Yachts leaving Greece

[Chris_Robb]

The Jan YM has an article from Rod Heinkle where he describes a cruise in JULY through the Dodeconese this year. He says that half the boats had left, and there were no problems ever getting space.

This was because of new Greek paper work thats a real pain, and that the Euro change-over which has added significanlty to the prices. (30% up).

He comments that Greek food was bearable when you were not paying much for it, but now that Italy is actually cheaper to eat out - why pay more for crap?

Anyone else had any experiance

Oh - and where has everyone gone - Turkey and the Balkans - which are apparently full to overflowing.

 

[aod]

I have chartered twice in Greece and both times been very disappointed. I am sure for every one like me there are ten who had a great time but I found it too commercialised, crap and expensive food (one of the crew came down with Salmonella poisoning) and generaly grossly overated. We went ashore one night and left the dinghy securely tied and dragged up the beach. When we returned from the restaurant some children on the beach had undone the painter and pushed the dinghy into the water and with a stiff offshore breeze it wasn't long before it was forever lost. It seems that according to the local police who showed about as much interest as watching paint dry that it was just children being children and nothing to worry about. Try telling that to a yacht crew at 11pm when there isn't any way of getting back to their yacht!
I guess you have to take as you find but I doubt I will ever go back there again.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Last time I chartered in Greece was some 8 years ago, in the Ionian. Whilst being crowded (August) we all enjoyed our selves and were reasonably lucky with the food. I suspect it has changed horribly since then.

We were aiming to have a year off in 2004, beginning to wonder if anywhere remains un spoilt!!!!!

 

[aod]

Where\'s the Garden of Eden

In my humble opinion the Med is a crap place to charter. I have sailed quite extensively on the West coast of France and Spain and yes, Portugal and I must say I have found them all to be fantastic with a huge choice of restaurants, excellent clean beaches, clean Atlantic water (well that was true until quite recently) lots of space and places to see.

Naaa......someone else can have my place in the filthy, rip off, busy boat bustling Med and I will stick to the Atlantic coast.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Re: Where\'s the Garden of Eden

We are due to move from South Brittany (can't get a mooring) to Vilagarcia in the Ria d'Arosa this year. Berth booked - good value - heard it a great place - what did you think?

 

[Gunfleet]

Re: Where\'s the Garden of Eden

What's this 'can't get a mooring' Chris? Do you mean a mooring mooring or a marina spot?

 

[Chris_Robb]

Re: Where\'s the Garden of Eden

Marina places are like hens teeth - Got an offer of a mooring, but I am not sure about the location for long weekending. La Roche is great place but 30 miles to anywhere and restricted severely by tides - so its either back to Plymouth in March or on to Galacia - where Iberia flights to Santiago from Gatwick are very competitive. I have until middle of next week to accept the annual mooring! so decision time coming - ...... Might not have a job soon as well!!!!!!

 

[Guest]

Re: Where\'s the Garden of Eden

lots of marina moorings on the n spanish coat at zumaya, bilbao, santander and gijon. good flights to bilbao and ferries to bilbao and santander.

 

[ponapay]

I reccommend the Baltic -

it has great weather (often better than the Med), is much more suited to the British way of life and has much more challenging and interesting navigation.

It is also much cheaper than UK, most berthing is free - out of marinas - there is little official interference and its easy to leave a boat there safely and get out and back via Easy Jet or Ryan Air.

It can get crowded in June and July but everything else outweighs the crowds. And if you go far enough from Stockholm you can get peace and quiet.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Re: Where\'s the Garden of Eden

Howard - I have send a PM

 

[Con_Brio]

