Practical Info for Kea

Getting to Kea from the airport is easy. Take a taxi to Lavrion and get on the ferry which runs every three or four hours and more on weekends. To get to Lavrion from Athens you can take the bus which leaves every half hour from Mavromateon terminal at the bottom of Green Park (Pedion Areos) near the intersection of Alexandras Avenue and Patission Street in Athens and takes an hour, or go by taxi. The Makedon and the Marina Express sails back and forth at least twice a day in the off-season and as many as six a day during weekends and in the summer. There is a new boat called the Marmaris Express which also does the trip. You can get the ferry schedules from the Athens News. During the week you usually don't need reservations but weekends you do and if you are coming the last days of July or the first couple days of August good luck bringing a car. The local Syros ferry which connects all the Cyclades, stops in Kea a few times a week, usually on Thursday, Friday and Monday and then goes to Syros where you can connect to other islands though it usually means spending the night in Syros which I always enjoy. Lavrion has ferry connections to some of the other Cyclades in the summer as well as Lemnos, Ag Eftratios, Kavala and rumour has it Sigri in Lesvos beginning in July 2008. If you miss the last ferry pickings are slim for hotels in Lavrion. Your best bet is probably the Hotel Ageion Beach in Sounion which is about 15 minutes away. If you want to arrange a taxi transfer in advance contact George Kokkotos the famous taxi driver by visiting his website at www.greecetravel.com/taxi or by e-mailing him at georgetaxitours@yahoo.com . Recently George and his drivers have been doing one-day tours to Kea which is a great way to see the island if you don't have time. He picks you up at your hotel around 7am and you catch the first ferry to Kea. You drive around the island, visit a few beaches, the lion, Ioulida, have lunch at a seaside taverna and catch a later afternoon or early evening boat back to Lavrion and Athens. You could also stop at Sounion on the way home and watch the sunset. There is a very nice seafood restaurant called the Korali where everyone waiting for the boat hangs out, that has excellent kalamari and a nice view of the harbor of beautiful Lavrion. There are several hotels in Kea, and you can book these as well as take care of your transportation needs by contacting Fantasy Travel through this form. You will be happiest staying at the Red Tractor Farms Guesthouse which is open and comfortable year-round. There are a couple rooms in Ioulida but they are usually booked and it is not advisable to turn up and expect to find one, especially on weekends since Kea is very popular with the Athenians because it is so close. The 4-star Hotel Porto Kea in Korissia (photo) has a pool and facilities for groups. Kostis Marulis offers accommodations with his Walking Tours or you can rent them seperately. For more pictures and descriptions of hotels click here. The best way to enjoy Kea is by yacht or sailboat either on your own, with a captain or by flotilla. The harbors of Vourkari and Korissia are excellent and you can sail around the island to reach the beaches and coves which are so difficult to get to by land. There are supplies available including water and electricity and the scene in Vourkari at night is a sailor's evening paradise with the cafes and restaurants alive with yachters and locals, eating, drinking and exchanging tales. The best sailboat and yacht company is American-owned GM Charters. They work with a  number of the Greek and international companies and match the customer up with the perfect boat and the perfect captain. They also work with individual skipper-owners and can get better rates by working with them directly. I recommend Stefan Richter on the Caraya II, one of the most comfortable sailboats in Greece owned by one of the most popular skippers. See the GM Charters website at www.charterayachtingreece.com For day sails around the island to remote beaches see Soultana: Day-Sailing Trips and for walking tours of the island with or without accommodation see Walking Tours

There are buses and taxis on the island and you can get almost anywhere easily though during weekends the taxis seem to be full most of the time you see them. The taxi driver we usually use is George who also happens to be Andrea's cousin. You can call them to pick you up at the port and you can also hire them to take you on excursions around the island. They will also take you to the beach, drop you off and then pick you up at an agreed time and are always prompt because how much money a taxi driver makes depends upon how efficient he is with his time. Unlike George the Famous Taxi driver of Athens, these taxi drivers don't have a website or e-mail, but you can reach George and the other taxi drivers on the island by telephone. Fotis is also a great guy and has taken us to some pretty remote places where you would not normally find a luxury mercedes, without a complaint. He shares his cab with his wife Roula who is one of the most beautiful taxi drivers in Greece. Actually all the drivers are pretty cool. George: (22880) 21021, Fotis and his  wife Roula: (22880) 21008, Cell-phone: 6932-669493, Stavros (22880) 21228, Cell Phone: 6932-418-821, Michalis at 6937-382-702 and one other driver at (22880) 21480. I don't know how good their English is because they always speak Greek to me but all the drivers speak some English (except George). There are supermarkets, a pharmacy, health clinic, a number of banks, a post-office and ATM machines.  I recommend the guidebook called Kea: History/Sightseeing by Tassos Anastassiou. It is a dark blue book with a beautiful picture of Ioulis on the cover. In the Vourkariani Art Gallery bookstore in the yacht port of Vourkari you can buy a number of books of the works of the local artists, including Fasianos. Their collection of postcards are a lot more interesting than the typical sand and sea postcards available in tourist shops. For a real insiders view of Kea get a copy of Andy Horton's Bones in the Sea, about his experiences as an American living with his family on the island. It is a facinating book because it brings to life many of the personalities who make Kea, and particularly Ioulis, such an interesting place. You can order the book from Andy himself by e-mail at ahorton@ou.edu or his second book Life Without a Zip-Code. Andy also brings a small group of film students to Kea every year where they watch and discuss movies and meet with such filmakers as Angelopoulos, Cacoyanis and Jules Dassin. For more info click here A car is a great thing to have in Kea. There is a car rental agency on the island and you can also get a car from Swift in Athens and they will deliver it. See www.greektravel.com/swift    Be sure to visit the website of the painter Dellapizza which gives you a remarkable view of the island through his eyes. Be sure to look for his postcards which are sold in Chora (Ioulida). If you have questions about Kea you can e-mail me. I spend a lot of time here. The best time to come is in the off-season. If you are in Athens during the winter this is the closest island that will make you feel like you are really on an island and not in a suburb of Athens.

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