How to Take a Virtual Vacation to Greece

Travel may be off the books for the foreseeable future, but that doesn’t mean you can’t indulge in a little armchair travel. Here’s how to visit Greece from the comfort of your home!

YouTube is our best friend here, but we’ve included some suggestions for interactive activities and recipes too, to really help you recreate that vacation vibe. Of course a proper vacation is at least 7 days so we’ve given you suggestions for each day, and some background reading if you want to go deeper

So get comfortable and join us for a virtual whirlwind tour of Greece.

Day 1 – Athens

Most international arrivals to Greece will fly in to Athens International Airport. Remember that feeling of anticipation as your flight is coming in to land? Luckily you can relive it with airport approach and landing videos on YouTube! Here’s one for Athens:

First up on our agenda is to explore Ancient Athens. If it’s your first time in Athens then the Acropolis is probably the most exciting and recognisable landmark for you.

You’ll need something to power you up – if you’ve got instant coffee in the house then you can easily whip up a Greek-style frappe. And to accompany it a slice of portokalopita (orange cake).

A great way to get a feel for what ancient Athens would have looked like is to play Assassin’s Creed Odyssey on PS4, Xbox-One or PC. The team created an amazing rendition, and there’s a standalone version called Discovery Tour where you can explore the world without the gameplay . If you don’t want to buy the game then check out these YouTube videos of the game world.

This video by Super BunnyHop compares the videogame version to the real sites. And Ancient Sites in Athens (Amazing Places on Our Planet) will also give you an idea of what these sites look like today.

You can check out another virtual reconstruction over at at Ancient Athens 3D.

There are countless documentaries you can find online such as Secrets of the Acropolis – Discovery UK.

How about some light reading?

Stephen Fry – Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold (I recommend listening to the audiobook for the full Stephen Fry experience)
Circe and The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Percy Jackson and The Lightning Thief by Ric Riordan

Many of the items from the Acropolis excavations are now in the fabulous Acropolis Museum, a real highlight of the city. You can take a virtual tour of its collection with Google Arts and Culture – Acropolis Museum.

Test what you’ve learned with the Airbnb Experience – True vs False: Funny Historical Game.

Time for dinner! Greek food culture is big on eating out so treat yourself to a taverna meal. Lamb moussaka (or vegetarian version) is satisfying to recreate at home. Serve up with a side salad and some red wine.

For some mood music, put on some Manos Hadjidakis whilst you’re eating. Round the evening off with a viewing of Disney’s Hercules or 300.

Day 2 in Athens – Explore Modern Athens

Athens isn’t just about the Acropolis though – this video from Discover Athens gives you an idea of the modern city’s lively and creative vibe:

Let’s dive into the modern Athens with more short videos from around the city:

If you’re in the mood for something more immersive you can sign up for a virtual tours with Awesome Athens Virtual Street Art Walk.

Or take a virtual tour of the impressive modern art collection at the Goulandris Foundation.

For some serious background reading you might like check out these books:

And these articles:

No need for full-on meal prep tonight – keep it light and simple with these feta fries and listen to Imam Baildi who weave retro Greek classics into a modern sound.

Athens FAQ – 12 Things to Know Before You Go

A Foodie’s Guide to Athens

Day 3 – Virtual Vacation to Skiathos

Today we’re heading to the island of Skiathos which is part of the Sporades island group. It’s a short flight from Athens and has one of the most spectacular (and nail-biting) airport landings in Europe!

Skiathos is one of the greenest Greek islands and is also one of the best for beaches, so it’s perfect for getting your vacation groove on. It’s small and compact so let’s have a quick virtual wander around Skiathos Town and some of the island’s best beaches.

Of course, Skiathos is most famous for being one of the filming locations for Mamma Mia! – along with neighbouring island Skopelos and Pelion on the mainland. In real life you can take a boat trip to some of the locations but today we’ll have to make do with watching the film.

For dinner, let’s take a Greek Cooking Lesson with Julia on Airbnb. Or you could DIY that eternal taste of a Greek beach vacation, the chicken souvlaki. Get the ouzo in (you’ll probably need some after that landing) and then put your feet up and enjoy Mamma Mia!

Just the first one though, as the sequel was filmed in Croatia.

