Traveling and Food in Greece!

Hey Fam! My husband and I recently traveled to Greece for a week-long vacation. We had a wonderful time traveling to Athens and Santorini. We experienced a lot and ate a lot of fantastic food. I’m excited to share with you our experience with traveling and food in Greece!

Day 1

After a long travel day (15ish hours) we arrived in Athens midday. We stayed in an Airbnb in Plaka, which was a very convenient location for our activities in Athens. We were exhausted from our travels, so we ate dinner at a local bar near our Airbnb called Barley Cargo. There, we had this amazing meat platter and a few drinks. Of course, I had to stay away from the pita bread because of my gluten sensitivity and the meat patties. My husband happily ate them.

Day 2

For our first full day in Athens we wanted to really explore the city and despite the rain, that’s exactly what we did! We spent most of our day at the Acropolis Museum viewing ancient artifacts and learning about Greek history.

After the museum, we walked around a bit and had a wonderful dinner at a restaurant we stumbled upon. Unfortunately, I don’t recall the name of the restaurant and completely forgot to snap any photos of the food. But you’ll have to take me at my word. The roasted lamb was wonderful and we paired it with an even better bottle of wine! We then did some light bar-hopping exploring some unique places, including Noel.

Day 3

Our main activity for day 3 was a cooking class with The Greek Kitchen. I was so grateful that they were able to accommodate my dietary restrictions. I learned so much and can’t wait to replicate some of the recipes for you. We made Dolmades, which are vine leaves wrapped around herb-infused rice and beef.

Spanakopita, which are spinach pies with creamy, salty feta wrapped in a pastry. Tzatziki, a classic Greek yogurt infused with garlic, cucumber and herbs. Imam Bialdi, a dish of roasted eggplants topped with a rich sauce and feta cheese. Last, but certainly not least, Portokalopita, a sticky, soft orange “pie”.

In the end, the spread was amazing!

The Portokalopita was amazing, especially for a gluten-free dessert. Unfortunately, I didn’t get a chance to snap a photo of the non-gluten free Portokalopita for the rest of the group.

Day 4

For our final day in Athens, we got up early to go to the ancient Greek city, Acropolis to see the ruins up close. We decided to do a self-guided tour because we wanted to be flexible with our time as we were flying to Santorini later in the afternoon. At Acropolis, there was so much history and character in one place that made it an absolutely breathtaking experience. Additionally, the views of Athens from this highpoint were amazing. See for yourself below!

After we left Acropolis, we eventually made our way to the airport to travel to Santorini. Santorini, one of the Cyclades islands in the Aegean Sea, was re-shaped after an eruption of the volcano that created the stunning landscape of the island. We stayed at Elysian Santorini, a boutique villa in the traditional settlement of Finikia. Our deluxe cave villa with an indoor heated pool was absolutely stunning. The service and breakfasts were also fantastic. If you ever decide to travel to Santorini, I would definitely recommend staying here! Because we were a bit tired from the last few days of “tourist” activities, we took it easy and had dinner at a wonderful local restaurant, Lefkes Santorini. We had a lamb for two that was served with leeks and roasted potatoes. We paired it with a local wine made from the Mandilaria grape.

Day 5

Day 5 traveling in Greece was all about touring a few of the top wineries of Santorini. We toured one brewery and three of the twenty wineries on the island. During our tour, we not only learned a lot about winemaking in Santorini, but also the history of the island. One of the first things we learned on the tour is that the most common grape is Assyrtiko, which is a white grape indigenous to Santorini. Red grapes are not common on the island because of the climate. Two of the wineries had museums, including the Art Space Winery (pictured below), which is the oldest winery on Santorini, founded in 1861.

There is no source of clean drinkable water on Santorini, because of this, wine growers do not use water to grow the grape vines or in the winemaking process. This means that the wines are high in minerality, acidity, sugar, and alcohol content. Additionally, Santorini is one of the only places that twists the grape vines into a basket. This protects the grapes from harsh winds, sun, and volcanic ash. The oldest vine baskets on the island are over 200 years old.

After our winery tour, we had dinner at Meze Meze back in Finikia. We had the prime rib for two served with roasted potatoes. Another interesting tidbit about the agriculture on Santorini, because water is not used in the growing process and the volcanic rich soil, the crops are so much more fresh, aromatic, and tasty. For example, produce like tomatoes, potatoes, and fresh herbs were wonderful additions to meals and snacks.

Day 6

Our final full day in Greece was spent mostly in Oia, the northern most point of Santorini. We spent part of our morning doing a flying dress photoshoot to commemorate the anniversary of my 25th birthday. I had an amazing time walking around Oia and being photographed in this fabulous purple dress!

We spent the rest of the day walking around Oia taking in the gorgeous caldera views and doing a little souvenir shopping. Later in the evening, we had a wonderful dinner at Pelekanos. Our table overlooked the sea, which had an amazing view of the sunset. It was very romantic! For appetizers we shared a salad and grilled calamari. The calamari was served with this black tzatziki that was surprisingly delicious. I had a roasted lamb with potatoes and grilled vegetables. By far, this was the best lamb I had while traveling in Greece!

Day 7 was 100 percent a travel day. We had to fly from Santorini to Athens, Athens to Istanbul, and Istanbul back to Virginia. In total, it was approximately a 24-hour travel day. In Athens, we ate a lot of street food in the evenings when we wanted a quick or lite bite to eat. The street food is fantastic and super cheap. If you are looking to travel to Greece on a budget, eating mostly street food will go a long way!

Thank you for reading about our experience with traveling and food in Greece! What has been your favorite vacation destination? Where do you think we should travel next? Let me know in the comments below!