Ref: Gre/c/1.1/IH

Individual single tour and guided group tour
8 days/7 nights, ca. 190 km by bicycle

Regular departures from mid-April until October. Dates on request.

Requirements (level 2 to 3):
The bike routes have a length of 20 to 60 km and lead through hilly or mountainous areas. Some uphill stretches are included. The roads are mostly asphalted. You can always choose to skip a bike tour and spend the time sunbathing on the ship instead.

ACCOMMODATION

The MS ANDREAS is a proud two master of 32m length and 6.5 m width, which belongs to captain Ioannis since 1986. The boat was built from solid oak wood in 1952 on Samos especially for cruises. The 12 cabins are clad in wood and feature a bunk bed, a small wardrobe, air conditioning and en-suite toilets/showers. Ten of the cosy cabins are below deck and have portholes. Two cabins are above deck. The spacious saloon and many upholstered seats and mattresses on deck are at the guests' disposition.

CATERING

The cook on board is a member of the crew of four and prepares the breakfast and one or two warm meals a day. The full board starts with the dinner on the arrival day and ends with the breakfast on the departure day. On one longer bike tour you can have lunch in a restaurant.

ITINERARY

Day 1 - Boarding in Porto Rafti
Individual arrival in Porto Rafti, a fishing port only 15 km (9 mi.) from Athens airport. Check-in from 2 p.m. onto the ANDREAS. If all guests arrive in the afternoon, departure for Kea island, otherwise the ship stays in Porto Rafti. Dinner on board.

Day 2 Kythnos island (25 km/15 mi. by bike)
Kythnos has been famous for it's superb cheese and honey since older times. Our first bike tour on this quiet and mostly flat island takes us from the port of Merichas to the main town, Kythnos, constructed in typical Cycladed architecture. The maze of white houses beckons you to walk the crooked lanes, adorned with chalk-white painted flowers. Next we visit the famous thermal spa Loutra on the rugged coast and return to Merichas for the night.

Day 3 Seriphos (20 km/12 mi. by bike)
In the morning we are bound for Seriphos, a small island off the beaten tourist tracks with deep valleys, numerous bays and many beautiful sand beaches. On a panoramic road you cycle to the Byzantine monastery of Taxiarchis and onto Seriphos town, whose cubiform houses climb up a mountain slope high above the sea. A curvy road leads us down to the harbour of Livadi, where we spend the night.

Day 4 Syros ( ca. 25 km/ 15 mi. by bike)
After the transfer to Syros we ride from Ermoupolis to Kini, a calm fisher village on the west side of the island. We continue on along the coast above many small beaches through the south of the island back to the main town, where we stay the night. Ermoupolis has been built on two hills with distinctly urban characteristics that set it off against the other Cyclade towns. Pastel coloured houses, often with classicistic facades adorn the town squares. The ample harbour boardwalk with its cafes is an ideal space for a stroll and a sundowner or nightcap.

Day 5 Mykonos ( 25 km/15 mi. by bike)
In the early morning, the ship takes us to Mykonos, where you have time all morning to visit the ancient sites on Delos island, where according to Greek mythology, Apollon and his twin sister Artemis were born. Our cycling tour is in the afternoon and starts in the Northern part of the island along a coastal road to the lighthouse on cape Armenistis. We continue along the shore of lake Marathi and on to Ano Mera, a village in the middle of the island. Our way back is through the south into the picturesque main port Mykonos with its famous windmill hills. We stay here overnight to give you room for exploring the nooks and crannies of the old town.

Day 6 Tinos ( 35 km/20 mi. by bike)
Tinos is an island rich in water. We first visit the sanctuary of the Greek sea god Poseidon near the town of Tinos. A panoramic high road with stunning views takes us to the mountain village of Kambos. There you find many dovecotes, relics from the Venetian times, built in fine stonemasonry. As we go on, we reach Pyrgos, a picture-book village in the hills, where marble masonry has a tradition that reaches back into ancient times. The ship will pick us up in Panormou and take us to the next island, Andros.

Day 7 Andros (60 km/35 mi. by bike)
The morning tour on Andros will take us from our port Batsi to the remoteness of the lush mountain ranges, where innumerable dry stone walls of almost artistic make enrich the variety of the landscapes of this second-biggest Cyclade island. We reach the island's picturesque capital, Andros, by noon. Its white houses and well-kept little lanes invite you for a stroll. In the afternoon, you cross the fertile Messaria valley and finally return on a coastal road to the ship that will take us to Karystos on Euboia island for the last night.

Day 8 Departure
After the transfer to Porto Rafti and breakfast on board it is time for check-out and your travel home or a prolongation week on Euboia.

Alterations:

We reserve the right to make alterations to the itinerary, depending on wind and weather conditions or organisational requirements.

INCLUDED

• 8-day-trip on a two-masted motor yacht with a crew of four
• 7 nights on a motor yacht in a double cabin with shower/wc
• bed sheets and towels
• 7x half board on the ship
• 5x lunch on board
• German and English-speaking tour guide
• 6 guided cycling tours on the different islands
• rental 21-speed trekking bicycle with bicycle bag

RATES

Contact info@bikeandhike.co.za for rates and specials.

Additional optional services

• Prolongation week in Karystos on Euboia (Evia) in good hotels.
• Daily cabin cleaning and extra towel.

Additional costs

• Drinks on board (tally sheet; to be paid to the captain)
• Entries to museums
• One Lunch on land
• International banking fees: Euro 50
• Tips for crew and tour-guides
• Taxi transfer from airport
• Athens to Porto Rafti and back (ca. 10 Euro/one way