Jaunted

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Protesters Shutting Down Greek Travel Attractions, Tourists Shifting To Bulgaria Instead

When we suggested taking advantage of Greek labor instability by scooping up cheap Athens hotel deals, that was premised on the idea that protesters would mostly ignore tourists. Certainly we never imagined that they'd actively try to ruin the Greek tourism industry, which powers almost one-fifth of the country's economy. Oops.

Last Wednesday and Thursday 150 protesters shut down the Acropolis, the ancient religious sanctuary-global tourist mega-attraction that rises above Athens. They didn't think they were getting enough money, so they wanted to make sure that tourist-dependent hotels and restaurants didn't get any either (we're paraphrasing, but only a little bit). Keep in mind these were government workers who shut down the site, not the usual hodgepodge of anarchists who normally get the blame for ruining everybody's fun. Government workers from the Culture Ministry no less, who are in charge of bringing tourists into contact with Greek's historical treasures, the Acropolis included.

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Foreign Grocery Friday: Wafer Cookies. It's a Greek Thing.

When we travel, one of our favorite things to do is to pop into a local grocery store and check out the food products and candies we'd never find anywhere else. So we're trying out this new feature, Foreign Grocery Friday, where each week we'll feature some of our (and your) favorite overseas treats. Got a recommendation? Let us know!

Week after week of Foreign Grocery Friday, we get emails from you all requesting a feature on Tim Tams from Australia. First, we need to get our hands on some since we're not currently in Australia. Second, we've learned something from all this: everyone loves cookies of all shapes and sizes. So today we're looking at Greece and their fascination with wafer cookies in particular. The most prevalent brand is the gold-wrapped Chocofreta, our highlighted item today.

The Taste: Chocofretas are your typical wafer cookie, but far heavier on the milk chocolate than the wafer. And boy is the chocolate milky and quick to melt in your hands. Chocofretas are an ideal sweet treat after a quick meal. Think a casual, everyday lunch or an al fresco bite from a local coffeeshop. They do provide the needed crunch, but are deceptively light; a single bar is 207 calories.

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Sound Advice: Do Not Buy Skulls as Trip Souvenirs

If it looks like a skull, feels like a skull and probably smells like a skull, do everyone a favor and don't buy it as a souvenir of your trip, okay? We wish that two young tourists to the Greek island of Mykonos had figured this out when they purchased six human skulls and tried to transport back to the US through Athens International Airport. Of course they were stopped at security when the scanners revealed the skulls in their carry-on baggage, and the two were taken into custody.

Despite the claims that the tourists believed the skulls to be fake when they purchased them from a souvenir shop on the island, MSNBC reports that the airport summoned a coroner, who confirmed that they were indeed actual human remains. The consequences: the travelers were charged with "desecrating the dead."

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Where to Find the Best Euro-Driven Travel Discounts

We've emphasized before that, especially if your travel plans are flexible, you should strongly consider going to Greece. The economic turmoil has caused tourism to plummet, and prices have declined accordingly. But Greece's problems are the Eurozone's problems, which means that there are also macroeconomic issues driving the Euro down relative to the dollar.

Not to be too callous on the point, but Europe's woes are creating some fairly interesting options for American tourists. Portuguese hoteliers have been sending up red flags about the state of their tourism industry, and even government officials have begun to pay attention. The exact same logic holds for Italy: dependent on tourism, and in a broad economic slump that makes it highly vulnerable to fluctuations in the Euro. And by "vulnerable" we mean "welcoming," and by "fluctuations in the Euro" we mean "tourists."

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Thailand Tourism Bottoming Out in Midst of Mass Rioting

Sometimes mild political turmoil causes travelers to needlessly panic, with sensational news coverage making people think that a crisis is much worse than it is. Those people cancel their vacations, and the resulting drop in tourism opens up great travel deals for the rest of us. That's what's happening with Greece travel right now.

But sometimes spiraling political turmoil causes travelers to correctly panic, with accurate news coverage signaling to people that they need to get the hell out of wherever they are. Those people cancel their vacations, but under no circumstances should you consider taking advantage of the resulting drop in tourism. That's what's happening with Thailand travel right now. Bangkok is in the midst of some of the very worst rioting in the city's modern history. 1,800 people have been injured, and just on Wednesday nine people were killed after they took sanctuary in a temple. The result for the tourism industry, which accounts for 15% Thailand's jobs? Almost $4 billion in losses and still counting.

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Should You Plan a Europe Trip Now That the Euro Makes It Almost Affordable?

This morning brings further confirmation of last week's story about how Greek turmoil is opening up absurd tourism opportunities, as hotels in Athens are talking about losing 1 in 10 of their guests, and cutting prices accordingly.

Far more broadly, Europe's economic problems have sent the Euro tumbling against the dollar, and a continued slide is more likely than not. We put up a broad overview of how Greece's problems interact with the Eurozone earlier this year, but now things are quickly coming to a head.

