OT: Has anyone ever flown to Greece?

[PennStateNate]

Mother is doing it tomorrow for a much needed vacation after my dad's death last year. She is flying Pittsburgh to Philly and leaving Philly at 5Pm and will be in Athens at 8AM Wednesday.

15 hour fight tho is kind of long.

 

[psu00]

Mother is doing it tomorrow for a much needed vacation after my dad's death last year. She is flying Pittsburgh to Philly and leaving Philly at 5Pm and will be in Athens at 8AM Wednesday.

15 hour fight tho is kind of long.

Flew into Athens a few years ago. Sounds like she has a decent layover somewhere (??) or are you including the time difference (they are 7 hours ahead of us)? Normally around 9 hour flight (direct) IIRC.

She will love Greece. Where is she going over there?

 

[PennStateNate]

Yeah, I guess I forgot the 8 hour difference. So the flight is only 8 hours.

She is going with her grand daughter and a few friends for relaxation. 4 days in Greece, then to Cypress to get a cruise on the Mediterranean.

 

[LionDeNittany]

Mother is doing it tomorrow for a much needed vacation after my dad's death last year. She is flying Pittsburgh to Philly and leaving Philly at 5Pm and will be in Athens at 8AM Wednesday.

15 hour fight tho is kind of long.

I'm really not sure what you're asking here.

5pm Philly is ~11pm Athens.
That would make this a 9 hour flight.

If she is landing at 8am Philly time then sure maybe it's longer.

Are you asking about the length of the flight? Europe is all within 9 hours. India/China 15 hours.

And yes, others have flown to Athens before.

 

[PennStateNate]

I'm really not sure what you're asking here.

5pm Philly is ~11pm Athens.
That would make this a 9 hour flight.

If she is landing at 8am Philly time then sure maybe it's longer.

Are you asking about the length of the flight? Europe is all within 9 hours. India/China 15 hours.

And yes, others have flown to Athens before.

I'm asking if people have ever flown to Greece. Hence the question mark. Hoping to get input on how it is over there.

 

[Nitwit]

I loved Greece but as you know their economy has been weak. You can encounter taxi strikes, and lately they may have had a big influx of immigrants. Athens can be polluted and hot in the summer. People take long lunches - I remember the hotel pool was closed between noon and 2 pm. The food is great and prices are cheap. Lots of men sitting at sidewalk tables drinking Ouzo all day watching the ladies! I believe the elderly are treated very respectfully and people seem to value a strong family life. Happy kids playing in the streets, and cats everywhere. Dogs also sometimes wander into your restaurant for a bit to eat.

 

[Black Elmo 2]

If she's flying out of Philly, she's probably on American. Unless she's first-class, or American upgraded planes since the merger, she's in for a long uncomfortable flight. But its worth it once she gets to Greece.

Its a beautiful country. Athens is just a big sprawling city (and very hot) but its worth seeing the Acropolis. I hope she gets to the islands. Santorini is beautiful, one of the most beautiful spots on earth (second only to Philly). Lots of history and ruins to explore. She'll have a great time I'm sure.

 

[artsandletters]

Mother is doing it tomorrow for a much needed vacation after my dad's death last year. She is flying Pittsburgh to Philly and leaving Philly at 5Pm and will be in Athens at 8AM Wednesday.

15 hour fight tho is kind of long.

Just another reason that Philly is better than Pitts. Can't even get a direct flight to Athens from your backwater town.

 

[Art]

I'm really not sure what you're asking here.

5pm Philly is ~11pm Athens.
That would make this a 9 hour flight.

If she is landing at 8am Philly time then sure maybe it's longer.

Are you asking about the length of the flight? Europe is all within 9 hours. India/China 15 hours.

And yes, others have flown to Athens before.

Airlines schedule 10 hrs. flying time from NYC to Athens. Since they build in delay in order to prop-up their on-time performance, 9 hours is reasonable. However, you've got one hour from Pittsburgh to Philadelphia and a pretty standard four hour connect time (it can be as little as two and as much as seven) in Philadelphia. So fifteen hours airport to airport is about right. With no delays, it could be fourteen

 

[Art]

Just another reason that Philly is better than Pitts. Can't even get a direct flight to Athens from your backwater town.

That is such a compelling reason to live in Philadelphia.

 

[Obliviax]

She'll be fine. Tell her to get a isle seat and take walks often. Flex her legs to keep circulation going. Take a neck pillow and get some shut eye. Some people suggest you take a nyquil after dinner but I don't like that feeling (I want to be sharp at all times). Get on local time, in Greece as fast as you can. The biggest challenge is staying up on the say or arrive until at least 8pm to try and get on local time.

 

[psu00]

Yeah, I guess I forgot the 8 hour difference. So the flight is only 8 hours.

She is going with her grand daughter and a few friends for relaxation. 4 days in Greece, then to Cypress to get a cruise on the Mediterranean.

