Five Reasons You Should Pack Up and Travel to Greece Right Now

Palamidi Fortress in Nafplio, Greece by Adam Smith

Greece is simply an astonishing country. It has everything a traveler could want within a few hour bus or boat ride. You could spend weeks, or even months getting lost in the Mediterranean lifestyle and the beauty of the country. Not to mention the food, I lived on Gyros and Greek salads when I was there and miss that cuisine to this day. When I travel, I like having a lot of options at my fingertips and as fun as it is seeing amazing ruins, you can't do it every day. In Greece you can feasibly spend a day checking out some of the coolest 3,000 year old ruins in the world, hike up a mountain the next and then go to a beautiful remote beach the next and then head off to some world class museums and fine dining- if you're ambitious, you could potentially do 3 or 4 of these in just one action packed day!

While I could potentially list 100 reasons why you should book a flight and head to Greece right now, I'm narrowing it down to 5 broad reasons that should make you want to get up off your couch and go see the world. Here we go.

#5 - A historical goldmine

The Parthenon on a beautiful day by Adam Smith

Greece is full of more history in close quarters than just about anywhere else on the planet - its like a live history book unfolding in front of your eyes. Within a few hours of Athens you have access to the birthplace of the Olympics in Olympia where you can walk through the tunnel out onto the field of the first Olympic stadium ever constructed, which is nothing short of amazing. Everyone, adults and children alike were out re-enacting their favorite Olympic moments. There is also the mountain side ruins of Delphi that will take just about anyone's breath away, the ancient city of Corinth and Athens itself with the Acropolis, the Roman Agora and more temples and ruins than one can possibly keep track of. This is just scratching the surface of the historical beauty that Greece lays claim to.

Hiking the hills of Meteora by Adam Smith

#4 - Meteora
The mountain top monasteries of Meteora are truly one of a kind from a traveler's perspective. Hiking up huge rock spires that Greek mythology says were thrown down like lightning bolts by the gods to extremely ornate and beautiful monasteries perched on top is truly unforgettable - not to mention the views which you and your camera won't be able to get enough of. Forget the tour buses that drive you to the monasteries, for the real experience you should get on your feet and hike around this incredible area right outside the quaint, authentically Greek village of Kastraki.

They may not know how to spell English food names,
 but they sure know how to cook them.

#3 - The food

One of the big draws to Greece is the food. The 

Mediterranean diet is not only delicious, but pretty darn healthy. A budget traveler could easily live off of gyros (its like a Greek taco!) and salads  for a few bucks a day if they so choose. I also found some amazing restaurants in Santorini with a seafood pizza that was to die for. You'll stumble across some great bakeries with bread, muffins and other sweets too.

Dinner in Athens by Adam Smith

#2 - The local people
Forget what you may have previously heard about the Greek people - they are amazing. Of all the places I've been in Europe, some of the best people I've met were during my time in Greece. They are incredibly helpful and will go out of there way to assist you if you approach them in a respectable manner. I absolutely loved this country, and the people were a big reason why I will return some day.

Sunset at Santorini by Adam Smith

#1 - Santorini and the Greek Islands
A visit to Greece simply isn't complete without heading to their iconic islands. Santorini is unbelievably photogenic, has great food and probably the best sunsets in the world. Rent a little ATV and go explore every corner of the beautiful island with its black sand beaches, and even the red beach. This place truly deserves all the accolades it gets in travel guidebooks, but there really is an island for everyone's tastes. You won't be disappointed no matter where you end up.



Greece is an adventure just waiting to be unfolded and these five reasons I listed are just the tip of the iceberg. History buffs could spend weeks here seeing firsthand all of the stuff they read and studied throughout years of school, naturalists could get lost exploring the unforgettable country side while taking in the scenery, adventurers could climb Mount Olympus and etch their name in the book at the summit, photographers could fill up the biggest of memory cards in no time, or just go to relax and drink the wine and enjoy the food and people. If Greece isn't on your bucket list already, it should be!