So, should you go to Europe now or what? Find out, after the jump

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Riots in Athens: Bad for the City, Great for Deep Travel Discounts

Remember how yesterday we went looking for all the travel deals that should have been popping up in Florida, because their tourism industry had ostensibly been wrecked by the BP oil spill? And remember how we didn't find any, because that was just something their governor made up? The situation in Athens, a city that's still in shock from the wave of recent deadly riots which rocked Greece, is in an opposite position.

Tourism to the capital really is in free fall, and the hotel deals really are eye-popping. If the world keeps spinning out of control like this, we might have to start making these posts into a regular feature. Anyone for "Disaster Travel: Pricelining Your Way Through A World of Political, Environmental, and Economic Upheaval?"

So if you're willing to take on a little bit of risk, and take out travel insurance, we've thrown together a few quick numbers and put them after the jump. If you start feeling guilty, remember that tourism makes up 17 percent of the Greek economy. They need this.

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Three Memorial Day Trips for Getting a Dose of Culture

Memorial Day is about three weeks away, which means one thing: vacation time. While lazing on the beach is always tempting, you should probably go some place where you can learn something. We'll help you culture vultures can make the most of your extended weekend.

See our picks for Memorial Day culture getaways after the jump.

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A European Country is Striking Again, and This Time It's a Doozy

Istanbul is busy; Greece not so much

First it was the volcanic ash cloud holding up European air traffic, and now it's Greece as an entire country. Early this morning, Greece awoke to a planned nationwide strike, affecting everything from air travel to ferries to the subway and government offices. Civil servants, unions and more are protesting the nation's move to raise taxes, lower bonus pay for civil servants and retirees, and raise the retirement age for women to 65. And no one's going anywhere while they do it.

If you've traveled in Europe a fair bit, you've probably weathered a transportation strike or two. It's just part of life and there's no choice but to wait it out. This Greek mess may be a larger scale version of an average European strike, but its danger is that it has the potential to reoccur. The police has clashed with protestors and the government must continue with its plans or else face the wrath of countries from whom it's been borrowing money.

We'd keep our eyes open for cheap airfare to Greece if we were you; all these troubles usually lead to cancelled trips and more open seats...if your flight can arrive, that is.

Related Stories:
· Greece Hit by Anti-Austerity General Strike [Sydney Morning Herald]
· Political Travel [Jaunted]

[Photo: FlightRadar24]

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Eurozone Troubles May Impact Travelers For Years

The immediate problem: the entire country of Greece is about to go bankrupt. They've got overly generous pensions and benefits, they've displayed a seemingly petulant unwillingness to consider belt-tightening, and their government sector is veritably Italian in its efficiency and size. This is not the stuff that long-term economic health is made of.

The bigger problem: Greece is part of the Eurozone and, while its long been kind of funny to refer to them as the "honorary member," the other 15 countries who share the Euro aren't amused. The bankruptcy of any individual state would tank the shared currency, cascading across the continent in ways that are totally unpredictable (the upshot of a disaster which was never even a consideration when the Eurozone was formed). If it did happen, most of what we've thought about travel for the last decade—dollar vs. Euro, the long-term stability of the EU, frictionless travel across Europe, etc—would quickly have to be revised.

The alternative is for the rest of the Eurozone countries to bail out Athens, allowing them to service their sovereign debt and avoid default. But the bigger European countries - Germany in particular - don't see why they should have to suffer just because the Greek language doesn't have a translation for "fiscal responsibility." Some Germans are even calling for Greece to be kicked out the Eurozone altogether.

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Tour Athens With Nia Vardalos in 'My Life In Ruins'

My Life in Ruins, a new rom-com in theaters today, stars Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding) as a tour guide in Athens who accidentally falls in love. The plot is as dull as it sounds, but Vardalos' character's chosen profession does provide some great vistas of the city. Taking a cue from Nia, here is our guide to the best of all that Athens has to offer:

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Greece Says Leave Your High Heels At Home

If you've decided that this is the summer you're going to party in Greece, you'd better check your packing list and take out your high heels.

Officials in Greece are trying to get stiletto heels banned at important archaeological sites because these evil heels are damaging the ancient stuff. To quote Eleni Korka, a director taking care of such ancient sites:

Female visitors must wear shoes that do not wound the monuments. These monuments have a skin that suffers and people must realise that.

Too many tourists is a bit of a problem at many of the ancient sites in Greece - a few years ago they did a big clean-up of the Odeon of Herodes Atticus theater in Athens and removed 59 pounds of chewing gum stuck under the seats in the process. For some reason they haven't thought of banning chewing gum a la Singapore, but the anti-stiletto movement is growing strong.

Related Stories:
· Women Banned From Wearing Stilettos at Ancient Greek Sites [Daily Mail]
· Will This Be The Summer You Party in Greece? [Jaunted]
· Greece Travel Guide [Jaunted]

[Photo: **Mary**]