Europe

Our Time in Ancient Olympia (Katakalon, Greece)

Posted on December 29, 2023 by 2btravel

Trip Report: Athens and a Mediterranean Cruise
Lounge Reviews: The Club CLT and Centurion Lounge Charlotte Airport
Flight Review: Lufthansa A340-600 Charlotte-Munich
Lodging Review: Academias Hotel, Autograph Collection, Athens
Our Time in Athens, Part I (Acropolis and Museum)
Our Time in Athens, Part II (Roman Agora, Hadrian’s Library, Ancient Agora)
Our Time in Athens, Part III (Kerameikos, Temple of Zeus, Panathenaic Stadium)
Our Time in Athens, Part IV (Restaurants and Observations)
Ship Review: Viking Neptune
Our Time in Ancient Olympia (Katakalon, Greece)
Our Time in Corfu, Greece
Our Time in Kotor, Montenegro
Our Time in Dubrovnik, Croatia
Our Time in Zadar, Croatia
Our Time in Venice, Italy
Flight Review: Iberia A330-300 Madrid-Chicago

Our ship departed Athens at 6 PM on Saturday evening and it took us the rest of the night and all of Sunday morning to reach our first port of call, Katakolon, Greece as we had to sail around the Greek peninsula.

The included tour at this port was called Ancient Olympia and there were optional tours that included not only Ancient Olympia but a visit to the Magna Grecia olive estate, another where you can learn Greek folk dancing and a Flavors of the Greek Countryside tour. We stuck with the included tour but because we were in the cheaper staterooms we had to settle for the last tour of the day, which didn’t leave until 2:15 PM.

Port of Katakolo(n)

That wasn’t all bad. In Katakolon, the dock is not far at all from a tourist area with several restaurants and loads of souvenir shops. So after our ship docked at 12:30 PM we had time to go into this area and get our souvenirs purchased before the tour. I find it interesting that Viking refers to the port as Katakolon when all the local signage (and even Wikipedia) refer to the port name without the final N. From what I can see online the names appear to refer to the same place, it just seems odd!

Town of Katakolon as viewed from our ship

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Categories: Europe, Greece, Historical Site, River Cruise, Tours, Trip Report, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Tags: Ancient Olympia, Europe, Greece, Historical Site, Olympics, Tours, Trip Report, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Leave a comment

Ship Review: Viking Neptune

Posted on December 28, 2023 by 2btravel

While this was our fifth cruise with Viking, three of our trips had been on their iconic European longships and the other had been in China on a larger river ship that was basically like the longships, only with more decks. But this would be our first cruise on one of their larger boats. I had done three cruises back in the mid-to-late 2000s on ocean-going vessels. Two of these were quite large boats from Royal Caribbean and Carnival but our Viking ship would be a bit smaller than those. I was curious in the differences between larger boats and versus the longships.

Viking Neptune

The Viking Neptune only launched in November 2022, so it is still quite a new boat. Shortly before our trip I began looking for reviews and found this extremely helpful one from MJ. While she had a different itinerary (it was actually very similar to the Carnival cruise I took in 2008) I thought she did a great job in a very thorough post. She included all the ports of call in this single post so it’s a long one but worth your time if you want even more detail than I provide and/or want to read about the ports on that trip. Continue reading →

Categories: Cruises, Europe, Ship Review, Trip Report, Viking | Tags: Cruise, Europe, Ocean Cruise, Ship Review, Trip Report, Viking, Viking Neptune | 3 Comments

Our Time in Athens, Part IV (Restaurants and Observations)

Posted on December 27, 2023 by 2btravel

Restaurants

When my friend and I travel together we’re not always looking for “the best meal”. Rather, we love finding places frequented by locals which are sometimes off the beaten path. That doesn’t mean we don’t occasionally stop in at places that typically serve tourists; after all, that’s what we are! But often times we’ve found those places don’t have the best food and/or don’t give the best bang for your buck.

Case in point: our hotel offered a breakfast buffet. While I am currently a Lifetime Silver (Marriott’s lowest-level elite) and have Gold status this year (thanks to my Amex Platinum card), breakfast is not complementary at either level. The breakfast buffet at the hotel was €25. I’ve always been someone who loves and needs breakfast but there’s no way I’m going to pay that much, especially three days in a row. Instead, my friend and I went to the local grocery store and stocked up on enough fruit and yogurt to last us for a couple of days and decided to eat at a local cafe on our final morning in town.

For our dinners we mostly used Google Maps to locate restaurants near us. We’d find a few that looked interesting and then walk over and check them out in person before actually dining.

Meat N Roses

After getting settled into our hotel, this is where we dined our first evening. It’s a very small place with the tables actually in a pedestrian alley between two sections of the building. It was traditional Greek food with a twist and very reasonably-priced. Definitely recommend. Open noon-1 AM every day.

