Make Your Next Trip Extraordinary

We just had the most amazing trip experience in Greece! We thank Mina and her team for designing a trip to meet our expectations from lodging to experiences. There was no stone unturned and every step of the journey went off without a glitch.
Our drivers and guides were so personable, interesting and fun!

We loved Naxos the most—Villa Mirandi was wonderful—felt like we were away for a week after only a few hours. We enjoyed our food tour and farm experience—Naxos is a place we would love to return!

Staying in the village of Megalochori in Santorini was perfect because we preferred being away from the commercial areas. We ate with the locals and our hotel accommodated us in transportation wherever and whenever we requested!

Thank you again—and we look forward to our next trip with you!!

Mina and her group planned and executed a 16-day memorable trip to Croatia and Greece. On our trip the hotels had amazing views, and the itinerary was a fantastic mix of sightseeing and relax time. The two individual boat trips, one in Croatia and one in Greece, were highlights of our trips. In Croatia we visited islands off of Split and had a fish lunch grilled at an island where we had tendered. In Santorini we had a personal boat tour of the coast where our captain and first mate stopped to cook us a wonderful meal that rivaled those at some of the top restaurants where we had eaten. Mina’s dining group provided links to review for dining reservations before we left. Their options were delicious, with some having unbelievable dinner views. They made the reservations and also reconfirmed as required. The logistics group checked us in to our transfer flights and sent our boarding passes to the hotels. This saved us time to enjoy our surroundings. Mina’s connections at the hotels were great and the treats waiting for us delicious. All of our guides and drivers were courteous, informative and a joy to interact with and learn of local customs.

With travel there is always the possibility of delays in flights and in luggage. We experienced several on our journey. Our flight to Zagreb had a missed connection in Frankfurt because it was late leaving the U.S. We had booked that flight through Cranky Concierge and they were on top of things, getting seats held for us on the next flight to Zagreb from Frankfurt and instructing us what to do. Mina’s group worked out with our driver and our tour guide to delay our sightseeing for the next flight so there was no stress or rush for us. From Croatia to Greece our luggage was delayed until the next day, which caused us to have to wait in a line for baggage claim. Mina’s group again worked out with our driver and guide to wait for us and still provide the tour of Athens we had planned. When our ferry was an hour late from Paros to Santorini again there was no impact for us as our driver and guide waited patiently for our arrival. It was so reassuring knowing we were not being impacted by what we could see and do because Mina’s people were so flexible with us. Coming home from Santorini the personal escort to get us through the Athens airport was also so helpful to make our connection to the U.S. When we were in the Newark airport waiting for our final connection home again our flight was delayed but Cranky Concierge was monitoring and keeping us updated and letting us know that was still our best option.

When you have travel/baggage delays, having fixers makes all the difference. These delays did not impact our wonderful trip as we still saw and did all planned. I highly recommend Mina and her group, and also Cranky Concierge.

This was a fabulous trip — we spent one week on Crete and two weeks in the Peloponnese and Central Greece. We were very pleased with the services offered by the travel planner and they added a lot of value. For example, the transfers to and from the airport were terrific. We were very happy with most of our hotels. It was great to have someone to call for help — for example, there were floods in Central Greece during our stay and we weren’t certain if the road from Delphi to Meteora would be open when we were traveling, so it was terrific to have someone to call. We appreciated having dedicated tour guides at all of the ancient sites and at Momenvasia; most of them were terrific. We especially loved the Minos Beach Art Hotel in Agios Nikolaus — I wish we had had an extra day there! We also loved our hotels in Chania and Momenvasia. We would not have been able to plan this extraordinary trip on our own!

My husband and I just returned from 13 days in Greece (9/25-10/7). We visited Athens, Naxos and Santorini. Thanks to Mina and her staff, our trip was perfectly executed down to the last detail. Any questions, concerns or requests we had were answered quickly, efficiently and with a degree of care that made us feel as though we were very important travelers. Everyone, from Mina’s team to the drivers, tour guides and staff at the different hotels, were professional, friendly, and courteous. We never felt rushed or concerned—we could relax and enjoy our trip—which is a lovely way to travel.

In Athens our itinerary included a walking tour of the city with a guide who was an archeologist, geologist and very knowledgeable in the culture, history, mythology, and architecture of the city. Visiting the Acropolis, the museum and various churches and monuments are very different with someone there with you explaining their significance. We also enjoyed a food tour that brought us through the many neighborhoods of Athens and included lunch in a taverna, olive oil, cheese and ouzo tasting, Greek coffee, souvlaki, open-air markets, and bakeries.

After a seamless transfer, we arrived in Naxos where we stayed in a charming boutique hotel (18 Grapes). Very close to the beach and not far from the town center, the staff there were friendly, courteous, and gracious. In Naxos we enjoyed a hike through small towns, past olive and fig trees, beautiful vistas and many, many Byzantine churches. Our guide explained the importance of these churches, the changes in these towns over the centuries, and what life was like today to these people. At the end of our hike, we enjoyed a farm-to-table lunch in a family kafenio. We also attended a cooking class at an organic farm, where, after a tour of the farm, we created our lunch of home-grown vegetables and keftedes. We visited an olive oil press and sampled tapas produced there. We spent a day on a catamaran with stops around the small Cyclades islands, then enjoyed home-made moussaka.

A high-speed ferry (no idea one existed there, but so happy that Mina booked that for us, very rough seas, the “regular” ferry would have killed me) brought us to Santorini and to the beautiful Hom Santorini boutique hotel on the island cliffs of Oia overlooking the Aegean Sea. You could never leave, and be happy, but we enjoyed a walking tour of the villages of Santorini—churches, and narrow alleys through whitewashed buildings. We ended our tour at a family-owned winery. We also spent a day visiting 4 different wineries, each tasting paired with meze-style bites. Our last day was spent on an afternoon catamaran cruise, with swimming at various beaches, a BBQ on board, the panorama of Oia from the sea, and ending with views of the sunset from the boat.

This is our fourth trip with one of Wendy’s teams of experts, and we, again, were not disappointed. Travel can be expensive and stressful, and you want to be sure you’re not missing something amazing—when we returned home, we felt we had made the most of our time in Greece, it was an amazing trip—we saw and did things we’ll always remember.

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