The best holiday I ever had (Kos)

Member Name: chrisbrn

Product:	Kos
Date:	06/07/01 (710 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Great bars, clubs and resturants, Cheap due to high exchange rates, Plenty to do any time of day

Disadvantages: Safety deposit boxes are not in the hotel, Toilet can smell due to toilet paper being placed into provided bins, Hot at night

Last year was the first time that I have been to anywhere in Greece as I have only been to Spain of France.

On this ocassion, I decided that I needed a change of scenery and went to Kardemena in Kos with Thomson Travel.

I went last year on the 9th of June to celabrate my 21st birthday in style for a two week holiday so I had the last week of mid season and the first week of high season. Between the two weeks of being there, there was a big difference with the amount of people. As I went before peak season, the shops were giving offers to encourage people to spend their money and the atmosphere was great to say the least (bearing in mind it was not terribly busy), but as soon as the first week of high season came in, there was a great influx of tourists, and this is when the holiday changed. The atmosphere around Kardamena was outstanding, words cannot explain the atmosphere.

All the pubs, bars, clubs, the beach litteratly everywhere was busy, and the sense of excitment and enjoyment could be felt everywhere. I think that this was partly due to England playing at the time and in every pub, there was a big screen showing England. What is good about Kardamena, there are very few other foreingers, as everyone is mainly British. If you go to Kos town though, you would have been with the Germans, and most other nationalities.

During the day, there was plenty to do all the time, wether you like to dine, sleep, being active, or sight seeing. I did a mixture of all these.

If you are a watersports person, you will enjoy this location as there is jet skiing, bannana boat, and every other watersport you can think of. As far as the sleep goes, I slept on the beach in full sun (to which you should not do expecially during the time of a heat wave), but suprisingly I did not burn, but there was a lot of burnt people. I am quite hard skined when it comes to the sun, but I was still wearing factor 15 as the sun was very strong in the a
rea.

The beach is ok in places with clean water and golden sand. There are parts where the sand is pebbley, but mainly sandy. If you are on a lilow, or any other inflatable, then be carefull as the wind is strong if you go out too far, and of those that ae doing water sports.

There are a lot of day trips that you can do to other islands and countries. These are highly recommended to do, but are cheaper from the beach front for the same trip. You can go island hoping or even have a 1½ - 2 hour boat journey over to Bodrum, Turkey.

When it comes to dining, try everywhere as all food costs about the same and you get about the same amount in servings. The only difference is the style of cooking and the taste.

There are no safe deposit boxes in the appartment that I stayed in, nor were there any in other hotels, but there are little shops where you can store your belongings away and you have access to it about 20 hours a day. This service does not cost anything, but the only catch is that you have to change you currency there, but even these exchange places were very competitive and offered a better price than over here in England.

The accomodation is very basic in Kos, and I mean basic. All you have is a bathroom with the usual amenities. The toilet however is very basic. It is the usual basin but no toilet paper can be deposited down them. All used toilet paper must be placed into the bin provided next to the toilet.

The kitchen is basically two rings (one big, one small), and a fridge, then you sleeping area. It is advisable to take a repellent with you. We did not see any insects, but my friends by morning had bites over them.

Overal, this is a highly recommended place for those that like an active holiday or a lazy holiday, but it is advisable to go to Kardamena. Kos town did not seam that attractive or much there, apart from the nightlife (which it is recommended to go on the companys pub crawl ther
e, or gate crash them).

This is a good choice for anyone that likes a good time. (personally, I did not want to leave there as I was having too much of a good time.) I enjoyed the island so much, that I am going to both Corfu, Sidari and Crete, Malia this year.

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