I based my boat in Turkey 1992-2001 and cruised fairly extensively in Greek and Turkish waters. I had the impression that Greek waters were latterly getting a bit less and Turkish waters a bit more crowded. This could be because Turkey is increasingly catering for yachts and Greece, surprisingly, is missing the opportunity. Ports of entry remain relatively few and far between and the facilities in them mostly inadequate - Kos town and Mandraki harbour on Rhodes being cases in point. While Greek officialdom can be cheerful and helpful, it too often isn't. I retain vivid memories of the uniformed fool in Patmos who could not be convinced that gross and net registered tonnage recorded on my old blue British registration book were necessarily the same when the vessel was a yacht without cargo space; and of the officials in Rhodes who insisted on the purchase of a transit log when no EU-registered vessel should require one. You often have the impression that Turkish officials may be making it up as they go along but they may offer you a Coke or a glass of tea as they muddle through. As the gulet holiday trade increases year by year in Turkey, the good anchorages do get crowded (and some gulet skippers can be aggressive in going for their accustomed spot regardless of who's there before them) while the virtual absence of an equivalent in the Greek islands means that it is mostly easier to find a berth. Ashore, wherever tourists go in large numbers, you get an inevitable decline in general civility and standards of catering; my impression is that the process is less advanced in Turkey than in Greece, but in either country a bit of the language often makes a difference in the way you are received (outside the main centres, where they mostly can't be bothered with your attempts on their tongue).

 

[poter]

Re: Dodecanese

I have great regard for Rod Heikell and I would not go to the Greek Islands without his pilot, but I must disagree with his article and some of the comments here.
We had an unbelievable time in September cruising around the Dodecanese, I certainly did not feel that the food was either expensive or even that bad, & we ate out all the time, with one or two meals on board with fresh local produce that beat any Tesco grub. The water was clean and clear, and warm.

I would certainly recommend it to any laid back cruiser.


poter.

 

[Chris_Robb]

Re: Dodecanese

Poter - glad to hear you had a good time. Rod was writing about July - perhaps they were seeing the errors of their ways and reducing prices again - market forces in action

<P ID="edit"><FONT SIZE=-1>Edited by Chris_Robb on 17/12/2002 09:12 (server time).</FONT></P>

 

[poter]

Re: Dodecanese

Hmmmmmm maybe!!!
but my crew (2 other couples never sailed befor) are now totally hooked, & although they have all been to the greek islands befor, they all got a totally different perspective, even with a few scary moments with the Meltemi, to one of the girls it became her "Vodka moment" te he!


Anyway are you permanantly in the med or fly/drive back for winter etc.?
Just interested as I am thinking of sailing to the med next year and leaving the yacht there.

poter

 

[Chris_Robb]

Re: Dodecanese

Peter - no the boat is in Brittany - but we are working out where to go next. Not sure what the next year is going to bring - enforced sebatical a real possibility, and we were thinking of goingto Northern Spain - Bilbao where there are very cheap flights - how ever if sebatical occures (well redundnacy and early retirement!) perhaps we will go further afield - I get a little worried by the the reports saying how crowded the western med is,

Good luck with your dreams!

Chris

 

[poter]

Re: Dodecanese

Same to you
If you do go into the med & say stay around the west side have a chat with Colin
CCSCOTT49
he has a boat there.


Fair winds.


poter.

 

[ccscott49]

Re: Dodecanese

Certainly do! I didn't find it crowded atall, but there again I anchored all the time, the only time I go into marinas, is for fuel, which is very rarely and in the winter, in Barcelona at the moment. The ballearics weren't atall crowded this year. For all these problems in Greece, I'm going to give it a miss for a couple of years and go up the adriatic.

 

[Mr Cassandra]

Re: Dodecanese

Hello all .I think that it is very good of Rod Heikel to make these disparaging remarks about Greece ,it will be Cheaper and cleaner, lots more spaces on the quay . Wonderful ,please keep it up . cheers bob t

boss1

 

[poter]

Re: Dodecanese

He He I never thought of it that way. Good point!


poter

 

[steve_cronin]

Sadly all is true....

as you say Bob.

Totally depressing place now. The Euro has made everything more expensive, the food isn't cordon bleu, the moorings are expensive (E1.20 for 42ft overnight in Poros, Hydra, Aegina etc).

No, you won't like it!

Tee hee! that makes more space for the rest of us who do!

Steve Cronin