Our vacations are always a bit chaotic. Usually, we decide on a destination region beforehand and then just hit the road. Last year, that didn’t work out so well, as our car had various issues right before our annual vacation. We still went, but in my mother’s car. A convertible with significantly less space, which meant camping was out. And the fall vacation? Last-minute deals are a thing of the past, yet we still booked our all-inclusive week in Crete only two weeks in advance.

In the past, Italy was usually our destination. It’s easy to reach by car, and we’ve become quite familiar with the country. This year, however, we decided against Italy, since we’ve already been almost everywhere there. Greece, specifically the Peloponnese, was chosen as the destination. Camping again, and with our own car. Since the drive is a bit long, we’d take the ferry from Ancona to Patras.

The reactions from family, friends, and colleagues were ones of disbelief. We left in the evening and drove through the night to Ancona. Without a booking or any plan at all. I knew that a ferry from Ancona to Patras runs twice a day and that the journey takes about 24 hours. That was the extent of our knowledge.

My girlfriend actually wanted to book a cabin. But an extra 100 euros per person was a bit too much. So we treated ourselves to so-called Air Seats for an extra 10 euros per person. Bad idea. Those things are not comfortable, have no tables, and you can’t recline them far enough to sleep in them. In the end, we slept on a sofa in the lounge. Much more comfortable and included in the cheapest package.

One thing we definitely learned is that we won’t become cruise people. It was just plain boring on the ferry. You sit around and look at the sea. Maybe read something, or write a blog post. The food, at least on this ferry, was rather subpar. We only tried the breakfast: 20 euros for some cheese and bread, plus two orange juices. All of it was edible, but that’s about it. The combination of boredom, uncomfortable seats, and not very restful sleep made us very happy to get off the ferry.

In Greece itself, things were surprisingly uncomplicated. In the northern Peloponnese, there are only three campsites, and we chose Akrata Beach Camping. An hour away from the ferry, it’s a good starting point for exploring the north. We got a nice spot in the shade, 50 meters from the (pebble) beach, very cozy. Today, we took it easy. A short hike and some grocery shopping, otherwise just the beach. But for the next few days, we have some sightseeing on the agenda. I’ll surely write about one or two things here on the blog.