George
the Famous
Taxi Driver of Greece
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My name is George Kokkotos. I am a taxi driver in Greece. Not an ordinary taxi driver. I am the Best Taxi Driver in Greece. At least that is what people say and that is what I am trying to be. Twenty five years ago I sold my restaurant in New York to come back to Greece where my family was and my heart will always be. I had saved enough money to begin a new life but in Greece things are not so easy as in America and so I became a taxi driver to support my family. Being a taxi driver in Athens is difficult. The fares are very low and gas is very expensive. |
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Greek Taxi Drivers
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Taxi Excursions in Athens and around Greece
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Finding Lost Greek Relatives/Getting Travelers from the Ferry to the Hotel
The Best Taxi Driver in Greece
Contact Information for George's Taxi For more information and prices you can e-mail:
georgetaxitours@yahoo.com
or you can fax or
phone George Kokkotos at this
number:
Phone
mobile phone 693-2205887(from USA dial 01130 693-220-5887)
You can also read the
reviews of my customers at
www.greektravel.com/testimonials/taxi.html
Keep in mind that unlike large tours which charge by the person I charge by the trip. If you are a single person or a couple looking for another couple to share the journey you can send an e-mail to georgetaxitours@yahoo.com and your message will be posted at www.greektravel.com/messages For those with infants I do have a have a car seat for the purpose
of transporting your child in safety. Keep in mind also that we are not licensed tour guides, nor is any private taxi. That means by law we can not take you into the sites and give you a guided tour. We can tell you everything we know about the sites up until you enter the site but Greek archaeoligical sites and museums are very strict about using only licensed guides within the sites themselves. We can arrange for you to have a guide if you think it is necessary for you to have a full understanding of what you are seeing and there are guides available at most of the sites that you can hire.
Is the island of Rhodes on your itinerary? George recommends Nick Axarlis of Rhodes Private Tours. Nick speaks 6 languages and is a Greek from Alexandria Egypt who has been living in Rhodes for 20 years. Like George his tours and services are highly recommended by Matt Barrett. See www.greecetravel.com/rhodes/privatetours Visit George's new website at www.taxigreece.com with more info on services, tours and a message board for sharing rides. |
George
the Famous Taxi Driver of Greece is practically an institution in Greece. George and his team have been providing excellent service to the people who have used my websites for almost twenty years. The list of people who have used him is endless and I have received hundreds of e-mails from people who have thanked me for recommending him. Nowadays there are lots of taxi drivers who do tours and pre-arranged airport transfers, but there will only be one George the Famous Taxi Driver
and that is why I am proud to have him on my website. I know he will provide good service to the people I send to him. -Matt
Barrett
I realized that I did not want to be
just another taxi driver in Athens, struggling to
feed my family. I decided to become the best taxi
driver in Athens and I made this my goal. I began
to study the history of my country so I could
offer information and be more then just a driver.
My experience in my restaurant was good practice
for speaking English and being a host and of
course I speak Greek and can translate for my
customers. Then I began to work with the travel
agencies helping them with transfers from the
airport to the hotels, to cruise ships, to ferry
boats, anything to make their clients trip
to Greece easier.
Then I began to take people on excursions around Athens, to the
Parthenon, the museums, shopping trips (I have
saved many people money by being able to bargain
for them), and to places like the lovely temple of Poseidon at
Cape Sounion(photo) where you can see some of the most
beautiful sunsets in a dramatic setting and have lunch at one of the small fish tavernas on the beach below or along the coastal road from Athens. Then I
started taking people to places like Delphi with
its famous Oracle, Meteora and the monasteries on
top of those big rocks, and to the Peleponessos
too. I take people on day trips to historic
Nafplion, the former capital of Greece, Mycenae
and its impressive ruins, Corinth with the canal
and the fortress above the city and many other
places. On all the excursions we stop at beaches,
quiet taverns, remote churches and monasteries
because when you see Greece like this you have the
freedom to see everything and to stop and look at
anything that captures your interest.
I have also taken
Greek-Americans who are searching for their lost
roots (like the TV show), to their ancestral
villages where I was able to translate and locate
family members and witness many happy reunions. I
have taken people on long trips around the
mainland and too the islands. I have even taken
people to some of the best restaurants in and
around Athens that would be very difficult to find
on their own. I take people to out of the way
beaches that most tourists will never see. Some
travelers hire me to be there when their boat
arrives from the island so they don't have to be
part of the crazy rush to find a taxi along with
everyone else. They get off the boat and find me
there ready to take them to their hotel, the
airport or wherever they want to go. Some hire me
to make sure they get to that early ferry or
flight. Some want me to be at the airport to take
them to their hotel because you feel a lot better
about arriving in a new place when you know
someone is waiting for you who speaks English and
knows where you are going. I even help you to
check in just in case there are any problems and
if there are I won't leave you until they are
resolved.
I can also find out for you the exact ferry times for those who have trouble understanding the Greek ferry schedules so you can make the most of your time between the hotel, flights and ferries.
I have a brand new Mercedes Taxi. Fully airconditioned and very
comfortable with leather interior.
I drive very carefully and I do not smoke.
In my car I carry the latest guidebooks and brochures for all the sites we visit so that if you get tired of looking at the beautiful countryside you can read about where we are going and ask me questions about what we will see. I can promise you that
if you take a journey with me, whether it is a
half day trip in Athens or a week long excursion
around the country you will come back with an
understanding of Greece that you will treasure and
you will have perhaps the best vacation of your
life. You will eat the best food and be treated
like a guest of my country and when we say goodbye
at the airport you will be saying goodbye to a
friend you will always remember and hope to see
again. That is why I say I am
The Best Taxi Driver in Greece.
Hello. I
am George's son Dennis. After
fulfilling my military obligation and
finishing my studies as a
physical-therapist I have decided to
join my father in the family business
assisting travelers to get from the
airport to the city and elsewhere and
also show them my adopted country. (I
was born in the states but have lived
in Greece most of my life ) I have a
beautiful new Mercedes Limo. Fully
air-conditioned and very
comfortable.
Yes it is
a real limousine that can seat 7
comfortably (plus me). So if you are a
larger group or you just want to
arrive or see Athens in style, or if
you are the type who always uses
limousines you can
Hello. I am Billy Kokkotos and I have lived in Athens, a wonderful
city of history, art and culture since I was 8 years old, when our family left
the USA. After I graduated high school I went to Italy and UK to finish my
studies in Economics. But when I returned to Greece I wanted to work with my
father. This upset him in a way because I think he wanted me to become an
Economist or something more, after spending so much time and money on my
education. But for me personally, I prefer to interact with people and show them
my country, rather than sit in front of a computer working with numbers and
talking to people about money all the time. I explained to my father that my
love of history and Greek culture, my ability to speak English and Italian
fluently and the fact that I like being a host and showing people my city and my
country, made me better suited to a career in tourism instead of Economics.
Finally he relented and took me into the business and I joined him and my
brother Dennis (who is a trained physical therapist who prefers to drive a
limousine) and began by doing transfers from the airport and ports and
eventually to doing tours on my own. When my father realized that because the
taxi only held four customers and the limo seven, the next step was to buy a
small bus that we can use for larger groups. Believe it or not we bought the bus
and spent almost a year getting it ready and finally in 2008 we began to use it
for the tours and transfers. I think you will agree that buses do not get much
more comfortable than my Air-conditioned Mercedes Luxury which seats 12 people
plus me. I can meet you and your group at the airport, your hotel or the ports
of Pireaus, Rafina, or Lavrion. My goals are simple. I want to be as well-known
and respected as a mini-bus driver as my father is with his taxi. Maybe I would
have been a successful economist, who knows? All I know is that this is what I
want to do with my life. This is what I was born to do. It is in my genes, I
believe. Whether you need transfers from the airport to your hotel, or to the
port of Pireaus or want to see the Acropolis, Temple of Sounion, or the many
places to visit in and around Athens, day or night, I am at your
service. See my website at |
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