Meat N Roses, Amerikis 7, Athens 106 72 Continue reading →

Categories: Advice, Europe, Greece, Trip Report | Tags: Advice, Athens, Greece, Restaurants, Trip Report | Leave a comment

Our Time in Athens, Part III (Kerameikos, Temple of Zeus, Panathenaic Stadium)

Posted on December 26, 2023 by 2btravel

We slept in just a little the next day as we did not have to be anywhere at a certain time but we were still out before 9 AM to try to beat the heat. We still had our 24-hour Metro pass and this is when we learned the closest stop to our hotel was actually only a 4-minute walk away. Crossing Akadimias street we walked down the hill to the next major street and took a right. From there it was just a block-and-a-half to the Panepistimo Metro station, which is on the Blue line. On our side of the street, just in front of the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (pictured below) there’s an entrance with steps going down and an escalator coming up. If you need to take the elevator down, cross Panepistimo to the plaza area and you’ll find the elevator there.

The National and Kapodistrian University of Athens

We took the train to the Kerameikos Archaeological Site and Museum. It may not have been much faster than walking but our feet were still aching from the previous day and we were in no hurry so that was fine by us. Continue reading →

Categories: Europe, Greece, Trip Report, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Tags: Athens, Europe, Greece, Hadrian's Arch, Kerameikos, Panathenaic Stadium, Temple of Zeus, Trip Report, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Leave a comment

Our Time in Athens, Part II (Roman Agora, Hadrian’s Library, Ancient Agora)

Posted on December 23, 2023 by 2btravel

After having lunch at the Acropolis Museum we spent the afternoon at three other sites that were close to the Acropolis.

Roman Agora

The Roman Agora, or marketplace, was built around 27-17 BC using funds donated by Gaius Julius Caesar Augustus, known as Octavian, the founder of the Roman empire to fulfill a promise made by Julius Caesar in 51 BC. While the area has not been fully excavated it’s easy to see it followed a common basic layout of a large open plaza surrounded by colonnades on three sides.

Roman Agora

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Categories: Europe, Greece, Historical Site, Trip Report, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Tags: Agora, Ancient Agora, Athens, Europe, Greece, Hadrian, Hadrian's Library, Historical Site, Roman Agora, Trip Report, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Leave a comment

Our Time in Athens, Part I (Acropolis and Museum)

Posted on December 22, 2023 by 2btravel

It had been 16 years since my only visit to Athens and my friend had never been. As we were trying to figure out what we wanted to see, I stumbled upon the Earth Trekkers site and their post “2 Days in Athens: The Perfect Itinerary for your First Visit“. That post not only gave us a good idea of highlights to hit but it also introduced us to the combo ticket that gets you into 7 sites for just €30. Those seven sites are:

The Acropolis
Ancient Agora (Archaeological site and Museum)
Roman Agora
Hadrian’s Library
Kerameikos
Temple of Olympian Zeus (called Olympieion on the ticket)
Aristotle’s Lyceum

That’s quite a bargain once you add up the admission prices of all these sites. We recommend buying your combo ticket online in advance.

We hit the first four sites plus the Acropolis Museum the first day and sites 5 and 6 plus the Panathenaic Stadium on the second day. We didn’t make it to Aristotle’s Lyceum but after walking 27,000 steps the first day and another 20,000 steps the second day we were OK with that as we were exhausted.

Monument of the Unknown Soldier

Our day started quite early as our timed ticket for the Acropolis gave us entry at 8 AM. So we left our hotel about 7:20 to give ourselves plenty of time for the walk and to get lost. Our path took us by the Monument of the Unknown Soldier which is on the road that travels over the Syntagma Square Metro station. We weren’t there for the changing of the guard but the two soldiers were marching back and forth under the watchful eye of their superior. We paused for just a few moments and realized it was a great time to be able to get photos without any other people around.

Guards at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier

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Categories: Europe, Greece, Historical Site, Trip Report, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Tags: Acropolis, Athens, Caryatids, Europe, Greece, Parthenon, Trip Report, UNESCO World Heritage Site | Leave a comment

Lodging Review: Academias Hotel, Autograph Collection, Athens

Posted on December 21, 2023 by 2btravel

For our three-night stay in Athens we chose the Academias Athens, Marriott Autograph Collection due to its location and the fact that we could get a twin room using points. While I didn’t check to see the going rate in cash at the time we booked, I believe it to be around 364 EUR per night before taxes. Instead we opted to pay 45,000 Bonvoy points per night. Using a valuation of 0.7 cents per point (based on the figures provided by One Mile At A Time) that means we spent about $315 in points per night, which was a better deal than paying cash. We booked a 2 Twin/Single Beds, Deluxe Guest room as that was the only type of room with two beds that was available on points. The view didn’t matter a whole lot to us as we planned to be out and about most of the day.

