Senior trip

As the trip was organised by a classmate for 40 of us to celebrate our graduation, it was not very cuturally oriented. It was initially meant to be in a 4-star resort hotel from which we would hardly have to move. However we ended up in the Hotel Heronissos which was pleasant enough. The town we were in was Hersonnisos, approximately half and hour away from Heraklion. The hotel was very close to the beach (about a 5 minute walk) and close to the main street. This street was lined with all sorts of cheap touristy shops which stay open until midnight as well as a mulltitude of bars, clubs and restaurants.

The first thing which is annoying about the place are the callers, people hired by the bars to get you to come in and have a drink. However after stopping to talk to a few we realised just how horrible a job it could be. Some (Havana Club) function on how darn sexy the callers are (mind you this was a scandinavian bar and all the people working there were scandinavian) and others simply have very kind people working there (U2 Irish pub). The first few nights the calls are for 2 for 1 drinks and that seems like a good deal expecially when they throw in a free shot. however the longer you've ben there for the cheaper the drinks get as the callers realise that you know everyplace offers 2 for 1, so they start giving offers such as 3 for 1 wher eyou can haggle prices with the bartender. Do not be afraid of bargaining after dark, they are often willing to give you a better price than the menu offers.

If you are not of the partying age I really do not see what this town would have to offer, but for a younger age group it has all the clubs and bars one could ever want (and then a few more).

The beach was quite pleasant though there is a short stretch of rock as you enter the water along most of the public beach, I would reccomend taking a 20 minute walk (or renting a taxi) to Star beach, a resort beach with free access. The water sports there are fun and they even have a dive center ( !) . If you are not of the partying age I really do not see what this town would have to offer, but for my age group it has all the clubs and bars one could ever want (and then a few more). Most of these close at 5 am though there are a few which will run past dawn (about 6.30 or 7). I reccomend staying up to watch the sun rise, it is a fun experience.

As our cultural experience we took a trip up to the Minotaur palace's ruins, which I found slightly dissapointing though others seems to find them impressive. From there we went down to Heraklion for the market which takes place every saturday. This was fun, though I would keep a close eye on any valuables. There are some good deals to be made at the clothing and bag stands, and the food is simply delicious.

As for obtaining deals from tour guides in the area, be carfeul, we booked a boat trip to the Sissi Island with a charming young lady only to find that it was notquite what we had expected. The boat was rather overloaded with people, there was none of thesnorkeling promised and the bus which was meant to take us to the water park at the one place was very dangerous (a mini-bus with benches loosely strapped in the back and the doors open) yet still fun.

It was generally a great trip, though we found that many of the locals had sticky hands when dealing with found objects.