Travel Safety Concerns

I know that you have been watching the news lately of the growing unrest in North Africa and other areas of the Middle East. This past week there were even riots in Athens. And I realize that you, like me, were concerned about traveling to Greece in light of these headlines.

I contacted EF this week and expressed our concerns for safety and the protection of our investment in our June trip to Greece. I received an answer and want to share with you what EF has said. (Note: Anything in quotation marks, is an exact quote from our EF tour consultant.)

“EF will never put our travelers in harm's way. If the US State Department issues a travel warning we will not send any groups to Greece.” This EF did for Egypt trips.

“No EF groups stay in Athens. We made that move over a year ago. Instead we have our groups stay in Glyfada, a smaller beach/resort town 30 miles south of Athens. Therefore, groups will not be in Athens for anything other than scheduled sightseeing.”

“Our office in Athens keeps us updated about the situation and if there was an actual flare up while you are on tour we will make sure to steer our groups clear of any danger.”

On our trips we request, and it is standard for most tour companies, to stay near city center so that we are in walking distance of at least some of the city’s attractions on our own time. In light of last year’s protests over the country’s financial woes, EF has already taken steps to protect its travelers by moving the hotel location outside of Athens.

Since we are a private tour group with our own bus, then we have control over when and where we can go and make adjustments if need be. This will be a plus for our group.

Glyfada, a southern suburb of Athens, is known as the ‘Beverly Hills’ of Greece and home to many of Greece’s millionaires and celebrities. One of its most famous residents was Aristotle Onassis! This fashion-conscious suburb is known in Greece for its upmarket cafes, well-known restaurants, boutiques and cosmopolitan summer clubs…doesn’t sound like too bad a place to stay!

“In the event that a travel warning is issued you can pick alternative destinations or receive future travel vouchers. Or, if the entire group decides they do not want to travel you can always use the EF Peace of Mind program to change your travel plans.”

Although the Mediterranean area is in turmoil, it does not necessarily mean we will be near any of the problems or that Greece is a dangerous place to visit. If we consider that Mexico, our next door neighboring country, is in worse shape and travel warnings HAVE been issued there, then a European might frown on traveling to Texas because it borders Mexico.

Those of us in Texas are not afraid to live here, but in this perspective I understand why a foreigner might be apprehensive by just listening to the news about Mexico. So until there is a travel warning issued, I believe we are in no danger in Greece.