Tips in travelling to Italy, Greece or Turkey

[Ramius75]

Hi guys !!!

I might be coming to Italy, Greece or Turkey in Aug. So I like to know is there anything i need to know about these places as a tourist. Is there any tips, do's or Not do's to be aware off ??

Whats the standard of living in those 3 places ?? How much for a hostel room or cheap hotel ? Whats the normal price for a meal too ? Coz im travelling on tight budget and doing semi backpacker style. I never been to Europe also.

Will appreciate if anyone can give me a brief introduction of their country

Tentatively, im thinking of Turkey, but my friend is thinking about Italy. Well, both places are fine by us. And Greece is in the middle... so we might be considering that place too since the Air tickets are almost the same.

Could anyone help me on this ?? Thanks !!

 

[Kyriakos]

Where in Greece?

Athens is probably one the ugliest places here: be warned

I would suggest Corfu, Rhodes or Nauplion, if you are interested in medieval/early industrial era cities.

Thessalonike is ofcourse a good choise as well

 

[Ramius75]

Where in Greece?

Athens is probably one the ugliest places here: be warned

I would suggest Corfu, Rhodes or Nauplion, if you are interested in medieval/early industrial era cities.

Thessalonike is ofcourse a good choise as well

actually, if i will go, it should be Athen or maybe places around the Aegean sea. Where is Santorini or Myconos ?? Is it very accessible from Athen ??

how about things like lodging ? food ? transport ? and crime rate

 

[GoldEagle]

Where in Greece?

Athens is probably one the ugliest places here: be warned

Ugly, as in prostitute/sex ugly? I'm going to Greece->Aegean Sea->Turkey September 18th-30th. I'd like some more tips also

 

[Ginger_Ale]

actually, if i will go, it should be Athen or maybe places around the Aegean sea. Where is Santorini or Myconos ?? Is it very accessible from Athen ??

how about things like lodging ? food ? transport ? and crime rate

I've been to Santorini in the Aegean - it is very nice! It's just about a 1 hour plane ride (I imagine there's a ferry, too, but I'm not sure) from Athens, but it's a lot nicer. You've got views of the sea, sand, and sort of an "old place" feel. Because it attracts a decent amount of tourists, there are lots of places to eat, shop, and stay (although I can't remember hotel price). When I went (about 4-5 years ago), there were also a lot of jewelry stores.

 

[jamiethearcher]

My parents were in Italy 3 years ago to meet some of my mothers family (who she had never even seen before!)

They did Napoli, Procida (the island off of Napoli we are from), Rome, Venice and Florence.

They loved Procida (because of the family, if you dont know people there, you might not like it as much!) Rome and Venice

They were disapointed by Napoli (they said it was dirty) and Florence (I think because it was the last city, and they were worn out at that point)

My sister in law was in Italy last year - she loved Rome, Sorrento and Sicily.

 

[Keshik]

In 1999 I took a cruise beginning and ending in Venice, which I highly recommend seeing. Land excursions were short, but I saw Crete, Athens, Istanbul, and Navplion. Istanbul was probably my favorite with all the history there, as well as the Islamic culture, which I had never seen before first hand. Plus, I found the Turkish people to be very hospitable, as long as you don't mind the hard sell at the grand bazaar too much.

Also, as a history buff, Olympia and Mycenae in Greece were awesome to me.

 

[Esckey]

Depends on the time of year, I went to Italy just before Easter, and a lot of the hotels and hostels where full and were also expensive. Stayed at a "campsite" out side of Venice, they have thier own little grocery store and resturant and pool. And in Naples stay at a place outside of Naples, think Sorento.

But once we got to Greece(ferry from Brindsi to Corfu) we just decided to stay at the Pink Palace in Corfu

 

[Mr. Blonde]

I can comment on a couple of Greek destinations as I spent 2 weeks a piece in any of them:

Santorin: very small, you can see the whole island on a day, several villages with the typical tourist mile. I was there early June, so it was not overrun. Imo has little more to offer than beaches plus a vulcano you can visit.

Rhodes: I recommend this. Beautiful medieval core city (was in restauration when I was there), big enough for calm places, and beaches with tourism nearby. Didn´t see the valley of butterflies, though.

Crete: was at a tourist beach near Irakleio. Ugliest city I have seen, to visit: museums with expositions from the minoan culture, a Venetian harbour with small fortezza. Minos palace is rather near, there should be tours available. Also visited: Chaldikidi (sp?, don´t remember the name exactly) high plateau with a cave system, is worth it, especially because it´s a little cooler there.
Rethymon: the second city I saw there as I made a trip by bus. Definitely worth it, a renovated Venetian old city with harbour + fortress, much nicer (and more touristic) than Irakleio. I spent 2 weeks with 40°C plus in July there.

No matter where you go, look for rooms with aircondition + noise protection against these pesky cicades.

 

[Kyriakos]

What exactly are you looking for?

If you want a vacation in the sea you would be better off at Corfu or Rhodes, or Chania, or some other island. Chalkidike is in the north, and also is good for a vacation, but apart from the Athos monasteries it does not have many centralised cutlural locations.

For historical interest there is Athens (ancient mostly) and Thessalonike (byzantine), Rhodes (knights hospitaler) and then different locations throughout the country.

Here are some pics:

Thessalonike

Rhodes

Kerkyra (Corfu)

 

[Sidhe]

I visited Rhodes as a teenager, Lindos actually the beaches are awesome and St Pauls bay is idylic and quiet, good for snorkelling too. There is a Roman theatre and a necropolis too and the Acropolis overlooks St Pauls Bay, the donkey rides up their were memorable, us lazy westerners didn't have to walk up to the sight although you can if you want, also there are some Roman archeological digs on the Island that are fascinating.

Here's one place I'll never forget there though.

http://www.travel-rhodes.com/place.php?place_id=36

I hope to return to her and visit other Areas of Greece some day, because I'll never forget the experience, it was amazing, we went in May while there was a heatwave, temperatures were around 40 degrees(my favourite thermometer encased in the village square though never fell below 40, in fact it never moved, ah tourist propoganda ) It was truly very hot though, but not humid like in England. I remember back then Coke cost more than beer, not sure what it costs now, but it was a definite plus point

 

[Red Door]

I just got back from Italy 2 weeks ago. Here's what you do.

1.Fly in to Venice. Stay there for 2 days, it's a complete tourist trap, it's not worth more than that.

2.Take the train to Florence. Stay there for 3-5 days. See Uffizi, the Cathedral, the bridge. Also, take 2 day trips to Pisa and Sienna.

3.Take the train to Rome. Stay there 5 days. See Colloseum, Forum, Circus Maximus, Vatican.

4.Take the train to Naples. Then, go to Sorrento. It's a beach resort, but it's awesome. You can also catch a ferry to Capri there.

5.Go to either Sicily or Milan. It's your choice. Sicily is awesome, but hard to get to and out of from Sorrento/Naples, the closest city. Milan is better for shopping.

Personally, I would skip Milan, modern Italian cities suck.

I really reccomend Italy, I had so much fun there.

 

[Rossiya]

3.Take the train to Rome. Stay there 5 days. See Colloseum, Forum, Circus Maximus, Vatican.

you spell colosseum the nice european way, good on you!

on a more serious note on italy, go there and enjoy yourself. my soul always feels completely at home there. sometimes it's hard to drag it back to cloudy ol england.