Discover the island of Andros and its culinary treasures

In the morning you will be picked up from your hotel in Athens and will be transferred to the port of Rafina, where you will board on the boat to Andros island. After a two hours trip you will meet with your local tour guide in Gavrio port and start your culinary tour to the fascinating island of Andros. Your first stop is the beautiful Bay of Korthi, where you will enjoy a walk by the seaside and then visit a local traditional coffee shop, “kafeneio”. There you will meet with women from a cooperative group who produces local traditional sweets made of pure local products. You will not only learn about the secrets of making these “spoon” sweets, but you will also taste them, together with a traditional Greek coffee or herbal tea. In Korthi you will also see a rare example of local architecture, a recently renovated horizontal stone windmill, where you will learn all about the tradition of Aegean windmill architecture. You will continue the day with a visit to the Monastery of Panahrantos, one of the most characteristic historical monasteries on the island. A monk will talk to you about the monastery's history and the tradition of monastic life on the island. From there you will also enjoy a breathtaking panoramic view to Chora and the surrounding landscapes. Next stop of the tour will be a local traditional taverna in a nearby village, where you will enjoy a delicious lunch made of locally produced ingredients. After lunch you will visit an old traditional olive mill that has been converted into a small museum about the tradition of olive oil production and the life of a Cycladic island village. There you will also have an olive oil tasting experience, where you will taste locally produced olive oil. Then you will head towards the main town of the island, Chora, and your hotel, where you can have some free time to relax. In the evening you can have a stroll through the picturesque alleys of the Old town of Andros.

On your second day on the island you will start the tour with a short but beautiful walk through orange and lemon groves towards the village of Livadia. There you will meet with a local producer who will welcome you in his orange grove and talk to you about the history of citrus cultivation and trade in Andros and the way this particular agricultural activity has influenced the nautical history of the island. Continuing your tour you will head back to Chora and have a guided walking tour exploring its paved streets, squares, picturesque alleys with the beautiful neoclassical mansions and the old churches. During the walk you will see the remains of the 13th century Venetian castle, the statue of the Unknown Sailor and the beautiful little church, Agia Thalassini, bulit on a rock by the sea. Your next stop will be the village of Vourkoti where you will visit a local farm, meet a local producer and learn about the agricultural traditions and the cultivation of special local crops, such as the red bean and the red potato. He will also talk to you about his beekeeping activity and you will have the chance to taste locally produced honey from his farm. After the visit to the farm you will head towards Apoikia village where you will visit the famous thermal spring of Sariza and have a refreshing ten-minute hike in a lush landscape, along a river and amidst traditional gardens and oak trees, to the small waterfall "Pythara", a landscape that is rare in a Cycladic island. On your way back you will have the opportunity to admire the traditionally built stone-walls, named “emasies” or “pezoules”, that were used to create little terraced plots transforming the wild mountain slopes into arable lands through a natural use of the surrounding environment. Your last stop will be at a traditional kafeneio near Sariza spring filled with friendly locals where you will have a light lunch and will enjoy the hospitality of the locals. In the afternoon you will be transferred back to Gavrio port to take the boat for Rafina. Our driver will be waiting for you there, to transfer you to Athens.