Hi everyone,

My grifriend and I are staying in Polichrono in the middle of July for 2 weeks. From reading the various threads on here, it seems that bugs are quite a problem. Are they as bad this year as some people have made out from previosu years? My partner is susceptible to get bitten an awful lot anywaym any hints or tips? Any help or guidance would be greatly appreciated!

Thanks

Bill

hi bill,
to particular threats, but you should get some mosquito cream or the electric device to be plugged in with a tablet on it. If it is no problem you can even get it in the shops out there. Else, no funny insects/bugs. Heat may be an other concern for you since July is usually sooooooooo hot is not even funny anymore. Make sure you have hats on and you drink a lot of water (beer will due also).

enjoy halkidiki, enjoy kassandra !
way to go mate !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

BILL, avon skin so soft dry oil spray, soft and fresh fragrance is a brilliant mosquito repellent. In fact all the products in this range, body lotion bubble bath etc, but the spray is particularily good. Also tea tree products are great too, a bottle of tea tree oil dab behind ears, keeps them away.Wash in tea tree soap, very strong one on sale in holland and barrett, quite expensive for a bar of soap but the smell does linger and it does work.They also sell shower gell shampoo in the same range, I have found it to be very effective in the past. I always use these products for my children, even for a couple of weeks prior to holiday, they have never been bitten. Hope this is of some help to you.

Thanks for your help everyone

vm - beer will definately keep me cool!
di - thanks for the help, will give the shower gel a go and start acouple of weeks before i go. That means I need to buy some this week then as I go in 2 weeks!

Any other tips? Any info on Polichrono would be interesting as well, I have high hopes for this holiday!

bb, my suggestion is to hire a car while there. thus you will get the chance to see the entire peninsula. the whole round trip is of 40-50 miles and you should go in all the other towns that make this chain of resorts there. Paliouri Beach is nice and big, situated in a bay. in the evenings try to go on the westrern side of kassandra to see (from the town of fourka) the sunset over mount Olympus. it's a show. Else, Afitos is a town north of Polichrono, about 10 miles by car, which is so much different than the rest of the settlements in halkidiki. Stone paved roads, small light posts alongside, full of restaurants and bars. This is a town where usually the Greeks go and the foreigners are much more less in number than in the other towns.
It will be a very long letter to write about halkidiki so, to make it easier, just ask and l'll reply happily.
cheers mate.

vm, thanks very much for your help, much appreciated.

is there anywhere to see dolphins?

we like snorkelling, can you recommend any good places? (we are intending on hiring a car).

we also like to find quiet unspoilt beaches, any suggestions?

Many thanks

BB,
the last time I saw dolphins was when we took a trip off to see mount Athos. The ship would take us from Agios Nikolaos and sail on the shores of mount Athos for about 8 hours. This was as close as I could be from the dolphins.
As for the snorkeling, the whole eastern side of the Kassandra peninsula is good for that for it does have very clear water. It is my advice thou, as you'll rent a car, to try to head for the beaches that are in between the towns.
The waters of the beaches from the towns are crowded and you will, most likely, see other people's buts rather than fishes.
As you are willing to explore, drive in all the alleys that you see in between towns and you'll find quieter spots, good for snorkeling.
As for unspoiled beaches, you have to see that you'll go in a highly touristic area with thousands of others going the same place and the same time. And you will be located in Polichrono, pretty much the centre of hassle.
However, if you are off for discovering Halkidiki, I would dare to suggest you to visit the second leg of Halkidiki, named Sithonia.
Here is a different story. Itself larger than kassandra, is also rockier and wilder. The towns are more apart from one another and chances to find quieter spots are greater. Toroni is such a place as well as Kalamitsi. Sarti has a wide and nice beach but you will not feel alone in there.
To drive from Poichrono to the places I just mentioned, expect some 3 hours driving.
It’s worth pay a trip to Sithonia with the car but pack your boot with towels, fins, snorkeling glasses and tubes, as you will pretty much spend there the whole day.

I was staying at Naias Apts in Sept 2004 and the morning of my birthday me and my friends were sitting by the beach when we saw dolphins in the sea! It was the best birthday present to see dolphins so naturally without forking out for a boat trip!

Hi, A Cheap way to keep moqquitos, and some bugs away especially during the night, cut a lemon in half and put about 10 cloves into each piece of the lemon (not the skin) and put one piece of lemon at each side of the bed. If Self Catering put two pieces of lemon with cloves around the kitchen surfaces. A Cheap and easy method.