Ammoudia and Parga

This year we wanted a holiday with as little city traffic and as much sea as possible. We picked Ammoudia and set off with a few friends' families — we ourselves were traveling with our two girls, aged 1 and 5.

Farm of the Dreams

On the way we decided to stop by the Farm of the Dreams. By the time we arrived it was already noon and the sun was blazing — the whole farm is outdoors with no shade, so if you're visiting in summer, I'd suggest going early in the morning or late in the afternoon. Despite the heat, the stop was worth every minute. We fed the animals straight from our hands and got to enjoy alpacas, small kangaroos, rabbits, goats, chickens, fish, emus, ponies, and probably a few more we missed in all the excitement. The kids were over the moon. The star of the day, though, turned out to be a goat that basically "attacked" our older daughter — well, not literally, but it started eating straight out of her food bowl without her even noticing, and then chased us around everywhere afterward 🤣

Hungry and a little sunburned, we left the farm and headed to Gostilnitsa pri sasedite for lunch. We had to wait for a table since it was quite busy, and the food itself came out slowly too, but everything was delicious and the prices were so reasonable that we didn't mind the wait at all.

Sandanski – a lovely little town, a poor choice of restaurant

By evening, pretty worn out from the road, we arrived in Sandanski. The apartment we stayed in — Didi House — greeted us well-renovated and clean, with everything we needed. The one real downside was parking: the house sits on a hillside with no marked spaces, and there wasn't even a sign outside to help you find exactly where the front door was.

We managed to fit in a short walk around the center and Sveti Vrach Park. The town left a good impression — pleasant and quite lively, with plenty of places to eat along the main promenade. The trouble came in the evening, when we went looking for somewhere to have dinner — by the time we got our bearings, everywhere nearby had already filled up, and we ended up at Kibika. Unfortunately, that turned out to be a compromise we regretted afterward. The service was good, but the food wasn't: the spaghetti carbonara was practically drowning in cream (which, in the classic recipe, doesn't belong there at all), the Caesar salad looked like someone had poured a whole kilo of mayonnaise over it, and the safrida fish was overfried. I wouldn't recommend the place.

The Road to Ammoudia

In the morning we set off early, at 7:30, toward Ammoudia. We crossed the border in a flash — we are in the Schengen zone, after all. To pass the time more pleasantly for the kids (and for us too), we decided to count the tunnels along the highway — and got to an impressive 56 😀 The road overall is in excellent condition; we have no complaints at all.

We stopped for lunch in Grevena, at Το Πέτρινο, and it turned into one of the best meals of the entire trip. Chicken and pork souvlaki, homemade meatballs, a juicy pork chop, all served with fries. And as a genuine welcoming gesture, the restaurant treated us to a complimentary round — Greek flatbreads, rice, and little ice cream sticks for dessert. The service was every bit as good as the food. I'd definitely recommend it to anyone passing through.

Ammoudia – the sea we'd dreamed of

We arrived in Ammoudia in the afternoon, and the moment we stepped into the apartment we knew we'd picked the right place to stay. We'd booked Golden Sand — a studio plus a one-bedroom apartment, with us staying in the studio. Everything there was thought through down to the smallest detail: a fully equipped kitchen, a Dolce Gusto capsule coffee machine, a washing machine, a hairdryer, an ironing board and iron, comfortable beds, and two whole terraces where we sat in the evenings after a long day. The cleanliness was kept spotless throughout our stay.

And the beach itself — exactly as we'd pictured it before we left. Warm water, fine sand, and a sea so shallow you could happily let the kids play in the shallows without worrying for a second. We used the wooden sun loungers at Sunrise Beach Hotel — free with a minimum purchase and no minimum spend required, which is a pure win for a family with kids wanting to spend a long day at the beach.

