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Polichrono – Greece 6/7/16 – 14/7/16

(t) So we were planning our next stop and wandering past a travel agents we saw they had last minute deals to Greece so in we went. 2 days later we were on our way to Polichrono, a village on the 1st peninsular from Halkidiki on the Greek main land. The coach was full and we were the only non-Macedonians and it quickly became clear only 1 or 2 spoke anything of English. When we got to the apartments it turned out we were all in the same block. The village is really quaint with lots of apartments, shops and restaurants up and down the numerous pretty little streets and all along the sea front. The beach was a bit of a surprise as it was small but long, some areas were only 2 sunbeds deep while further up it got as deep as 5 or 6, so pretty small. And it was packed solid with sunbeds and holiday makers, I had forgotten just how packed Europe’s beaches are. And don’t get me started on the sights, though at least it wasn’t a topless beach. Everywhere you looked on the beach and up and down every street were budgie smugglers and droopy bikini’s, oh dear, enough to put you off your cocktails!!
It also became obvious pretty quick that not only were we the only foreigners on the bus we were the only brits in town. Which was actually quite nice. This is not a place that were ever be advertised in the UK, this was mostly locals and those from near by. We were there for 9 nights and we pretty much sunbathed, swam, wondered around the town, cooked or ate out, very relaxed. We did keep seeing signs up advertising traditional greek entertainment nights but it was always up on a board the day after! The sun shone every day with temperatures in the early 30’s, no humidity with the slightest of breezes wafting in from the sea. Perfect for topping up the tan, and reasonably cheap to eat out.
Polycrono is a wonderful “out of the way” part of northern Greece, yet typical of what the mind depicts of Greece with its tiny streets, beach front location, and it’s marvellous array of restaurants, cafes and souvenir shops. It’s small size should not deter the traveller as its heart and soul are as big as they come. The locals are very friendly, always have wonderful smiles and are extremely welcoming. Its probably not for the 18-25 club going multi outdoor activity groups, but is brilliant for families and those who just want to get away from it all.