5 independent reviews for Crete and Athens holiday
Reviews for Crete and Athens holiday
Sally Honeycutt review 30 May 2026
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Visiting ancient archaeological sites2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Anthi (travel agent) is great about working with you to customize the itinerary for your interests.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes, our money went to local people and companies4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
Excellent!Charlie Young review 2 Sep 2025
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
The holiday was memorable in many ways; firstly, for being so well organised from start to finish. From the quality of hotels and trips to sight-seeing and restaurant tips to efficient transfers and hire cars being delivered and picked up from the hotel door - it was family travel with all the sting taken out.Highlights were the beautiful village of Lefkes and Volax, the great boat trip around Antiparos and the delicious food all over. Paros and Tonos were wonderful islands to visit - Greece without the hordes.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Let Anthi at Emilia know what kind of holiday you want, give her a budget and she will do the rest.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes. It definitely benefitted local people - hotels were locally owned, restaurants , trip and transfers were all run by locals. Difficult to comment on conservation support or reduced environmental impacts - it was a family holiday after all - but everything was small-scale, independent and local.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
What a great experience we had with Emelia History Travel! We were introduced to Anthi, the tour operator who booked us a holiday visiting Paros, Tinos and Mykonos. Every hotel, transfer, boat trip and ferry was booked for us - we didn't have to worry about a thing. It was the easiest, most relaxing family trip we've ever had. Every traditional holiday hassle was removed! We gave Anthi a budget and she delivered such a wonderful holiday - from boat trips, to restaurant recommendations, to places to visit. Every meeting point was emailed to us in advance and every transfer was on time. She hired cars for us, all dropped off and picked up from out hotel to avoid any unnecessary hassle; there was just so much attention to detail - the itinerary she wrote for us was so comprehensive! It was clear from the start that it was really, really important to her that my family had a fantastic holiday - she communicated everything to us, was always on hand to answer questions and she was just absolutely lovely to deal with in every possible way. She even bought us a gift at the end of the trip... I mean, honestly, we should have been buying her the presents! She was fantastic - she made it her personal mission to ensure we had the best time possible and you just knew she was doing everything in her power to deliver that. Simply put - I wouldn't dream of going to Greece again without booking through Anthi and Emelia Travel. I think that's saying something.Tricia Cortez review 27 Aug 2025
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Traveling abroad for the first time with my two young children, 8 yo and 10 yo. I wanted to incorporate some history and culture, while making space to relax and to swim and swim in Aegean. Highlights of our two week trip included visiting and having an excellent guided tour of the Parthenon/Acropolis and the modern and user-friendly Acropolis museum. We also enjoyed our time spent on Paros, in a quiet side of the island away from the touristy hustle and bustle.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
Definitely work with Anthi from the tour operator - we formed a bond with Anthi because of her directness and warmth. When I decided on Greece, I didn't know where to start - there are so many options and paths to go. Anthi was able to help me narrow down my selection and make some choices. We went in late July/early Aug which is high season so just know that as you're planning your summer trips. Athens was very hot, upward of 100 degrees, which we are used to because we are from South Texas, but not everyone may be used to it. It is also a large complicated and seemingly disorganized city with many many layers of history -- think Mexico City and Rome. It takes time to peel back some of the surface layers to start feeling Athens. We loved the snorkeling trip around Antiparos - a top highlight - but we didn't enjoy the day trip to Santorini - it is beautiful and an engineering marvel in how it's perched atop a very big and rocky island but is also saturated with tourists and cruise ships and feels like it caters to them, if you are only there for a few hours as part of a day trip. We rented a car for a few days only and had a chance to explore the island of Paros a bit more. There is also very good bus service all day in Paros that does a loop around the island and goes to all the main towns and cities, that you can also consider.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes I believe that it benefited local people because Anthi made sure to book our Athens and Paros lodging with family owned businesses, as we as the snorkeling tour around Antiparos. We took the ferry to and from Paros, and to and from Santorini - rather than flights - which reduced our carbon footprint. The Athens hotel was a little hidden gem in the city centre and had sustainable soap/shampoo/conditioner. The family style hotel in Paros used the smaller disposable bottles. Both of them require you to insert your hotel key to turn on the electricity, which I believe does save on unnecessary electricity usage.4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
I would give this a 10 on a scale of 1 to 10. I went with NO expectations in order to avoid disappointment, with the idea of relaxing and disconnecting from my hectic worklife and pressures with home schedules, etc. I also went with the hope of meeting locals and other like-minded visitors. I wasn't disappointed. I can't wait to return.Ron Tornquist review 15 Apr 2025
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
I would have to say ancient Olympia and the original Olympic site.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
I think I would want to spend a couple of days at each location when we drove across the Greece mainland. I feel we didn’t spend enough time at each site. We stopped..3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes, I would say that our trip benefited the local people, especially this early in the season where there’s not many customers4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
The holiday was a great we enjoyed it very much. The only downside would be a Folegandros where all most everything was closed. Late April or early May would’ve been a better time to visit..Jan Pond review 7 Aug 2023
1. What was the most memorable or exciting part of your holiday?
Our stay in Chania was definitely a highlight, with our great apartment looking over the harbour and watching the sunset.2. What tips would you give other travellers booking this holiday?
I would definitely recommend the tour operator, Anthi was very helpful knowledgeable and quick to respond to any quesrtions. She had great ideas and suggestions to make our holiday perfect.3. Did you feel that your holiday benefited local people, reduced environmental impacts or supported conservation?
Yes, Anthi had just started her out in her own business and our guides were local and very knowledgeable4. Finally, how would you rate your holiday overall?
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