Wednesday, January 18, 2017

Greece Preparations

This is the view from the 9 room small Greek hotel we are staying at on the Island of Santorini for the first three nights of the trip.  I went to Greece about 20 years ago when I was a travel agent on a Greek Island cruise.  The few hours I spent there made such an impression that I wanted to one day take my future husband there for a few days.  Fast forward 20 years and I will be taking hubby there for his 55th Birthday!  This hotel is considered 2 star but 5 star in all its reviews.  Something to take note of - the star rating for hotels is based on amenities, not on their service.  This hotel is on the side of the cliff - caldera view and hundreds less than some of the shi shi boutique hotels there.  We still have to pay up but I did loads of research and this one is priced right, has the right view and includes a massive breakfast each day and a bottle of wine and fruit on arrival.  It also has a small kitchenette.  You only get those kind of things in family run hotels - only five months left of waiting!


The Canadian dollar had its strongest day yesterday in 3 years so this morning I took the plunge and ordered all the cash currency I will need for the trip.  I also bought 60 GBP with my "money on the side" vintage Christmas reselling venture from December.  There was $100.25 in the fund and 60 GBP cost $100.35.  That will pay for our transfers for our one night London stopover plus a lunch at the 17th century pub that is within walking distance of our hotel at Heathrow.  The hotel was paid for using air miles so that means the stopover is 100% funded.  I ordered 1000 Euros and it cost $220 less than it did last year at this exact time when I ordered the same for our Spain trip.  The travel fund is now mostly drained except some money for our hotels which we will put on credit cards.  I still have a bit to save for that.  I over-save every year just in case something comes up on our trips we would really like to experience/do.  If the money is not spent the travel fund ends up having a boost on the savings for the next trip (2018 is Italy with 1 kid).

Next on the agenda is to renew my passport as it expires in August and you need to have your passport valid at least 6 mos past your return date when leaving the country.  This time I can get a 10 year passport which was not available last time.  It costs $160 but well worth it as I hope to get a lot of stamps in it in the next 10 years.

We have had a sudden increase in temperatures here, from below zero for several weeks to 8 degrees Celcius with wind and rain which melted all of the snow we got last week (3/4 foot).  Work is still extremely busy.  January/February this year will likely be our two busiest months of the year with only September likely to be nearly as busy.  It takes trips like Greece to look forward to to keep our heads straight.

18 comments:

  1. Your hotel looks idyllic, you probably won't want to leave it. Just live there permanently, ha ha. When my husband and I visited Greece we thought, how could we stay here, it was so gorgeous.

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    1. I am ready to go move there now...they just have to accept my dog :) Hubby would not probably agree at this moment in time though

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  2. Whoa - so glad I read this post (as always:) but my passport needs to be renewed this year as well! AND I need to start buying Euros so will get busy on that!! See what a great public service you've done? The view in that photo is stunning - your perseverance has been rewarded!

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    1. Yeah, most countries in the world won't admit you without at least 6 months on your passport so it gets sketchy in that last year. Seriously the next 5 months can't go fast enough!

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  3. This is like a beautiful dream, I love looking at pictures of Santorini. Gorgeous.

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    1. It is beautiful, I enjoy spending money on travel, never end up regretting it

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  4. It is already ten years ago when we were in Crete. I sprouted roots there and still miss the place...

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    1. I loved Greece the first time, certain this 2nd time won't be the last, I know what you mean

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  5. Wow oh wow oh wow! I want your vacation too. It looks fantastic and I always think a kitchenette is a plus. I love being able to make coffee and a light breakfast as well as a light dinner after a day on the go. Oh I am filled with trip envy!

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    1. I love having a kitchenette too. Santorini is insanely expensive although we could have gotten a cheaper non-view hotel, I wanted to spend our money there. We might even just do takeout for suppers and enjoy our fine view with our meal versus paying for expensive dinners out with the view

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  6. Your hotel choice looks wonderful! You are so good at planning your excursions. You must have been a great travel agent.

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    1. I enjoyed being a travel agent but the whole industry changed for the worse after I did it for 10 years, it was extremely difficult to make a living and had to work retail crappy hours, hard to have a nice life. Now I just plan for us :)

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  7. As my family are in England I always keep an eye on the exchange rate. They love coming here of course because it is in their favour.

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    1. That is why I have delayed a trip to Britain, our money just doesn't go very far there...but it is definitely in our future!

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  8. Just keep dreaming about Greece and these busy months will quickly pass.

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    1. Yes, at least we have something to work for, I am sure you know that feeling

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  9. Yes, you got a good deal on the currency exchange. that is really good. Greece will be amazing to visit. Here in Toronto we have milder weather this week. Wish to see some sunshine though

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    1. The sun is peeking through the clouds today, first time in a long time so I better get out there. Our winters can get really dreary

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