Via Athens

In past years, some guests have found the Tuesday to Tuesday summer season Charter Flight timetable restrictive, and have elected to come to stay at the Mill via Athens, usually leaving the UK on Saturdays. This option gives Guests the opportunity to spend a couple of days in one of Europe's most historic cities. Onward travel to Crete can be either by plane www.olympicairlines.com or www.aegean-airlines.gr taking between 35 and 40 minutes, or by overnight ferry. The 2004 Summer Olympic Games were hosted in Athens, and the resultant improvements to the City, particularly in terms of general cleanliness and public transport, have made Athens a much more desirable place to visit. My advice is to base yourself in the Plaka, the oldest district of modern Athens located at the base of the Acropolis, about 30 minutes by taxi from Eleftherios Venizelos International Airport, where your flight from the UK will land. The Doric Temple of the Parthenon is of course one of the greatest monuments in the world, and the best recognized building of ancient Greece, with its prominent location on the top of Acropolis. There are numerous hotels in the Plaka. I have stayed at the recently refurbished C Category Attalos Hotel, www.attalos.gr , about 5 minutes walk from the centre of the Plaka. A rather uninspiring building from the outside, but pleasant staff and a well positioned roof terrace (don't mention the Elgin Marbles!)