Read more about Skiathos:

Skiathos: Ultimate Beach Resort Guide

A Quick Guide to Skiathos Town

12 Beautiful Beaches on Skiathos

7 Things I Loved About Skiathos

Day 4 – Virtual Vacation in Corfu

One benefit of virtual travelling is that we’re unencumbered by schedules and routes, so today we’re whizzing west to Corfu (which would be a bit more difficult in real life). Corfu also has a spectacular airport approach:

Today’s trip to Corfu is a thinly-veiled excuse to binge-watch the much-loved BBC series The Durrells. It’s is available to purchase on Amazon and also sometimes pops up on Netflix. If you can’t find it you’ll have to content yourself with this trailer, and perhaps also the original book My Family and Other Animals by Gerald Durrell.

One of the most popular day trips on Corfu is a boat to the nearby islands of Paxos and Antipaxos with their incredible turquoise waters and pretty villages:

For today’s activity we will start learning some Greek. It’s a difficult language – but fun! And if you learn the alphabet now it will really help when you can visit again. You can take the free course on the DuoLingo app, try the free Language Transfer course, Greekpod 101 on Youtube, or find a tutor on iTalki.

You can indulge any fantasies you have of moving to the island by reading Emma Tennant – A House on Corfu.

For dinner, prawn and feta saganaki is easy to whip up and is full of the tastes of summer.

Read more about Corfu:

Corfu: Ultimate Beach Resort Guide

Exploring Corfu Old Town

10 Best Luxury Beach Hotels on Corfu

Day 5 – Virtual Island Hopping in the Cyclades

This morning we’ll be taking the ferry to Santorini. The above video gives you a good idea of what to expect from Greek ferries. It makes a few stops on the way. Be warned, ferry videos are a YouTube rabbithole – I have lost many an hour this way.

Pick up a copy of Lawrence Durrell – Greek Islands – it’s perfect for flicking through whilst whiling away hours on ferry decks. And make another frappe or two.

The Cycladic island group is located in the heart of the Aegean Sea and is home to two of the most popular destinations in Greece – Santorini and Mykonos – as well as a wealth of quieter gems. Rick Steves covers Santorini and Mykonos in this episode of Europe (as well as Rhodes, which is not in the Cyclades):

Vloggers and influencers love Santorini and Mykonos so there’s no shortage of online content for you to devour:

No virtual vacation to Greece is complete without a sunset:

But it’s always good to get off the beaten track so why not check out these videos:

Milos Island of Colours – Singular Pulse
Youtubers The Way We Saw It in Sikinos, Kimolos, and Anafi

If you have Amazon Prime there are several series of Greek Odyssey available to you. Join Peter Maneas as he attempts to visit every single Greek island on his super swanky yacht. He visits the Cyclades in the second half of series 2, including Kythnos, Syros and Milos.

For dinner, let’s keep things fresh and light with a classic Greek salad and this Black Eyed Pea Salad. For your evening viewing, you can take your pick of Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants (Santorini), Shirley Valentine (Mykonos), or Big Blue (Amorgos).

Read more:

Mykonos: Ultimate Beach Resort Guide

Where to Stay in the Cyclades

Naxos – An Island Guide

20 Beautiful Whitewashed Villages in Greece

Day 6 – Virtual Vacation on Crete

Crete is the largest Greek island and there’s so much to discover. There’s a bit of everything here. First let’s touch down in Chania:

We have a lot of ground to cover but this playlist of Youtube 4k tours from Tourister will cover the main sights:

One of the big attractions on Crete is the ancient Minoan palace of Knossos just outside Heraklion. Let’s visit Knossos with the help of Assassin’s Creed, Invicta and Josho Brouwers:

And here’s the site today:

Another fascinating place on Crete is Spinalonga, a small island in the Gulf of Elounda which was once home to a leper colony. You can learn more about it in Victoria Hislop’s popular novel The Island. Here’s Spinalonga in 4k:

Tonight, this Lemony Chicken with Potatoes and Green Beans is on the menu and the film of choice is the classic Zorba The Greek which is set on Crete (be warned, it’s not as fluffy as the other movie choices).

In honour of Zorba, after dinner you can go dancing with Learn Greek dancing (online experience) or Mattormateo (Youtube).

Read more about Crete:

Where to Stay on Crete: Ultimate Beach Resort Guide

1 Day in Heraklion

Crete – 10 Tips From a Local

Day 7 – Virtual Tour of the Mainland

Before we head home we’ll see some of the unmissable sites on the Greek mainland.

Let’s join Rick Steves on his visit to the medieval village of Monemasia:

Most of the blockbuster ancient sites are on the mainland – and we can visit Epidaurus, Mycenae and Delphi with the Assassin’s Creed Discovery Tour before watching this 4k tour from Amazing Places Around the World: