Excursion to Athens and a catamaran cruise

In June 2024, I went to Greece. I spent a few days in Athens, exploring the city. And then went on a week-long catamaran cruise where I put my experience from the freediving course into practice and also tried spearfishing. Both in the city and at sea it was a very interesting experience. And now I write retrospectively what interesting things I experienced...

The primary goal was to participate in a men's catamaran cruise organized by a friend. So everything depended on the date of this cruise. Since I don't like to travel, I thought about how to effectively plan and use my stay in Greece.In the end, I decided to leave early to get acclimatized and use the time to explore the city and calmly embark. Then after the cruise I will not move on to the next place in Greece/Athens, but will go straight back to the Czech Republic.

Since part of the cruise was the possibility to go snorkeling (freediving), I did a course in Prague beforehand. You can't dive without gear, so then I bought the gear including a special backpack.

Let

The plane ride there and back was uneventful. It was an atypical trip for me because I was not traveling light, but with a large checked bag with my freediving gear. It was my first time flying into Athens airport so I was unfamiliar with it plus it is large. So it was hard to navigate both arriving and departing.
airoplane takeoff and landing (athens to prague) :

Housing

I rented a room with a big bed in an apartment with a kitchen. Due to a water problem, the landlord changed the apartment before I arrived, but the final housing was also OK. I stayed at Agias zonis 28. From the airport I bought a metro ticket for 10EUR and then took the bus to the Kalliphroma stop.
You can also buy a cheaper single ticket for the metro, but it doesn't apply to the metro at the airport.

Travel by public transport to the apartment:

When I went downtown during my stay, I preferred to take the metro, which ran regularly and was more convenient. The Aghios Nikolas metro stop was about 10-15 minutes from my apartment.

Athens

I spent less than a week in Athens and toured the city.

In Greece, I commonly saw several people living in one basement room that elsewhere would be used as a warehouse, for example. But then again, it must have the advantage of not being hot in the summer. It gave me the impression that the Czechs have nothing to complain about because they live better.

Urban transport

The infrastructure and mess here looks similar to that of Spain's Las Palmas, for example. A walk down the street:

I tried the local bus service and the metro. It's not very clear. However, the metro works well.

The subway cars have a similar map to the one in the Prague subway cars:

You can buy 3 day tickets which cost 20EUR. Or 5 day tickets. Metro ticket from the airport to the city center costs 10EUR. Between the airport and the harbour there is for example line x96.
Bus, tram and metro lines are easily traceable via google maps.

As in Spain, street clutter is common in Greece:

Of course, I also went for a walk to Acropolis. I wasn't too tempted to go straight in, but I had an honest walk around.

Beaches

Athens has several beaches. I only remembered a few.

Flisvos beach:

Eden beach is a large relatively clean beach. It is easily accessible, it is right at the first tram stop from the centre. There is no charge.

For example, here is more information about beaches in Greece.

Social Activities Activities

I found the IT meetup through the meetup.com app. It was a meetup for developers in the PHP programming language. And for this meetup, there was one talk about a specific library for Laravel.
The meetup was at the offices of skroutz. The talk was given by Harris Raftopoulos

The livewire library is very interesting to me. too bad I don't use Laravel. However, I did a little research and I plan to try Live Components in the Symfony framework, which I am very actively using now.

I have yet to attend an "international meeting" meetup. Such a classic small-talk: "where are you from?" "what do you do?"

Internet

The internet at the apartment was good. Stable and fast see screenshot:

As for mobile Internet for those few days, I made do with rouming within the EU, which was included in the price of the action SIM.
However, mobile Internet is also available cheaply in Greece. Here is an example of a tariff. 128GB would be enough for me for a month and the promotional price of 15EUR is very good, better than in the Czech Republic.

During my walk through Athens, I came across a vintage Opel (vintage) car:

Food and its price

Food in Greece is not significantly cheaper than in the Czech Republic.
Here are two receipts from my food purchases in a regular store:

Translation of the receipt into English:

Every time I visit a new place, I check to see if you can buy cottage soft cheese and how much it costs. It's more expensive in Greece, but at least they have bigger packages. A 200g pack costs 2,50EUR. In the Czech Republic a 150g pack typically costs around 1 EUR.

What is the price of meat? You can see that the price of meat is not significantly different from the Czech Republic, while the average income in Greece is significantly lower.

This is how they wrap the meat you buy in paper in Greece. They put a rubber band over it and put a label over the whole thing:

The restaurant where the local cops go for kebabs because it's supposedly the best kebab in the area: O+Thanasis,+Mitropoleos+69,+Athina

Cost of living

I met a person I was talking to about housing and he bought a small house somewhere in Athens for €50,000 (1,250,000 CZK), 70 m2.

Katamaran

Loading onto the catamaran was slow, we had to load supplies and then we waited for a latecomer who had booked a flight so didn't have a spare and arrived late due to the delay. However, we eventually set sail before dark and anchored in a bay just outside Athens just after dusk.

What is a catamaran?

A catamaran is a type of vessel (boat or ship) that consists of two hulls joined by a frame structure. This design provides greater stability, speed and efficiency than traditional single-hulled boats (monohulls). Catamarans are used for both recreational purposes (e.g., sailboats or luxury yachts), as well as for commercial or business purposes (e.g. ferries, fishing boats, scientific vessels).

Main features of catamarans:

• Stability: The wider base (two hulls) makes them less prone to capsizing and rolling in waves.
• Speed: Due to their hydrodynamic shape, they have less water resistance and often reach higher speeds.
• Space: There is usually a spacious deck between the hulls that offers more living or utility space.
• Soft draft: Due to the shallower depth of the hulls, they can sail in shallow waters.

Catamarans have become very popular due to their combination of comfort, stability and performance, whether on the sea, lakes or rivers.

Our catamaran

We had a catamaran that could fit 10 people. The two back cabins were spacious. There was still space around the bed. The middle cabins had a small bed. And e.g. at night if one went to the bathroom, he would definitely wake the other one up because getting in/out of the bed was difficult. Such a cabin would be suitable for small people and lovers at most. I always took turns in that cabin. Sometimes I slept outside on the deck of the ship. Sometimes in the cabin. For one, the bed in the small cabin was more than roomy. But for two, it was too small. There was room for one more to sleep in the front, but I wouldn't call it a cabin.

Catamaran costs

Although we had a small catamaran, it's not a cheap way to spend time. Rent 600k CZK for 4 weeks (24 000 EUR). The price of the catamaran 10-12mil CZK (400 000 - 480 000EUR). If you have bought the boat, even boat maintenance is not cheap. You will need 1mil a year for running costs to keep the boat ok (40 000EUR).
If you need to hire a captain for the cruise, his price is about 1300eur.

Catamaran preparation

Essential things to prepare or take with you:

• Try out/learn the dive beforehand.
• Take cash with you.
• Instead of a suitcase, take a bag that is soft and so unlike a suitcase it can be folded and will fit on the catamaran.
• Fingerless gloves. They are good for pulling lines. I'll take the old cycling ones.
• Shoes with soles that don't blacken the floor/deck. Ideally sandals. I'll take bearfoot.
• There will be a hic. But just in case of night or rain, a jacket will do.
• Bike jersey - it's lightweight and snug so it won't be warm and even in the wind it's easy to move in and I won't get burned if I'm not naked.
• Bus from airport to dock: x90 x96
• Insulated, stretch film to wrap checked baggage (backpack).
• Wide cap with a drawstring around the neck to keep the cap from flying off.

Videos from a catamaran

Greece #catamaran: sail from the port #1

Greece: catamaran trip to Poros #2

Greece: catamaran: cove, port, rainbow, storm #3

Cruise footage

Here you can see the route we took on the catamaran:

Activities

I primarily went to try out being on a vessel at sea. Swim and enjoy the sea. And because I did a freediving course, to explore the underwater world.
I ended up trying my hand at spearfishing as well.

What is freediving?

Freediving (also known as free diving or breath-hold diving) is a form of diving, in which the diver dives underwater without a breathing apparatus, only on a breath. This sport and leisure activity is based on physical fitness, technique and the ability to hold your breath as long as possible.

Main features of freediving:

• Breathing and breath holding:
  • Freediving requires deep breaths and effective breath holding (apnea), which allows divers to remain underwater for extended periods of time.
  • Breathing training is key to improving performance.
• Unassisted by equipment: The diver uses only his or her own abilities without breathing equipment, unlike scuba diving.
• Silence and freedom underwater: The absence of equipment allows for a more natural and peaceful movement underwater, giving a sense of harmony with the surrounding environment.

Freediving combines physical performance, technique and peace of mind, making it a fascinating and harmonious activity.

Types of freediving:

• Recreational freediving: Diving for fun or to observe underwater life. Popular for example when snorkelling in shallow waters.
• Sport freediving: Includes various disciplines measuring time, depth or distance. Competitive disciplines include:
  • Static Apnea (STA): Holding the breath in a resting position at the surface.
  • Dynamic Apnea (DYN): Swimming underwater the length of the pool.
  • Freefall (FIM): Diving to depth using a rope without fins.
  • Constant Weight (CWT): Diving with fins or monofins to maximum depth.
• Freediving with a focus on hunting: Used when spearfishing or collecting pearls or shells.

What do you need for freediving?

• Mask - for a clear view underwater.
• Fins - for efficient movement and energy conservation.
• Snorkel - makes breathing easier at the surface.
• Diving suit - protects against cold and injury.
• Weight belt - helps balance buoyancy.
• Freediving Watch - for timing and depth (optional).
• Safety Partner - essential for safe diving.

Practicing proper breathing and knowing the techniques are essential for success and safety.

Footage of the dives to the shipwreck:

What is spearfishing?

Spearfishing (also spearfishing) is a technique of catching fish underwater using a speargun or underwater weapon. The angler dives (often on a breath, i.e. as part of freediving) and catches the fish directly, which requires precision, skill and knowledge of the underwater environment.

Spearfishing in Greece

If you want to do spearfishing in Greece there is no need to deal with a special license . In Spain (Grand Canaria), it is complicated and lengthy to get a licence. In Madeira (Portugal), licenses can be processed quickly online and you just pay a small fee. Asia - reportedly it is forbidden to take spearfishing gear on the plane there, but you can probably rent gear locally. As for the license I'm not choking.
If you have any more specific information or experience, drop me a email or use the contact form.

Video footage from freediving and spearfishing #2

Video footage of freediving and spearfishing #1

Resources

During the cruise we primarily spent time on the ship and nights in the bays. However, we also visited a few islands, but mostly briefly. At Poros Island, we stayed overnight at the dock to replenish our diesel and supplies. So we had a chance to get to know the island more. I did get to walk around the island one day and the next. Most of the participants spent the night in an alcoholic haze, devoting their time to the tourists on vacation. I prefer to have plenty of quality sleep than to waste time with female tourists and subsequent hangovers.

Anchoring at Salamina Island:

Mooring at Egina Island:

Mooring in the harbour on Poros:
An outcropping of Poros Island, where I climbed a hill to get a view of the harbor and town:

Mooring at Agistri Island:

Routes

All route records from Greece can be found on my GPS route records portal: GPS routes Greece

Athens walk route over the hill:
Video footage of the walk over the hill:

Costs

What was the cost of this trip?
The cost of a round trip ticket was 10563 CZK + 2500 CZK for checked baggage. I had my freediving equipment in my checked luggage. Freediving equipment including backpack cost me about 1000 CZK. But I plan to use it afterwards in the Czech Republic and no other necessary expenses are needed, so I take it as a good and actually cheap investment.
Accommodation Athens 5158 CZK. Fortunately I don't need anything fancy. I always choose something where there is a big (double) bed, a classic chair and a table for sitting/working. Catamaran allowance 25 000 CZK (1000EUR). Food on the catamaran 5259Kč. Could save on this if food was not wasted, but again better than being hungry.

Departure, departure

At the end of the cruise, we spent the last night in port and cleared the ship and left the next day. Some flew straight home in the morning, one stayed in Athens. I went to the beach and then took a slow, leisurely ride to the airport. I used the direct bus that went from the port to the airport. The ticket to the airport cost 5.50EUR.

Travel to the airport by bus:

Baggage check-in at Athens airport was quick. I just had to take it to oversize after sticking the label on - window 92B near the information. The security check was quick. I had to throw away the yogurt I bought, though, probably because it's liquid. Next time I'll eat the yogurt on the spot. They also checked my swimsuit, probably because it was still wet :D .

Summary

I used my time in Athens very intensively. Without knowing the place, I was able to plan interesting trips and attend two meetups. This is all due to the fact that I have excellent planning skills and absolute time flexibility.

I enjoyed my stay on the catamaran, practiced freediving in the sea and additionally tried spearfishing. Overall it was an interesting social experience.
I look forward to exploring the underwater world again and meeting other guys in the activities.

As usual such an unfamiliar event for me was a big step into the unknown. However, I successfully survived and did what I planned to do. There were also some losses. I lost my swimming goggles and snorkel.

The main advantage I see of this event is that there was no alcohol on the boat and therefore it was not a booze party. On the contrary, the topic was things to do with normal male life, not big news for me, but I always very much welcome a closed discussion between people who are open to different topics.

Subsequently, I would like to practice freediving and possibly spearfishing on a regular basis. Freediving I can do on Czech quarries and I already got to it after my return. Sprearfishing, then I will be able to do it abroad in the sea and I don't even need a boat to do it, living by the beach will be enough.

Links

• Greece video playlist