Getting to the hotel

We took the Metro from the airport to Syntagma Square for 9 EUR. If you have heavy luggage, even if it’s on rollers, be aware that you can take an elevator and avoid one set of steps up from the train level to the square but there is another giant set of steps required to get up to Vasilissis Sofias Avenue unless you take the long way around. It is then about a 650 meter walk to the hotel. Under normal conditions Google Maps thinks that’s about a 9-minute walk but let me tell you that when you’re lugging a 45-pound suitcase and a backpack and the temperature is over 70 degrees with humidity, it sure feels a lot longer. Were I doing this trip again, I’d take the Metro from the airport to Syntagma station but then change from the blue line to the red line and go on to the Panepistimio station, which is only 270 meters away, or a 4-minute walk without luggage. There is an elevator in Korai Square which is across the street from the main Panepistimio station entrances that will take you down to the train level. While I would certainly be fine with taking the Metro from the airport again, if I was returning to the airport I would only take the Metro if the temperature was cooler. We worked up quite the sweat hauling our large luggage around in the Athens heat, even in mid-to-late October and I would not want to be that sticky and then have to get on a plane.

Hotel Exterior

The hotel is at the corner of Akadimias and Omirou Streets. As we wheeled our luggage up, the bellman, who was standing outside, jumped to attention and took our large bags while holding the door open for us.

Academias Hotel, Autograph Collection, Athens

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Categories: Autograph Collection, Award Travel, Europe, Greece, Hotel, Lodging Review, Marriott, Trip Report | Tags: Academias, Athens, Autograph Collection, Award Travel, Bonvoy, Greece, Hotel Review, Lodging Review, Marriott, Trip Report | Leave a comment

Trip Report: Athens and a Mediterranean Cruise

Posted on December 18, 2023 by 2btravel

When we returned home from our October 2022 European trip that included a Viking River Cruise on the Seine, I received the standard follow-up phone call from our sales rep to ask how the trip had gone. Of course the other part of his job was to try to get us to sign up for another cruise. My travel companion and I discussed it and tried to get some other friends to come along on a 2023 cruise but it just wasn’t working out. So instead of taking another river cruise, we thought we’d try one of Viking’s ocean-going vessels for a Mediterranean cruise. By completing our payment before the end of 2022 we were eligible for $200 of shipboard credit that could be applied to anything from spa treatments to shore excursions. That sounded like a good deal to us so we booked a tour on the Viking Neptune, which was only put into service in November 2022. While we had done a western Mediterranean cruise in 2008, only two ports of call overlapped with the Neptune’s itinerary.

Even though the cruise began in Athens, it did not include any time in the city itself unless you paid for the $599 pre-trip extension. I had spent time in Athens in 2007 on a Greek islands cruise but my friend had never been there and we knew we could do it more cheaply thanks to hotel points. So we left the US on a Tuesday, arriving in Athens on Wednesday and had two full days in the city before boarding the cruise ship on Saturday.

Booking the flights

As usual, we booked our own airfare using our airline miles. While we typically leave from Chicago, where my traveling companion lives, in November 2022 we found connecting airfare on United through Newark directly to Athens for just 33K miles in economy. While my friend had a number of ORD-EWR flights to choose from, the only MEM-EWR flight available at this price left Memphis at 6 AM and then had an 8+ hour layover in Newark. You can imagine I was not excited about that! It also broke the promise I’d made to myself not to cross oceans in economy. My friend was ok with it as she’s retired and trying to conserve her miles. We went ahead and booked the flights because they were so cheap and I could not find any business class flights on our travel day for what I considered a reasonable price.

Fast forward to July 2023 and I found flights on Lufthansa out of Charlotte for 70K Aeroplan miles. I transferred 70K American Express Membership Rewards points to Aeroplan and paid taxes and fees of $74.66 USD/$98.30 CAD.

Now my problem was getting to Charlotte. There is no non-stop United flight (a Star Alliance partner of Air Canada and Lufthansa) between Memphis and Charlotte so trying to get to Charlotte on the same ticket would have meant changing planes – assuming I could even find domestic award space. But there is an American Airlines non-stop and while I often cannot find saver award space between Memphis and DFW or Chicago, I had multiple saver-level options to Charlotte. But rather than using 25K American AAdvantage miles I opted to use just 15K British Airways Avios + $5.60 to get me to Charlotte in domestic first class. I also made sure that there was another MEM-CLT flight after mine, just in case of delays, and I’d still have time to get my bag checked in for my Lufthansa flight.

