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Off-Peak Greece

Whilst travel magazines and newspaper supplements continue to buzz about Eastern Europe as the hottest destination for British tourists, waxing lyrical about the jaw-dropping Baltic coastline, the cheaper beer, the beautiful hilltop villages and the incredible surge in music culture, the islands and peninsulas on the Mediterranean a little closer to home are becoming quieter.

Whilst many will see the decrease in numbers of British tourists in areas such as Italy and Greece as a terrible sign of the effects of the recession and the severity of the global economic downturn, in many ways this contraction will equally limit the damage done to the beautiful landscapes of such areas. After all, the voracious demand for cheap nightclubs, restaurants and bars serving stag weekends or large groups of foreign consumers, has encouraged a spike in construction and industry which has tarmac-ed over so many beaches, heritage sites and quiet local spots which made the countries attractive in the first place.

Greece, after all, is not the hedonistic island of package holiday heaven. It is the beacon of ancient culture and culturally one of the most significant influences on Western thought and art practice. Yet it has not just given us Socrates and the myths; its defiance and pride through a troubled modern political history has preserved it as one of the most unique states in Europe, a country with a culture unlike any other and a language which no other state speaks.

More than that, Greece is a very interesting socio-political prospect, with a fierce tradition of left-wing socialism and anarchism, as well as extreme right wing conservatism, inviting parallels with another Mediterranean country with a revered ancient past: Italy. It’s tense relationship with nearby Turkey has been seldom documented in British press and history books, yet such history provides a fascinating insight into the eventful past of a culture which considers itself neither ‘European’, no Arab, nor totally Mediterranean, nor Balkan.

Visit Greece now, in the early autumn months, and you experience some of the best elements of the European summer without your neighbours sitting on the next beach lounger along. The weather remains sunny, the streets are quieter, the prices lower; and there feels like more time and space has been created for you to enjoy. Combine this with a glut of easy flight option, and check out budget airlines like Monarch and their options on off-season Greece holidays. Indulging in a warm summer holiday this autumn is an easy, tangible treat for any traveller.