Two Museums in Athens among 41 Most Spectacular to See Around the World

The Acropolis Museum and the Benaki Museum in Athens are among the world’s 41 most incredible museums to visit before you die, according to the online edition of UK newspaper The Telegraph. The list was compiled by The Telegraph’s experts. Acropolis Museum As noted in the article, the Acropolis Museum — inaugurated in June 2009 …

The Guardian: Greece’s National Museum of Contemporary Art Among Top 10 New Museum Openings in 2017

Greece’s National Museum of Contemporary Art (EMST) in Athens is included on The Guardian’s list of the top ten new museum openings around the world in 2017. “History, art and design will be celebrated in their many forms, and disciplines, at new institutions from Paris to Los Angeles and London to Cape Town”, the British …

‘Olympia Golden Beach’ Certified with Travelife Gold Award

The Olympia Golden Beach Resort & Spa, located in the region of Ilia in western Peloponnese, once again received the Travelife Gold Award for applying and further promoting sustainable development practices. The company succeeded in meeting the requirements of the Travelife certification system, by using environmentally friendly products, by adopting recycling practices and by constantly educating its employees …

NJV Athens Plaza Successfully Embraces ‘We do local’ Initiative

NJV Athens Plaza, located in the heart of Athens, recently received the “We do local” certification, after successfully adopting the initiative’s proposed standards to better promote local hospitality and culture. According to an announcement, the hotel was certified for supporting local producers and the economy and for actively contributing to the protection of the environment and the promotion of …

All the “roads” lead to Philippi: The history of the greatly travelled ‘Via Egnatia’

The “Via Egnatia” was the most important road in antiquity in Macedonia and Thrace. Basically, it served as a Roman military and commercial highway constructed between 146 – 120 BC and named after the man who ordered its construction: Proconsul Gaius Egnatius. Like all Roman roads, the pavement of the Via Egnatia was about six …

Driving Egnatia Odos, Greece’s modern ancient highway

Ottoman arched bridge over Voidomatis River, Vikos Gorge. Image by Danita Delimont / Getty Images One of the most fascinating drives across Greece is the 670km journey from the Turkish border crossing of Kipi in Thrace to Igoumenitsa on the Ionian Sea. Known as the ‘Egnatia Odos’, after the ancient Roman Via Egnatia which conveyed …

Global Initiative ‘Unites’ Hiking Trails in Kythera and Canada

The hiking trails of the island of Kythera, located south-east of the Peloponnese, recently became a “twin” section of the Bruce Trail, Canada’s oldest and longest marked footpath, within the framework of the “Friendship Trails” initiative. The official “Hiking Friendship” ceremony was recently held in Toronto in the presence of George Kasimatis, president of the Kytherian …

Philippi Archaeological sites: From the Roman period to Early Christianity

One of the landmarks in the city’s history was the great battle that occurred in 42 BC. Following  the battle, Roman colonists and veteran soldiers settled in the fertile plain of Philippi, and the city was transformed into a Roman colony (Colonia Augusta Julia Philippensis). The most important sites, from the Roman times up to …

Take a Dive in the Pagasitikos Gulf from Valis Hotel’s New Floating Platform

The Valis Hotel & Conference Center in Pelion recently presented a new addition in its aim to offer guests exciting experiences during their stay: a brand-new, 100 square meter floating platform. Set up right in front of the crystal clear waters of the Pagasitikos Gulf, the large floating platform is available for snorkeling, diving or …

Philippi Archaeological sites: The Early Christian era

With the transfer of the seat of the Eastern Roman Empire to Constantinople (330 AD), the dominance of Christianity (4th c. AD), and the graduation Hellenizing of the Eastern Roman state, the Roman colony of Philippi regained its character as a Greek city. With the change of religion, the large public buildings, which had been …

Check out the ‘Summer Nostos Festival’ in Athens during June 2017!

This June, the Summer Nostos Festival (SNFestival) proposes a homecoming (nostos), a collective “return” to all those things and ideas that the arrival of summer means for each one of us, with an entire week of free events for all, that will take place between June 18 and June 25, 2017 and is organized and …

Thessaloniki Rising as Choice Tourist Destination

Andreas Mandrinos, Secretary General, Thessaloniki Hotels Association; Konstantinos Tornivoukas, Vice President; Aristotle Thomopoulos, President; Stefan Merkenhof, Managing Consultant, GBR Consulting Thessaloniki is winning over the crowds thanks to the experiences it offers, hotel satisfaction and consistency in its services, according to a survey presented by the Thessaloniki Hotels Association and GBR Consulting at the Holiday …

Benaki Museum in Athens Wins 2017 ‘Experts’ Choice Award’

Greece’s Benaki Museum in Athens was recently announced as a winner of the TripExpert 2017 Experts’ Choice Award, which recognizes the best attractions around the world based on reviews by journalists and professional travel writers. TripExpert is a professional travel review site. “With positive reviews from reviewers such as Michelin Guide, Fodor’s and Travel + …

The Basilicas of Philippi: churches of unique Christian importance

Four impressive three-aisled basilicas with narthex have been erected at the archaeological site of Philippi, coming from the Early Christian Period. Basilica A On a level above the Kavala – Drama road and the marketplace of Philipi (west of the theater) has been traced the biggest early christian church of Philipi, called Basilica A. It …

Philippi Archaeological sites: From the Hellenistic to Roman period

The archaeological site of Philippi is located in Eastern Macedonia between the modern cities of Kavala and Drama, at the southeast edge of the plain of Drama. For the most part, the landscape that surrounds the archaeological site has been preserved intact from antiquity to this day. The most important sites, apart from the theater …

Philippi:The impressive ancient theater from Hellenistic Times up to now

This impressive monument is one of the oldest and most important buildings of the city. Its present form is the result of successive building changes that represent various phases of the city’s history. It is located on the hillside of the acropolis hill, in contact with the eastern wall of the city, on which it …

Macedonian Philippi: From the Neolithic era to the Kingdom of Macedonia

Long before the Ancient Greeks located to Philippi, there was a Neolithic settlement that was discovered in the last decades, next to water springs, at Dikili-Tas (Orthopetra), lying 2km east of the ancient city. This settlement in the prehistoric dark millennia can be considered as a distant ancestor of the city of historical times. Life …

Athens Among World’s Top 50 Millennial Destinations

Athens is among the world’s top 50 cities attracting millennials, according to a survey released on April 19th by online housing platform Nestpick. The Berlin-based aggregator platform studied thousands of cities based on 16 criteria including housing score, tolerance to immigration, equality and nightlife, ranking the top 100 cities for millennials to live or visit. …