April 23, 13:43 – Istanbul has been struck by a number of earthquakes in the last hour, the strongest being 6.2 on the Richter scale at 12:48 local time, but was preceded by a 3.9 magnitude tremor at 12:13. The epicentre of the quakes was in the Sea of Marmara, the waterway connecting the Mediterranean […]
Please Read Full Details Our 2025 revised and updated ‘A to Z Guides’ will be available from most major international book retailers by mid-January (for details see ‘Buy Guides’ page above) Welcome to the unique ‘A to Z Travel Guides’, the only travel guides to link the printed book with the full potential of […]
Saint George, the patron saint of England, is also celebrated in Greece on the saint’s day, April 23. Named Georgios, Greek for George, he became a Christian martyr, which in the early days of Christianity warranted sainthood. He is however also known for the story of ‘Saint George and the slaying of the Dragon’. Thanks […]
Gatwick, Stansted, and Manchester were the three worst UK airports for flight delays in 2024. With an average delay of 23.6 minutes at Gatwick Airport, and in equal second place, delays of 20.3 minutes at Manchester and Stansted airports. Gatwick is the UK’s second busiest airport with flights departing or arriving every 55 seconds. UK […]
Tourists are being warned against hiring quad bikes or scooters, after numerous accidents and deaths on the Greek islands. The hiring of quad bikes and similar vehicles are not usually covered by travel insurance, with the cost of repatriating a seriously injured patient to their home country costing up to 36,000€. Island Police Departments have […]
The UK government has imposed a temporary ban on a wide range of food products being brought into the UK by travellers from the EU, due to a growing number of countries in the EU reporting cases of foot-and-mouth disease. The restrictions apply regardless of whether the products are professionally packaged or not, and include […]
The Greek government introduced a law in 2024 that comprehensively strengthens the protection of the country’s beaches. It has always been the case, as written into the Greek constitution, that the public has the right to free and unrestricted access to all the country’s beaches. However, in recent years, there has been a growing problem […]
On Sunday, March 23, the first cruise ship of 2025 dropped anchor in the caldera of Santorini, with the island’s officials declaring that Santorini is safe and ready for the summer tourist season. Since January 26, Santorini and the nearby islands of Amorgos and Anafi have experienced over 25,000 earthquakes, mostly of low magnitudes, although […]
In Greece, it is the law that at designated times during the day, excessive noise is prohibited. From April 1, the ‘Winter Quiet Hours’ end and the ‘Summer Quiet Hours’ come into force. The new designated quiet hours are 15:00 to 17:30 and 23:00 to 07:00. These run until September 30 when the winter hours […]
Some of the most common Greek male Christian names are Georgios (George), Yiannis (John), Konstantinos (Constantine), Dimitris (Demetrius), Nikolaos (Nicholas), Panagiotis, Vasilis (Basil), Christos, Athanasios (Thanasis) and Michalis (Michael). With 90% of Greeks identifying as Orthodox Christian, it is not surprising that all of the above are the names of Christian saints. That is important […]
