Welcome to Greece! Aegina Island
Welcome to Greece!
Welcome to Greece! Probably it is one of the most wanted to hear phrase, for people all around the world, in the summer months. Greece is an all-time super-popular country to visit in the beach season. It is the definition of turquoise water and perfect sand, the picture-perfect holiday destination. For some of us, it is a car ride distance, others will spend a day of airplane travelling to Ellada.
From all of the 6000 Greek islands, only 227 are inhabited and a few of them are highly-popular tourists’ destinations. Most of us have heard of: Santorini, Mykonos, Corfu, Zakynthos or Thasos, some of the top names in terms of visitors annually. The parties in Mykonos, the perfect white houses in Santorini and the famous shipwreck beach in Zakynthos, are a few of the must seen places in islander Greece.
Even though, our curiosity usually makes us follow the crowd, our explorer’s nature drives us to places touched only by locals and not exactly on the top of the lists.
- Unique Experiences to Have in Bali
- How to travel BALI on a budget
- Travel Documents you Must Not FORGET
- AirBNB vs Hotel | What to choose?
- Top 10 Things to do Before a Road Trip
Aegina Island
It is one of the islands that are extremely close to the capital city of Greece. Aegina is located at 27km from Athens, in the Saronic Gulf. Here, only 13000 people live in the 87 sqkm area of the island. Aegina’s nickname is Pistachio Island.
How to get here
If you planned to visit Athens, you will probably visit the Piraeus area and harbor. If you didn’t plan it, please put it on the list. Walking on the streets of this neighborhood is a pleasure and to make it sound even better: perfect Greek houses with perfectly shaped orange trees and a Greek Caffee Frappe in your hand. I think that now I’ve got your attention, so check out Piraeus.
In the harbor, you will find ferries that will take you from Piraeus to Aegina Island. There you have two options: the cheap longer version or the fast and more expensive.
The cheap one: costs 12 euros and will take you to Aegina in 1h10m and the expensive one: costs 19 euros and will arrive at the destination in just 40m. (prices from July 2022) Either one you choose, doesn’t matter that much because the ride itself is a pleasure. The view is fantastic.
https://goo.gl/maps/i5UpPjCfJ4K4E3sh9
Expectation vs Reality
Honestly, I have imagined Aegina as being just a small island, inhabited only by locals in some little towns across the island. My head projected an image quite ugly and somehow industrial, especially in the fishing industry. I was quite skeptical coming here, but I was so wrong.
The island is prepared to have visitors. Everywhere you turn your head, you will see a small Greek tavern ready to welcome you. If you want to sleep in, you have plenty of hotels or villas to choose from. As it is an island by definition, it is surrounded by water and has some amazing beaches to relax on. Don’t worry, they aren’t on hidden paths, just walk and choose your perfect sandy place.
The Island of Pistachio
The perfect nickname for Aegina. This is the place where the first pistachio trees were planted. It is one of the things the island is famous for and most people say that here you can taste the best pistachio in the world. We can’t disagree with them, as we are big fans of this drupe. Everything is infused, made of or contains pistachio.
If your feet take you to Aegina, you should try the pistachio ice cream, bars and chocolate. It is like heaven in your mouth.
Our experience with this amazing island was great. The expectations were low, but the reality is heavenly. The island is rich in culture, history (a lot of archeological sites to visit) and it is picture perfect. For those who want a relaxing holiday in a Greek Island, Aegina provides the excitement, the beauty and the vibe in the same amount as the most popular destinations, but it also gives you quite a lot of privacy.
If you want to discover a place, go where the locals go. In this case, we have seen a lot of Athenians relaxing in Aegina. Even a day trip here is worth it. So, when planning to visit Athens, please book at least an extra day, to have the time to visit the Island of Pistachio, it is delicious and so…
Travelicious.