Where we ate in Ammoudia

Our days in Ammoudia followed the same pleasant ritual — breakfast from the bakery in the morning, the beach in the afternoon, and in the evening we worked our way through the town's different tavernas:

• Angelos Bakery – this is where every morning began. Fresh pastries you simply can't tear yourself away from — we happily went back there every morning instead of looking for anywhere else.
• Taverna Pateras – a classic fish taverna, exactly the kind you picture when you close your eyes and think of Greece. Surprisingly quick service for the place, even when it was packed.
• Taverna Poseidon – a place with fairly bad reviews on Google, but our experience couldn't have been more different. The waiter was genuinely kind, and the kitchen turned out one of the more enjoyable dishes we tried in Ammoudia. Clearly, not everything you read online is true.
• Restaurant Roxani – dinner here turned into one of the most memorable meals of the whole holiday. Enormous portions that left all of us stuffed, and quality that justified every bite.
• Restaurant Glaros – the one place in Ammoudia that didn't leave us with a warm feeling. Neither the atmosphere nor the service won us over — nothing dramatic, it just didn't click.
• Akrogiali Teo Ammoudia – we stopped in here but got up before even ordering, because the menu was almost entirely seafood, with nothing suitable for the kids.
• Ta Kimata – our last stop on an evening of wandering around (more on that below), and unfortunately it didn't leave a good impression — the octopus was tough, the calamari tasted like it had been fried in old oil, and the anchovies had a strange aftertaste.

Parga – the town with an Italian look

One afternoon we decided to skip the beach and take a trip to Parga. We parked in the municipal parking — 8 euros from 17:00 to 02:00, no matter how late you leave — and lost ourselves in the narrow streets among the shops. The atmosphere caught us instantly, something Mediterranean and warm that reminded me a little of Italy's coastal towns. When we made our way down the seafront promenade, the view genuinely took our breath away — little houses perched one above another on the hillside, looking exactly like something off a postcard.

We also didn't skip a ride on the tourist train — 5 euros for an adult, 2 for a child, and completely free for our girls, aged 1 and 5. We caught the fast 40-minute route that goes to Valtos Beach — all fine pebbles, not a grain of sand, with the train offering a view of the Venetian fortress along the way. The beach itself was so beautiful that we almost regretted only having about ten minutes there before the train called us back.

We wrapped up the evening at Taverna Zorbas, where octopus, mussels, calamari and sea bass arrived at our table cooked so precisely that every bite was worth it. The only thing that might spoil the mood for anyone sensitive to noise is the location itself — right on the bustling seafront promenade, with a constant stream of people passing by, and tables filling up extremely fast. In front of nearly every restaurant along the seafront, a line of people waiting had formed.

The Springs of Acheron – ice-cold beauty

The springs of the Acheron River turned into one of the most memorable experiences of the entire trip. We got there a little late, close to midday, with the heat already in full swing — a mistake we regretted immediately as we walked the sun-baked path down to the water. There's plenty to do on-site — ziplining, rafting, even horseback riding in the river — and for anyone who just wants to cool off, a calm walk in the water is more than enough. We parked in the last free lot and walked around fifteen minutes from there.

The water turned out to be truly icy — I expected cold, but not quite to the point where you can't feel your toes. The place, though, is phenomenally beautiful — clear, almost transparent water at the foot of the cliffs, everything wrapped in dense greenery, as if nature had staged the scene on purpose. The baby stayed on the bank, while our older daughter splashed around in the shallows. My husband and I worked up the nerve to wade in further — and our legs went numb with cold instantly, while we laughed at each other over how badly we'd underestimated the situation 😀

In places the river gets considerably deeper, and that's where the more enthusiastic visitors swim freely. If you're not planning to swim, water shoes, a phone and a bottle of water are enough. But if you do plan to wade in further, you'll also want a waterproof bag and a waterproof phone case — the stalls right at the start of the path sell exactly that kind of thing. There was also an option for horseback riding in the river, but it was already getting close to noon, so we skipped it. The experience is definitely worth it.

