Hotels in Greece

Greece or officially known as the Hellenic Republic. It is historically known as Hellas. It is a country located in Southern and Southeast Europe. It has a population of 11 million. The capital city of Greece is Athens. It is also the largest city in Greece. The second largest city in Greece in Thessaloniki. Greece is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia and Africa. Greece is situated on the Southern tip of the Balkan Peninsula. Greece also shares the land with bordering countries such as Albania to the Northwest, the Republic of Macedonia and Bulgaria to the North and Turkey to the Northeast. To the East of the mainland, there lies the Aegean Sea. Greece is also bordering with the Ionian Sea to the West, the Cretan Sea and the Mediterranean Sea to the South. Greece has the longest coastline on the Mediterranean and the 11th longest coastline in the world at 13, 676 km in length. Greece also has a large number of islands. They have 227 inhabited islands. Greece is a mountainous country. Mount Olympus has the highest peak at 2,918 metres. The country consists of nine geographic regions which are Macedonia, Central Greece, the Peloponnese, Thessaly, Epirus, the Aegean Islands including the Dodecanese and Cyclades, Thrace, Crete, and the Ionian Islands.

Greece is considered as the cradle of Western civilisation. It is said to be the birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy, Western literature, historiography, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, Western drama as well as the Olympic Games. Since the eighth century BC, Greece is using the poleis system which the Greeks were organised into various independent city-states. Most of the Greek mainland is united in the fourth century BC by the Philip of Macedon. His son, Alexander the Great rapidly conquering the other part of the world and spreading Greek culture and science from the Eastern Mediterranean to India. Greece then was annexed by Rome in the second century BC and becoming an integral part of the Roman Empire and Byzantine Empire. The Greek language is very dominant. The Greek Orthodox Church helped shape modern Greek identity and transmitted Greek traditions to the wider Orthodox in the world. Then, on the mid-15th century, the empire falling under the Ottoman dominion.

To enter Greece, foreign tourists usually do not need a visa. The United Kingdom, the European Union, the United States of America, Canada, Australia and New Zealand citizens do not require a visa to enter Greece. Travellers can stay in Greece for 90 days. Greece is one of the countries in the European Union. So, Greece is a part of Schengen members. For Singaporean, you can visit Greece without having to apply for any visa. You can visit Greece without a visa for 90 days. Once the 90 days is reached, leaving the country for a brief period and re-entering the country does not entitle you to get 90 more days. You need to remain outside of the Schengen area for 90 days before re-entering the country without a visa. If you intend to visit or stay in Greece for more than 90 days, you must apply for a Schengen visa. For Europeans, you can enter Greece by showing your national identity card instead of using a passport.

There was a major dispute in deciding what is the main language of Greece during the 19th and 20th centuries whether the official language of Greece should be the archaic Katharevousa that created in the 19th century. It was used as the state and scholarly language. The other language is the Dimotiki which evolved naturally from Byzantine Greek and was the language of the people. The dispute was then finally resolved in 1976. Dimotiki was made the only official variation of the Greek language while Katharevousa is removed.  Greece today is relatively homogenous in linguistic terms. Majority of the native population are using Greek as their first or only language. Among the Greek population, there are some dialect came to Greece such as Pontic dialect and Cappadocian dialect. Both of the dialects came to Greece due to the genocide.

The climate of Greece is primarily mild, wet winters, hot and dry summers. The climate occurs at all coastal locations including Athens, Cyclades, Dodecanese, Crete, Peloponnese, Ionian Islands and parts of the Central Continental Greece region. The climate of the country strongly affected by the Pindus mountain as the area to the West is considerably wetter on average. The mountainous areas of Northwest Greece including parts of Epirus, Central Greece, Thessaly, Western Macedonia, Achaea, Arcadia and Laconia feature an Alpine climate with heavy snowfalls. The inland part of Northern Greece such as in Central Macedonia and East Macedonia and Thrace feature a temperature climate with cold, damp winters, hot and dry summers with frequent thunderstorms.

Greek cuisine is a mainly a healthy Mediterranean diet. Greek cuisine incorporates fresh ingredients into a variety of local dishes such as moussaka, pastitsio, classic Greek salad, fasolada, spanakopita and souvlaki.

How to Get There?

By Flight

There are many airports available in Greece. You can get to Greece easily because of it. Other cities in Greece also has an airport. Athens International Airport or commonly initialised as “AIA” began operation on 28 March 2001. This airport has become the primary international airport that serves the city of Athens and the region of Attica. The Athens International Airport is the hub for Aegean Airlines. It is the busiest airport in Greece. The second busiest airport in Greece is the Heraklion International Airport. It is located on the island of Crete.

If you would like to go to the capital city of Greece from Singapore, you can take a flight from Changi Airport to Athens International Airport. Several airlines provide flights from Singapore to Athens such as Scoot Airline and Qatar Airways. However, only Scoot Airline providing direct flights from Changi Airport to Athens International Airport. You can choose to board with any flights that you preferred. The cheapest airfare is offered by Scoot Airline with SGD 604 for a return ticket. The flight will take about 12 hours.

Other than Athens, you can also go to other parts of Greece such as Santorini. You can take a flight from Changi Airport to Santorini Airport. Several airlines provide flights from Singapore to Santorini such as Scoot Airline and Aegean Airlines. However, there are no direct flights offered by any airlines. You need to transit at other airport at least once. The cheapest airfare is offered by Scoot Airlines with SGD 913.

What to do There?

Acropolis of Athens

The Acropolis of Athens is an ancient citadel located on a rocky area above the city of Athens. There are several ancient building of great architectural, and historical significance remains at the Acropolis of Athens. The most famous building is called the Parthenon. You would want to miss the opportunity to visit the Acropolis of Athens while you are in Athens. It is a great place to visit. You will get to see many temples and get a great view of Athens. Be sure to arrive early here to avoid the crowd.

Temple of Olympian Zeus, Athens

The Temple of Olympian Zeus or also known as the Olympieion or Columns of the Olympian Zeus is a former colossal temple at the centre of the Greece capital. It was dedicated to Olympian Zeus as head of the Olympian gods. You can see the original structure and pillars when you visit the Temple of Olympian Zeus. You can see the view of the Acropolis from here as well.

Imerovigli

Imerovigli is a village on the island of Santorini, Greece. It is located adjacent to the North of the island capital called Fira. Imerovigli is mostly famous for its beautiful sunset that is called as “balcony to the Aegean”. The houses in Imerovigli are built amphitheatrically around the caldera, and it is crossed by narrow paved paths. The views that await you here are very stunning. This is one the place that you must visit when you are in Greece.

Where to Stay?

Wyndham Grand Athens

Wyndham Grand Athens is one of the best accommodation that you can get while you are in Athens. This 4-star polished hotel is situated overlooking a bustling city square. This Wyndham Grand Athens also located only 4 km from the Acropolis of Athens that includes the Parthenon. When you were staying with this hotel, you will be close to a metro station. You to walk for about 2 minutes to get to the metro station.

Volcano View Hotel Santorini

If you are coming to Santorini, you want to stay with the Volcano View Hotel Santorini. This upscale contemporary hotel is built like a cave house. This hotel is located 2 km from the Museum of Prehistoric Thera. It is also located 9 km from the Akrotiri archaeological site. Volcano View Hotel Santorini promises you a very comfortable stay. A complimentary breakfast buffet will be given to all of their guests.