Helicopter travel is gaining more and more ground in the Greek summer mosaic.
The coronavirus pandemic has brought to the fore the need for more privacy and less crowding even in the mass travel of summer holidays. And we may not be able to talk about a new mass means of reaching our holiday destination due to the cost and nature of the means, but if the visitor’s pocket can bear it, heli-hopping can be an upgraded experience.
Helicopter tours, according to a report by newmoney.gr, are short flights that allow the tourist to see cities, sights and natural landscapes from a unique perspective. At the same time, it is an option with excellent sanitary conditions, absolute privacy and a trend that seems to be here to stay, with equal doses of luxury and adventure.
Options in Greece
The English company Get Your Guide sells holiday package organisation and digital guiding services in many parts of the world. Among the recommended activities for Greece we find helicopter tours: private tours for groups of up to 4 people, with costs starting from €2,400 and going up to €7,400 per person. You can start from Kea, Spetses, Crete (Heraklion – Chania – Elounda), Hydra, Naxos, Antiparos and luxury hotels such as Amanzoe and Costa Navarino, to Athens, Mykonos, Santorini – and other smaller islands such as Folegandros and Sifnos on request. Their duration ranges from 40 minutes to 1 ½ hours and promises a unique experience with views of unparalleled beauty in the blue Aegean Sea.
Air Business International is a Greek aviation company that offers the possibility of renting a helicopter for leisure purposes. They promise a relaxed, relaxing and most importantly a completely safe trip, with a choice of departure from either a heliport or an airport. In the latter case, the baggage check is carried out in a V.I.P. area in the presence of a company partner and the customer is then taken to the helicopter for immediate departure, with no waiting queue. Some indicative prices (per person) and destinations:
Athens – Mykonos at €2,300
Athens – Santorini at €3,500
Athens – Patmos at €4.885
Mykonos – Santorini at €2,015.
Airlift is another Greek company providing helicopter travel services. Its destinations include several Cycladic islands, as well as the islands of the Northern Sporades and the Argosaronic Gulf: Aegina, Alonissos, Amorgos, Andros, Folegandros, Elounda, Ios, Kea, Kimolos, Koufonisia, Kythnos, Milos, Mykonos, Naxos, Hydra, Santorini, Skiathos, Skopelos, Skopelos, Schinoussa, Serifos, Sifnos, Spetses, Syros and Tinos. Airlift also offers sightseeing and aerial sightseeing flights to areas of great archaeological interest such as the historic centre of Athens, Athens and the Saronic Gulf, the Athenian Riviera and Cape Sounion and of course the “ultimate sightseeing flight” as they call it, which combines all of the above. This company is a certified aerial photography and aerial cinematography company, so it offers such services to its audience.
Athens Heli Tours, based in Athens, operates and provides exclusive helicopter travel services for fun and leisure. It offers three different tours over Athens, two tours in Attica combined with Aegina or Lagonisi and three tours in “Classical Greece” with a flight over Epidaurus, Nafplio & Mycenae and Ancient Epidaurus. Of particular interest are also themed air tours such as the cinematic “Mamma mia” over Skopelos (with Abba music and free champagne!) and special tours for hunters depending on the seasonality.
And since, as we saw above, the prices are a bit steep, it makes sense that helicopter tours are mainly aimed at foreign residents. For this reason, there are many other travel agencies and tour companies that are active in this sector, providing such services as well, and we often find them in islands like Santorini, Naxos and Mykonos, combining helicopter flights and boat tours.