The Greek night we won't forget

The most special evening of the whole holiday was at Taverna Dokos, where every Thursday they put on a proper Greek night. If you decide to go, I'd strongly recommend booking ahead — a long line of people without reservations had formed outside, and they had to wait a long time for a table.

The show exceeded our expectations — plate smashing, sirtaki, dancing, games with the audience, all put together into a genuine little performance. The atmosphere was so infectious that even the shyer among us joined in the dancing. We left feeling recharged with positive energy, with the sense of having experienced something real rather than just another dinner out.

The road back – between disappointments and sweet surprises

On the way home we planned to stop in Ioannina, at a little shop for cheeses and cured meats. But through my own oversight, I hadn't realized just how big and touristy the city actually is — we ended up right in the center with no way to park, and to make things worse we got separated from the other car and lost quite a bit of valuable time driving back and forth. From the little we did manage to glimpse while driving through, Ioannina definitely looks like a beautiful city that deserves a visit of its own someday — just not on this particular day's schedule.

From there we rushed to catch a pharmacy in Kozani, listed as open until 14:30 on Sunday — we got there 40 minutes early, only to find the door closed. We were pretty annoyed, especially since we'd planned the stop specifically around it. We grabbed a quick bite on the go at Wrap Eat, by then tired, hungry, and with frazzled kids in the cars.

As a consolation, in Kozani we stumbled onto a real treasure — the Elite patisserie — and gave ourselves over completely to shopping. Ice cream on the spot, and then bag after bag of revani, baklava, assorted sweets, honey, peanut butter, even French macarons. The woman who served us was incredibly kind, explained everything in detail, and spoke excellent English — exactly the kind of person who makes you forget the bad mood from the closed pharmacy.

We arrived in Sandanski late in the evening, and that's when we learned the hard way what a mistake it is not to book a table in advance. We spent close to an hour wandering around town trying to find somewhere that could seat ten people at once. I called around everywhere until finally one place — Davidov — said they had room. We settled in with relief, but it didn't last — the waiter was fairly rude and seemed a bit tipsy too, so we got up and left without even ordering. Finally, thoroughly worn out from the whole day, we found refuge at Amoretti food & drinks, where we were at last able to have a calm dinner.

We spent the night at Park Hotel Victoria 1, in a huge apartment with 3 bedrooms and a hallway, 3 toilets and 2 bathrooms. On paper it sounded like real luxury, but in one of the bathrooms you genuinely couldn't tell whether the water was coming from the shower or the tap — it trickled weakly from both at once. The bed was uncomfortable, and the parking turned out to be a plain unpaved dirt road. Fine for one night, but I wouldn't go back. Overall, we clearly don't have much luck with Sandanski — the town itself is lovely, but our choices for lodging and dining there somehow never quite worked out.

The last day of the drive passed without any surprises. We decided to sweeten our return with a bit of unhealthy food and had lunch at the KFC on the highway — sometimes that's exactly what you need after so many days of Greek cuisine.

Looking back

This was one of the best holidays we've had as a family. I don't remember another time we've felt so genuinely rested — no rushing, no worries, just days following the same calm rhythm of breakfast, beach, and dinner with good company. Ammoudia turned out to be the perfect place for a holiday with small children — the shallow, warm sea let us truly relax on the beach instead of staying constantly on alert, and the town's quiet pace gives it that feeling of a real vacation that's hard to find at more crowded destinations.

The strongest memories turned out to be the small, unexpected moments — the goat chasing our daughter around the farm, the icy water at Acheron, the plate smashing at Dokos, the little train in Parga — it's these things, not the restaurants themselves, that stayed with us longest. And although there were a few disappointments along the way — the odd place we didn't enjoy, or the evening spent circling Sandanski looking for a table — they ended up as small details against the overall feeling that we'd chosen the right destination.

If we're ever in the area again, we'd go back to Ammoudia without a second thought. And if anyone ever asks us where to take small children to the seaside, we already know the answer.