When in Athens- they need to see the Acropolis (hopefully no strikes ). Also at the base of the rocky Acropolis is some greenery and walking paths that run down into the city. If she can't get into the Acropolis tell her to walk down the path called Theorias (runs into Theorias street in the region of the Roman Agora and Adrian and Plaka hotels). About 1/2 way down (or up if she's down at the shops/ restaurants in the Theorias street area) there's a rocky outcropping on the opposite side of the path from the Acropolis. It's an easy climb up the 5-8 feet or so and on top of that rock is a GREAT spot to shoot pics of the family with the Acropolis right over their heads. No obstructions. Really great pics in the early evening as well (after dinner below) as the Acropolis is lighted.

 

[flavorguy]

Just returned from a 10 day trip: EWR to Athens to Mykonos (3 nights) - ferry from Mykonos to Santorini (3 nights) - flight from Santorini to Athens (3 nights)...

Agree with the must sees - Acropolis in Athens / Delos (Island right off of Mykonos with terrific archeological ruins) and Santorini (Oia is absolutely gorgeous town with mind blowing sunsets)...

Flight from east coast (EWR) to Athens was 9 hours - return flight was 11 hours - I normally try to book Exit Row seats - these provide adequate leg room (I'm 6'2") and if it's a wide body jet, normally it will be a 2 - 4 - 2 or 2- 3- 2 seat configuration...

Daytime temperatures were in the high 80's / low 90's (low humidity)... evening cooled down to mid-60's (at least on the islands). Long sleeve shirt or light sweater would be recommended...

 

[psu00]

Mykonos was great and Santorini/ Oia as well as the cliff top monasteries at Meteora are literally out of a storybook - especially at sunset.

Mykonos-

Meteora-

Santorini-

Lots of great sites in Athens, Delphi, Olympia (especially if you have interest in ancient history like me). If they get a chance to get to Rhodes and Crete they are both worth it too. Wish I was heading back now.

 

[LafayetteBear]

Bond. James Bond.

 

[Peetz Pool Boy]

Mother is doing it tomorrow for a much needed vacation after my dad's death last year. She is flying Pittsburgh to Philly and leaving Philly at 5Pm and will be in Athens at 8AM Wednesday.

15 hour fight tho is kind of long.

My only advice is to encourage her to get up and walk the aisles every 2 hours, especially if flying coach. Very important

 

[Black Elmo 2]

I flew to Greece once and, boy, were my arms tired!!

 

[LafayetteBear]

My wife's boss died a few months ago, at age 56, of a blood clot that migrated from his legs to his heart and caused a massive heart attack. He was in airplanes every week, flying all over the place.

In the wake of his death, we learned that frequent flyers, particularly flyers who are middle aged or older or who have circulation issues, would be well advised to wear a special kind of socks that help prevent blood from pooling in the lower extremities, as this is apparently one cause of blood clots there.

Wonder if the OP's mother might give this some consideration.

 

[ClarkstonMark]

My wife's boss died a few months ago, at age 56, of a blood clot that migrated from his legs to his heart and caused a massive heart attack. He was in airplanes every week, flying all over the place.

In the wake of his death, we learned that frequent flyers, particularly flyers who are middle aged or older or who have circulation issues, would be well advised to wear a special kind of socks that help prevent blood from pooling in the lower extremities, as this is apparently one cause of blood clots there.

Wonder if the OP's mother might give this some consideration.

take an aspirin before flying. Or maybe viagra

 

[psu00]

Bond. James Bond.

Yep. . There are several monasteries on the cliffs in the region. Here's the one from the James Bond movie-

 

[Ohio-Lion]

Mother is doing it tomorrow for a much needed vacation after my dad's death last year. She is flying Pittsburgh to Philly and leaving Philly at 5Pm and will be in Athens at 8AM Wednesday.

15 hour fight tho is kind of long.

Just got back. Athens is great. People are very friendly. Bring plenty of euros, most places do not like credit cards due to the economy. Delphi was fantastic. Security at the port was a little sketchy.

 

[PennStateNate]

UPDATE:

Mom left this morning with my niece to go to Greece. Flew from Pittsburgh at around 11:46 and got into Philadelphia around 12:45, they were then scheduled to leave Philly at 4:30, but the plane needed a fuel filter and they had to fly one in, so there was a wait for that, after they got the fuel filter in and tested the engine, they had to do a security sweep since the plane sat for a period. Everyhting was said to be ok and they departed Philly at around 8:30.

I am a bit nervous, but thanks everyone.

 

[DavidM]

My wife and I spent about two weeks in Greece late last September (perfect time of the year to go). Athens is a must-see but we'd skip it if we ever went to Greece again. We did a few islands (Mykonos off-season is really nice), but as another poster or two suggested, Santorini is a stunner. Oia is a perfect town to stay in, and Perivolas the perfect hotel. Expensive, but well worth it. The one problem with that vacation is that I'm not sure we can ever surpass it anywhere else. Ever.

 

[ILLINOISLION]

NO - No one has ever flown to Greece. Everyone's come by boat.....everyone.