quite cold, but excursions at this time on any of the Greek islands will be a lot of pleasure.
In May, it is better to go to Rhodes, where the water warms up first. But for the same reason, it is better not to go to Rhodes with a child in the middle of summer, because it is too hot there. In the summer months, you can choose any other island - everywhere there are excellent weather conditions for a beach holiday.
In early autumn, the warmest, oddly enough, is on the northern islands, for example, Corfu and Zakynthos. In October, again, you can just return to the warmest island - Rhodes.
The second important factor is the financial side of the issue. The islands of Rhodes and Crete are considered the most optimal for an economical vacation. They are quite self-sufficient, in local hotels with advance reservation they make the biggest discounts in Greece.
Popular hotels
There are a great many of them, and in order not to be mistaken with the choice, it is worth familiarizing yourself with the existing ratings, which include only those places in which all conditions have been created for accommodating children, including small ones, and also children's leisure and entertainment on the territory has been thought out to the smallest detail. hotel. The rating is very high, we took only the “leaders”. The rating was compiled on the basis of an analysis of notes and reviews, the travel experience of Russians.
All of these hotels have children's clubs, mini-clubs, playgrounds, some have crèches for children from 4 months old, babysitting services are provided everywhere (albeit for a fee).
Some hotels have their own water parks, almost all of them have special children's pools with water slides. The hotels have animators, some of them even Russian-speaking.
Children's cafes are not represented everywhere, but everywhere there is a children's menu in restaurants, especially in all-inclusive hotels.
With all this splendor, many hotels are fairly inexpensive and affordable for a wide variety of family budgets:
Corfu island
- Grecotel Corfu Imperial 5 *
- MarBella Corfu 5 *
- Grecotel Daphnila Bay Thalasso 4 *
- Mitsis Roda Beach Resort & Spa 4 *
Kos island
- Grecotel Kos Imperial Thalasso 5 *
- Blue Lagoon Village 5 *
- Lakitira Resort 4 *
- Gaia Village 3 *
The island of Crete
- Pilot Beach Resort and Spa 5 *
- Domes Of Elounda Autograph Collection Hotels 5 * -
Rhodes island
- Atrium Palace Resort Thalasso Spa Villas 5 *
- Mitsis Faliraki Beach Resort 4 *
Tips for choosing a hotel
Be sure to check the availability of the children's menu. You should not save on food, the best option is ALL - "all inclusive" (All inclusive).
If the child is already big enough to require entertainment, but still small to make long transitions, transfers, in Greece it is better to choose hotels with their own water park so as not to travel far. It is also better to give preference to hotels with children's animation, with a children's mini-club.
Even if the hotel is positioning itself as a family hotel, it should be clarified what services are provided for families with small children - a crib, high chairs in a cafe and restaurant, a pot in the room, a baby bath, stroller rental, etc.
Many Greek hotels, both premium and rather modest, budget, provide free accommodation for children under 12-14 years old. Please check this question when booking.
We rent private housing
Renting private housing in Greece has recently become quite profitable for Russians due to the country's economic difficulties. Property prices have dropped significantly. To select an acceptable option, you can contact a real estate agency (they are on every island), but it is better to choose an apartment in advance, since now there are enough offers on the Internet without intermediaries.
A room in a townhouse on the third coastline in Halkidiki can be found for 70 euros per month. On the island of Crete, housing is slightly more expensive - a three-room townhouse costs an average of 500 euros per month.
In Rhodes, you can find villas that are rented out for 20 thousand euros per month.
If there is no valid Schengen visa, accommodation must be booked in advance, otherwise the embassy may refuse. Savvy Greeks know about this, and therefore they often ask to transfer an advance payment. It is worth agreeing to this only on condition that the prepayment does not exceed 15-20% of the cost of the entire rental.
And be sure to ask for confirmation of your reservation, a rental agreement. This is not only a guarantee that the accommodation will indeed be temporarily yours, but also proof of your reservation at the embassy.
Children's camps
If you can't go to Greece with your whole family, you can send one child there. There are excellent children's camps in this country, including language ones. The most famous are Only English Land, Fantasy Land.
If the child is not keen on learning foreign languages, you can choose one of several dozen international thematic camps. The average cost of living in a children's camp in Greece is 50-60 thousand rubles (for 2 weeks of sea, sun, excellent food). For comparison - a change in a camp near Moscow or Vologda, which until recently wore the prefix "pioneer", costs an average of 23-25 thousand for a vacation in the forest, without a pool, in old wooden buildings).
Entertainment
You can write about entertainment for a long time, a lot and interesting. But it's better to see everything with your own eyes.
Here is a list of places you should definitely visit with your child:
- Park "Labyrinth" (Crete);
- ASKOS stone park (Zakynthos island);
- Rhodes Aquarium (Rhodes);
- Peacock Grove (Kos);
- Water park WATERLAND (Thessaloniki);
- Luna Park MAGIC PARK (Thessaloniki);
- NOESIS Technology Museum (Thessaloniki);
- ALLOU FUN PARK (Athens);
- New Acropolis Museum (Athens);
- Excursion around the island of Kefalonia;
- Blue Caves (Zakynthos Island);
- Street of the Knights (Rhodes);
- Ostrich farm (Rhodes);
- Valley of the Butterflies (Rhodes);
- Karting Center (Marmari);
- Zoological Park ATTIKI (Athens);
- War Museum (Athens);
- Athens Planetarium (Athens).
Important nuances
Acclimatization in Greece is quite easy and mild - the Mediterranean climate is not too different from the climate of our Sochi, and therefore, even babies should not have big problems. The exception is Fr. Crete, where, as already mentioned, weather-sensitive people do not feel very comfortable.
Parents of toddlers, however, are advised to bring a bottle of drinking water from their native area. The reason is in the composition of Greek water - it is unusual for Russians.
Then on vacation it is worth buying bottled water in stores.
Baby food, diapers and baby care products are sold freely in all more or less large stores.
Reviews
Reviews about holidays with children in Greece are generally quite positive.Of the shortcomings, parents point to a relatively small number of pharmacies, and therefore recommend collecting a travel first aid kit in advance and taking it with you.
Communication in shops and markets causes difficulties, where locals hardly understand Russian and do not know English at all.