So our outbound flights were as follows:

10/17 1151 ORD – 1510 EWR on UA 2471 in economy
10/17 1750 EWR – 1010+1 ATH on UA 124 in economy for 30K United miles + $5.60 (a bargain!)
These flights are shown in red on the map.

10/17 0925 MEM – 1209 CLT on AA 1790 in domestic first class using 15K Avios + $5.60
10/17 1830 CLT – 0915+1 MUC on LH 429 in business class
10/18 1110 MUC – 1435 ATH on LH 1752 in intra-Europe business class for 70K Aeroplan miles + $74.66
These flights are shown in green on the map.

As you can see, my friend was due to get to Athens 4+ hours ahead of me. Before changing my booking I double-checked with her that she didn’t mind hanging out at the airport and she said she didn’t so I went ahead and changed my flights.

Our flights included travel on United Airlines, American Airlines, Lufthansa and Iberia Airlines

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Categories: Autograph Collection, Award Travel, Croatia, Cruises, Europe, Greece, Hotel, Iberia, Italy, Lufthansa, Marriott, Montenegro, OneWorld, Star Alliance, Tours, Trip Report, Viking | Tags: Ancient Olympia, Athens, Autograph Collection, Award Travel, Corfu, Croatia, Dubrovnik, Greece, Italy, Katakalo, Kotor, Marriott, Montenegro, Murano, Ocean Cruise, Olympia, Trip Report, Venice, Viking, Zadar | Leave a comment

Lodging Review: Renaissance Republique, Paris, France

Posted on March 29, 2023 by 2btravel

Return to International Travel – Introduction
Review: SWISS A340-300 ORD-ZRH and Marhaba Lounge ZRH
Lodging Review: Sina Villa Medici, Florence, Italy
Our Time In Florence, Part 1
Our Time In Florence, Part 2
Lodging Review: Park Hyatt Vendome, Paris, France
Our Time In Paris, Part 1 (Louvre, Sainte-Chappelle, Arc, Eiffel Tower)
Our Time In Paris, Part 2 (Versailles)
Our Time In Paris, Part 3 (Catacombs, Musee d’Orsay)
Viking Kari and an Afternoon in Montmartre
Our Time in La Roche-Guyon and Vernon/Giverny
Our Time on the Normandy Beaches
Our Time in Les Andelys and Le Pecq
Lodging Review: Renaissance Republique, Paris, France
Review: Air France A350 CDG-ORD

While we could have flown home after the final morning of our cruise, I found I could use significantly few Air France miles if I returned the day after. So we decided to stay one extra day and booked a hotel in a different part of the city. The Park Hyatt Vendome is in the 2nd arrondissement so we booked the Renaissance Republique, a Marriott property in the 3rd arrondissement which cost us 70K points for the night. While the two hotels are only about 5 miles apart their neighborhoods have an entirely different feel.

Renaissance Paris Republique Hotel

The area around the Renaissance Republique has much more of a local feel, with many small restaurants, grocery stores, laundromats and other types of stores that you’d need if you lived in the apartments above some of the shops.

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Categories: Award Travel, Europe, France, Hotel, Lodging Review, Marriott, Renaissance, Trip Report | Tags: France, Hotel, Hotel Review, Lodging Review, Marriott, Paris, Renaissance Hotels, Trip Report | Leave a comment

Our Time in Les Andelys and Le Pecq

Posted on March 28, 2023 by 2btravel

Les Andelys

Our next port of call was the town of Les Andelys. This quaint town was founded in the 6th century and its church has parts that date to the 13th, 14th and 15th centuries. I recall touring it but apparently did not take photographs. I would have enjoyed touring the town more but with my knee situation I slowly walked with the group to the chateau.

Château Gaillard was the primary attraction for this stop. It was a medieval castle and its ruins now overlook the town.

Chateau from the town

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Categories: Attraction Review, Cruises, Europe, France, Historical Site, Tours, Trip Report, Viking | Tags: Attraction Review, France, Historical Site, Napoleon, River Cruise, Tours, Trip Report, Viking | Leave a comment

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Europe

Our Time in Ancient Olympia (Katakalon, Greece)

Ship Review: Viking Neptune

Our Time in Athens, Part IV (Restaurants and Observations)

Restaurants

Meat N Roses

Our Time in Athens, Part III (Kerameikos, Temple of Zeus, Panathenaic Stadium)

Our Time in Athens, Part II (Roman Agora, Hadrian’s Library, Ancient Agora)

Roman Agora

Our Time in Athens, Part I (Acropolis and Museum)

Monument of the Unknown Soldier

Lodging Review: Academias Hotel, Autograph Collection, Athens

Getting to the hotel

Hotel Exterior

Trip Report: Athens and a Mediterranean Cruise

Booking the flights

Lodging Review: Renaissance Republique, Paris, France

Our Time in Les Andelys and Le Pecq

Les Andelys

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