Getting Ready for our Adventure in Greece

 Hi Everyone,

Allan and I are getting ready for our spring adventure in Greece. 

We'll be visiting Crete, Paros, Naxos and Athens

We head to Iraklio (also called Heraklion), the capital of Crete, on Monday May 5,  arriving on Tuesday May 6 (we switch planes in Amsterdam).  Iraklio is Greece's fifth largest city and Crete's economic and administrative hub.   The city has an estimated population of 155, 000.  The regional area has a population of around 300, 000.



Iraklio

On May 10, we take the bus to Chania (Hania), about a three hour bus ride from Iraklio.  Historically, Chania was the seat of Venetian, Turkish and then Cretan rule.  Chania has an estimated population of 54,600.  The municipality of Chania, which includes the city and surrounding areas, has a population of around 111,300.


Chania

We'll be in Chania until May 15 when we return to Iraklio for our last night on Crete.   We then take a four hour ferry to the Island of Paros.  We'll be staying in the town of Parikia for three nights.  The island of Paros has a permanent population of around 14, 500 and Parikia has a population of around 4,500 permanent residents.

Paros

On May 19, we take the ferry to Naxos  (about one hour) where we'll spend six nights.  The island of Naxos has a population of approximately 19,000.  The largest town, Naxos City (also known as Chora), where we will be staying, has a population of around 7,300.

Naxos

We take a high-speed ferry from Naxos to Athens (about 4.5 hours) on May 25 where we will spent the last five nights of our Greek adventure.  We return to Toronto (via Amsterdam)  on May 30.

Athens- acropolis in the background

We will be visiting Crete, Paros and Naxos for the first time. As you can tell from our travels, we have an affinity for visiting islands and coastal cities.  We were in Athens in 2017 and are looking forward to a return visit.  The city of Athens has a population of around 664,000 and with the surrounding metropolitan area a population of around 3,155,000.

Please check our blog from time to time to follow our adventure.  I'll most likely do the first post from Iraklio on Wednesday May 7, once we have a chance to settle in.


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